Labor Day Labor Stories

In honor of Labor Day, Shannon @ Rocks in my Dryer is asking about those other kinds of labor.

How long were your labors?
DD- Four days of on/off contractions and doctors telling me I wasn't in labor- I "just had a bladder infection". Finally at 2am I was in such pain that DH took me to the hospital. This ended when quite literally after about six hours in the hospital DD's foot emerged, and then the nurses freaked out and she was born by emergency c-section about ten minutes later. (For the record my beloved doctor wasn't there- she arrived just about the time the foot emerged and immediately whisked me off for the c-section. Since the nurses were so sure I wasn't in labor, they had just had a hospital resident keeping tabs on me.) DD was born at 33 weeks.

DS- I was in premature labor & the hospital numerous times with him. But, the final deal- I was bleeding when I woke up, had contractions at home all day, spent about seven hours in the hospital with all sorts of interventions trying to stop my labor, and finally, he was born around 10pm by emergency c-section. He was born at 30 weeks.

How did you know you were in labor?
DD-I really didn't, until the foot appeared. I thought I was, of course, but I had a team of medical experts telling me that the monitors weren't saying the right things, so this wasn't true labor. This was my first baby, so I trusted them. Plus I was scared to death that if that wasn't labor I'd never survive the "real thing".

DS- I'd been in premature labor so many times with him that I recognized the mild contractions immediately.

Where did you deliver?
Both at the same local hospital.

Drugs?
Yes. Large doses, as I had to be completely knocked out for both c-sections under the circumstances. No time to wait for epidurals or anything else.

C-section?
Both. Emergency. Not the way anyone wants to go, but, I'm thankful that both the kids and myself made it through, safe and sound. With DS there was a huge risk that I wasn't going to survive.... I'll spare you the gory details, but when a doctor comes out and tells your husband that you've had guardian angels, you know it's bad.

Who delivered?
Two different doctors, but both from my OB/GYN's office. There are four doctors there and you get whoever's on call at the hospital for the day.

A little extra info... both of my kids spent several weeks in the NICU, but both were fairly healthy and strong considering their prematurity. DD hasn't had any lasting effects that we're aware of so far. DS had several developmental issues, but after a more than a year of therapies (physical, occupational, and speech), last month we were happy to learn that he is now on target in all areas of development. :) We are very blessed!

Want to share your own labor stories? Head over to Rocks in the Dryer!