The Birth of William Rye
Our first baby turned 3 this week which is wild. He surprised us three weeks early when my water broke exactly at 37 weeks, premature rupture of membranes or PROM. One minute I'm chatting with a friend in my garage and the next I have to say "sorry to interrupt but I think my water just broke" as amniotic fluid is running down my legs. When I called my midwife team their first question was "Are you sure?" I guess they weren't expecting it either!
It was 7pm, my midwife and doula suggested I try to get some sleep as contractions would most likely start on their own in the next six hours. Of course, sleep was hard to come by, I kept googling "when will my contractions start," as I never once imagined starting labor this way. Of course, no sleep, and yet contractions never started. The following day my doula came over and we tried all the things to stimulate my contractions such as the Miles Circuit, homeopathics, herbal remedies, castor oil shots, nipple stimulation, and lots of walking. Finally, after nearly 24 hours, I felt my first contraction.
Since we had been planning a homebirth since the beginning of my pregnancy, I was able to rest and eat as my contractions began to build. I'll never forget the chicken soup my mom brought over, it felt like the most nourishing thing. My contractions sped up quickly, and by midnight my midwife arrived. By early morning I was in the birthing tub and started pushing. My contractions were so strong at this point that I vomited, and felt like I was hallucinating or I was in a dream. I opted to get out of the tub and try pushing on the bed. At this point, I had a cervical exam and my midwife could see our son's hair! She watched as I pushed and noticed that there was a swollen lip of my cervix. As well, Rye's head was at a unique tilt, which together was most likely halting his descent.
I was exhausted. It felt like a bowling ball was pressing against my pelvis, there was so much pressure. We decided to give my body a break and rest as contractions seemed to be slowing down again. The emotions I felt during that downtime were difficult to cope with. Suddenly I felt so lonely even with my husband and care team. I was so exhausted and so defeated.
Fast forward, I'm pushing again, but we're still not seeing any change in his descent. It's been 40 hours since my water broke. The protocol is to get antibiotics to reduce the chances of infection. Additionally, my midwife informs me that if baby isn't born by 48 hours, I will need to transfer to the hospital. I was on a ticking clock.
After talking it all through, my husband and I packed the car and drove up the switchbacks to Flagstaff Medical Center. Triage felt like it took a lifetime with all the questions, hooking me up to IVs, a catheter, and monitors. It honestly felt like they were manhandling me at some point. The difference between our gentle home labor and the hospital felt drastically different (eventually I did have some amazing nurses though).
When we met the OB, she immediately started talking about getting me prepped for a C-section. She said my contractions had slowed and my uterus was "sluggish" at this point. The use of this word pushed me into action, I was not about someone telling me my uterus was sluggish when my body and baby had already done so much work. I knew we could do this. It felt like I was bargaining for the birth I wanted. Eventually, I decided to get an epidural and pitocin as my contractions had slowed and I needed rest. I sometimes think I still experience back pain where the epidural was placed, but it brought immediate pain relief. I could no longer feel anything below my waist which was bizarre. However, it allowed me to drift off into an hour's sleep.
Sleep was just what I needed. Although I couldn't feel ANY contractions when I woke up, the nurses told me I was ready to push. As I pushed, I had to watch the monitor to know when my contractions were happening so I could time my pushing. I pushed for almost 2 hours. I asked for a mirror so I could watch his head crowning. It felt like such a reward to know I was getting closer with each glimpse of his little head.
At 11:55 pm, 53 hours after my waters broke our baby boy was born. It wasn't the birth story I had planned but the relief of him being in my arms was worth everything.
Images by my amazing doula and photographer Nicole Hamic.
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