Day 3: C-section factors

First off, I really did not want to have another c-section.  In my last post I shared Elisha's birth story and that we ended up having another c-section (had one with Josiah).  This was not an easy decision to come to but there were factors that Moe and I shared that made us feel like this was the best decision for my situation.  

- Having a previous c-section.  This was a factor for both us and the doctors. They do not give women with previous c-sections Pitocin because this medicine makes the contractions more intense.  In my case they could have helped me progress more but the danger is that they can cause the previous incision to rupture.  So the factor for us here was that even though the doctor was willing to give us a small dosage we were at a 3 and not very confident that a little would do the job to get us to a 10.  We also were concerned with the possibility of rupturing.

- We did not feel pressure by our doctors.  While there  i had 2 doctors and they were amazing - ready to do all in their power to help me have the birth i wanted to have.  Nowadays you hear a lot about doctors who almost force a c-section on their patients but this was not our experience and we truly appreciated that.

- All day with no food.  I had not eaten or drank anything since the previous evening - so not sure where the energy was going to come from to push a baby out.

- The next day was Sept 11 - Josiah's birthday.  If i continued to labor it probably would have been the next day before I had the baby or would have had to have an emergency c-section (like with Josiah - labored for 2 days had emergency c-section the evening of the 2nd day).  Yes, even though this was not at all a deciding factor nor something we discussed - in the back of my mind i did not want our boys to have the same birthday.

Now, do I sometimes wonder what if - i could write a book on the what ifs that I have (more like a wordy pamphlet :) ).  Cause maybe the pitocin would have helped, maybe i should have walked more, maybe maybe maybe.  We believe we made the best decision with the information we had and by the end of the day we had our sweet healthy Elisha to hold in our arms - and thats what was most important.

day 2 - Elisha's Birth Story

Before we get into the thick of how our days are going, i figured it would be a good to share how Elisha came into this world.

On September the 9th I began having contractions so much so that i didn't go to church that day.  They were very random so i knew it wasn't time to go to the hospital but they were painful enough to where i did not want to be in public.  I progress really slow - with Josiah i stayed at a 4 for two days.  At my last doctor appt i was a 2 so i was progressing but figured i should labor at home for a while and do some walking before i even called the doctor.  Around midnight is when the contractions began to come 5 -7 minutes a part and by 3(i think) in the morning we had made our way to the hospital and i was in tears. Why? because after all the pain of the contractions and the walking - i was still at a 2 and the contractions where like bad, like really bad.  Because i was feeling some pain in my previous c-section area they didn't want me to walk anymore just in case i ruptured.

Usually they send people home in my condition with only being at a 2 but because my contractions where regular and my previous c-section they let me stay - Praise God!  They admitted me and gave me meds so i could sleep - Ohhh sweet sleep :).  Another sweet thing at this point is that the doctor on call was the same doctor that took care of me with my miscarriage and i really like her.

To speed this story up - hours later i'm woke, the meds have worn off, and i'm feelin' the contractions and asking (begging and pleading on the inside but trying to keep my desperation in) for an epidural.  But guess what - I'm at a 3 (at some point she broke my water but not sure when and that got me to a 3).  They graciously gave me the epidural and all seemed right with the world until around 3 or 4.  I was still at a three and the doctors talked with us about other options that may help me to progress along but there was some risks.  Moe and I talked about our options, weighed them and decided that I would go ahead and have a c-section - so at 5:01 our sweet Elisha was born and we were thrilled.  He was born Sept 10th the day before Josiah's birthday Sept 11th :).

Tomorrow i will elaborate on what our deciding factors where to go ahead with a c-section.

I'm Back - Full Circle & 31 days

Its amazing!  I'm so grateful!  This time last year i was mourning the miscarriage of our second baby.  Today we celebrate our third child being 3 weeks old.  Yep, 3 weeks ago Elisha was born!  We are now a family of 4, Moe and I are parents of 2 boys - sweet craziness!  So here i am blogging again - it only took me a year :). The plan is to blog everyday this month.  A blog i read at thenester.com put out a challenge for bloggers to do 31 days of something - its where you blog everyday about a particular topic.  So i have decided to blog about how we are adjusting and growing since Elisha entered our world.  The only thing is i'm not sure what to call it .  .  .

31 days of Elisha
31 days of our new day to day
31 days of life as we now know it

see i got nothing that has a ring to it, so for now it will just be 31 days of our lives (corny :)) until i'm hit with a bolt of creativity - hope that happens soon.