Author: Chow Wilde
2015 Texas Wilde Family
I love to swap labor and delivery stories with others because the experience can be so crazy. My experiences at least, have always been crazy. I just had my third baby last week, the newest member of our cultural hall, and so babies are on my mind. In fact, I just wrote a post about baby names. Well, now I’d like to share about my most recent delivery- which all started with the October Additional Relief Society Meeting for my ward.
October 13th I showed up to the Tuesday relief society meeting with cookies in hand and 34 weeks pregnant. That morning, my doctor that morning who told me to be on light duty. It was a borderline bedrest recommendation. I had two other babies, one born premature at 36 weeks, and the other at 38 weeks. My doctor said it looked like I would again deliver early.
With worries for my baby and eagerness to eat those cookies, I sat down in a circle and the sister in charge of the meeting began a little lesson on service. She, and the other women began a discussion about asking for help and helping one another. They passed out papers and we each wrote out our needs.
I had a lot of needs- given the doctor’s recommendation. With a toddler and preschooler at home, and a husband gone for long hours as a reporter, my house and van were constantly a wreck of undone chores and discarded food or clothes. So I wrote out a litany of chores on my paper.
What happened next? Of course we turned them in and exchanged them. I regretted not holding back some of the undone things in my life. But thankfully, the sister who got mine was not daunted. We chatted about when she could come over and the only day we both had available was November 11th. Almost a month later. We both wrote it in our planner and went on our way.
Well, I was still pregnant on November 11th, the day of service. In fact, I went to the doctor that morning and was told I had about 5 days left of pregnancy, or more. So, at 38 weeks pregnant, my Relief Society sister and I set my house in order. We set up baby stuff, folded laundry, organized a closet, and started picking up branches that had blown down in a recent storm in the yard. It was the last thing on the to-do list, and then my Relief Society sister would head home.
That was about the time that my back started hurting. I went inside and sat down and called my husband, who was at work. I didn’t think it was labor, but I also didn’t want to be home alone and in pain. He agreed to come home and sit with me in case my water broke. But my RS sister would not leave me home alone since I was in pain.
After sitting for a few minutes together and making small chat, I realized the pain was too much for “small chat.” So why not go to the hospital? Even if they sent me home, it was enough pain to at least get checked out.
As we drove to the hospital talking about babies and labor, I still didn’t think I was going to have a baby. I walked into the hospital, said goodbye and thanks to my sister, and got news that still didn’t make me realize that this baby was coming- and quick.
To have a baby, a woman needs to be at a ’10’. I was at a ‘5’. Now, with my other two deliveries, when the doctor checked me I was at an 8 or I was already crowning. So to hear that I was only a ‘5’ made me think that this baby might be born the next day, or if I was lucky before dinnertime (it was 12:30 PM).
I walked over to the delivery room and decided to get an IV with pain meds- my 2nd baby came so fast that I didn’t have any medication. I thought I might go natural again, but I didn’t want to spend hours and hours in labor without medication.
My doctor breezed in, broke my water and said, “Ok. If you want, you can push and you’ll have this baby in 5 minutes.”
I didn’t believe him. Again, my other kiddos were either crowning or I was at an ‘8’. A ‘5’ seemed like nothing. So I opted for an epidural.
Everyone spurred out for a moment and my husband gave me a quick priesthood blessing (I just remember being blessed with bravery).
People hurried back into the room, I got an epidural, and I turned around on the bed and began pushing- I didn’t even lay back on the bed before the pushing began.
Push 1- came and went and still no baby. I thought this proved me right.
Push 2- the nurse to my left asked if I wanted to feel the baby’s hair/head. I didn’t believe her and said no. Then I asked my doctor some unrelated question (again, thinking we had time to chat about work loads of a doctor and a lawyer- because this baby wasn’t going to be born for another 5 hours, right?)
Push 3– Nope, we were too busy chatting, I missed the opportunity to push. No big deal, I’ve got time.
Push 3- Baby is born. I was shocked! Why did I bother with that epidural? How did I go from ‘5’ to having a son, a son!– in such a short time. I was happy, surprised, and still had a lot of energy.
We finished things up in the delivery room and as we walked into the recovery room, my Relief Society sister was our first visitor. She was just as surprised as my husband and I were that we had our baby by so quick.
First Visitor- my fellow ward member and my super Relief Society sister that drove me to the hospital
Had she not been there, who knows what would’ve happened that morning when I apparently went into labor. I could’ve delivered my own baby. And even though things went fast… I’m really glad that I went to that Relief Society Activity and set things up so I wasn’t home alone… and that I got all my baby stuff set up before my baby came!
Our little guy in Sunday School- 5 days old