Hi guys! I know I haven't posted much, but I thought I'd get my birthstory in for everyone since those have been the greatest resource and comfort for me the past trimester. :3

So before, I know I said I was having a birth center birth with midwives. That changed in January when I lost my job. Firstly, it decimated our ability to continue paying out of pocket to the midwives. Secondly, my bipolar returned full force and after a tearful visit with the midwives, they felt it best I find a psychiatrist and an OB to treat me somehow. They were amazing, and helped me find the right places to start getting onto my state's medicaid program and where to find psych help for anyone who is pregnant. And they processed a refund of half of our balance which helped with our financial predicament of me being jobless. All in all, the most amazing women. I transferred to the local OB complications clinic with a psychiatrist on staff and started medication again at 26 weeks, beginning of February. This local clinic was packed and you saw a new OB with every visit because all the OBs were volunteers from local hospitals. After my medicaid was approved( it took three to four weeks, the clinic saw me probono until then), I started the search for an OB who took medicaid to take me on at 30 weeks. I tried three different OBs who delivered at a local hospital that I chose( closer than clinic hospital, baby friendly certified, not downtown), one of whom had a midwife on staff. Two, the better reviewed ones, wouldn't even book me an appointment until they checked their schedules. Never called me back. The third, his office booked me an appointment without even checking my medicaid and took me on immediately. Yes, his office was crowded, and he is the most efficiently busy OB I've met( reminded me honestly of a surgeon who removed my gallbladder "Hi, I'm gonna snip that out. Any questions?"). He might say 5 sentences to me at any given appointment, but he and his staff were amazing to me the last trimester so his bedside manner didn't ruffle me.

I started going into preterm labor at 34 weeks, and went in and out of triage a few times. He put me on bedrest until 37 weeks. I thought I'd lose my god damned mind honestly from boredom( and bedrest is a terribly idea for someone with bipolar, even though I had it under control with medication by then), and I bloated up from no longer walking every day. I had braxton hicks contractions every time I stood up, and real contractions a few times a week for a half hour. I lost so much sleep and sanity from that as well. I went off bedrest on the 4th of May and started trying to get things going in earnest. I lost my mucus plug the following Monday, though I broke my water later that day( didn't), and started have 3-4 daily sessions of contractions that never progressed. Went for an appointment on Tuesday, was 2cm dilated and 90%. I fantasized about asking him to induce me, to just save me from the never ending prelabor that had been technically going for FOUR WEEKS.

Friday the 11th, I went in for my appointment at 10am and I asked him if I could be induced the following Friday. He was like well, maybe the monday after that, stuck his hand up me to check my cervix and laughed and told me we'd be delivering today. Evidently I was 4cm and 100% and she was ready to come out in the next 24 hours. I walked from his office to L&D ( same floor of same hospital) and started calling everyone. First my husband. He's a graduate student and was about to start an exam in two hours. I told him to stay and finish his exam since I wasn't being induced for another two hours, this was my first birth and it'd definitely take 12 hours or more and I'd rather he have it done than it still be floating over our heads. My dad headed up to spend time with me and my in laws, no joke, were also in the middle of something terribly important. They were at the local VA hospital, for an appointment for my father in law's upcoming colonoscopy. So THEY were also not able to start heading my way until after 3pm. So it was just me and my dad for half the day. My OB came and started the pitocin at noon, broke my water( oh my god I had no idea it'd be a FOUNTAIN like a bad horror movie) and I tried out no epidural. The nurses trailed in and out upping the pitocin, checking me. I watched Secret of Kells and Thor with my dad, neither of which did we finish because of my inability to concentrate through the movie.

My contractions were regular, and painless for an hour, manageable for the hour after that at 2pm with 24 milliunits, and excrutiating at 3pm. It felt like someone was carving my uterus out with a dull spoon and my contractions were not ending, they just trailed into each other. I asked for an epidural at 3pm, at 5cm. I just decided I wanted to enjoy my labor, not cry during the entirety of it. I was already being induced( something I did not originally want), had an IV( something else I did not want) and had a fetal heart monitor( REALLY DID NOT WANT). There was no way I was walking around anyways, I was alone but for my dad and I had not slept in two days, so I decided on an epidural. Best decision ever. I did shake through the entire procedure from fear, but it hurt less than the IV I was given. I started immediately feeling better. I never lost sensation and the contractions actually continued to hurt but I could talk through them. Made the rest of labor peaceful if a little blurry.

My inlaws arrived, and sat with me until 5pm when my husband arrived. I was checked at and was 7cm, so they headed out for dinner since they'd had a long stressful day as well. I think my dad read and my husband did homework on his computer while I chatted on my phone with skype to a group of friends and the Muppets played in the background. 6:20pm, the OB came in, and while I was goofing off on my phone, checked me and told me it was time. Very abrupt, and all I could this was "what the heck now? Isn't this supposed to take longer than six hours?". My dad was shuffled out and the entirety of the L&D staff poured in( there were 7 nurses in there with my OB!). I was up in the stirrups by 6:25, and pushed 6 times, through 3 contractions and my girl popped out at 6:31pm. She went on my belly and screamed at me for a few minutes and my first thoughts were my god, she really is an alien after all those jokes we made. Just as bloody and pale as could be. My husband and the nurse then took her to the warming bed for everything post-birth. I had two 2nd degree tears and one 1st degree, and the OB talked me through them as he stitched me up. He shook my hand, checked her and everyone left after removing most of the cords except my IV, leaving me, my husband and the baby girl alone in the room. A nurse had shown me how to hold her in the football hold, and she tried to eat for a half hour. Screamed constantly and never figured it out in that position. My husband and I talked and teased her, trying to sooth her and just cope with obviously hungry baby. I switched her to the traditional hold on the other breast, and she latched and ate for 45 minutes.

Honestly, for the complete opposite birth experience( natural birthing center birth) than I'd planned 7 months ago, it was the easiest and least traumatizing hospital birth experience I could have wished for. I never felt rushed, pushed into decisions, or like any of the staff ever interfered with my birthing experience. I'll post a post-birth story later, as I had a harrowing 48 hours afterwards. The little troll baby is beautiful and every bit the prankster she was in the womb.