Julian's Birth Sory- Our Doula's Perspective

Birth story for Julian Elan

Fern’s induction had been scheduled for August 6, 2008, for a while. This was at 38 weeks, which was when her doctors felt it would be safest for Julian to be born due to gestational diabetes. Since she had gone into labor at 37 weeks with her first child, Fern hoped not to reach the induction date and tried many gentle methods to try to prod her body into labor. None of these worked, though, so in the evening of August 6, we met at the hospital for a balloon catheter to be placed and start the process of Julian’s birth.

At 10:00 pm, Dr. Senior placed the balloon catheter. Fern had received stadol beforehand, as she wanted help with her anxiety and any pain that might occur when the catheter was placed. She accepted some sleeping pills and tried to settle in for the night, but this was difficult considering how often she was being checked on to get blood sugar levels and to increase tension on the balloon catheter. Neither Fern nor Kevin got enough rest that night!

At 5:30 am, the balloon catheter came out when the nurse applied pressure to it. Arrangements were made to slowly start the pitocin drip, and at 6:30 am a cervical check revealed dilation to be 3.5 centimeters.

Through the morning, Fern was relatively comfortable. She was feeling the contractions mildly but remarked at how they weren’t really painful. Everyone tried to get some rest now and then, in anticipation of the work to be done later. In between, we chatted, watched a little television, and Fern and Kevin kept all their family and supporters in the loop via phone calls and texts.

At noon, Dr. Kasper arrived to check on Fern. She checked her cervix and found that it was 4 cm dilated. She asked permission to break Fern’s water and Fern reluctantly agreed (she had wanted the epidural placed first). The nurse went to call the anesthesiologist right away. While we waited for him, Fern did start feeling the contractions more intensely and by the time he arrived she was more than ready for the epidural. Getting the epidural placed was a big source of anxiety and pain for Fern, and among her least favorite parts of the birth experience, despite the fact that she was glad to have the epidural. Fortunately, the anesthesiologist allowed Kevin and me to stay close to her to help her through it. After it was placed at about 12:30, Fern felt relief quickly on one side but it took quite a while to be effective on the other side, even after leaning toward that side. Still, it was enough relief to not be worth problem-solving the placement.

At 2pm, a cervix check showed dilation to 4.5 cm. The contraction monitor showed that the contractions were coming about every 3 minutes, a good pattern. The nurse turned up the pitocin every now and then, but the highest it ever went in the whole birth was 18, which was comforting for a VBAC, both in terms of safety and in how well Fern’s body was doing with labor. Through the afternoon, Fern relaxed to her iPod music and dozed here and there. She started getting uncomfortable in her back from being stuck in bed for so long, so I offered some massage. Fern started feeling some pressure in the mid-afternoon, which let us know that baby was descending. The combination of the sensation and the knowledge that she was getting closer to pushing this baby out made Fern a little bit nervous and her teeth started chattering. Kevin and I took turns massaging her head, and she relaxed fully. (It was quite remarkable - I wished I’d known this about her when the epidural was being placed!) Around 4:30, nurse Mel did an exam and found dilation to 8 and baby at +1 station – this was great progress!

Around 6:30, an exam showed complete dilation! Fern started pushing at around 7pm. She was fantastic at pushing. She did a fabulous job. We could see Julian’s head moving down with each push. Of course, the head moved back up in between pushes… this is normal but can be frustrating. Everyone remarked at his blond hair. Fern felt like pushing was taking a long time and started saying how tired she was. Kevin was great encouragement for her, and Dr. Kasper, the nurse and I all added encouragement too. No matter how tired she got, her pushes continued to be strong. Finally the baby came around and up the pubic bone, and stopped moving back up during contractions. From here it was fast moving, and at 8:58 pm, Julian Elan was born!

Fern got to hold him right away, and there was so much emotion in the room from both Fern and Kevin. It was obvious how thrilled they were to meet Julian, and how much his arrival “the way G-d intended” (as Fern put it) meant to them. They were able to hold him as much as they wanted, were able to put him to the breast when Fern was ready, and were enraptured by him.

Julian Elan Dahlstrom

August 7, 2008

8:58 pm

7 lbs 11 oz

20 inches

Fern and Kevin, thank you for giving me the privilege of being a part of Julian’s birth. I enjoyed our time together prenatally and was honored to be your labor support. Your love for each other and your children is apparent, as is the foundation it provides for your family. Your attitude in life of accepting reality yet striving for the best is an inspiration and will serve you well on the journey of parenthood. Congratulations on Julian’s birth and on your successful VBAC. All my best to you.

Blessings,

Megan