Flynn’s Birth Story
Well, it’s official. I’m a mom. I don’t think I ever realized how proud I would be to say that until having this baby. Flynn Stuart was born on Tuesday, November 22 at 12:32pm via a planned C-section (due to velamentous cord insertion). He weighed 7lbs 10oz and was 19 ¼ in long. We are very happy to report that he is very healthy and, in our humble opinion, absolutely perfect (hey, I know we’re biased).
The experience itself was totally surreal.
I went to bed Monday night feeling pretty anxious. As we got under the covers, my husband put on a comedy (“Notting Hill”) to help ease the nerves. To my surprise it worked pretty well (special thanks to the awkward comedy styling of Hugh Grant), and I managed to get some sleep before the big day. Wide awake at 7am, we got ourselves together and drove the 45 minutes to the hospital. We listened to Christmas music on the way (my request) in hopes of reducing our anxiety. Just as we were pulling into the hospital, Judy Garland’s “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” played (a personal favorite). I think I’ll now always associate the song with the birth of our son, which makes me a little emotional even now.
Once checked in, I got to see my parents briefly in the waiting room before heading up to be prepped for surgery. The moments before delivery were probably the most intense I’ve ever experienced. It sounds dramatic, but I sort of felt like I was going off to war. It was weird to hug my parents and know that the next time we would see each other, I would be a mother. The other unexpected feeling was that no matter how nervous I was, there was this overriding feeling of bravery. I needed to dig deep and be strong for our baby. No matter what, I needed to do my part to ensure his safety. I was surprised at how empowering that felt, and I kept my focus there to power through the scary unknown of having a C-section.
In the pre/post-surgery room, the nurse took my vitals, hooked me up to the monitors, set up my IV and asked me about 1,000 questions (including whether I was a victim of domestic violence – apparently this is standard procedure, but it totally caught me off guard and therefore sticks out in my memory. I’m glad to hear that’s something nurses lookout for though I guess).
Finally, it was time to wheel me into the O.R. where the anesthesiologist administered the spinal block while my husband changed into his scrubs in the next room. The spinal was definitely something I was dreading. A shot in the spine isn’t exactly the most comfortable experience, but the nurse had me hug a pillow, and the anesthesiologist was incredibly gentle. I felt a surge of warmth go down into my legs – kind of like sitting on a heated car seat – and then my legs went numb. It was a strange sensation. I could feel pressure and touch, but I couldn’t feel pain. I couldn’t even tell when my leg was bent or being moved. I was laid onto the operating table and the curtain (or “shield” as my husband likes to call it) went up. This is when the worst part of the procedure occurred. The spinal block caused my blood pressure to drop quickly (totally normal they said), giving me the worst nausea I’ve ever experienced. It was sort of like being seasick but worse, and I immediately knew I was going to lose whatever was left in my system (thankfully, you have to fast a good 12 hours before a C-section). The anesthesiologist was ready for it, however, and quickly injected anti-nausea medicine into my IV. Slowly, I felt the color returning to my face.
This is about the time when my husband was shown into the room and planted himself firmly beside my head, and away from the “scary zone.” He did his best to distract me while my doctor began the procedure. Our planned topic of discussion was to go over our Christmas shopping list, but I can’t tell you what, if anything, was decided. Minutes into the procedure, I heard what sounded like the team of nurses reacting to something. “It’s a good thing we did a C-section,” my doctor said. “He’s got the cord wrapped around his neck three times!”
Just as I was asking if the baby was ok, I heard perhaps the best sound in the whole world – our son’s first cry. I looked at my husband overwhelmed with emotion, and we both turned to see the nurses bring our son over to the warming table. I had hoped for a glimpse of him before he went to get checked out and cleaned up, but the unexpected cord incident meant he needed extra care asap. While my doctor stitched me up, I sent my husband to the warming table and made him describe our baby to me. I still get a laugh thinking about this since my husband, in total dad shock, didn’t have much more to offer other than, “He’s really cute!” Finally, after clearing the fluid from his lungs and assessing his overall health, the nurse wrapped him up and brought him to my side.
Staring into his little face, I was overcome with gratitude, relief and love. If love at first sight exists, this is definitely it. I couldn’t believe he was here, and he was ours – I still can’t. The craziest part was watching our baby respond to my voice. He calmed down and strained to hold his little head up to listen to me. My heart totally melted. We’d been in this together for the last 39 weeks, and I felt like we reached the end of an epic journey together only to start the next chapter.
I won’t lie and say that I loved being pregnant. It was a lot harder than I expected, but it’s true that “pregnancy amnesia” sets in a mere seconds after you meet your baby face-to-face. Morning sickness, exhaustion, insomnia, weight gain, back pain, joint pain, anxiety… I’d do it all again for this little guy in a heartbeat.
Jillian Gordon is the Managing Editor of Mamapedia.com. A Los Angeles-based lifestyle writer and editor, her work has appeared in Beauty Launchpad, Nailpro Magazine, Saturday Night Magazine and Westside Today. She is also the former Content Manager of Mom.me. Jillian is currently expecting her first baby in late November, 2016.
