Meet Christina

Meet Christina Pollock.

Born: Thursday, December 15, 2011

Measuring: 6 pounds 14 ounces and 19 inches






This is Christina's birth story... stop reading now if you don't want to know.

On Wednesday, December 14 at about 9pm Ben and I were just finishing dinner (which I would later throw up) and watching some tely when I started to realize that perhaps my water was breaking. It happened in little gushes (not all at once which can happen). I tried to ignore this strange sensation for a time until it became apparent that it was not going to stop. With much protesting on my part I finally called the hospital and informed the nurse that I believed my water might be breaking. She told me I had better come in. This is not what I wanted to hear, I was hoping she would say okay well if you feel any contractions make sure you time them and then come in when they are such and such apart. Ben had his last final in the morning and I really wanted to go into labor after that final, RIGHT after.

So we grabbed my bag, which I had packed early that day (thanks Ben for insisting I not do it later), and hurried off to the hospital. I really hadn't noticed any contractions so I was still hoping they would check me out and send me home. No such luck, the nurse who checked me said, "Oh yeah it's broken, you're not going anywhere." This was about 10pm, so I changed into the hospital gown and waited. Not an hour after we got there but those darn contractions showed up hard and strong. I had contractions in the front and in the back. When I had a contraction I would have Ben push/rub on my back hard which helped while I tried to stay as relaxed as possible. To make matters worse I had to use the bathroom every 5 or 10 mins (it is recommended not to hold it since it could slow down labor). When you do not have an IV you must save your pee so the nurses can tell you are staying hydrated; so you pee into what they call "the hat". However not only did I have to go #1 I had to go #2; this meant I had to move the hat back and forth from the toilet in order to relieve myself. Those darn toilet paper dispensers are just terrible in any public place. I swear whoever invented those things thought it was funny that you can only get one square at a time! Thus Ben became my toilet paper supplier.

After about 4 hours of this madness I decided enough is enough I want that Epidural. I wanted to wait until I had reached a certain point with my progress but it happened to be a really busy night for having babies so the midwife couldn't come check my progress. I think when she finally did check me I was a 3 or 4 cm. Also I really didn't want to be too tired to push out my baby. It took the anesthesiologist 45 mins to get there. He had to work in between contractions so it took awhile and when it was finally in, it didn't work. He usually tests the tube to make sure there is a clear path and the medicine can be delivered, but this time he didn't. He kept saying, "well it will be another 20 years before I make that mistake again." GREAT that's helpful. So he had to remove the tape and pull out the tube just a hair. Apparently he had pushed it in too far and the tube had kinked. He taped me back up and this time it worked! Oh amazing Epidural, I felt close to nothing. Still could feel my legs, although not as well. After that I slept a little and Ben too.

Early the next morning Ben emailed his professor about missing the exam. I toyed with the idea of letting him go but couldn't part with him, nor would he have gone. The professor was very kind about the whole thing and allowed him to make it up Saturday. Just in time for him to become sleep deprived.

Somewhere around 1pm I was told I could start pushing. I made a lot of progress in the very beginning so much so that nurses and midwife started suiting up for delivery. However nothing much happened for about two hours. I kept asking Ben, do you see any eyebrows yet? The answer was always no. It was hard to tell when to push (since you push with contractions and I had a hard time feeling them start and stop). You can only push for three hours before they intervene, so I was getting nervous I would need a C-section. However after a lot of coaching from the mid wife and nurses I finally started making progress again. Ben never did see those eyebrows because she came out all at once! This took me completely by surprise, I expected her head to come out and then her shoulders. When I first saw her I was so surprised and couldn't believe she actually fit inside of me! I tore only slightly, got two stitches, which I never felt or noticed. Our darling Christina was born at 3:30pm, total labor time was roughly 18 hours. Thank goodness for the epidural!

So our Christina came 5 days early (she was due on the 20th), for which I was very thankful!
She was and will always be our best Christmas present ever!