I've always wanted to put my birth stories in writing, because as the years go by, memories and details slip away. I'm pretty sure my parents' responses change from time to time when answering questions about my birth story. So, I want to make sure it's somewhere, in writing, how Mr. Kaden Steve Sherman came to be the newest member of our family.
Apart from a few challenges in the beginning, my pregnancy was a blessing. A friend once told us that he prayed his wife would have a joyful pregnancy, so she would never fear getting pregnant again. It wasn't until that moment that I realized, I had a joyful pregnancy. I had little to nothing to complain about during those nine months. Now don't get me wrong, once I hit that due date, I was done. Obviously by the end you are large and in charge, sore, and anxious, but really...I truly came to enjoy the miraculous process of life growing inside of me.
We ended up switching insurance policies at 32 weeks pregnant (long story), which meant I had to see a new OB and midwife while nearing the end. This would freak most women out, but most women haven't had the experience I had with my old OB and nurse practitioner. So we gladly switched to Kaiser, and I comfortably acquainted myself with the women who would hopefully deliver our child. My old OB had given us a due date of January 3, and my new midwife gave us a due date of January 7. Having a new due date, even if it is only four days later, is rough so late in your pregnancy. Not only are you so accustomed to saying one date to everyone who asks, but those four days matter when you're eager to meet your little guy.
Now, it's important to note that EVERYONE told me during my pregnancy that I would never make it to my due date. I was carrying so low, and Kaden dropped at about 32 weeks, so all we heard was it was only a matter of time before I would go into labor. We expected a holiday baby at the latest, so you can imagine our surprise when Christmas passed, New Years passed, the first due date passed, oh and the second due date passed...no baby.
I'll be the first to admit that while I was desperate to go into labor and was so anxious to meet Kaden, I was also so nervous to be a mother, and so nervous for our lives to change. So this blog will be the first place I acknowledge that I didn't mind the week of maternity leave with no baby and a moment to digest what was about to happen. In fact, I remember the day labor started, Lee and I went for my bizillionth long walk, and I made the same confession to him. I remember feeling so much peace hearing my husband remind me that we could do this, and that our lives were about to change for the better. I guess God agreed that this peaceful moment was needed, because at 1:21 am on Tuesday morning, I rolled over in bed, poked Lee, and said, "This is it. I'm having real contractions sweetie, and they're 6-8 minutes apart."
I continued to labor for the remainder of the night and into the next day. My mom and Lee played a wonderful support by watching the clock to count my contractions and hit "play" on the Apple TV for the next episode of "Say Yes to the Dress." Don't kid yourself, we watched four seasons that day, because for whatever reason it made me happy, and any woman in labor knows you need to cling to anything that will make you happy during those countless hours. For real though, Lee and my mom were incredible! They assured me that I wasn't going to die, and that this wouldn't last forever. They also rubbed my back, and held me up both times we walked into the hospital.
By 5:00 pm, I'd labored at home for almost 16 hours, and my contractions were 5 minutes apart. For those of you insured by Kaiser, you know their labor and delivery rules require that you call in when your contractions are consistently 5 minutes apart for more than an hour before you head to the hospital. I begged Lee to call the moment that I hit that hour mark, and I was ready to head to the hospital. Unfortunately, when we called, we were told I needed to labor at home longer. Suddenly my contractions needed to be consistently 4 minutes apart for more than an hour before we could come in. So we sat...and labored...and sat...and labored. Until around 8:00 pm when my contractions were 4 minutes apart for more than an hour, and we decided to head to the hospital. When we arrived, they sent me to my room, I changed into the oh so flattering hospital gown they provide, and the midwife checked me out. At this point, I thought I was in a lot of manageable pain. My contractions were pretty heavy, and I had to assume I had dilated. Of course though, when the midwife checked me, I was still only 2 cm, so what do you know...they sent me home...again. Now, I know they technically didn't send me home at 5:00 pm, they just didn't let me come in to begin with, but it still felt like two rejections. I was told my contractions were strong and steady at 3-5 minutes apart, but I needed to get to 4 cm dilated before they could check me in. The midwife said, "Go home....get into bed...take some Tylenol PM, eat something if you can...and sleep until you can't stand your contractions. So, I did.
