Labor pains

Here’s the thing when I found out that I was pregnant I had my whole pregnancy planned out. The only thing about that is if you read my last blog post then you would know that nothing goes as planned during pregnancy. I had envisioned that I would have a natural birth and that we would keep the placenta attached until after it stops pulsating. (click the name if you want to know some information on why to do that.) Now the day before I was in labor, I was in a bad argument with my boyfriend and was staying with my sister because of it. I had a doctor’s appointment that day and she said I was only a centimeter dilated. We were planning the date for me to be induced but I knew Saturday (which was the next day) would be the day. I don’t know how to explain it I just felt it you know?

Although I wasn’t all that dilated my stomach kept going through light contractions that everyone kept thinking that it was nothing. That night while we were texting each other my boyfriend and I making up around 1 am my all-day all-night contractions grew stronger and stronger. (I know you might be wondering are contractions like period cramps. I am here to tell you at first they are in a way. It has you thinking this might be something you can handle naturally. This feeling, this thought is misleading because they get worse to the point where you see why they act the way they do on tv.) I knew it was time but of course I wanted to be sure. I mean come on who wants to make a pointless trip to the hospital just for them to tell me any day now she’s coming but not today. Ugh how annoying am I right? So, before I knew it 5am rolled around I was making sure my take home bag was all the way together and my contractions were coming at full force. I wanted to cry, fight, yell, kick, and scream all at the same time.

My sister and my brother-in-law didn’t know what was going on and the next thing they knew I was leaned over my bed in so much pain I couldn’t even stand. Cut to going in the hospital my niece instead of getting me a wheelchair made me walk in the elevator (which in her case wasn’t that far but still). We were admitted and while they told me that I wasn’t going through a contraction I should be breathing my back was definitely saying something different that pain was like an ongoing obstacle that my boyfriend had to constantly rub or the pain would come back. I had mentioned that I wanted a natural birth and they were trying to honor that but I knew then when that pain got real, I wanted the drugs. I hold my breath when I am in a lot of pain and because of the pain that I was holding my breath during each contraction I had felt which wasn’t getting my baby any oxygen. So, I had to be given an O² mask which wasn’t fun at all.

My niece and sister were supposed to go to the Bryson Tiller concert and by my doctor thinking that I wasn’t going to have my daughter until 12am the next day I told everyone they could go home. Okay so you know when I mentioned that nothing goes as planned during pregnancy? Well right when my family got off the expressway to go to their homes, she checked me again and we were ready to go. Let me pause my story to tell you one more thing that they don’t tell you about pregnancy and being in labor… It’s okay to be scared during labor. Me, I was TERRIFIED! The whole idea of me pushing a baby out of me was an absolute scary situation but, I had to do it.

I called my family and my best friend and told them get here now. Being that I was in labor for 19 hours and 30 minutes I knew that one thing was for sure and two things were for certain and that was I wanted that baby out of me ASAP. That nurse said to do a practice push and I tried to give it all that I got she had to stop me because she didn’t want to deliver my baby and I wanted my doctor there. My family are die-hard UofL fans now let me tell you what that has to do with this story when my doctor came in, we had the football game on so we all could watch while I was doing the whole pushing thing. Crazy? Yeah, I know so in the midst of me pushing and watching the game at the same time everyone was yelling, “Go! Go! Go!” So, I am thinking that they are talking about me so I’m like oh do I need to push, and my doctor was like no we’re not ready yet they’re talking about the game.

So, in my mind I’m anxious and scared like what are we waiting for well before I knew it my time to shine had come. She told me to push and my mind had tunnel vision thinking get her out. So, I pushed as hard as I could not feeling it because I got the epidural then the next thing that I know she was out after just three pushes. My little girl Aaliyah was in my arms and I was the happiest in the world. I know you hear all those horror stories about pregnancies, and you have all these different feelings about it that might freak you out but once you hold your baby it makes everything all worth it.