Payton's Grand Entrance

It has taken me a while to write this post. Mostly because during the fall I was taking 21 credits and I had a baby, and now I am taking 18 credits...and I still have a baby. Free time is hard to come by these days! That being said, I am so blessed to be a mother and have the opportunity to go to school. It is hard work, but 100% fulfilling. 

So, I bet you are all just DYING to know the story behind little Payton's arrival into this world. Here it is:

Monday 10/12/15- Cam has the day off and we decide to do some spring cleaning. Payton isn't due for another two weeks, but we want to get some stuff done anyways. After taking stuff to the dump, the storage unit and D.I. we return home just absolutely POOPED! I comment to Cam that my big belly is hurting a bit and I may have overworked myself just a little...after all I am 8 and a half months pregnant. Cam hits the hay and I do some homework, all the while feeling increasingly more WEIRD. (that is literally the only way I can describe it, just plain WEIRD) Around 2 a.m. I start having some concerning symptoms (not contractions) and Cam and I decide to get me checked out to make sure that everything is okay. 

Tuesday 10/13/15- So it is like 3 a.m. and we head to Labor and Delivery to make sure Payton is okay. They hook me up to those fancy shmancy monitors and we just sit there. The nurse comes in a little while later and asks, "How are you doing through those contractions?"  "Oh I'm not having any." "Yes you are, they are about 4 minutes apart." I finally figure out that the contortions in my belly aren't Payton doing flips, but "contractions". They didn't hurt at all! We find out I am dilated to a 5 and ultimately decide to return home so I can either progress or stall in the comfort of my house. (and with my cat) We get home around 5 a.m., and Cam heads to work. (poor guy) In all honesty, I never once felt pain in my stomach...rather, I felt it in other places, but boy did it get rough! As Cam is at work I try to keep calm, taking warm baths, relaxing, watching episodes of "Hey Arnold!" and "Gilmore Girls". I don't eat much because I am just not that hungry. Cam gets home around 3:00 p.m. and decides that we should time my "contractions". We kind of get bored doing that so we just roam around the house trying to find comfortable positions for me to labor in. I am still not convinced that I am in labor, I keep thinking that it might stop. Oh the joys of delivering a baby. By 7:00 p.m. I am exhausted and really ticked off cause I think I have just tinkled myself. I finally buckle and ask Cam if we can go to the hospital. 

We get there, get hooked up and wait. My contractions are about 3 minutes apart and I am dilated to a six. The nurse comes in and announces that I am at a 7+! (I made progress in like a half hour!) We call our family and announce that Payton will be arriving soon! We get me into my delivery room hooked up, and find out that I am at an 8! It is about 9:00 and labor is in full swing. We do some laps around the hospital, and I lean up against the wall each time a contraction hits. We make our way to the waiting room to chat with the fam, then back to the room to be monitored. An hour goes by and then I get checked. I am an 8. Another hour goes by and I get checked. I am an 8. 6 more hours go by and I am still at an 8. 

Walking the halls.

My handsome, loyal hunk.

 Wednesday 10/14/15-  I haven't slept since Sunday night, I have been in labor since early Monday evening and I am exhausted. The doctor tells me that there is a small pocket of water that is blocking Payton from progressing, and if we pop it then labor will progress harder and faster. I admit that I am unable to handle more. The nurse reports that my heart rate is at 160, my body has gone into shock and I have spiked a fever. Payton's heart rate begins to drop. I ask the nurse what my options are and she tells me that I can get a c-section or MAYBE get an epidural to try and calm my body down. Wanting to do a natural birth, but recognizing the urgency of the situation, we decide to first try the epidural. My contractions are two minutes apart, and I am hunching over as the doctor puts in the epidural. I lay back in bed and try to recover. 

Getting ready for the epidural.

The epidural kicks in. SWEET RELIEF OH MY GOSH. My body goes numb and I just relish the moment. They administer some pitocin to help my labor progress. My contractions are so fast and so hard that they stop the pitocin. Although the pitocin is stopped, my contractions continue coming fast and hard. My heart rate is still in the 160s, fever is still high and my body is still in shock. The nurse asks everyone to leave my room so I can relax. Cam stays, and we nap. 

The doctor has a room prepped for a c-section, which we have no idea about, and the nurse comes back. I am fully dilated. She tells me that we are going to try some practice pushes (even though the c-section room is prepped...which we still don't know about). Our little group comes back in and we get ready to do some practice pushes. It is 11:45 a.m. and I start pushing.

Practice Pushes

Blacked out

Payton arrives.

 My body goes into full shock and I black out between pushes. We rest for a while, and then push again. "OH MY GOSH! SHE'S CROWNING!" The nurse yells to the other nurses to get the doctor. He's in the next room delivering some lady's sixth baby which is supposed to go super fast. It felt like an eternity. The nurse is holding Payton's head and trying to keep her in. The NICU team is ready and waiting for her arrival. FINALLY, the doctor rushes into the room, puts on his gown and gloves and the nurse removes her hand and the doctor catches Payton. It is 12:08 p.m. They let me hold her for a brief moment before taking her up to the NICU. The only thing that can compare to the elation I felt seeing her face for the first time is when Cam and I made promises to each other on our wedding day. 

Although Payton was quite sick when she was born, she progressed quickly and we were able to return home as a family a few days later. 

My girl. 

Our new family!

During this whole process I used my hypnobirthing techniques. One of the affirmtions I used was, "I will calmly face whatever turn my birthing may take." Although Payton's delivery wasn't how I HOPED, the relaxation techniques I learned through the Hypnobirthing program kept me calm, strong and in control. I don't feel like I failed because I had an epidural, quite the contrary! I endured a 36 hour labor and I never once lost control of myself. I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl and I couldn't feel more proud of myself. I didn't know how strong I could be, and that is what Hypnobirthing does. It enables women to do a seemingly impossible task with grace and strength. 

Throughout this whole process of pregnancy, labor and delivery I have felt empowered. I have felt as if I have truly engaged in something divine and I know that it was only through the Divine that I had the privilege of doing so. I couldn't feel more honored or blessed to have carried, bore, and care for my sweet Payton. 

Love,

Aubs

P.S. For more info about Hypnobirthing contact me via Facebook!