By 3:00 am that morning, after a dose of Tylenol, Lord only knows how many more episodes of 'Say Yes to the Dress', and my body experiencing what I thought to be death (Kaden was sunny side up, so all my pain was in my back.), I knew this was time. So, Lee called the hospital and they said to come in. Now, keep in mind, even though I was convinced that I was dying and that this was it, I also didn't want to go in after I felt as though they had rejected me two times. It may not sound logical, but the thought of being dragged by my mom and Lee back up to L & D just to be sent home again was more than I could bare. I didn't think I had it in me emotionally or physically. In fact, I had made up my mind that if they sent me home again, I was going to just sit in the hallway until they checked me again...and again...and would finally check me in! I even rejected a wheel chair because I had my pride (mostly I didn't want to arrive in a wheel chair if I was going to be sent away again.)
As it turns out, I was 5-6 cm dilated. They checked me in, and we prepared to meet our little Kaden. I'll spare you all the details of what happened after that, because I ended up having him at 1:49 pm, so you can imagine a lot more happened in those remaining 10 hours. I will tell you this, I finally got an epidural at 6:00 am after laboring naturally for 28.5 hours. Anyone that knows Lee knows that he has a big time fear of needles. I had debated whether or not I would get the epidural, but when the time came, I didn't even think, I just demanded it. So, I could have cared less if that thing was being shot into my spine or my thigh, I wanted relief. Lee, on the other hand, cared. Now you have to remember that we were going on 29 hours of being awake and laboring, so we were tired, hungry, and feeling it. Needless to say, when they started the epidural, all I heard as I sat motionless and hunched over was, "Lee? Lee are you ok? Lee, I need you to smell this and drink the juice." Lee had passed out and needed to be escorted out of the room. The nurse took over for the remainder of the epidural and was my support system as they finished...and as I too fainted. Oh, the Sherman's! We're a special bunch :)
Several hours later, I was relaxed and feeling less pain, but no dilation. My wonderful doctors tried everything to get things moving. They broke my water, they gave me pitocin. Finally, everything began to work, and at 1:00 pm, I was at a stationary 0 and 10 centimeters dilated. Our baby boy was coming. They told me that pushing with the first baby can take upwards of three hours, so I was fairly determined after my length of labor to make this happen within the hour (not that I had a choice.) Luckily, Kaden wasn't as stubborn about coming out once he had finally decided to make his debut, and he was out in 49 minutes. And boy was that little boy beautiful!
There's no feeling in the world like holding your child for the first time. He knew me, and I knew him. I can't describe it, but he looked familiar. He slipped into my arms those first few seconds of his life and his cries turned silent. We just stared at one another, and took in the moment.
As it turns out, I was 5-6 cm dilated. They checked me in, and we prepared to meet our little Kaden. I'll spare you all the details of what happened after that, because I ended up having him at 1:49 pm, so you can imagine a lot more happened in those remaining 10 hours. I will tell you this, I finally got an epidural at 6:00 am after laboring naturally for 28.5 hours. Anyone that knows Lee knows that he has a big time fear of needles. I had debated whether or not I would get the epidural, but when the time came, I didn't even think, I just demanded it. So, I could have cared less if that thing was being shot into my spine or my thigh, I wanted relief. Lee, on the other hand, cared. Now you have to remember that we were going on 29 hours of being awake and laboring, so we were tired, hungry, and feeling it. Needless to say, when they started the epidural, all I heard as I sat motionless and hunched over was, "Lee? Lee are you ok? Lee, I need you to smell this and drink the juice." Lee had passed out and needed to be escorted out of the room. The nurse took over for the remainder of the epidural and was my support system as they finished...and as I too fainted. Oh, the Sherman's! We're a special bunch :)
Several hours later, I was relaxed and feeling less pain, but no dilation. My wonderful doctors tried everything to get things moving. They broke my water, they gave me pitocin. Finally, everything began to work, and at 1:00 pm, I was at a stationary 0 and 10 centimeters dilated. Our baby boy was coming. They told me that pushing with the first baby can take upwards of three hours, so I was fairly determined after my length of labor to make this happen within the hour (not that I had a choice.) Luckily, Kaden wasn't as stubborn about coming out once he had finally decided to make his debut, and he was out in 49 minutes. And boy was that little boy beautiful!
