The Day My Life Changed Forever...

I know I say this every time I actually update this thing, but it really has been forever! Three weeks ago today, we had our beautiful baby girl :) People have been asking me for the birth story, sooooo here it goes (timeline may be a little off...):

May 27th, 10:00 am: To my disappointment, we were heading to the doctor's office for our final check before Kaelyn was to be born. I had hoped that she was going to be early, but, she is my daughter... and STUBBORN. I had a feeling that I hadn't made any progress from the previous weeks (1cm dilated and 70% effaced), and I was right. Dr. Savage then offered to strip my membranes (separate the amniotic sac from the uterine wall) to try to get labor going, and of course I was all for it!

12:00 pm: Labor begins. It wasn't too bad at this point, but I knew that these weren't just Braxton Hicks.

Around 8pm: Contractions were 2-3 mins apart and strong. It was hard to breathe through some of them. Kevin decided it was time to go to the hospital. I was terrified that they were going to tell me it was false labor and send me home, so I didn't want to go, but we did anyways. We got to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, and they got us all registered and took us to our room. Monitors were applied to see how far apart the contractions were, which were actually 2-3 mins apart. The nursing staff told us they would monitor me for about an hour to see if I was in active labor and progressing (still at 1 cm at this point). Contractions were getting stronger, but I still refused pain medication. I was determined to have this baby naturally!

May 28th around midnight (I think): NO PROGRESS AT ALL. I was still at 1cm... so the doctor decided to send us home. They offered a shot of morphine and phenergan to help me sleep since I was so uncomfortable, and with hesitation, I decided to take it. I barely remember the ride home... reason why I hate pain meds. I'm super sensitive and I feel like I don't have control. I passed out when we got home, but that didn't last long!

ALL MORNING LONG: I kept track of my contractions and they had slowed to 5-6 mins apart. But HOLY HANNAH were they painful! I tried all my relaxation techniques, which helped quite a bit, but I was getting super tired.

1:00pm: Kevin's mom and sister, Sara and Ashley, came over to help with the house and with labor, and by this time, I was in tears. I was so exhausted and it felt like my pelvis was breaking every time a contraction hit. Kevin wanted to go to the hospital again... and I agreed, praying they wouldn't send us home again. We got to the hospital, and all the monitors were placed back on my huge belly. The nurse checked my cervix... still a freaking ONE. I was ticked.

4:00pm: I still hadn't progressed but Dr. Savage decided to admit me. One of her fellow docs came and broke my water to see if that would make things progress any more. I was full on crying at this point. My contractions made me want to jump out of bed... it literally felt like someone was taking a bat to my pelvis. I had been in labor for 28 HOURS with no progress... so I said, "Screw it... GIVE ME THE DRUGS"! Had I been progressing, I would have stuck to my plan for a natural birth, but my hopes were shot and I was too tired to care. The one thing that I absolutely HATED about the epidural, was the uncontrollable "shivers" that I got from it. I wasn't cold, but I was shivering something fierce. Very obnoxious!!!

Sometime in the evening: Dr. Savage wanted to start a pitocin drip to get things going. I really hoped that this would be the thing that got this baby out!

Around 9pm: Things started to move!!! I got to 3cm :) I had developed a fever, so they started me on an antibiotic. Kaelyn's heart rate was starting to decelerate, so they put me on oxygen to get her heart rate back up... which thankfully worked.

May 29th around 2am: 6 cm!!!

3am: 8cm!

4am: 9 and a half!! I was getting ready to have this baby! The nurse got the delivery cart ready and said that I only had a little lip of cervix left to dilate. She said she'd come back in an hour and we'd most likely be able to start pushing. I was BEYOND excited! I had Kevin call my dad so that he could be there for when princess finally came into the world!

5am: A different nurse came in to check my cervix, and I was ready for her to say it was time to get started! Then, the most disappointing thing came out of her mouth... "Looks like you are at about a 5". WHAT?!?!?! HOW THE HECK DID I GO BACKWARDS?!?! I instantly started to bawl. I couldn't do it anymore! I wanted her out!!! Dr. Savage came in to check my cervix, and I was indeed at a 5. She wasn't sure how that happened... It had never happened to her before. She started talking about a c-section... the one thing that I absolutely didn't want. I had seen a couple performed during medic school and it is not a friendly procedure! But, I was so tired and I wanted to hold my baby so badly that I said OK.

Around 6:30am: The nursing staff, anesthesiologist, and my doc wheeled me to the OR. The anesthesiologist dosed me with a higher concentration of meds to get me reallllly numb before the c-section... and the shivers returned. This time was even worse! I absolutely couldn't stand it! The oxygen was still on the whole night, and I was dying of thirst, but I obviously couldn't have anything to drink. They moved me over to the table, put the curtains up, and said that they were getting ready to begin. I was freaking out inside but I didn't want anyone to know it. Then I saw Kevin sitting on a stool next to me... I started to feel better knowing he was there. The doctor poked me to make sure I couldn't feel anything... nope. WHEW. About 5 or so mins later (not sure on the time span... I was kinda out of it), my doc said "ok Brittany, a lot of pressure here".... OH MY GOSH... HERE IT COMES. I knew that they were going to just rip my muscles apart to expose my uterus. I started to feel nauseated... especially since I could smell my flesh burning as they cauterized it. Not a smell that I ever got used to. My doc then told me that in a couple mins, I would be able to see my baby! Then I hear Dr. Savage say, "Whoa, BIG baby"! And then I heard the most beautiful sound in the world... my daughter's cry. I instantly started crying. I couldn't believe she was finally here! They brought her around the curtain so I could see her for a second, and then took her to get her vitals and stats. Kevin went with her which made me feel better, even though I could hear her all the way down the hall. She had a LOUD cry! The nurse came back around the curtain and said, "Are you ready? 9 lbs 10 oz and 20 inches long"! HOLY COW!! No wonder she wasn't coming out the normal way. Her head was stuck against my pelvis... which is probably why it hurt so freaking bad with every contraction.

I found this out later, but there were two other moms in surgery the same time as me. One was hemorrhaging and the other mom coded on the table. The nurses were running in and out of the OR where my dad was standing.... needless to say he was freaking out thinking that one of them was me. Thank heavens it wasn't.

As they stitched me up, all I could think about was how Kaelyn was doing, and getting a drink of water. I was dying! My arms had started to cramp up from the "shivers" so I asked if there was something he could give me to make them stop. Not sure what he gave me, but I don't remember leaving the OR. Next thing I know, I'm waking up to a nurse giving me water and juice. I was so excited! I looked around and panicked a little... where was Kaelyn?!? They said she was with Kevin in the nursery, and they were getting ready to take me to the Mother-Baby room. Kaelyn would meet me in there.

I will never forget holding my baby girl for the first time... she was perfect in every way. I couldn't be happier. I looked over her whole body, making sure she was all there. I checked her fingers to see if she had my pinky, even though I knew it wasn't something genetic. She really was perfect. The rest of the day was a blur... the med that the anesthesiologist gave me to calm the shivers hadn't worn off completely, and I was exhausted from 42 hours of labor (although I guess they could never really say when I was in "active" labor since I wouldn't progress on my own). My world had completely changed, and I couldn't have been happier.

Life as a new mom is quite the adventure... it is hard, tiring, trying, but AMAZING. I couldn't ask for a bigger miracle or blessing to be in my life. Well, now that I have finished my novel on her birth, I am making it a goal to update this more regularly with pics and milestones that this angel reaches.

Oh, and Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband... I couldn't have done all this without him! Love you babe :)

xoxox

Britt