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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	Corwyn Richard's Birth StoryBy Kat       I started going to LaLeche League meetings as soon as I found out I was pregnant with Corwyn because I really wanted to be able to nurse this time around. I was really worried about PIH again and at one point my blood pressure started going up and I was really scared but it went back down again. I found a great book (Susun Weed's _Wise Woman's Herbal for the Childbearing Years_) that I added to my stack of pregnancy 'bibles'!      This pregnancy was uneventful (unlike my daughter's...this time I even go to take a class!). I showed my daughter lots of videos and books about siblings and birth. She came with us to the hospital (she was two and a half when Corwyn was born) and stayed in the room until I started screaming. The labor was both easier and harder.      I went into labor on the 18th. My contractions were coming every two minutes and we went to the hospital. The nurse turned out to be someone I'd gone to Sunday School with in high school. I really think that's what slowed things down the first night! They sent me home in the morning when I hadn't progressed any and my contractions were staying at every five minutes with no progress.       My contractions went back up to every two minutes and we went back to the hospital the next day...and got sent home again. The third day we were back at the hospital...again, no progress.      As soon as I hit the LDR floor my contractions would settle down to every five minutes. The fourth day of what my OB called Prodomal labor I had gained another cm of dilation. The fifth day my OB said he was beginning to think my os was rigid. I went home and drank a wine cooler and took a smidge of Lobelia. (I had tried castor oil with *no* effect and sex wasn't helping either!)      At 4 am after taking the lobelia, I suddenly lost my plug. By the time we got to the hospital I was *still* only 4 cm and 70% effaced but the contractions were *much* harder. An hour later, the OB on call told me we were staying. As we were walking the halls while eating some rehydrating popsicles (*excellent* and *much* better than ice chips!), we saw my regular OB coming out of the elevator with a bag in his hand. It turned out that while one of the other doctors was on call for the practice that day, *my* OB was on call for the hospital! We were all very excited.       Two hours after hitting the hospital (for the *last* time!) my OB broke my water and I was at 6 cm. Three hours after that I hit 7-8 cm and everyone went to get coffee etc. I went to the bathroom and then screamed for my husband to get the doctor. He says that I 'flowed' from the bathroom to the bed! All I remember is suddenly being on the bed with my backside facing the door and howling like an animal! The OB hit the door running and pronounced me at 10 cm, let's get this show on the road! I started pushing at 9:45 and the baby was born at 9:56! I had absolutely no meds and was glad of it (I *hate* needles!).      They let Corwyn nurse skin-to-skin within ten minutes of being born. Unfortunately, I had to stay up in the LDR room longer than Corwyn because I ended up having some killer clots! I think that the doc pulled a little too vigorously when delivering the placenta and I'm going to talk to him about that before the next one because he is really very responsive to his patients' needs.       Corwyn went home on time and in great shape. Once again I asked the ped about his slightly short frenulum which she assured me wouldn't interfere with his speech. I kept complaining to her about my sore nipples and his output not being quite right...he was diagnosed with slow weight gain...and then we went to our first post-partum LLL meeting where the leaders took one look and said "there's your problem!". They sent me home with tongue stretching exercises and I called the ped who set up an appointment with an LC and the neonatologist. It was five days before the appointments and by then I had stretched out Corwyn's tongue. The LC pointed out that he also had a high arched palate which was contributing to the problem (my nipples came out looking like Nuks which they shouldn't!!). We spent three weeks retraining his suckling pattern and it was well worth it since he's turned out to be allergic to cow's milk!       At every birth, I learn something more to help with the next one and since we plan one more (and they keep getting better!) I expect my next birth will be close enough to perfect for me! (knock wood!) 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 Ten Birth Stories Index ]