Ever since giving birth to my son, I’ve been curious to hear other women’s birth stories. I suppose it is like soldiers telling war stories. There is a need for camaraderie from other women who’ve been through the laborious process. You don’t really get how incredible birth is until you experience it. And each birth story is so unique that I always learn something new each time I hear one. So, for those who are genuinely curious or for those who are into sci-fi (what’s more surreal than one human being emerging from another?), here is the birth story of my beautiful daughter, Marlo Marie Friedman, born January 21, 2012.
I was scheduled to be induced on Friday, January 20th. My OBGYN, the great and very magical Dr. David Finke, believed that I’d have the best chance of not having repeat c-section if I gave birth a few days before my actual due date. The day was pretty mellow although I knew I was feeling different. I was pretty sure I had started labor late Thursday night. I was feeling very mild contractions and just general discomfort all day. The induction wasn’t scheduled until 10 pm so Joe and I got dinner with Liam and put him to bed before we left for the Cedars.
After being hooked up to the contraction monitor, I found out that I was having contractions about every 6 minutes. I was thrilled to hear this because that meant that baby was ready to come on out despite the scheduled induction. Dr. Finke arrived to put the foley balloon in me. This would get me more dilated, but there is no use of drugs or medication so it’s very safe for baby and mom. Let me just say, “Ouch!” I’ll spare you the details; anyone who really wants to know more can Google it – not pretty and not comfortable. The foley balloon did its job quickly and I was having contractions every 3 minutes and was 4 centimeters dilated by 7 am on Saturday. At this point my contractions slowed down a bit so my nurse gave me a little pitocin to keep the contractions regular.
Things were going great! Joe and I were working through the contractions. I was in complete control. I had to be hooked up to the fetal monitor because of my prior c-section and wanted to be put on remote monitoring. Cedars has remote monitoring which means mothers can be monitored but still walk around the maternity floor. Basically, it allows for more mobility. Unfortunately, all the remote monitors were broken, so I had to be pretty creative with the 3 feet of walking room around my hospital bed. Carly, my nurse, was a rock star. She was supportive of me having a natural birth and said that I was progressing so well that there was certainly no need for a repeat c-section and that I could make it through labor naturally without pain meds or an epidural if I wanted. Carly even brought in a midwife to assist since we were planning for the natural birth.
By far, the best part of labor was having a 30 minute hot bath. By the time I went into the bath I was about 7 centimeters and was not feeling so hot. The water was incredible. My pain went from a level 9 to a level 4 is minutes. I swear I could have stayed in that bath all day.
My labor started to drastically change after reaching 7 centimeters. I was no longer progressing. I stayed at 7 centimeters for 5 hours! Amy, our mid-wife, and Dr. Finke confirmed that Marlo’s head was lodged in a position that was no allowing her to move down the birth canal fully; thus, I was no longer dilating. After so many hours of not progressing, Marlo was showing signs of distress. So my doctor said that we would have to go in for another c-section. Joe and I were quite surprised since everything had been going so well with the labor and Carly assured us that we were out of the woods in regards to surgery. Dr. Finke was even surprised, but 5 hours with no progress at 7 centimeters and signs of distress were very clear signs pointing towards c-section. I was less disappointed than I had thought I would be since I knew going into this birth that there was always a chance of having another c-section. I didn’t want that type of birth, but ultimately, I wanted a healthy baby.
Dr. Finke said he would be back for surgery in an hour. In that hour we prepared. I got an epidural and Joe packed up all the bags in our room. When Dr. Finke came back, before we signed on the dotted lines for the c-section, he checked me again to see if Marlo’s head had turned (just in case a miracle had occurred). The expression on his face was priceless – a look of curiosity to a look of amazement. Marlo had turned! And I was at 9 centimeters! Dr. Finke didn’t want to wait any longer so he told me to start pushing. Just like that! Joe and weren’t even prepared! I couldn’t believe I was being told to push when I thought I was being wheeled back in to surgery! I’ve never been that more physically determined in my entire life. With each push I knew I would meet my little girl and it was thrilling. I got to touch her head as it crowned – such an incredible feeling – highly recommend it for other birthing moms out there! And when I first set eyes on her I was immediately in love. I remember when I first saw Liam and I knew that it was truly love at first sight. It was the same with Marlo. I remember being little and hearing about love at first sight, but never being told that love at first sight only happens when you see your child for the first time. She was perfect; she is perfect.
I love my husband dearly, but I could not have made it through those 22 hours of labor without my nurse Carly, our mid-wife Amy, and Dr. Finke. Several of the nurses told me that I was lucky to have Dr. Finke because most doctors would not have let me labor that long with no progress and would not have let me push at 9 centimeters. So, yes, Dr, Finke is magical and I am completely grateful that he gave Marlo her time to tell her birth story.
