Stella's due date was February 11th. On February 5th, 2003 just after midnight, my water broke. Soon after the contractions began. My husband, Ed and I got together everything we had prepared for the big day. I nestled into my home office to send off a few key e-mails and faxes to clients, letting them know that Stella was on her way. We called Aszani. She had us monitor the contractions and we were to call her when they were 3 minutes apart, that would be the time to head into the Birth Center. Ed woke up our older daughter Sam and at about 2:30am we hit the mark. The contractions were close enough that we headed into the Birth Center.
The lights were low, the birth room soft and cozy. The midwives assessed us and made us comfortable right away when we arrived. My husband turned on some relaxing music and we all reminisced about our expectations and all the months of waiting. We were all so excited. Soon, I got into the whirlpool to relax and work through the contractions. Ed was by my side helping me through contractions.
Other than the exam when I came in, the midwives did not check my cervix because membranes were ruptured and they wanted to avoid infection. The next time I was examined, the baby was found to be breech. Aszani recommended we transfer to Meriter because a cesarean section was probably necessary. She described that Stella most likely was in a frank breach presentation. This means that she was folded like a jack-knife, with her legs straight and her toes at her head. We summoned the ambulance to take us to Meriter. I got up and walked to meet them, much to the paramedic's surprise. During this entire time, Stella and I were medically doing well.
I was assessed by the physicians and nurses at Meriter. At this point, I needed relief with medication. The last 15 hours I never felt the need for medication. I was hoping for a natural birth, but now it was inevitable that the C-section was going to happen, the contractions would not stop and I needed relief. They prepped me for the operating room. Aszani and Ed were by my side for support. Stella arrived at 4:15pm on Wednesday, February 5th, 2003. She was beautiful.
I was taken to the recovery room after the procedure. Aszani was by my side and immediately had Stella breast-feeding. Stella suckled for over 45 minutes.
My recovery went very well. I spent 3 days in the hospital. And many weeks at home recovering and learning to be a good mother. Aszani came to the hospital to see how I was doing and continued with home visits to see that Stella and I were progressing. I am so happy that I had the opportunity to labor at the birth center. The experience was so completely different than that of a hospital. I would not have changed a thing.
Stella's due date was February 11th. On February 5th, 2003 just after midnight, my water broke. Soon after the contractions began. My husband, Ed and I got together everything we had prepared for the big day. I nestled into my home office to send off a few key e-mails and faxes to clients, letting them know that Stella was on her way. We called Aszani. She had us monitor the contractions and we were to call her when they were 3 minutes apart, that would be the time to head into the Birth Center. Ed woke up our older daughter Sam and at about 2:30am we hit the mark. The contractions were close enough that we headed into the Birth Center.
The lights were low, the birth room soft and cozy. The midwives assessed us and made us comfortable right away when we arrived. My husband turned on some relaxing music and we all reminisced about our expectations and all the months of waiting. We were all so excited. Soon, I got into the whirlpool to relax and work through the contractions. Ed was by my side helping me through contractions.
I was assessed by the physicians and nurses at Meriter. At this point, I needed relief with medication. The last 15 hours I never felt the need for medication. I was hoping for a natural birth, but now it was inevitable that the C-section was going to happen, the contractions would not stop and I needed relief. They prepped me for the operating room. Aszani and Ed were by my side for support. Stella arrived at 4:15pm on Wednesday, February 5th, 2003. She was beautiful.
