Amelia’s Birth Story Part 1: C-Section & Umbilical Cord Prolapse

April is almost over, but I couldn’t let it end without honoring C-section Awareness Month! Cesarean rates have risen to about 30 percent over the last few years, and my daughter’s birth in 2020 was part of that percentage. Her birth in November 2020 was a very unplanned emergency cesarean that ultimately saved her life, though it left with me with more than just a physical scar. (Content warning for this post and the next: birth trauma, umbilical cord prolapse.)

I was 39 weeks and 3 days pregnant with Millie when I knew I was in labor. I had a weird feeling throughout my entire pregnancy whenever I thought of going into labor and giving birth. I felt in my gut that I needed to be in the hospital as soon as possible to deliver my baby. That day, the feeling was amplified. I was anxious and so tired of being pregnant. I felt so uncomfortable physically and kept having contractions all day. They would get really strong and so close, up to 2 or 3 minutes apart, and then they would just stop. I asked Jeremy to call in to work because I was so uncomfortable and I knew the baby was trying to make her way into the world, ever so slowly. I had a doctors appointment that day and I was sure I would be admitted once my doctor checked me. Nope. I was sent home and told to rest, but my doctor was willing to schedule an induction later in the week because I. Was. Done. Being. Pregnant.

Now I think we need to have some back story about my previous deliveries. I never made it past 38 weeks with my first 2 babies, and both of my labors started with my water breaking on its own. I needed Pitocin with both labors to start my contractions, but both of those labors ended in uncomplicated vaginal deliveries, with perfectly healthy babies. I expected my water to break on its own again for my third baby, and I never expected to go past 38 weeks, let alone 39 weeks!

After my appointment that day, Jeremy and I left the girls with his dad and we went shopping. We walked around Kohl’s and Walmart. Then we went home and I took a bath - my second one that day. My contractions continued and then stopped randomly. I did the Mile’s Circuit, Jeremy massaged my back, and then we left to have dinner at his parents house with our girls. After we ate, I walked up and down their stairs and then sat down to rest. While I was sitting there, my contractions came back full force and quickly. I was visibly in pain now. Jeremy decided that he was taking me to the hospital right then. Earlier I had told him about the weird feeling I had, and he admitted that he was feeling the same way. We both felt in our hearts that the hospital was the safest place for us to be as I went into labor.

When we got the hospital, I was hooked up to monitor the baby and my contractions and my cervix was checked. They told me to walk around the halls of triage for a while and if there was a change then I would be officially admitted. Luckily, there was a change and my doctor was on call. She knew I was there so I was quickly admitted.

The weird feeling in the pit of my stomach continued to grow. Everything was fine physically. The baby’s heart rate was great. My contractions continued to progress, slowly. But there were some instances that made me feel even more uncomfortable and I didn’t call those things into question. To start, I didn’t like the nurse we were placed with. She seemed inconvenienced that we were there, that I didn’t want pain meds, and that I didn’t want to be stuck in the bed the entire time. She gave in to my request for a portable monitor but let it be known that it doesn’t work as well, and she acted so annoyed every time she had to come into the room to adjust it. She then insisted on checking my cervix several times and it was just too much. I wanted to relax to let my body do what it needed to, but it felt like I was being rushed to progress. Finally, my doctor suggested to break my water to help move things along. I wasn’t in love with the idea, but I agreed for two reasons: one, I was afraid they would send me home if I didn’t start progressing faster, and two, I was beyond ready to have my baby.

Texting my family updates since they couldn’t be there for the birth. COVID-19 protocols only allowed for one support person.

It felt so weird and painful to have my water broken. Not long after things got scary. It is all a blur. My contractions picked up and I was in a lot of pain. They were coming so fast that I barely had time to recover in between. I only remember feeling that pain just when I was about to push my other babies out, but I knew I wasn’t dilated enough to push. The baby’s heart rate would plummet, I would be physically flipped over by the nurse to one side, and then the other. The nurse started to panic, then more nurses came in, they wanted to give the baby an internal monitor, which I said no to. They came up with another plan, which I agreed to. My doctor asked if she could check my cervix one more time, in hopes that it was time to push. I watched her face change from easy going to serious as she realized that the baby’s head was pushing the umbilical cord out first. She told me that we needed to do an emergency cesarean and asked for my verbal consent, because there was no time for paperwork.

Continued in Part 2