All in Due Time :

Third Child

The third pregnancy was probably the best in terms of ease in conceiving – again, it was natural. However, this time Brandi was very sick. She was hospitalized because she was dehydrated and could not keep any food down at all. To make matters worse, they had just moved to Sioux Falls (a big change from Texas). It was the first time they’d been through a real winter in years, she was pregnant and sick. It was horrible. The illness went away at about the 5th-6th month. Because they moved, Brandi had a different doctor than before. She explained how her first two deliveries had been induced. The doctor didn’t take to the idea very well. Brandi explained how she “couldn’t wait” for each delivery and that both deliveries had been very fast with the inducement. The doctor was a little more open to the idea, but still not convinced.

About two weeks before her due date, Brandi began to experience nausea and diarrhea again and her mood changed. When she went in for her checkup, she was dilated to around 2 cm. The doctor did a procedure called “stripping” to help things along. She remembers how the doctor’s hand came out all bloody and that she had severe cramping after the procedure. The doctor said the baby could come any time between then and two weeks. Brandi bought a new car seat for the baby and went home. She experienced some contractions in the night, but they weren’t very hard. Brandi called the doctor in the morning around 6 and was told that the contractions were caused by uterine irritation from the procedure they had done. The doctor recommended a hot bath. The bath helped some, but the contractions continued. At around 10, she called the doctor’s office again and told them she felt that she was dilated. When she told them her contractions were 8-15 minutes apart and irregular, the nurse told her she was not yet in labor. The nurse offered to make an appointment at the office for 1:00 that afternoon, just to check. She called Tim to come and take her to the doctor’s office. One of the memories Brandi has of that day was that she was collecting bids for housekeeping services and ended up having to talk particulars between contractions. She just laughs at what the people from the cleaning service had to deal with that day.

When the doctor checked her at 1:00, Brandi was already at 7 cm. They rushed over to labor and delivery and sure enough, the baby was born by 3:00.

One thing Brandi says is a bit unusual about her birth experiences is that she sees them as a big party – a chance for all their friends and family to celebrate. She always used a friend to interpret for her. She had her family, Tim’s sister and several friends with her through the deliveries. For her, it’s a wonderful time – time to enjoy the miracle of bringing a new life into the world. All three of her deliveries were wonderful (although the pregnancies themselves weren’t). She had candles, bought herself a new bathrobe, lots of wonderful things to enjoy. And that’s her summary of the three children’s births.

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