By Jason
Sorry for the lack of updates since the quick announcement, Ann and I have been pretty busy with our little Athena Marie. We’re home, the baby is great and Ann is doing well (though still very sore).
I thought I would write a bit about the birth from my perspective, and Ann will write her side of the story later.
Since Ann was being induced there wasn’t any need to rush to the hospital or anything. Ann tells me this is not unusual but based on every movie and TV show I’ve ever seen the typical case is a mad rush followed by a birth in a taxi and/or stuck elevator. Ann’s mom came with us for moral support. The plan was to get the induction started, and then be as mobile as possible- walking, sitting on the exercise ball, etc.
Then the contractions really kicked in. Ann was experiencing a lot of pain and discomfort, and there wasn’t much I could do to help. During a contraction she couldn’t stand anyone touching her or really even talking to her. It got bad enough that she decided to get an epidural.
With the epidural in, Ann could get some rest. The baby’s heart rate was showing some dips on the monitor so they put her on oxygen just in case. Ahan and Julie joined us at this point.
The hardest part after the epidural blocked off the pain was the waiting. For a little while it seemed like we weren’t making any progress, but finally they did an exam and Ann was at 9.5 centimeters.
Ann pushed for a total of 3 hours. This was one of the most intense experiences of my life. My participation was limited to helping hold Ann’s leg back and hold her neck up as she pushed and helping to keep her breathing between pushes, but it was physically and mentally exhausting.
Though she wasn’t in pain, the strain of pushing took an obvious toll on Ann. Ahan and I were amazed to find her dozing off between contractions, only to wake up when the nurse counted down to push again.
We got to a point where the doctor saw that Ann was pushing as strongly as possible, but the baby’s head was just not moving past her pelvis. They took a break and presented a new option: vacuum-assisted delivery. The hope was that they could get a grip on the head and help it maneuver through. The only option left after that point would be a C-section, which we were hoping to avoid if at all possible.
After some setup time they go the vacuum in place and we got ready to push again. Then it was over in a flash – the baby was out, covered in blood and goop. They placed her on Ann’s chest and I cut the umbilical. She didn’t cry or scream, but was amazingly alert and calm, so it was clear she was in good shape after all the strain. They cleaned her up, suctioned her out, got her to cry a bit and then it was back with the two of us.
I’ll never forget the look on Ann’s face when they held up the baby – joy, surprise, and relief. After over 10,000 votes in our online baby naming poll, we had narrowed the list down to three – Cassia, Ada, and Athena. Like her mythical namesake, our Athena was born alert and ready to take on the world.
I have to add one more detail – Ann made her brother promise to get a picture of the placenta. For those of you who haven’t met one in person, it’s not the most photogenic organ in the body (don’t worry, I haven’t posted any of the photos). Add one more thing to the big checklist of things I love about Ann – her medical curiosity in even the most daunting situations.
I have many more photos up on Flickr, please feel free to take a look.