- When I got to L&D, the first thing my UTEACH Mom said to me was, "I got an epidural! I can't feel my legs!" At this point, she was only dilated 1cm and was having slightly irregular contractions (she had come into the hospital because her water broke at about 4am. They didn't call me until 9:30am... I'm glad they let me sleep in a bit).
- I spent about 4 hours just chilling in the laboring room with my UTEACH Mom, her mom, her step-mom, and her husband. Just the 5 of us... chilling.... for 4 hours. I had met her mom and husband and a few times at various doctor's visits, so at that point, I felt like part of the family! While we waited, the moms talked about their experiences with childbirth. It was probably one of the most feminine conversations I've ever been a part of.
My UTEACH Mom and her husband had made various mixes of music to play for the big event. The mixes ranged from pop music, which played during parts of the labor, to soothing relaxation/spa music, for the delivery. They played it from their ipad (so cutting edge!).
- I love how being in labor is pretty much the only time you can order people around to help you and it is entirely acceptable. There were plenty of demands of "more ice!" (she could only eat ice chips), "rub my hand/back/belly!" "be quiet!" "change the music!" "Get this baby out!" from my UTEACH Mom. Overall, she was doing great, though.
- After hanging out for like 4 hours, I talked to the Residents (who were pretty much awesome) and they told me it was going to be a while until she went into active labor (the "pushing" part), since she's a first-time mom. "What's a while?" I asked. "Like tomorrow," they said, "We'll call you when she goes into active labor." So I went home. Like 20 minutes after getting home, I get a call from the hospital: "We're so sorry! We just checked and she's fully dilated! We were totally surprised! You should probably come back soon." So I drove back to the hospital.
- By the time I got back to the hospital, my UTEACH Mom was already pushing during her contractions. I'm pretty sure we were all pushing and breathing with her the whole time. The phrase: "Cleansing breath in and push 2, 3, 4... 10" became very familiar. To help her push, we would hold her legs or push against them. Watching a labor/delivery is difficult because you feel so helpless. For the most part, all we could do was help her breathe and cheer her on (at this point, we're almost beyond the "making her comfortable" phase). Many words of encouragement were given throughout: "Great pushing!" "Amazing job!" "You're so close!" "You're doing fantastic!"
- From my position (I was a leg holder), I had a perfect view of the baby making his way out. The last few contractions before the big moment were agonizing; we could all see the baby's head and so badly wanted to help get him out. When the time finally came, it was truly amazing. Suddenly, there was a baby! Relief and excitement filled the room. Honestly, I was entirely overcome with emotion (luckily, I held it together and though my eyes teared up a bit, no tears were actually shed). I can't even fully describe why. Seeing a new life emerge from his mother and begin was overwhelming and amazing.
My UTEACH Mom's husband (my UTEACH Husband?) was such a trooper. But I think the final push sent him over the edge. As soon as the baby was out, he was like, "I've gotta get some fresh air" and left the room. I think he almost fainted! No wonder guys don't have babies; I don't think they can hang.
- One of the residents was beaming at me throughout the entire delivery. It's probably exciting and fun to share such "first-time" experiences with medical students. To be able to share, first-hand, why they love their jobs. Very inspiring.
- After the baby has come out, while they're still delivering the placenta, there was an odd, quiet moment. The baby had been swept away by NICU (he ended up totally healthy), the husband was catching his breath, the mom's were playing paparazzi with the baby, and my UTEACH Mom was kind of left alone on her bed. It went from everyone around her to nobody (except for the doctors delivering her placenta and getting everything in order) almost instantly. I was glad I was there to comfort her so that she didn't have to be alone, waiting for her baby (she hadn't even seen the little guy yet).
- Another great moment (I almost lost it again) was when mother and son met face-to-face for the first time. She let out a combination of a squeal of excitement mixed with a cry of relief as she held her baby for the first time. And then, "OMG, I can't believe this came out of me!!!" Classic. (I was thinking the same thing).
Overall, this was an amazing experience. To be able to follow a pregnancy all the way to the end was very special and rewarding. I also learned that 1) it would be pretty rad to deliver babies as your job and 2) I could probably have a baby, too (childbirth has been a major fear of mine for a really long time... but after seeing my UTEACH Mom get through it, I know I could too... not that this is happening anytime soon).
*Also, for the record, the pic above is of a random baby and not my UTEACH baby.
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