My Personal Birth Experience

         When thinking about childbirth, I immediately go back to the day I gave birth to my daughter.  My husband and I were quite surprised by the news we were expecting our first child, we were not actively trying to get pregnant at the time.  Soon as we found out, my mother came to live with us for the duration of my pregnancy and the first few months afterwards.  I had a healthy textbook pregnancy with family and friends to give support.  I had gone two days over my due date, finally my water broke, and we were on our way to the hospital. 

            We had attended birthing classes and I was currently an infant teacher at my school.  So, we felt prepared for what was to come.  I had a birth plan in place to go without medication and to use deep breathing/meditation throughout labor.  My husband was not comfortable with this plan though and advocated for an epidural throughout my pregnancy.  I went into labor in the evening on a Sunday night.

            My water broke, and things got serious quickly regarding pain.  We registered, got hooked up to an IV, and began the process.  By three in the morning, I dilated to about 8 centimeters and was beginning to exhaust from staying up through the night.  My husband begged me to get an epidural to sleep, and in my exhaustion, I agreed.  After receiving pain medication, I could sleep and rested for a few hours.

            At seven in the morning, my obstetrician entered the room to check my progress.  My baby had rolled and was posterior, “sunny side up” they called it.  She told us that with my epidural in place there was little chance the baby would move and recommended a caesarian section.  I was reluctant and said I didn’t want to.  Then, she added she would be leaving in two hours for the week to attend a conference.  If we didn’t choose surgery at that moment, I would be transferred to the next doctor I had no history with.  So, the birth plan changed again, and we went with a caesarian section.

            Our baby did not do well during the caesarian section.  She tried sucking on the doctor’s finger as she pulled her out of the womb.  This action made breathing difficult for her afterwards and she was rushed to a neonatal intensive care unit, two hours away from the hospital I delivered.  My daughter was completely healthy otherwise.  She was a nine-pound baby that was plump and pink.  Within 24 hours, she had recovered and was off a ventilator.  However, I was still two hours away recovering from surgery.

            It was three days before I met my baby and held her.  It was three more days before she would latch and nurse.  The NICU allowed for me to room in with her soon as she was consistently nursing.  I stayed with her for the remainder of her two weeks stay in the hospital receiving preventative antibiotics.  My daughter is now seven years old and has never had any lung complications since. 

When I became pregnant for the second time, I researched vaginal births after caesarian sections and the number of babies that go into NICUs after caesarian sections.  My doctor confirmed that typically vaginal deliveries are unsuccessful after caesarian sections because of the medical risk, most doctors do not give choice to mothers in these situations. 

Infants who are born via caesarian section are more likely to go to the NICU because a pediatrician is required to be present for the birth.  Vaginal births do not require a pediatrician present during active labor and delivery.  Most cases, the infant is not assessed by the pediatrician for one to two hours after delivery.  Most babies develop regular breathing patterns within these couple hours and are not considered at risk when assessed. 

My first childbirth experience was memorable.  I will never forget the day my life changed for the better.  But I do feel that I lost control of my birth plan and the situation.  Having the knowledge that pain medication was available made it easier to choose.  Having the choice of surgery, just for the comfort of keeping a familiar doctor, should not have been an option, especially if we were considering what was best for the baby.  Best practice should have been to wait longer to hopefully progress to a successful vaginal birth and a healthy baby.