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Birth Stories
Sofia Ann
Proud parents Kristina and Tim welcomed Sofia Ann into the world on Wednesday, July 18 at 12:39 am, weighing in at 7lb. 14oz., 19.5 inches.
Between 37 and 38 weeks, my doctor recommended a scheduled induction, due to some concerns about the baby ’ s size. Sofia had always been about a week ahead developmentally, and at 38 weeks, I was 80% effaced and slightly dilated. With my consent, we proceeded to schedule her delivery date for July 17, exactly my 39th week. Having a scheduled date that we could put on our calendars seemed so surreal. All fantasies that my husband and I shared of a late night dash to the hospital were soon extinguished, but at the same time, it was exciting knowing she was guaranteed to be here in a matter of days!
We arrived at the hospital at 7:00 on Tuesday morning. After getting settled, the doctor broke my water, and began a Pitocin drip. Contractions started coming on strong soon afterwards. It really surprised me how consistent, strong, and fast they came with the medication. I labored for 6 hours before receiving an epidural, which brought welcome relief, and put me back on cloud 9. We spent the rest of the evening napping, reading magazines, and listening to Koi (the same music Leslie plays in class). By 11:00 pm, I was 9 cm, but the baby had failed to drop past 0 position in 10 hours. At this point, the doctor informed us that a C-Section would be the best option for baby and me. I had always envisioned giving birth naturally, so the news kind of threw us for a loop. Surprisingly though, I was almost relieved to know that the baby would arrive within the hour, and that she wouldn’t have to endure the stress of further labor. By 11:45, I was prepped and on my way to the operating room. I was nervous at first, coupled with a few episodes of the shakes from the pain medication. But those soon stopped when I realized they were taking the baby out, followed by the sound of her first cry! As soon as I was able to leave the operating room, I was given Sofia and brought back to our room, where I could nurse her immediately.
I want to mention that the nurses we had at St. Mary’s were absolutely amazing, and made our stay more pleasant than we could have ever imagined. The best advice I got going into this experience was to have no expectations other than leaving with a healthy baby and healthy mom. Fortunately, baby is very healthy, Mom is healing up remarkably well, and our little family has never been happier.
Best of luck to everyone!
Kristina P.