Thursday, April 28, 2011

♛ He's Here! ♛


Hudson Samuel was born on April, 22nd at 12:47 am. He weighed 9 pounds 1 ounce and 20 1/2 pounds. On the nights of April 19th and the 20th, I was up all night with strong contractions. So, it worked out that I had it set up to go in at 6:00 am on the 21st (Hudson's due date)to be induced. When I went in, I was already dilated to 3 cm. I had pretty steady contractions all morning. I could tell my body was getting ready, so at that time, there was no need for pitocin. By the afternoon though, my contractions had pretty much stopped. So, I gave the ok to help my labor along.

By about 3:00 in the afternoon I felt something pop and I knew right after that my water had broke. The contractions got REALLY intense after that. At this point, I was completely and utterly exhausted. I hadn't slept good in weeks. With my last son, I went without epidural. They had given me too much and I had no feeling in my chest, so I told them to take me off it completely. I was able to labor for 23 hours and push Jonah out without pain medication. That's why I thought I could do it with Hudson. Boy, was I wrong! I have heard some mothers compare labor to severe cramping or pushing out a watermelon. For me, that is putting it lightly. I would compare the pain to having my insides being ripped apart from the inside out. I now know each labor is entirely different because with Cainen & Jonah, it wasn't NEAR as bad.

Since Hudson was sunny side up and I was having intense back pain, I tried different positions to get him to move in the right direction. After trying to endure the pain for hours and reaching only 6 cm, I begged for the epidural. I was finally able to relax a little and get the rest I had needed for weeks.

When my Doctor came in at about 11:00 pm, he said I was at 9 cm. After that everything was such a great experience! The Doctor came back in after the nurse told him Hudson was crowning. I only had to push twice! My wonderful Doctor told Aaron (my husband) to deliver Hudson. So, Aaron got to deliver our baby boy! Aaron laid him on my chest and he stopped crying immediately. He was so awake and alert. He nursed right away for a good amount of time. The hospital was very understanding about my desire to not interfere with my time with Hudson. They NEVER took him away from me once while I was there except for his circumcision. I had him on my chest for a very long time and then I gave them the ok to weight him and bathe him in front of me. They did not push giving him the Hepatitis B shot. I know that all these things should be done this way anyway but with giving birth in a hospital, you never know what nurse could be pushy, thinking she knows more than the mother.

When they checked him for jaundice the next day, he had no trace of it. His complexion is just perfect. I can't believe it's already been a week since I was in labor with him. He is so precious and I am so grateful for the all the love, prayers & support I have received. He nurses so well. Since I nurse on demand, it's just so easy to co-sleep with my little prince. I love to smell my breast milk on his lips. I love the sounds he makes. I am so grateful to God. This time last year, I had lost my little baby but God is always full of new beginnings. So, here I am with my baby boy in sheer bliss. I have been having a hard time getting back to feeling good again. I am in a lot of pain still but it is so worth it. I will update again soon!









1 comment:

Charla said...

Congratulations!! He's absolutely beautiful!
Your story is awesome! There are so many similarities to my birth experience with my Hudson, it's almost funny! (the hospital looked at me *really* funny when I said no to the Hep B shot, but they were actually encouraging of my desire to co-sleep there. And they only took him away for his bath and circ, too.
Congratulations! :)