today I was sitting at the doctor’s office with tears in my eyes because at 40 weeks 5 days I was sill only barely 1 cm dilated, my cervix was still back and barely soft… not what you want to hear when you are 5 days overdue… We had the great task of deciding if we wanted to induce or just wait it out. I was so torn, because I was so done being pregnant, didn’t want to mess with crossing the border again, unpacking the car again, and wanted as much time with Gramzi and Lydia as possible, but I also didn’t want to induce when my body didn’t seem ready at.all. and not to mention the induction could take up to 3 days to take effect… sigh.

last pic with Gramzi and the bump…

Our doctor sent us to do an NST (non-stress test) to check how Lydia’s heartbeat was and to make the decision. So we headed to the monitor and discussed what we should do. Within about 15 minutes they started to see some decelerations in Lydia’s heartbeat with contractions, so the doctor looked at her charts and decided to go ahead and order the induction- he said better safe than sorry and that he would like to keep an eye on her heartbeat as contractions got more intense- I was so relieved that we didn’t have to make the decision, overwhelmed because we were going to get to meet our baby girl within the next 3 days, and worried because of the declarations… but was ready to get the process started- resting in the fact that she was in good hands.

yes I had my “guns up”- just felt appropriate! 

So next thing I knew they got me a wheelchair (a little much, since I wasn’t in labor and was perfectly capable of walking) and took me to the labor and delivery ward! We were set up in the “pre-labor” cubical- think triage in the ER with 3 other women behind curtains waiting to go into active labor right next to me. This is where we hung out for the next 10 hours!

hanging out in the cubicle 

They gave me a suppository of pitocin at 1:45pm to help ripen my cervix- which they said could be done 3 times within 24 hours of each other before they would start the drip pitocin! Meaning I could have still been sitting in that tiny cubical of a room for 3 days before my body was ready to go into labor- holy moly I did not want to do that… but there was absolutely nothing I could do about it… so after being hooked up to the monitor for 2 hours- her heart showed no signs of decelerations this time- praise the Lord- we went for a walk for an hour or so to try and move her down. In the meantime my dear nurse midwife friend Vic showed up to be my doula and help communicate between the nurses for me- what a blessing she was! I am so thankful she was able to be part of my labor process, it really gave me a peace of mind to know that she was an extra set of knowledgeable eyes making sure Lydia’s heart was good and things were progressing the way they should.

I requested a birthing (exercise) ball to sit on while we waited because I was starting to feel more uncomfortable- funny thing was the nurses were super concerned that I would fall off the ball- so they kept telling me to hold on to Chase or a chair…they would have preferred that I stay in the room with the ball, but I assured them I would be fine and had been taught how to use it… they were like “oh yeah she is American- they know how to use them!” ha so funny what reputations different cultures have- I am pretty sure a local would never request to sit on a ball. But let me tell you I highly recommend the birthing ball for labor- it was my favorite position to labor in.

my new best friend… the birthing ball

Around 9:30pm we decided to have Chili’s delivered to the hospital for dinner (yes they have Chili’s here!) I wanted to eat something spicy to see if it would help move things along… so for the first time I think ever, I order hot wings from Chili’s! They tasted super good and low and behold after we got done eating I starting having 3-4 contractions within 10 minutes! Those wings had to have done something 🙂

When we returned to our cubicle to be monitored again they had taken away my monitor for someone else, so they decided to go ahead and move me to the L&D room! Yey, we had been upgraded!! This was around 11 pm. This room was much better. I was still not concerned to be in “active labor” as I was still only 1-2 cm! Ahhh… so we decided to just relax and wait for my body to do its thing…

finally in L&D with two of my nurses 

Labor story to be continued…

(it was a 30 hour process, therefore it needs more than one post!)

“The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.” Psalm 28:7