As much as I tried to be prepared and “in control” during my pregnancy, Hunter’s birth was definitely an experience that I could not have seen coming. Pretty much the only thing that went according to plan was that he did in fact arrive on his due date, February 3rd 2023. The best day of my life thus far.
In the final weeks leading up to Hunter’s arrival, I grew more and more uncomfortable. It wasn’t unbearable by any means, but I recall having a hard time getting comfortable whether it be sitting, standing, stretching, etc. I just could not find a position that seemed to work. In addition, I wasn’t sleeping super well. I would wake up several times at night, toss and turn to adjust…it wasn’t fun anymore. Not to mention, the swelling. Ugh!
At 39 weeks, 5 days… I had a check up at the birth center where I planned to have a natural, unmedicated birth. They had been monitoring my blood pressure and swelling because I had previously developed some protein in my urine which can be a symptom of preeclampsia (a serious, potentially dangerous condition during pregnancy). Sure enough, they were alarmed to find that my BP was extremely high. They performed a non-stress test, and baby was completely fine… but after considering everything, they decided that I would unfortunately have to risk-out of the birth center, transfer to a hospital and immediately get induced. It was time to get baby out to ensure the best outcome for us both.
I’m not going to lie, it was pretty scary to go in to an appointment and feel, for the most part, “normal” and end up being told to rush to the hospital to have our baby.
Russ and I got in the car, I had a little mini-breakdown…and we started making our way across town to the Hospital. On the way, we called our friends and family that we needed to keep informed, prayed, and I made Russ take me to Panera. I had heard stories of women not being allowed to eat in the hospital, and since I was preparing for what would probably be the hardest thing I’d ever done…I felt like I deserved some proper fuel.
We arrived at the Hospital around 6:20pm, got to Labor & Delivery, checked into triage and when they took my BP it was 198/122! Not good. They decided that I would need to be put on a magnesium drip to treat the high blood pressure. Unfortunately, that meant that I would be confined to the hospital bed (magnesium makes it dangerous for you to be on your feet because it can affect your balance and just make you feel really crappy). My goal of being able to allow gravity and my body to work together by walking, swaying, bouncing on the birth ball, etc. was out the door. This was really disappointing; however, God gave both Russ and I a lot of peace during this entire process and we just decided to let go of our own plans and trust that this was how it needed to be for the best interest of myself and baby boy.
Around 9:30pm, we finally got checked into our room and they started the mag. Since we had rushed so suddenly to the hospital, we didn’t have any of our belongings with us, so Russ went home to get what we needed and I had my mom come and stay with me while he was gone. I also had a few close friends pop in to pray with me and over Hunter very quickly. When Russ got back, we both finally tried to get some rest (props to all the dads out there who have slept in hospital delivery rooms).
I originally wanted to have as few cervical checks as possible, so I declined the first one.
They needed things to start progressing, and since I was not yet having any contractions, they suggested other ways to get things going. We decided on having a cook catheter (or foley balloon) placed to attempt to help me dilate. This was around 1am. As usual, I needed to get up a few times during the night to go to the restroom (with the help of a nurse) and around 3:30am I felt really sick and like I was going to pass out during one of my bathroom trips. Thankfully, it passed and I was able to get back to bed and rest for a few hours.
At 11am, the nurse was able to pull the balloon out, which I was told is a good sign of progression. She checked me at that point and I was around 4-5 centimeters dilated, but still having NO pain! They were monitoring me and baby continuously and would even ask me periodically if I could feel the contractions…my answer was always “uhhh, maybe a little?”. They just couldn’t believe that I wasn’t in more pain than I was. But Russ and I were clinging to the prayers we had prayed my entire pregnancy for a pain-free, supernatural childbirth. We knew God could and WAS delivering.
Basically, every hour that passed added more likelihood of complications arising and everyone wanted things to be as safe as possible. Around noon, they suggested trying to break my water. We were very hesitant because that was not in our original plan (but then again, at this point, none of it was), but we decided to let them try. When they did, the strangest thing happened. They couldn’t break it! My bag of waters was so strong (presumably from taking great Vitamin C during pregnancy) that it just wouldn’t budge. A nurse suggested that I try using a breast pump for nipple stimulation since that can sometimes encourage contractions to pick up. I did that off and on for about an hour and it did help my contractions get to 5 minutes apart, lasting for about a minute and a half each. But, when I stopped pumping the contractions started to slow.
I was feeling kind of lousy so they let me take a break and nap with a peanut-ball. That was the most comfortable position I could find. When I woke up from my nap, I was able to eat dinner (I remember getting the most random meal – a black bean burger, broccoli and mashed potatoes). When I was done eating, they checked me again and I had gotten to 6cm, 100% effaced and zero station. Baby was very low!
By the time 6:30pm rolled around, not much had changed and they thought it was time that I begin Pitocin (another thing I didn’t want). They started with the lowest dose and said we could go up from there. When they got that going, it wasn’t long before my BP started to get low (163/97) and they had to treat me with IV meds. After the meds, my BP went up to around 150-160 and stayed there for a few hours. This worried the midwife and around 8:20pm she came in to have a talk with us about needing to get the show on the road. They increased the Pitocin twice, and finally my BP got a lot better (134/91).
At 10:30pm I was finally having more consistent contractions every 1-2 minutes and lasting 1-3 minutes long. It was crazy, because I still wasn’t having ANY pain. God was literally moving!
I was able to sleep through the night and then around 12:45pm on Friday, the midwife said that we really couldn’t wait any longer. They checked me again, and I was still at 6cm! She attempted for the third time to break my water and FINALLY got it to break. The intensity of the contractions was really picking up at this point and by 1:45pm I was unable to get comfortable. Keep in mind, I had been in the bed for over 48 hours at this point, had sever cervical checks and three attempts at breaking my water. All while being on magnesium and other IV meds for my blood pressure. I was exhausted.
Then…the swelling got even worse. My legs and feet looked fake…I couldn’t actually believe they were mine lol. It was so weird.
By 3:30pm I was just completely spent. I knew I was going to have to push this baby out and at this point I was just running out of steam. We talked, prayed and consulted my Doula and finally decided that I would get an epidural (definitely not something I planned on either). It was an instant success! I felt so much better and my doula, Jenn, was able to help me move into different positions every so often. Eventually, the midwife came in and checked again and I was 7 1/2 cm dilated now. At that point, they were saying that Hunter would probably be here within a few hours. By 8:15pm, I had progressed to 9cm! Sounds wonderful, right?!
Except I stayed at a 9cm for the next 5 hours! Ugh. Time was passing so slowly at this point. Well, actually, to be honest I had no concept of time lol.
At 1:30am the midwife woke me up from a nap, checked and I was 9 ½ cm and a plus 1 station, which meant that he was starting to engage into the birth canal. I just kept laboring and slowly changing positions every 30 minutes or so until it was about 5:25pm and FINALLY time to push!
I was completely depleted by the time I started pushing, but somehow with the encouragement of Russ, my doula Jenn and an amazing midwife named Kristina, I was able to keep going. I remember the first several hours of pushing, and how hard it was…. we were trying every possible position I could get into while still staying in that bed. It was THE hardest thing I’ve ever done. I literally came to the end of myself and had to completely surrender and allow God to take over, and HE DID. I swear I blacked out for the last 3 hours and before I knew it, they were handing me my sweet, healthy baby boy!
I ended up pushing for over 5 hours and Hunter was born at 10:12pm on 2/3/23!
I learned SO much about myself, my faith, and trusting the Lord through my labor and delivery story…but more on that later.
Here’s our perfect little guy, Hunter Ray Hicks.
The Abundant life 