So the long awaited update...
I went to another doctor's appt on Monday afternoon (about 39 1/2 weeks) with plans for Tim to tell the doctor that I would NOT be pregnant past my due date. We're too far from a hospital and Shurtliff's have a history of making big babies... not a great combination of factors. Then SHE walked in. I had seen this nurse practitioner one other time and I don't know what it is about her, but I don't like her. Apparently I wasn't going to get to see my doctor, which is odd, considering how far along I was. This was frustrating, and we didn't do a very good job of hiding our dislike, especially after she told us I wasn't progressing at all. Tim explained our reasons for wanting to schedule an induction and she blew us off; she told us that we needed to reschedule and come back in a few days later to meet with the doctor. Umm yeah, that was the plan for that appointment, I thought?
Several bucketfuls later, and possibly on the verge of dehydration, I accepted my fate: I was going to be pregnant for the rest of my life.
After picking up my mom, Anna, and Brooklyn from the park, we went to do some grocery shopping, and went to see Toy Story 3. I should also mention that we picked up some castor oil. :) This was the crucial turning point of the day.
Late that night when we finally got home and Anna and Brooklyn were in bed, Tim, my mom, and I sat at the table a played a few rounds of Canasta while I had a staredown with the castor oil. To take it or not to take it? Everybody I had talked to told me how awful it was. But really, how bad could it be? Tim took a taste and assured me there was nothing to worry about, so he mixed an ounce of it into a cup with some apricot kearns juice. Talk about appetizing. There's nothing quite like a glass full of juice with an inch of oil floating on top. I tried, I really did, and eventually the glass was empty. It only took an hour, a long straw, and a bite of strawberry after every sip. (By the way, an ounce of this stuff is A LOT. 2 tablespoons to be exact...). Unfortunately, I had been told that I needed to take TWO ounces. I couldn't do it. I could only stomach one more tablespoon. Tim graciously made me half of a peanut butter and honey sandwich with another tablespoon of oil on it. I thought with the oily peanut butter it would all blend nicely. It was a mess-- BUT, easier than the drink.
Gag. I still have a hard time thinking about it.
A few hours later I woke up with contractions. Great news right? That meant a baby was on the way! After contractions for an hour we headed to the hospital. They weren't bad, but I had no idea what was going to happen on the 2 hour ride to the hospital. We waited in triage from 5 am until 10, when they finally decided to admit me. I wasn't progressing at all, but my doctor was too nervous to make me go so far away from the hospital with the contractions I was having. They were right on top of each other, but still, not too painful. He admitted me after making me feel like an idiot for taking the castor oil. "It's really dangerous to take that... it's just a wive's tale anyways... we would have induced you later this week so you would have gotten your way anyways..." etc, etc, etc.
Isn't it funny how doctor's all say castor oil is just a wive's tale? But everyone else swears by it? My doctor seemed most concerned that he would be "skunk sprayed" when I actually delivered the baby... Trivial... as if he hasn't seen worse. At this point, Tim was encouraging me to do the best skunk spray I could.
I was started on pitocin soon after being admitted, and slowly the dosage went up as the hours went on and on. Still, not much progress. Later that evening I got the epidural, but I felt a little dumb doing that because the contractions still weren't that bad. I had a great nurse that reassured me that I did not have to be in so much pain I was writhing on the bed and in tears before getting the epidural. (Wish someone told me that when I was in labor with Brooklyn...)
Finally, around 1 am, I maxed out on the amount of pitocin they could give me, but I was still only dilated to a 4. They decided they had to stop the drugs and give my body a break for a few hours. Apparently this was to "clean the drugs out" so they could start the pitocin again.
There we were. 24 hours after leaving for the hospital: several miles paced through the hallways, no food, an epidural, and stuck on a "bed" for who knew how long. To top it off, no baby. It was really depressing.
So I took the drug break. A few hours later they started the pitocin again, after informing me that my body had completely stopped having contractions after the pitocin was turned off. And yes, I was still at a 4.
Again we return to the original question. Castor oil: myth or not? It definitely started the contractions, but apparently didn't do enough in combination with the pitocin to bring a baby.
About five hours after being on the pitocin I was in a lot of pain. My back and stomach hurt like I couldn't imagine. Hey, what happened to the epidural? I called the nurse and she promised to check me within the hour. Mental flashbacks as I writhed in pain on the bed and could do nothing but cry. Finally she came to check me and said with surprise, "Wow, you're almost complete". The doctor came in and told her that I WAS complete and that we could start pushing. Push, push, push... you get the idea. The doctor came back in to check and was told that I had been pushing but that I, "wasn't very good at it." Whew, thanks for the inspiring and motivating thoughts...
All it took was the doctor helping me push and encouraging me for me to pop Lydia out. That is of course, not literal, babies clearly don't just pop out. Apparently her arm came out with her head, and it was an extreme case of shoulder distortia, but the doctor hid her concern well. It wasn't until later that I learned how serious the situation was. I was informed by my doctor later (not the doctor that delivered) that I would strongly be recommended to have c-sections for all future babies because of the chance of re-occurrence of the shoulder distortia. I'll have to do some checking/researching about that. The whole thing sounds shady... Any thoughts?
36 hours later, and we had a baby!!! Lydia was born June 30th at 11:41 am, just in time for lunch. She was 8 lbs and 10 oz. and was 20 3/4 inches long. She came with blond/brown hair, a loud cry, and a voracious appetite.
My mom brought Aunt Anna and Brooklyn up to the hospital and it was awesome to see Brooklyn with Lydia for the first time. Brooklyn is so excited to be a big sister.
*sidenote: Another funny comment from my doctor- "It's a good thing you had this baby when you did! She would have been way too big for you!" Thank you, castor oil.
