Talia Rae is my second born. She was born on September 4, 2021. Her birth story is absolutely insane. At least for me it was. I had one experience prior because of my first born and as you know after reading that post last week, that was the most chill and relaxing experience. Talia was the complete opposite. I still can't believe it happened the way it did. Here is Talia's birth story.
It is Sunday, August 29, 2021, and I am getting ready for the birth of my second child being officially 39 weeks pregnant. My husband and I enjoyed our experience with our first born that we wanted to try and do the same with our second. I was scheduled to be induced the next day. We had childcare set up for our first born, and the kennel was prepared to take our dog. I love planning things in advance, so this really helped me feel way less anxious about the second baby coming. My hospital bags were packed and set to head to the labor and delivery in the morning.
It is 5am and I get a phone call. It is Labor and Delivery at our local hospital. Apparently, they did not have any beds available, so they said to call back in the afternoon to see if anyone gets discharged and a bed opens up for us. I call back in the afternoon and still no beds available. I was then scheduled to be induced on Wednesday, September 1, 2021. I cried and cried all Monday. What I had my heart set on felt like it was taken from me. I understood why they had to reschedule but I was beyond disappointed. I was so incredibly uncomfortable that I just wanted the baby out. I was having contractions here and there, but it felt more like Braxton Hicks instead of actual labor. It is Wednesday, and I get another 5am phone call. They had to reschedule again. They said to call in the morning because they do not have any available beds. I cried again. At that point, my heart felt broken. I was told during that phone call that it wasn't really the fact that they didn't have a bed for me, but that they didn't have any nurses. They were having a nurse shortage because of COVID and the hospital requiring nurses to get vaccinated. They lost a lot of nurses. I call again Thursday morning. The nurse on the other end had no idea what I was talking about when I said I've be rescheduled several times. She told me the midwife on call would call me back. I never got the call back. So I called again in the afternoon. I was finally able to talk to the midwife. She apologized and said that they could not get me in and that I should call the office to schedule a 39 week appointment. I did just that. Later that afternoon, like the last appointment of the day, they squeezed me in to check the baby's heartbeat and my vitals. Everything was normal, but I could tell the doctor was flustered. It was a rushed appointment and felt like a waste of time. It is Friday September 3rd and I call in the morning again. They did not have any available beds, but had me scheduled for 7:30 am on Saturday, September 4th. That week was so emotionally exhausting. I felt like they were playing with my very sensitive emotions (not on purpose obviously) but it was not a fun week.
I go to bed Friday evening, making sure all bags are by the door just in case and the kitchen completely clean. We dropped off our dog that evening too. We thought that even if we were rescheduled again, at least our dog is one less thing we would have to worry about.
It is Saturday morning around 4:20am. My husband was getting ready to go for an 8 mile run and I wake up having a sharp pain. I breathed through it and instantly knew labor started. I started timing the contractions. From that first contraction I felt to the next one was about 12 minutes. The doctor made it very clear that they will not take anyone into labor and delivery until the contractions are 5 minutes apart. My husband heard me making some noise, so he came upstairs to check on me before he left. I told him that I think labor started and the contractions were 12 minutes apart, so he should be good to run a couple miles then come back. Within the time he went running (2 miles, approximately 16 minutes), my contractions changed dramatically. The next contraction was 9 minutes apart (around the time my husband left), then 7 minutes, then 5 minutes, then 2 minutes. My husband comes back to check on me. He found me in the bathroom vomiting. The contractions were consistently 2 minutes apart, I fall to the floor, screaming. It was the worst pain I have ever felt in my entire life. My husband calls the labor and delivery number, they apparently heard me screaming in the background and told my husband to bring me in now. He calls my in-laws to come and pick up my toddler. I'm still in my sleep shirt. My husband puts on my sweatpants for me as I'm curled up on the floor. He grabs my toddler and we wait for my in-laws. The contractions have gotten more intense in the time of waiting. They live 5 minutes away from us, but it felt like forever until they got there. They arrive at our house around 5:45am and take our toddler. I couldn't even look at them or say goodbye to my toddler, I was in so much pain. My husband put everything in the car and we rushed to the hospital. He sped, like 20 over the speed limit. What is typically a 12-15 minute drive to the hospital ended up being about 7 minutes that night. I vaguely remember the drive. I remember screaming and my husband trying to talk to me and I was telling him to stop talking. It was like I felt his talking made it worse. It didn't. I definitely felt bad about that afterwards.
