The Parsonage Family: In 2, 3... Out 2, 3

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

In 2, 3... Out 2, 3

This is the breathing pattern Matt is having me do... now that I am IN LABOR! Hooray! We are very excited!

After more than 48 hours of nearly painless contractions, the discomfort increased around 4pm yesterday (Tuesday, Jan. 27) and after a dinner of Applebee's nachos (with extra jalepenos, as we were trying to "smoke her out") we consulted the books about whether my 5-7 minute contraction intervals warranted a trip to the hospital yet. We consulted the doctor on call around 10pm and he was remarkably unhelpful, basically saying I should/could wait til they're 3-5 minutes apart, but that it couldn't hurt to come in and be monitored for a while. Really not wanting to check in for a false alarm, I decided to go to bed (11:30-ish) and wait it out.

I had some trouble falling asleep, and around 12:30 or 1 had heartburn-induced vomiting from the nachos. The pain was getting worse, and I started watching the clock again after that. Around 1:45, I called Matt in (who was out in the family room, completely unable to sleep from the anticipation) and told him they were five minutes apart and getting pretty painful, so we decided it was time!

Even between the time of that decision and getting ourselves out the door around 2:05, the contractions were coming a lot more frequently--every 2-3 minutes. We checked in via the ER, and got our room rather quickly. Our nurse, Stephanie, tells me I am 90% effaced and 3 centimeters dilated. My contractions are coming every 1-2 minutes and are getting increasingly painful--largely in my lower back, which is really, really no fun. She's going to check me again in a half hour or so, and hopefully I can get my epidural sometime soon after that!

Matt is proving to be an awesome coach so far, and we're gearing up for the most important day of our lives! Pray for a smooth delivery and a healthy baby! We'll report back in the morning!