As many of you already know, our son Logan was born on January 8th at 8:15pm!
I was in labor for about 16 hours and pushed for 2.5 hours. He weighed 7lbs 7oz and was 20 3/4" long (the length is at the 90th percentile)
Some labor details from my perspective:
I started having contractions around 8pm on the 7th, but they were so far apart I didn't realize they were contractions. At 4am on the 8th, I woke up and was pretty sure I was having contractions. I let Kyle sleep 'til 6am, as he would need energy to go the rest of the day. At 7am Kyle called our Doula, Kim. She came over around 8:30, and we sat around the living room chatting the morning away. It was nice to have her there as a distraction in between contractions. We left for UNM Hospital a little after 11am. I spent the day going from the bath tub to the exercise ball, the bed, the birthing stool, the squat bar, whatever I thought would help bring Logan into the world.
I have been told that I was quiet and composed during my contractions. According to our Doula's notes, we listened to our Blissborn Meditation disc at around 4pm, but I certainly don't remember that. I do remember constantly repeating "Let go" to myself over and over again. That was supposed to be my meditation trigger.
Sadly my body didn't allow me to push Logan out all on my own; my contractions started to disappear, and I had no energy left. We had some scary moments when they couldn't find Logan's heart rate, and no one seemed to have any thoughts on what the next step should be. At that point Kyle (the best coach ever) and I both felt that an episiotomy was necessary. Our delivering midwife quickly gave me the episiotomy without any medication. The minute that was completed, Logan entered the world. Logan was immediately put on my chest so we could bond, but I was so exhausted by that point that I could barely lift my head to look at him. Luckily I have some photos for my private album to help me recall those precious moments.
Even though we had to have a little help, we managed to achieve our main goal which was a non-medicated birth. I have no doubt that Kyle being by my side non-stop is how I made it through. He knew exactly when we should leave for the hospital, continually supported me emotionally and let me almost break his finger during my hours of pushing (I never had a contraction without his finger in my hand). In short, he was amazing.
As for me, it was my strongest day ever. It took a long time to recover, and I still am not able to run yet, but hopefully soon. I did end up having a pretty funny injury from labor. During the hours of pushing, I was on hands and knees, leaning into an exercise ball on top of the bed. Every time I pushed I would press my face into the ball. Well, at least a week after labor my nose still hurt. Not sure how many women walk away from labor with a sore nose.
Kyle's thoughts about the labor:
Julie summed it up pretty well above, but I have a couple things to add. First, it really was Julie's strongest day. She was awesome. I mean that in the literal sense. I was (and still am) in awe of what she achieved. From the moment she knew she was pregnant, until the moment Logan drew his first breath, Julie did everything she could to ensure that Logan would be as healthy as possible:
She enrolled us in Bradley and meditation classes (the first of which was extremely useful for me, and the second of which was extremely useful for Julie).
She made sure we hired a Doula (which we really didn't need in the end due to our other preparations, but we still appreciated her support).
She read I don't know how many other baby and pregnancy books.
She took great care of herself during the pregnancy.
She somehow made it through the pain of labor without medication. Incredible. (She was calm and quiet during the non-pushing contraction, but not so quiet during the pushing. There were a few choice words uttered at high volume.)
And she made sure I was as ready as I could be, too. Thanks to her efforts, I was ready when the time came, and I'm glad I was able to support her through the labor. January 8th was the most emotionally fulfilling day of my life, by far. I only wish I would have been more forceful when trying to get her to eat more during labor. :)
Second, I was a bit disappointed by the hospital staff and Doula. I don't want to be a downer here, but I think I need to mention this. The only negative things I remember from that day were related to the hospital experience. My guess is that because we seemed very prepared (which we were) and in control (which we were not), that the other labor support people were hesitant to suggest things to us and/or offer their opinions. I wish they would have, especially toward the end. But that's a very minor complaint. We have a perfect little baby boy, and I have a wonderful wife whom I love very much. I couldn't be happier. Literally. :)
I was in labor for about 16 hours and pushed for 2.5 hours. He weighed 7lbs 7oz and was 20 3/4" long (the length is at the 90th percentile)
Some labor details from my perspective:
I started having contractions around 8pm on the 7th, but they were so far apart I didn't realize they were contractions. At 4am on the 8th, I woke up and was pretty sure I was having contractions. I let Kyle sleep 'til 6am, as he would need energy to go the rest of the day. At 7am Kyle called our Doula, Kim. She came over around 8:30, and we sat around the living room chatting the morning away. It was nice to have her there as a distraction in between contractions. We left for UNM Hospital a little after 11am. I spent the day going from the bath tub to the exercise ball, the bed, the birthing stool, the squat bar, whatever I thought would help bring Logan into the world.
