Emmeline Marca Merrell
August 2, 2016
6:53 pm
7 lbs, 4 oz 20.5 in
To give a brief summary of my pregnancy with Emmeline, it was a healthy, normal pregnancy with no surprises. I did feel more morning sickness this time, which was completely unexpected and pretty annoying.
The end of Emmeline's pregnancy was challenging. I really wish there was a way to skip the last three weeks of pregnancy. I almost thought I would when I had a bout of false labor at 37 weeks. (Such a nasty trick of mother nature.) Instead of delivering the baby, I was sent home from the hospital with a deep, burning desire to go into labor. Like my pregnancy with McKenzie, I ended up dealing with TONS of Braxton-Hicks contractions, that helped me dilate and efface nicely, but never actually turned into true labor.
I was induced to deliver McKenzie at 41 weeks. My body was so very ready, and the delivery went smoothly and fast. She was delivered just 2 hours after starting pitocin. Her birth was an amazing experience that I would be happy to repeat. Because that induction was such a wonderful experience I decided that if I hadn't delivered Emmeline by 40 weeks I would schedule an induction. Of course 39 weeks came and I was dying to have the baby. My cervix was really ripe and ready, so we went ahead and scheduled the induction for the day before I was due.
The morning of August 2nd arrived, and I was very excited to head to the hospital. The great thing about an induction is going in without any pain or urgent rush. It was a peaceful morning. This was taken on the way into the hospital.
I arrived at 7:30 am and began filling out paperwork. I started to get settled into a room, but then I noticed blood on the toilet seat. YUCK! So, they moved me to another room, which also hadn't been cleaned properly. Someone in the nighttime cleaning crew apparently hadn't been doing their job very well. Our nurse was very upset about it, and I'm grateful they took it seriously. After the first room was cleaned I went back in there and got settled. At 9:15 am we FINALLY started the pitocin. GAME ON.
It didn't take much pitocin to start regular contractions. By 11 am labor was in full swing. Look at those beautiful contractions!
Labor was progressing well. With the contractions becoming more intense, I decided to enlist the greatest source of help during my other deliveries: the birth pool. Seriously, hydrotherapy is THE BEST if you're going the no-epidural route.
I got in the water around 12 pm and immediately the contractions began to slow. It was so frustrating! At 12:30 pm we increased the pitocin to compensate, but it wasn't helpful. I could hardly feel the contractions at this point. At 1 pm I got out of the water and we increased the pitocin again.
It seemed as if all the work I had done up to this point had been reversed and I was starting all over again. For the next hour or so I walked laps around the unit, trying to get labor started again. At 2 pm the pitocin was increased and the contractions were getting more intense, finally! I noticed that when I went to the bathroom and sat on the toilet I could REALLY feel the contractions. I think that position was helpful in moving the baby down. So, I did as much toilet-sitting as I could tolerate. It started to become more difficult, so I attempted the birth pool again.
Meanwhile, this is what men do during labor. He gets to eat hamburgers and relax while I'm in the water doing all the work. So unfair...
Okay, in reality Caleb is an awesome, supportive birth partner/coach. At this point I could handle the contractions just fine on my own, so we thought it would be a good time for him to eat before I needed his full attention. I think this part of labor is hard for men because it's so boring. So much waiting and not much to do.
Around 4 pm labor was becoming more and more difficult. I had to concentrate and breathe through every contraction. The midwife checked my cervix, and I was 6 cm dilated. The baby was still high at station -1 or -2. (That's pretty high considering all the laboring I'd been doing.) It was 4:45 pm, and I decided I wanted my water broken to help move the baby down and hopefully get her out.
Having my membranes ruptured did seem to help. Contractions became VERY intense. By 6 pm I began to lose control of my concentration. I was getting discouraged and started thinking I couldn't do it anymore. We tried different positions on the bed, on the birthing ball, and in the water, but I was still struggling.
At 6:45 pm I had them check my cervix again. I had to be close! Unfortunately, I was only 7 cm dilated and the baby was still high at -1 station. I was so sad, I wanted to cry. I was frustrated mostly due to all the high expectations McKenzie's delivery left. Her's was so fast, so easy! Why was this one so long and so painful? Why wouldn't this baby move down?!
