On June 10, 2003, I awoke at 5:00 a.m. with some slight discomfort in my abdomen. At first I thought it was just gas pain, so I got out of bed and went to the bathroom. After using the bathroom, I tried to go back to bed, but the discomfort continued. So I thought, “Maybe I am hungry.” With that thought, I got out of bed again and went into the kitchen. I got myself a bowl of the generic honeycombs. By the time I had finished eating, Jim was up and he asked me if I was alright.
It was now 5:30 a.m., and I still wasn't feeling any better. Since Jim had to be at work by 7:00 a.m., he decided to take a shower and get ready for work. Once again, I decided to try and go back to bed. I couldn’t figure out what was making me feel so uncomfortable. While Jim was shaving, I got my answer.
My discomfort went from a slight gassy, cramping feeling, to a hard, cramping, tugging feeling.

“Jim,” I yelled.

“What,” he replied?

“I just had a contraction.”

“Really!”

“I guess the baby is coming today.”

“Well you know what to do. Wait at home as long as you can, and call me at work when you think it is time to go to the hospital.”

“I know.”

And with that, Jim hopped in the shower, and I turned on the television in our room. I was in no mood to go to sleep now that my nerves had kicked in, and I prepared for the long day ahead.
After Jim had left for work, I began shaking. I realized how scared I was of the upcoming event. The baby could come at any hour, and I would be a mother. However, being a mother was not what was scaring me, the thought of labor was.
About 7:30 a.m., I decided to call my mother in hopes of receiving some ease to my fears. I got her answering machine and left her a message to call me back, the baby is on the way. Around 8:30 a.m., my mother finally returned my phone call. She had just gotten home from work and heard my message. We talked for almost two hours about what was going to happen, what was happening at the moment, and about her job (that was just to take my mind off the contractions).
When my mother and I finally hung up, I called my sister (Terri) at work. Terri works with Jim in the same department at Aetna. On Monday, Terri told me about a surprise baby shower that was being thrown for Jim at work. I was asked to be there, and the party was at 2:00 p.m.
Terri picked up the phone and I told her it was me. I asked her if Jim had mentioned to her that my contractions had started this morning. She told me no, she hadn’t really talked to him yet today, so he hadn’t told her anything. She then asked if I was alright, and I told her yes. I also told her I was going to try to make it to the shower and that I would call her if there was any change. We said our good-byes and I tried to get some more sleep.
I probably slept for about a half an hour when I was awoken by another contraction. Since they began at 5:00 a.m., they had been anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes apart, with the uncomfortable, slightly gassy feeling, cramps in between, and lasted about 30 seconds. By 11:30 a.m., they were about 10 minutes apart and 45 seconds long.
At 12:30 p.m., I called Terri again. I asked her if there was any way they could move the baby shower up a little because I was sure Jim was going to have to take me to the hospital at 2:00 p.m. She asked me how far apart my contractions were. By now, they were 2-5 minutes apart and lasted for almost a minute or more. With that information, Terri told me she would call me back. 10 minutes later, Terri called and told me the shower was now at 1:30 p.m., and that her husband (Keith) was on his way to pick me up.
Just before Keith arrived, my dad called. He had been talking to Keith online and had heard the news. He asked me, “Why aren’t you in the hospital yet.” I replied, “In birthing class, they told us to say home as long as possible.” I assured him that everything was going to be alright and that Jim or I would call him when the baby arrives.
By the time Keith dropped me off at Aetna, my contractions were 1-3 minutes apart and 1-1 ½ minutes long. Jim’s shower went as planned, except for the fact that he caught Terri trying to sneak me into the building. The shower ended at 2:00 p.m. and Jim rushed me home to pick up the hospital bags, then off the hospital we went.
We arrived at the hospital at 2:30 p.m. I was put into a delivery room and told to change into a hospital gown. They tell you in birthing class to stay home until you can’t talk through a contraction. Well, through the whole labor I could talk through my contractions, but I couldn’t move. Jim had to help me change because by now, my contractions were 1-2 minutes apart, 1-2 minutes long, and extremely painful.
At 3:00 p.m., the nurse checked me to see how much I was dilated. I was at 3 centimeters, so they admitted me to the hospital. Shortly after that, I threw up and they put me on an I.V. At 4:00 p.m., Dr. Mason (my OB/GYN) came in to check my dilation. I was almost at 4 centimeters. At that point, Dr. Mason decided to break my water to get things moving along. He told me that it would probably take an hour a centimeter, and two hours of pushing, so the baby should come around midnight.
Some time later, I was about ready to lose it. I had informed the nurses when I arrived that I refused to have an epidural, no matter what. I had also told them that I didn’t want any pain medication. Well, I never expected it to be so painful. I completely lost my focus and my mind was spinning out of control.
I remember looking at Jim and asking him if he thought pain medication was a good idea. He told me that he supported whatever I felt I needed to do. I asked the nurse for a little medication, and was given Stadol through my I.V. The Stadol did not, and I repeat not, take the pain away. However, I was able to focus during and rest after contractions.
At 6:40 p.m., I looked at Jim and told him that I wanted to push. The nurse in the room immediately came to my side and told me she was going to check my dilation, but that I shouldn’t push because I was estimated to only be at 5 or 6 centimeters. While she was checking, she looked at Jim and said, “Oh my gosh, she is at an 8.” She then instructed me not to push, and that she would check me again at 7:00 p.m. At 7:00 p.m., the nurse checked my as she promised. She then smiled and said, “You can start pushing now.”
Pushing was a lot more different than they said it would be in birthing class. The nurses had just gone through a shift change, and my new nurse instructed me on how it should feel when I push. There was a few times that I thought I was going to have to go to the bathroom between pushes, but the nurse told me that was normal because of where the baby was located at the moment.
Sometime during the pushing, the nurse gave me an oxygen mask, because the baby’s heart rate was lower than it should be. She assured me the baby was alright, but that it just needed the extra oxygen. I had a really hard time keeping the mask on at first. I felt like I couldn’t breathe, but soon, it didn’t bother me any more.
After pushing for about an hour and fifteen minutes, I asked that nurse how much longer she thought it was going to be before the doctor comes in to deliver the baby. She said, “Well, right now, I can see the baby’s head when you push, but I can’t see it when you’re not pushing. When I can see the baby when you’re not pushing, then I will go and get the doctor. She is in the next room getting ready to deliver a baby that is slightly ahead of yours.”
With that, the next contraction came and I pushed for all I was worth. Instead of getting three pushes (10 seconds each) during this contraction, it lasted so long that I was able to get almost four good pushes. During my fourth push, the nurse looked at Jim, then at me and said, “I’m going to go and get the doctor now. Try to relax and not push so much. The baby is crowning.”
Within a matter of minutes, Dr. Kroeker (the delivery doctor on duty at the time) came in, and her and the nurse broke down my bed and prepared to deliver.
At 8:22 p.m., Izabel Amanda was born. Jim was the first one to see what she was. “It’s a girl. It’s Izabel!” I heard him say those words, but I kept asking if the baby was out because I was still having contractions. It wasn’t until she was placed on my stomach that the contractions stopped. I kept saying hello to her over and over again. I remember looking at Jim and telling him that she was beautiful. Jim got to cut the umbilical cord, and then the nurse took Izabel to clean her up.