April 29th: The Playbook

As soon as we were moved to room 233 at Baptist Memorial Women's Hospital, the nurse arrived to evaluate me again. Within the 30 minutes between admission and transport, I had already dilated to 7 cm. At this point, they asked my preference of pain medication.



Throughout my pregnancy, I had planned for a natural delivery. Once labor began, I was suprised by my ability to handle the contractions and was thrilled with how quickly things were progressing. I felt so proud of myself, and I knew that I could keep going if I wanted to.



But in that moment, I was overwhelmed by a strong, distinct gut feeling that I needed to get that epidural. I couldn't explain it, particularly because I was managing the pain so well, but I just knew that was what I needed to do.



While I had expected to feel disappointment in such a moment, I felt total freedom.



I had rocked my labor experience so far. I made it to a 7 on my own in the blink of an eye. And that was something to be proud of. And I was even proud of my confidence that, yes, I can keep going if I want to. But I have the freedom to follow my gut, and that's what I'm going to do.



So in came the nurse anesthetist. And she gave me the best epidural I could have ever imagined (with the help of a cute little nurse named Maggie who held me in her arms and turned me into butter as the nurse worked her magic!). I could still totally feel and move my legs, and I could even feel the contractions, just without the sharp intensity of pain.



Jonathan and I then enjoyed the next couple of hours together, dozing in short spurts, talking, and staring at each other with that knowing "Holy Cow, is this really happening?" look.



My OB, Dr. Williams, arrived and joked that I had jinxed myself the day before with my proclamation that Riggs just needed to wait until the weekend when Jonathan's finals were finished! She checked me again and expressed her surprise that a first delivery was going so quickly and uneventfully. By 8:00 a.m. I was at 10 cm and ready to push.



Unfortunately, that was the same time that Dr. Williams had to leave for rounds at the other hospital across town. And I was about to find out what that gut feeling was all about...