As I mentioned earlier, Caleb was awesome labor support for me. He did counter pressure to alleviate some of the pain and was attentive to my discomfort. I think he'd make a great Doula. :)
Right after the cervical exam, I asked if I could get in the water again. My midwife consented, thinking I still had at least another hour before delivery due to Emmeline's high position.
I got in the water and immediately felt relief.
Then came the contraction to beat all contractions. This was a monster, scream-like-I'm-dying kind of contraction. It started out like all the rest, but then I could feel the baby move from her high position all the way to crowning. I did the transition period of labor, from 7 to 10 cm, all in a single moment. It was intensity like I've never felt before.
So, I screamed out, "I'm pushing!!"
That quickly got everyone's attention. At this particular hospital, they DO NOT allow you to deliver in the water. It took a very long time for the midwives to convince the hospital to allow the birthing pool for labor relief. Because of one "accidental" water delivery the birthing pool was almost taken away and the midwives were given strict instruction that a water birth wasn't to happen again. So, when I screamed that I was pushing and was still in the water the midwife and the nurses were VERY insistent that I get out.
I thought they were crazy. Didn't they hear what I just said? I'm pushing this baby out NOW. There's no moving , no getting out of the tub. I refused, but they kept on insisting. My midwife, in a very stern voice said, "Maureen, stand up now." I don't know how I was able to, but I followed her instructions and stood. She put her hands down *you know where* to help support the baby's head that was crowning and then guided me to the step out of the pool. I had to swing my leg over the pool and step down onto the stool outside the pool. It seems like such small, simple movements, but for someone pushing a baby out it was almost impossible. Fortunately, I had lots of hands supporting me and somehow I was able to make it to the bed. I knelt down and held onto the elevated head of the bed and pushed. Just three minutes and two contractions later, at 6:53 pm, Emmeline was born. Here's that magical moment right after delivery.
It was a relief to see a perfect, beautiful little baby girl. Emmeline had the sweetest little whimper that immediately melted my heart.
The picture below was taken as I was delivering the placenta. You can tell by the look on my face that I wasn't too happy about having a picture taken at that moment.
It took a lot longer for my placenta to be delivered this time. It turns out to be bigger than normal. The midwife and nurses were all impressed with it, saying it was a model placenta. The nurse in me thought that was cool, so I had Caleb take a picture. (Sorry to my non-nurse friends who find this disgusting)
Post-delivery was a lot more exhausting than I remember. And I had the post-partum shakes like crazy! Probably because the last few minutes were so intense with how quickly she was delivered. Around 8 pm we were all cleaned up and ready for visitors. Rocky and McKenzie had both been anxiously anticipating the new baby's arrival for months, so they couldn't have been more happy to meet her.
That night I didn't get much sleep, but in the morning I felt refreshed and so happy to no longer be pregnant. Plus, I got to hold my precious little Emmeline.
We were scheduled to be discharged around 7:30 pm. I was excited to go home and be with my family. But, unfortunately they checked Emmeline right before we were leaving and found her bilirubin levels were too high due an incompatibility between our blood. It was so discouraging!
We spent the next four days wrapped in a bili -light blanket in the hospital. It was sad not being able to snuggle my newborn as much as I wanted. It was especially frustrating to find out two days into the treatment that the blanket had been on backward from the beginning, so she hadn't been receiving the full effect of the phototherapy . We probably would have been able to go home sooner had the blanket been applied properly.
While I wish I could have gone home as scheduled, there is silver lining to this extended hospital stay. First, I was able to stay in a private room on the labor and delivery unit with Emmie the entire time. I was discharged, but I still had my own room with a bed and a bathroom. They even delivered meals to me. The only time I was separated from Emmie was when she had her blood drawn. It was truly a blessing to be able to breastfeed and bond with her as much as possible under these circumstances.
The second blessing was the extra time to rest and recover. If I had gone home as planned I know I would have immediately started housework and childcare to my other little ones. My wonderful mother-in-law was staying with us to help, but I know I would have wanted to get up and move. This arrangement in the hospital forced me to rest because I had nothing better to do. While I felt a little stir-crazy after the first day, I was grateful my body had time to recover before venturing home.
Fortunately, we only live about 7 minutes from the hospital, so I was able to have my other little ones visit me daily.
While delivering Emmeline is one of the hardest things I've ever done, I feel privileged to have had that experience. She has brought me closer to heaven and is a reminder of the love Heavenly Father has for each of us.
