How I Survived a Week of Prodromal Laboring

We have about 40 weeks to prepare our bodies mentally, physically, and emotionally for having a child. In these 40 weeks, we see our bodies change drastically while creating a human being.

So, what can we do? Well – we usually start with a birth plan…

My Birth Plan:

Oddly labor and birth did not scare me. I felt prepared and honestly – I had no choice in the matter. This baby was coming out one way or another.

I was always told not to bother with a birth plan because it would never happen the way I anticipated. But I’m a planner, so I planned. My ideal birth plan included a riveting playlist of music from the ’60s, a warm bath, and total relaxation.

What was my actual birth like? The complete opposite.

Prodromal Labor:

This means you go through labor symptoms before actual labor begins. These symptoms can last weeks. For me, it lasted 27 hours, and it would occur from 10 pm to 6 am. The first time it happened, I thought it was the real deal. When I eventually fell asleep and woke up, the symptoms were gone. This went on for a week.

Not only was it physically exhausting but it was emotionally tolling as well.

On Anakin’s due date, I was 90% effaced and 3 centimeters dilated.

Active Labor:

Four days after Anakin’s due date, I pre-labored as usual but when 6 am came, I was still contracting. I knew it was go-time!
I recorded my contractions using an app with a timer.
When my contractions became 4 minutes apart, I went into a hot bath to relieve the pain and tried to play mind games with myself. I kept repeating “This is just a feeling and it will pass. Pain is just a feeling.” It worked.
I ended up laboring at home with my husband, aunt, and three dogs for 6 hours and then decided to go to the hospital. I laid in a dog bed in the trunk of our SUV and cried the whole way there.
When we got to the hospital it was 5 pm and I knew I must have dilated from 3cm to at least 6. Wrong again. I only dilated one centimeter. My midwife hooked me up to a monitor and noted that my body was doing everything correctly but that my uterus was exhausted from all the prodromal labor. She gave me sleeping medicine and I slept until 11 pm.

Water Broke:

I woke up and my water broke the second I got out of bed. Let me tell you – it is nothing like the discharge I had experienced before. It was like I opened a gallon of gross spoiled milk and dumped it on the floor. I still remember it splashing up my legs.

Transitional Labor:

I was checked again and had dilated to 6cm! I was almost there. Close to starting transitional labor, the most difficult part. Well, I went to the bathroom, walked out, and started crawling on the floor while screaming. No matter what I did I felt no relief. I felt truly like a crazed animal.
Remember my birth plan was a beautiful, peaceful, birthing tub. As I left the shower with my gown ripped off I demanded to go in the bathtub. There were about two inches of water and I just sat up splashing and screaming. After 8 years together, I’ve never seen my husband this scared. This went on for a half-hour.
I finally asked for an epidural. “It will take 15 minutes to kick in.” – I’m sorry, what… 15 more minutes of this torture?

Delivery:

It was midnight, I was checked again and was told I dilated to 10cm and that I needed to start pushing.
Pushing wasn’t as bad as I thought. Nor was the epidural. I was able to move around the bed freely and I still felt every contraction, I was very much in control.
I’ve always heard pushing is like taking the biggest dump of your life. It could not be truer. I laid flat on my back and brought my knees to my chest. With each contraction, I would breathe in and then push without breathing out three times in a row. My husband held one leg while my aunt positioned her body behind mine to give me leverage to push. Almost immediately they saw Anakin’s hair. I felt hopeful and happy!
A mirror was positioned, and I could see my progress. Unfortunately, every time I pushed, he went right back in. This lasted for three hours. In between pushes, I would fall into a deep sleep and then jolt awake to push.
My midwife mentioned that we may have to use a vacuum to get him out since this has been going on for this long. I was trying to think back to my classes when we talked about the vacuum, but nothing came to me. I decided I had already gone through so much; I was going to get this baby out myself.
I pushed incredibly hard, and his head was crowned. The ring of fire is real, but it’s not as terrible as I feared it would be. I pushed again, his shoulders flopped out, and he was lifted onto my chest. All in all, I ended up pushing for 3.5 hours.

And just like that, it was 3:40 a.m., and there were now 6 people in the room. This 6th person was a 6lb 14oz baby boy named Anakin, with a perfect part in his hair and eyelashes that reached his eyebrows.

I became a mom. I joined the club of warriors and tough women. I earned my stripes and my badge of honor.

24 hours after Anakin was born, I was ready to have another child. Crazy how your mind tricks you into thinking it wasn’t that bad.

To my fellow moms reading this, your birth experience will be beautiful because it will be yours.