The Story of Rhys--The Progress

We got to the house where I would give birth at about 5:30 am, with 22 hours of labor already under my belt, and unpacked some of our stuff in the downstairs bedroom. I think I tried to go back to sleep while we waited for the midwife. I have a copy of the labor record, so from this point I don’t have to rely on my memory for times, which is good, because I didn’t pay much attention to numbers on the clock, just how awfully many times the minute hand went around. At about 7:00 am the midwife arrived. I really hoped things would go fast to justify calling her there that morning rather than later in the afternoon because it was Sunday and her oldest daughter was giving her first talk in sacrament meeting that day, and my lovely angel midwife was missing it to be with me. She checked me, and again to my dismay, I was still only 1 cm. However, she did examine me through a contraction and said that during the contraction I stretched to 3 cm, then went back to 1 when it was over. She was very positive about it and I was very grateful, but I was mentally trying to tally how long it would take at that rate to finally get to 10. I labored all morning and I started feeling the contractions in my back strong enough that I wrapped large hot packs wrapped around my middle and asked my husband to put counter-pressure on my low back during the contractions. I did a lot of contractions kneeling at the bedside. I discovered that I like to labor very vocally. I don’t shout or get mad, I just bellow, very loudly, during contractions. I tried to keep my mouth as soft and loose as possible, just as I wanted the rest of me to stay soft and loose and get softer and looser. I was actually very worried that I might do anything to prolong the dilating process or stall it as it had stalled with my first labor, so I worked a lot on positive imagery of being open and relaxed and kept my lips and jaw hanging loose.

I found that sitting was the absolutely most excruciatingly uncomfortable thing I could do during a contraction. Because of the pain in my back the contractions caused, anything pushing my hip bones up into that area intensified the sensation unbearably. This was most noticed while going to the bathroom, which I couldn’t do without having at least one contraction while sitting on the toilet. I would stand up and pulse up and down in a sort of squat until it passed, then finish. Likewise I would have a contraction while I was leaning at the sink with my hands under the water to wash them and have to pause and bounce through that one (next time—hand sanitizer!). Then I would have at least one more on my way back to the bedroom (literally 3 steps between the doors) and I would lean against the door jam and sway. This got to be very tedious, as I went to the bathroom probably at least once an hour.

I wanted to try laboring in water, so in the late morning my husband and the midwife brought in a tub (actually an extra large horse trough used only for the purpose) and set it up in the next room. They lined it with blankets then painter’s plastic and filled it with warm water. The midwife explained that the tub was ready, but they didn’t want me to get in it until I was at least 6 cm because if the labor hasn’t progressed far enough, relaxing in a hot tub can actually slow it down rather than help it along. I was pretty put out by that, knowing it had only been about 4 hours since I was 1 cm plus some stretch, and it had taken me about 24 hours to get to that point. She examined me and I asked “one and a half?” “Oh, give yourself more credit than that!” she said. I guessed, “3 cm?” And she said, “Try 6 cm.” I couldn’t believe it. Was that really possible? I was so excited. I changed out of my nightshirt and climbed into the tub. As I was lowering myself in I felt a contraction starting, so I turned over onto my hands and knees and as I did so, I felt a sensation like a large balloon or bubble suddenly expand from my vagina and burst with a gush. At the same time they (my husband and the midwife) noticed a plume of color in the water. My water had broken.

There was meconium in the fluid, but as the baby’s heart beat was still steady and strong, and there were no other signs of distress, the midwife wasn’t concerned. The baby’s heart rate was measured periodically with a hand-held Doppler that could be used in or out of the water. It was very convenient for me and I felt very confident that we were being looked after and monitored safely. I don’t remember how long I stayed in the tub, but I found it wasn’t quite perfect for me—the shape of the trough was pinched in at the middle so there wasn’t a good way for me to kneel and spread my knees wide, which was the position I felt most comfortable in during contractions that kept me in the water (as opposed to standing)—so I found myself getting annoyed with it. I got out at about 1 pm, 30 hours into labor. I had dilated to 8 cm, but had an anterior lip of cervix that was still impeding the baby’s head. I was very excited at the great progress I was making.