Collins' Birth Story

For some time during the end of my third trimester I had a feeling that I might have this baby early. She was sitting so low and I was feeling braxton-hicks all-day-long. Yet, I didn’t know if I really would deliver early. Still, I was hope-full and determined to do what I could to help the process out. So at my 37 and 5 day appointment I asked my doctor to strip my membranes. I was a little anxious about having him strip my membranes because I had this feeling that it might actually work and put me into labor. However, he was hesitant because he wasn’t on call that day and I was already dilated to a 3 plus. So we arranged for me to come back on Saturday, when he would be on-call, and he would strip my membranes then.

On Saturday around 1:30 PM my doctor striped my membranes. It didn’t hurt—just a little uncomfortable. No big deal. When I got home I started walking and didn't stop. I ended up walking close to 4 miles around my neighborhood. Part of the mileage was walking the giant hill into my neighborhood three times. But I wasn’t just walking, I was curb walking. My neighbors all looked at me and would say something like “trying to get that baby out hu?” and then laugh a little.  Of course, I was trying to walk this baby out. Why else would a look like a fool curb walking. I also ran/walked up and down my stairs when the weather got to cold to be outside. After all this walking I was starting to have some contractions. And they seemed legit because most of the contraction was in my back—the worst place. The contractions were far apart and I wasn’t really keeping track. They kind of started to fade away so in the evening so Adam, Crew, and I went to the live Nativity in Alpine. By now the contractions were really far apart and I figured they would just stop. I went to bed that night with no pain and figured I would keep walking in the morning.

I woke up at 4:30 AM on Sunday to a hard contraction. Hard enough that it woke me up from my sleep. Then another came and another. They were hard and I had to sit up to help lessen the pain. I started tracking them. They would 30 seconds long and came about every ten minutes. By 7:00 AM I was still having them. I texted my doctor to see what he thought about going to the hospital. He said that if they were painful contractions to go and at least get checked.

Adam and I drove to the American Fork Hospital around 8:30 Sunday morning. A neighbor came over and stayed with Crew while we went. Once at the hospital they checked me and I was dilated to a 4. They monitored me for an hour. My contractions were two far apart and not long enough so they sent me home. False Alarm. The doctor on-call said if I were 38 weeks (not 37 weeks and 6 days) they probably would have kept me since I was already at a 4. Upon being discharged at the hospital the nurse told me that if my contractions are 5 minutes apart, go for 1 minute, and last for an hour I should come back.

Our neighbor friend had taken Crew to church while we were at the hospital—leaving our house quite for us when we arrived home. A nap sounded inviting so I took a nap and then Adam, Crew,and I went to tithing settlement. My contractions were anywhere from 7 minutes to 30 minutes apart now. I wasn’t keeping track since I knew they were to sporadic. When we got home from tithing settlement I decided to take a quick walk. I walked a mile around out neighborhood and walked the hill once more. I came home and made dinner. Then I put Crew to bed. By now the contractions were much closer together but I was so busy with dinner and bedtime that I still wasn’t keeping track.

I was finishing putting Crew to bed and was laying down with him until he feel asleep when I started to have really hard contractions again. It was 9:00 PM. I went and sat in my bed, with all the lights off, and started to keep track. Out of now where a switch flipped and my contractions were 4-5 minutes apart and lasting 1 minute long. They were hurting bad. One contraction came that almost put me into tears. And then another came. Adam walked in and saw me and he could tell I was in pain. I sat through these contractions for 30 minutes and then I couldn’t take it anymore. They hurt TOO bad. I didn’t care what that nurse said about it lasting for an hour—I was in pain--and the pain is all in my back. So our neighbor friend came over again and stayed with Crew while we went back to the hospital. We got to the hospital close to 10:30 PM. By the time they got me situated in a room and checked me I was dilated to a 6+ (almost a 7 the nurse said). I looked at her and said, “I want my epidural now”. Good thing I didn’t wait at home for an hour before coming to the hospital because I may not have gotten my epidural in time. Delivering a baby without an epidural is not an option in my book.

The contractions were hurting so bad by this point and I remember looking at Adam and telling him that there was no way I could birth this baby natural. I didn’t even know how to breathe right. I was getting light-headed and finally I asked the nurse “how do I breath?”

“Long and slow”. So that is what I started doing trying to concentrate on my breathing and not the pain. I had to wait about 25 minutes for the anesthesiologist to come see me because he was finishing a DNC. When he heard I was already at a 6 he said he ran to my room. It was an “emergency” that I get my epidural in time. I finally received my epidural around 11:30 PM. Heaven sent. I love epidurals. Immediately the pain lessened. 

By now I was dilated to a 7. The doctor came in to break my water. However, Collins was so low in the birth canal she was blocking any space for him to reach in and break it. He didn’t want to push her back since it would reverse the work my body was doing. So he tried and thought he got it.

By 12:30 AM I am now dilated to a 9 but my contractions are slowing down. The nurse checked me and said that my water wasn’t broken which is why my contractions were lessening. So the doctor came back in around 1:30 AM, pushed her back a little, and broke my water for real this time. Once my water was broken the contractions picked right up and 20 minutes later Collins was born. I pushed through 3 sets of contractions (about 15 minutes). When I was pushing I could really feel the pressure and need to push her out (unlike Crew—I couldn’t feel anything). When her head came into view Adam told me he could see it and that she had brown hair. That really motivated me to push her out.

When she came out she was tiny and purple. She didn’t cry. They took her over to the baby station in the room and the nurses pushed the “silent” call button. Four or five more nurses came in and they were all trying to get her to take a breath. I could see her and I could see that she was really purple and I was getting nervous. But all I could do was watch and let the doctor keep working on me. Adam looked at me with some concern and the nurses said everything was fine. But I was getting scared. She finally took a small cry and then started to hold her breath again. About a minute passed before she actually started to breath.  So much can go wrong in the delivery of a baby and it is a miracle when a baby is delivered healthy. I can’t imagine going through an entire pregnancy, delivering my baby, and then having complications or losing my baby. I know women who have had to go through these type of experiences and I have a little more understanding of the hurt and love and worry that is present when this does happen. 

I feel so blessed that Collins came into our family healthy and beautiful. She is such a tiny sweet baby girl. Adam and I love her more with each day we have with her.