Thread: *~*~Elizabeth's (Purple Fungi) Birth Lodge~*~*

Welcome! I see your 36 weeks today. I look forward to following your story! You have a wonderful EDD by the way

Welcome!!

Yippeeee!!!! Thanks!!!!
I can't believe that I made it to 36 weeks!

I'll post a better intro when I get home from work!

Welcome to your lodge!!!

Welcome!

welcome to your lodge!

Congrats on 36 weeks! I can't wait to hear your story!

My introduction…quick and dirty!

My name is Elizabeth, and my husband’s name is Zach. I started dating my soon-to-be husband when I was 19. We met in a calculus class at a local community college, and we had two classes together before officially starting to date. We decided pretty early on that we wanted to get married though I had to finish nursing school first. We got married three years later and bought our first home after renting a house for a year. We both still attend school. My husband is still taking mechanical engineering courses, and I am going to school full time toward an RN-BSN completion program.

We were married for a year when I found out that I was pregnant with Dirk. Zach did not want any children so he was not too pleased with me for wanting to go through with the pregnancy. I found out that I was pregnant on Memorial Day 2006. It was one of the happiest days of my life even though I knew that my husband would very angry. The pregnancy was uneventful besides hyperemesis and preeclampsia toward the end. It was very hard vomiting every two hours for the first five months. From month five to the end I vomited twice weekly and was always nauseous. I lost approximately 20 pounds, however ended up gaining a total of 60 pounds from what I lost and regained by the end.

Dirk was born on January 29, 2007. I worked 12 hours the night before as a case manager in the emergency room at a local community hospital. People were saying that I looked like crap and that my face looked huge. I was dead tired and spent two hours sleeping at my parent’s house on their recliner before taking a shower and going in for my doctor’s appointment. I was 38.5 weeks and was pretty sure that it would be a while before I would have my baby even though I was constantly having Braxton-Hicks every time that I sat down. When I went for my appointment everything went as usual until my doctor came into the room. My blood pressure was 158/98, and I had 1+ protein in my urine. The nurse who took my vital signs and tested my urine did not even give me a hint that something was not right. The nurse practitioner rechecked my blood pressure, and my doctor said that I needed to go to the hospital to be induced. I was so relieved to be almost done. I could not vomit anymore. I had already spent the morning scraping ice off my windshield while throwing up cheese-its.

I did not go straight to labor and delivery. Since I work at the hospital, I stopped by to see a few people before heading upstairs. I was so nervous. They told me to eat since I would not be getting the chance to eat for a while. So I sat in the nursing supervisor’s office and ate a sandwich for the next half an hour before calling my mom and husband to tell them that I was going to be induced. My husband was kind of funny. He kept saying, “I’ll be right there. I’ll be right there.”

There was a bit of confusion when I first arrived to the OB department. I got put in a room that I was not supposed to go, and peed in a cup. I even labeled my own urine, since after all, I am a nurse. It did not take too long for them to figure out that I was going to be induced, though, and I was sent over to a different room. I felt so fat in a patient gown. I also felt kind of weird being on the “other side” of things.

After I got into the correct room, the nurse went through all the admission questions, drew blood, and put in the cervidil cream. She was an excellent lady with two children of her own. I had some bloody show when she inserted the cream and said that I was dilated to almost a four. I had to remain in bed for an hour. The contractions were not bad at all. They were the same ones that I had been having for months before. The nurse told me that anesthesia was already asking placing an epidural, and after jokingly asking who was on call said, “no, I’ll just see how it goes.”

Within a couple hours, my mom and my husband arrived at the hospital. Pitocin was started an hour after the cervidil cream was placed. I was asked to walk around, however I chose not to because I felt half naked in the gown, and I know way too many people who work in the hospital. My husband, who decided that he wanted to name our son, chose then to tell me the name that he picked out. He said that he wanted to name him Dirk after his favorite character from the Clive Cussler books. I liked the name and knew that since he had a special connection with the name Dirk that he would learn to love our son.

My physician went on call at 7 PM and broke my water. It felt like I had peed all over myself, but at least it was nice and warm. The contractions did not feel that bad until around 10 PM. By then I wanted to just curl up and die. My back felt like it waas being ripped apart. I gripped my pink plastic puke bucket. My doctor wanted to turn the pitocin up further and I thought to myself, “Lady, I know how to turn that back down!” I was all smiles, though for the entire time. I could not wait to meet my son and to hold him in my arms. I could hear another baby cry who was just born in a different room. It made me very teary eyed to hear that another mother just had her baby.

My doctor checked dilation about every half an hour with contractions. By 10:30 PM I was fully dilated. She said that I could probably push the baby out, however I wanted to wait until I actually felt the urge to push. She told me that she would be back in a half an hour. She was totally right with the time. After a half an hour of starring at the clock and thinking of my “focus animal” (I had chosen a rabbit after watching a movie about a couple who had a baby), I finally felt the urge to POOP! I told my husband to get the doctor, “now!” My husband looked so freaked out!

I pushed around three times, and at 11:11 PM I got to see my little boy for the first time. Zach had tears in his eyes when Dirk was born and placed on my stomach. I got blood all over my fingers and gown. I was in love with him and so happy not to be nauseous or in pain anymore. Dirk weighed in at 6 lbs and 3 ounces. He was perfect.

After being sowed up everyone, including my husband, left for the night. I felt pretty alone. I tried to breast feed, but I did not feel like it was going as well as it should have. By the middle of the night, my nipples were bleeding and cracked. The nurses were not helpful, and I felt like a failure. I got more and more emotional as the night turned into day. I started to hallucinate a little after not sleeping for over 24 hours and working three-twelve hour midnight shifts.

By the second day at the hospital, Dirk refused to breastfeed. The lactation consultant worked with Dirk and I for over an hour. Dirk screamed his head off the entire time, and I ended up giving him a bottle of formula. I cried so hard. I never thought that breast feeding would be that difficult.

Breast feeding would be a challenge for me for the next year following Dirk’s birth. I became extremely depressed after he was born, and it never really cleared up until after he was a year old. I ended up pumping my breast milk until I became pregnant with the present child. I was determined to give him the best even if it meant that I had to sacrifice my time. It would always make me happy to see how much Dirk enjoyed drinking my milk.

Dirk was about 14.5 months when I found out that I was pregnant for a second time. I was so happy, and my husband seemed happy too. I had the same problem with hyperemesis that I had with the first pregnancy. I lost 30 pounds this time, however at the present have gained that back in addition to another 30. My husband and I are looking forward to the day when we meet our second little boy. I get to name this one. I have not quite picked out a name that I am entirely satisfied with, but I guess I still have some time left!

Some old picks from my photobucket account. My digital camera had "an accident" at the park.

Welcome and great intro! Dirk is a cutie!

Wonderful intro and I understand how hard it can be when bfing doesn't go as planned.