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Home › Stories › First Baby › Complicated Birth > Baby Girl Arrives at 36 Weeks

Baby Girl Arrives at 36 Weeks

By Cayla Mohr

On March 7, 2005, I got to Kaiser Permanente Hospital at 1 p.m. to get my MFA papers and paperwork to enroll my daughter on my medical insurance.

At 1:35 p.m. I went and checked into my appointment in the High Risk area. I was back there to do the usual urine test, check my weight and blood pressure.

All was great. I had gained another 4 pounds too. Robin, the nurse, took me into Room 4, where my grandparents and I waited for Dr. Yu to come in. About 10 minutes later he came in, we went over why I had gone to labor and delivery twice in a four-day span and about how my asthma was doing (pretty poorly).

Then he asked me how Caydence's movements where. I told him they were pretty much null and had been for days. So he went for the ultrasound machine. As he was checking things out, he noticed that Caydi had no room to move and that I had lost amniotic fluid and didn't even know it.

He checked to see how far along I was (36 weeks) and he asked me how I'd feel about being induced because my baby was in danger. I told him I was OK with it. If she had to come, she had to come! Dr. Yu told me, OK then, we will induce you today and you'll have her tomorrow. I'll send your chart to L&D. Go ahead and head over there now.

I walked out of the office, called my husband and my mom and headed to labor and delivery. The hospital was just a short walk, but my grandpa wheeled me over in a wheel chair. I called my friend Lacey to let her know what was going on, then called my stepmom so that she and my dad could get down here ASAP.

After that, I was at the hospital and got myself checked in. Then I did more calling to family!

At 2:30 p.m., I was put into Labor Room 5 and by 3:30 p.m., I got my IV in and got started on fluids and medication to keep my asthma from acting up as I went into labor. I was already having some contractions, so those just helped me along.

At 4 p.m. they inserted the tiny pill into my vaginal area to try to dilate and efface me. At 5 p.m., I was then moved to Room 3118 in the recovery area. I had a six-hour wait.

By 8:30 p.m. I was having some pretty regular contractions. Then 10 p.m. rolled around and I had to go back to labor and delivery so they could hook me up to the monitors and check me. I was still only dilated at 1/2 centimeter and wasn't effaced at all. However, I was having regular contractions, so they let me go for a few more hours.

By now, my dad, stepmom and brother had showed up and not far after them, my aunt was here.

By 11:15 p.m. they inserted the second pill and that's when my contractions went from little ones to huge, strong, painful ones. I was in tears from some of them. Some of them just lingered and hung on. I finally asked for something through my IV. They couldn't give me anything because Caydi's heart rate had dropped.

Finally, almost an hour and a half later, they came in with a relaxant and told my family that they'd give me the other pill at 5 a.m. and see what happened from there.

Fifteen minutes later, I woke up screaming, She's coming! I need to push! I went from being 1/2 centimeter dilated and 0 percent effaced to 10 centimeters dilated and 100 percent effaced in less than two minutes. It was just like my mother when she had me.

My mom ran to get the nurse. The nurse came running in; then she went to get the doctor. The doctor came running in, checked me, yelled to the nurse that the baby's head was right there and they took me into the delivery room.

The bag of water had tried to come out without breaking. The doctor had a tough time trying to break it, but finally got it, and two pushes later at 2:26 a.m. on March 8, 2005, I had Caydence Nykholle M***, who was 4 pounds, 10 ounces and 17 inches long.

Matt, my husband, cut her umbilical cord and helped the nurses clean her up. I was so out of it I didn't care what was going on. In fact, I don't really even remember much about the delivery. I do remember some of it though.

After Caydi was born, the doctor had to stitch me up in several places. Pretty bad places too. I tore pretty good. She also noticed that the placenta hadn't come out and was trying to adhere itself to my uterus.

I tried for what seemed like forever to push it out. I was so tired and so sore, I didn't want to do it. Finally, it came to the point that the doctor had to stick her arm up inside me and get it out herself. That hurt worse then delivering Caydence, but it had to be done.

I really don't remember what went on after that, but my husband told me that our daughter was taken to the NICU because she was breathing heavy. She was only there for awhile.

Around 7 a.m. on March 8 I finally woke up and got to know the stats and everything on Caydence. I breastfed her for the first time that morning and she got the hang of it very quickly.

She's the best baby. She's very calm and relaxed.

We are young parents (I'm 20 and hubby is 21) but are so happy we started our family so young. We plan to try to conceive No. 2 in 2006!

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