Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Come On, Eileen...

A couple years ago I supported this couple while they had their first child.  It was such a great birth.  I was only with them for about 5 hours, which is super short for a first birth, so I was prepared for a fast and furious birth with baby #2.  Mom had been contracting a lot for the past week or two, and I knew that once it really hit, it would move quickly.

We were all surprised that mom made it all the way to one day before her due date, considering the days of consistent contractions.  She went to her midwife appointment at 3:30 today and asked to have her membranes stripped.

Did you know that stripping the membranes can also break your water?  

Well, now you do.  And that's exactly what happened.  

When the rupture of membranes start the labor, it's not uncommon for it to take several hours for the contractions to really get going.  I was summoned at 6:00 pm, and arrived at 6:30.  Mom and dad were both excited and happy.  Mom's attitude was so positive (just like last time), it was hard to tell if she was really in active labor or not.


At 8:00 things were definitely becoming more intense.  I was using my ice roller up and down her back and hips during contractions, and that seemed to really do the trick.  She was checked, and dilated to almost 7 cm. 

From that moment on, things became very intense.  At 8:30 she started to feel the urge to push, and her midwife wasn't even on her way yet.  The nurse yelled out into the hallway that mom was delivering and she needed a doctor, NOW!  

Mom began pushing on her hands and knees.  Once the head was out, it was clear to see that there was shoulder dystocia (when the shoulders are larger than the head and do not deliver quickly).  Mom was rapidly turned onto her back , and within a minute this chunky girl was born.  





Eileen
Born June 18th, 2013
8:52 pm
9 pounds, 15 oz.


Mom is just too cute.  

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