Lawmom and jo(e) have started a meme. So here’s the story of my first.
Like Lawmom, I have a strong tolerance for pain. On Saturday June 3 (10 years ago today), my inlaws gave me a baby shower. We were showered with lots of gifts, but the next day, we went out shopping to get the few things we still needed–crib mattress, diapers, wipes. We spent the whole day at Baby Superstore. We planned to meet Mr. Geeky’s brother and his wife for dinner. As we were waiting for our food to arrive, I started feeling not quite right. I picked at my food and decided I was in labor. We told my brother-in-law and his wife not to say anything to the rest of the family.
We left the restaurant and started our 45 minute drive back home. We were listening to the NBA playoffs. The Pacers were playing the Knicks. They had to win this game in order to stay in the playoffs. About halfway home, I asked Mr. Geeky to give me his watch. I said, “Either I have really bad gas every five minutes or I’m in serious labor.” Mr. Geeky didn’t quite believe me. We did decide if the Pacers won, we’d name our kid Reggie–boy or girl.
When we got home, we unloaded the car and we even videotaped the baby’s room. I tried on my slippers that I’d bought to wear at the hospital. As I was walking around, admiring how soft and comfortable they were, I suddenly felt sick. I ran into the bathroom and threw up, getting vomit on my slippers. I told Mr. Geeky that I thought it was time to go. Mr. Geeky ran around a little bit frantically, which is his usual response to crisis, before he finally gathered his wits and our stuff and we headed to the hospital.
It was about 9 p.m. or so now and the streets were pretty empty already. We were only about 6 blocks from the hospital. Mr. Geeky was disappointed that there was no need to speed. In fact, I was uncomfortable enough to not want to risk the bumping that went along with speeding.
They checked us in and it turned out my OB had two other patients there. He came in to check on us, told us to remain comfortable and he’d be back. I was 7 centimeters dialated at the first check. I went to 10 very quickly. At some point, I decided I wanted something to take the edge off the pain, but it was too late. At 1:00 a.m., I gave birth to my son, the first of my OB’s patients to do so despite being the last to arrive. I was exhausted and so weak, I stayed in the delivery room for an extra three hours. My blood pressure had plummeted when I gave birth and I almost passed out. I was given an IV of glucose and soon I was feeling halfway normal.
I was pretty happy with my birth experience. I wish that I hadn’t nearly passed out, but my OB and the hospital staff were very respectful of my wishes and really let the birth progress naturally.
And now that tiny baby that we brought home in a little white jumpsuit with tiny blue fishes and a matching hat is 10 years old. Hard to believe!
