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Main Page Site Index Getting Pregnant Pregnancy Parenting Pregnancy and Parenting Journals Fertility Nutrition Pregnant Moms Morning Sickness Women's Health Child Health	Gavan's Birth Story By Elizabeth Dougherty My due date was August 21, 2001. As time was getting closer, I was getting as anxious as ever. On August 21, I had a doctor's appointment in which I left feeling tired and exhausted. Later in the day I began to feel like I was having menstrual cramps. I just put it off and kept going about my business. At 9 PM I knew that I was having contractions, but they were bearable. I called my labor coach and asked her to meet me at my house. I waited until 4 AM to go to the hospital. Once I was there, the nurses stated that I was only 2 centimeters and to walk for an hour and they'd check me again. So, I walked and they decided to send me home. I wasn't in real labor and they gave me a sleeping pill and sent me home. Once home, I tossed and turned and couldn't sleep. The pain of the contractions really became unbearable and I returned to the hospital at 11 AM. I did all of the normal things to get my labor moving along faster and nothing seemed to be working. At 7 AM on August 23, 2001 I was finally given my epidural and was able to sleep for a few hours. I awoke at about noon and realized that I awoke with pain again. The nurses checked me and I had actually dialated back a centimeter so I wasn't allowed anymore drugs due to the fact that it was slowing my labor down. All of these months, I knew that I wanted an epidural and now I was going to feel the experience of natural childbirth. Later that evening, the topic of having a c-section came up because of how long I had been in labor. This devasted me. I knew that with how long I had labored that I wasn't about to have a c-section. After two and a half hours of pushing, my precious son, Gavan (pronounced Gavin) Dezon was born on August 24 and 4:15 AM (48 hours and 15 minutes after I first went to the hospital) weighing 9 lbs, 4 ozs. It is so true that you don't remember the pain after your child is born. I know that when I was in labor it was the worst pain imaginable. But seeing your child just takes all that away and fills you with the most unbelievable feelings that I've ever experienced. Search the Birth Stories Match All Terms Any Term and show results in Standard Form in Compact Form Hint! Enclose phrases in quotes. For example "home birth" Return to Section 77 Birth Stories