I have decided that it’s time to sit down and write out Owen’s birth story. I enjoyed reading birth stories near the end of my pregnancy so hopefully others will benefit from this. I also want to make sure that I do not forget the details of that day. I had a slightly traumatic experience but it brought my beautiful baby boy into my life so it is something I never want to forget.
Warning: If you are squeamish about bodily fluids, needles, or birth related grossness you may want to skip this post.
Owen’s birth story actually begins on April 28, one day after he was due and two days before he actually arrived. Sometime in the afternoon (I’m not really sure when because I thought I was imagining things), I felt like there was a little more moisture than usual when I would wipe after going to the bathroom. I had read that women often experience increased discharge near the end of pregnancy so I continued about my day. I had my doctor take me out of work the week before due to some blood pressure issues so I just kind of relaxed and talked to my little guy trying to convince him that it was time to come out. At my appointment just the day before my doctor had done an internal and said that she would probably be seeing me for an appointment the next week. As the afternoon became the evening I was not feeling very well so I decided to lie on the couch while David and I watched TV. I was starting to think that the wetness might have something to do with leaking amniotic fluid because every time I would stand up there would be a little gush. However, I was still not 100% convinced. I had googled my symptoms and found the suggestion to wear a pad for an hour. If it was soaked, my amniotic fluid was leaking. If not, it was probably just discharge. I was not soaking a pad an hour. It only happened when I went from laying down to standing up so David and I decided that we should go to bed and see how things were in the morning.
I did not sleep very well that night. I kept having this nagging feeling that I was leaking so I woke up every hour or two to go to the bathroom and check. Around 2 AM, I noticed a little blood when I wiped. I got a little excited knowing this was probably bloody show but I also knew that it could still be a while. I debated calling into the doctor but I was afraid that they would tell me to get checked out and I would be sent home. I really didn’t want to subject my husband to that since it was the middle of the night and could possibly he last night of good sleep for a while. So, I decided that I would call the doctor as soon as they opened in the morning. At that point I tried to go back to sleep.
I was still having trouble sleeping so I decided that I would get up when David did since it also happened to be the day of the royal wedding. Under any other circumstances I probably wouldn’t have watched; however, it was exciting to know that this could also be the day that my baby was born. I was able to doze off for a little while after the wedding. When I woke up, I called the doctor’s office and as I had suspected, they wanted me to come in. My appointment was at 10:45 so I showered, put my bags in the car, and ate some breakfast on the way in. I also called David (who was at work) to tell him that I was going in so that he would keep his phone on him. When I got to the doctor they used a little swab to see if I was indeed leaking amniotic fluid. If it stays yellow there is no amniotic fluid. If it turns blue, there is amniotic fluid.
It turned blue.
My doctor was not the doctor on call so she wanted to talk to the one who was before telling me what to do. The other doctor was in with another patient so my doctor finally told me that she thought I should go over to the hospital which is right across the parking lot. She asked me if I wanted to call my husband but instead I asked if I could go get him. Her jaw pretty much dropped to the floor. Looking back it does seem kind of crazy but I was not having strong contractions, was only about a centimeter dilated, and David only works five minutes down the road. She laughed and told me to go ahead but said that I should not make any more stops. The nurses all congratulated me on my way out and I started to get excited. I called David and told him I was on my way. I then called my mom to let her know that I was going to be admitted to the hospital. She knew that we did not want anyone else there but told me to call if I changed my mind. I quickly (but carefully) drove down the street to pick David up and then we turned back to go to the hospital.
We checked into the hospital at 11:59 AM on April 29.
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