We arrive at the hospital and it is around 5:55 am. The security guard brings out a wheel chair for me. We get into the labor and delivery part of the hospital and the security there asks for our IDs. I had no freaking clue where my ID was. I got out of the wheel chair, rolled up like a ball on the floor, continue to cry and scream. Labor is the worst. The miracle of having the baby after is amazing, but actual natural labor with zero meds. The worst. I felt so dizzy and nauseous at this point while I am on the floor in the labor and delivery waiting room. I had three nurses come out to help me back in the wheel chair and roll me to the room.
Once we got to our room, I fall out of the wheel chair and lean on the bed. The nurses take off my pants and underwear and help into the bed. My water broke the moment I laid in the bed.The midwife checks my cervix and the baby's head is right there. I am still screaming and crying. I am so embarrassed to admit this, but I was screaming for meds. Apparently, I kept saying "I want meds, give me meds". The doctor had to calmly but in a very stern (not gonna happen voice), "You are not getting meds right now, it is time to push". I remember looking at my husband in tears. I was not ready to push, I was not ready at all. I was scared and anxious and completely terrified. But there was no other way out of it. I had to start pushing. I pushed at the next contraction, still screaming for meds (omg, I'm the worst). After that push and no success, the nurse gets a wet wash cloth and places it on my forehead. There was something about that wash cloth but it instantly calmed my nerves. The doctor said the harder I push, the less pain I will feel during contractions. With the washcloth on my head and the midwife saying that, I was ready. So she said, "give it your all". My husband is saying at the same time "you can do this, you're tough". I did not feel tough at that moment. But I push and within seconds, Talia Rae was born. I officially became a mom of two beautiful little girls.
Talia was born at 6:09am on September 4, 2021. She weighed 8lbs 9oz and 20.5 inches long. A MUCH bigger baby than my first. Definitely, a completely different labor and delivery experience too. I finally got my meds after about 30 minutes (haha). I felt like a new person. One of the nurses said to me "don't you feel like a badass that you did it the natural way". Ummmmm.... no. I did not feel like a badass. After all the screaming for meds?... No. The doctor they had on call for my scheduled labor induction came into the room shortly after 7am. She said she had to introduce herself because they scheduled her specifically for me and I was already there with a newborn by the time she arrived. She thought it was funny. I'm glad she thought it was funny, because I didn't. My baby was born and she was healthy, so that's all that matters but seriously though, what a birth story.
I still can't believe how emotionally exhausting that week was prior to her birth and how quickly I was in labor before she was born. All the phone calls and rescheduling. Then I barely make it to the hospital in time. It's a good thing we live close to the hospital. From when the labor started to when she was born was less than two hours. It took about two weeks to mentally recover from the shock factor of the experience too. After that, I knew I was done having babies. Maybe it was the experience or doing it naturally or feeling content of having two, that I've never felt so sure in my life that I was done. Still to this day, that feeling has not changed. I am so blessed with two.
Today, Talia is a month away from turning 1. I can't believe it. The time feels like it has flown by faster with the second. She is crawling everywhere, pulling herself up, saying "hi" to everyone, loves eating everything, and is already getting on her big sister's nerves. She is about 93rd percentile for a girl her age in length and about 50th for weight. She is a super snuggly baby. She loves resting her head on my shoulder. I love it too. She's the sweetest.
Thanks again for reading. I really do appreciate the love and support. This one was a long but fun one to write. Make sure you keep scrolling to see some pictures of the morning Talia was born and a couple extras the days after. She was such a chunky newborn with a ton of hair!
Love Always,
Susana
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