I have been told that I was quiet and composed during my contractions. According to our Doula's notes, we listened to our Blissborn Meditation disc at around 4pm, but I certainly don't remember that. I do remember constantly repeating "Let go" to myself over and over again. That was supposed to be my meditation trigger.
Sadly my body didn't allow me to push Logan out all on my own; my contractions started to disappear, and I had no energy left. We had some scary moments when they couldn't find Logan's heart rate, and no one seemed to have any thoughts on what the next step should be. At that point Kyle (the best coach ever) and I both felt that an episiotomy was necessary. Our delivering midwife quickly gave me the episiotomy without any medication. The minute that was completed, Logan entered the world. Logan was immediately put on my chest so we could bond, but I was so exhausted by that point that I could barely lift my head to look at him. Luckily I have some photos for my private album to help me recall those precious moments.
Even though we had to have a little help, we managed to achieve our main goal which was a non-medicated birth. I have no doubt that Kyle being by my side non-stop is how I made it through. He knew exactly when we should leave for the hospital, continually supported me emotionally and let me almost break his finger during my hours of pushing (I never had a contraction without his finger in my hand). In short, he was amazing.
As for me, it was my strongest day ever. It took a long time to recover, and I still am not able to run yet, but hopefully soon. I did end up having a pretty funny injury from labor. During the hours of pushing, I was on hands and knees, leaning into an exercise ball on top of the bed. Every time I pushed I would press my face into the ball. Well, at least a week after labor my nose still hurt. Not sure how many women walk away from labor with a sore nose.
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| Grandma Neel and Logan right after birth. |
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| February 9th |
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| This photo was taken on December 30th. I can't take credit for the idea. |
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| Sadly we didn't get around to taking this photo till 2/18. Logan was already much larger than he was at birth. Oh well. |
Julie summed it up pretty well above, but I have a couple things to add. First, it really was Julie's strongest day. She was awesome. I mean that in the literal sense. I was (and still am) in awe of what she achieved. From the moment she knew she was pregnant, until the moment Logan drew his first breath, Julie did everything she could to ensure that Logan would be as healthy as possible:
She enrolled us in Bradley and meditation classes (the first of which was extremely useful for me, and the second of which was extremely useful for Julie).
She made sure we hired a Doula (which we really didn't need in the end due to our other preparations, but we still appreciated her support).
She read I don't know how many other baby and pregnancy books.
She took great care of herself during the pregnancy.
She somehow made it through the pain of labor without medication. Incredible. (She was calm and quiet during the non-pushing contraction, but not so quiet during the pushing. There were a few choice words uttered at high volume.)
And she made sure I was as ready as I could be, too. Thanks to her efforts, I was ready when the time came, and I'm glad I was able to support her through the labor. January 8th was the most emotionally fulfilling day of my life, by far. I only wish I would have been more forceful when trying to get her to eat more during labor. :)
Second, I was a bit disappointed by the hospital staff and Doula. I don't want to be a downer here, but I think I need to mention this. The only negative things I remember from that day were related to the hospital experience. My guess is that because we seemed very prepared (which we were) and in control (which we were not), that the other labor support people were hesitant to suggest things to us and/or offer their opinions. I wish they would have, especially toward the end. But that's a very minor complaint. We have a perfect little baby boy, and I have a wonderful wife whom I love very much. I couldn't be happier. Literally. :)
Another test thanks to Sarah:
ReplyDelete"Wow...what a story! You are a strong woman Julie! I absolutely love the photo of you and Logan together above...such a special bonding moment!"