All in Due Time :

First Child

Tim and Brandi tried for several years to get pregnant. All the tests showed that there were no apparent reasons they could not conceive. It was very frustrating because they wanted to know what was wrong so they could fix it. They tried using fertility drugs, although it made Brandi nervous because they brought with them an increased risk of ovarian cancer. They tried in-vitro fertilization. On their first attempt, two eggs fertilized, one survived and Brandi was pregnant at last. She remembers how excited she was. She bought maternity clothes before she even really began showing. She thinks the first pregnancy was probably the best one because she was so excited, she didn’t have any other kids to look after at the same time, and Tim treated her like a queen. At about 28 weeks, she went into premature labor. At first she thought it was just Braxton Hicks contractions but they were more intense than she’d felt before. She went to the doctor and found she was dilated to 3cm. She remembers the nurse telling her (without an interpreter) that she had to go home and rest. Brandi said she had an important meeting she couldn’t miss and had to go back to work. She finally convinced them that she would rest as soon as she got back from her out of town meeting. They sent her home with instructions to call them if the contractions continued. Brandi went back to work, but continued to feel contractions. She called the doctor and was told to go back to the hospital to labor & delivery. She went in and they attached electrodes to her stomach. They gave her a muscle relaxant (most likely Magnesium Sulphate) that caused problems because it blurred her vision. Brandi eventually demanded the doctor stop the IV because she couldn’t see. Her interpreter had to sign right in her face in order for Brandi to understand. It was horrible.

Brandi stayed in the hospital a few days and then went on bed rest for the rest of her pregnancy. She was put on medication to keep the contractions from coming back. At 38 weeks, she stopped taking the medication. She envisioned a quick labor and delivery right after she stopped. But a week went by and still no labor. She was used to being a very active person and could not stand to stay home any more. Tim interrupts Brandi to ask if that was when she ate pickles dipped in peanut butter to try to trigger labor. Brandi corrects him and says it was jalapenos because he told her it would work.

Brandi asked the doctor to induce labor because by that time she was going stir crazy. The doctor agreed to induce labor. Once induced, the whole thing went very fast. They put in the IV at around 6 in the morning and broke her water at around 7:30. Up until that time, Brandi watched the contractions on the monitor, but they didn’t hurt. When they broke her water, she felt the pain of contractions for the first time. All she wanted was the epidural right then. She had to wait for some fluids to go thru the IV, and remembers the nurse squeezing the IV bag to empty it as fast as possible. Finally they gave her the shot and she felt better.

By 9:30, she was at 10 cm but the doctor wasn’t ready yet. The baby was born around 11, so the whole process really went fast. It was an experience she’ll never forget.

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