Baby Jonah’s Birth Story

June 4, 2020 Jonah was born at 5:22am weighing 7.7 pds & 20 1/2 inches.

It is true that all the pain discomfort that come with labor and delivery goes away the moment you give birth. Now because we weren’t able to have my mother or family members visit, I thought I’d document the journey to share with my loved ones for years to come. I also want to write this post, because like myself, giving birth during this COVID-19 pandemic had me so nervous so I am hoping that sharing this story will answer some questions that any moms to be may have. Now every hospital has different protocols so I recommend you call and find out what those are. I called one month before and then again two weeks before and in those short weeks some policies had change so make sure to stay up to date with those changes.  I also want to mention that every birth is different so what I went through may not be a similar experience for you, but I found comfort reading other birth stories, because I like to be aware of possible outcomes and terminology. 

June 2, 2020

  That morning my husband and I slept in till  9am. We talked about how today would be our last breakfast, lunch and dinner at home alone. I went into the nursery room countless times just double checking that we had everything we needed and going through the baby clothes. My husband and I finished packing last minute things into our hospital bag and let me just say we totally overpacked, but only because we weren’t sure what we would need since we were planning on staying there and not leaving the hospital under the circumstances.  That night we checked in at 8:00pm. I had already pre-registered the day before where I went in to get my blood work and swab done for covid. I’m not sure why some people feel offended that they test before going in for labor and delivery, but honestly I am so glad that they did. It gave me a sense of comfort knowing that I’d be going home with a newborn healthy. They did mention that since I was scheduled for an induction that they were able to test, but for women who end up going in because they are going into labor don’t necessarily test prior.  After checking in, we were asked to wait in a waiting room alone until they came down to get us. When the nurse came down they took me into the room and asked my husband to wait in another room until they got done setting me up in the L&D room. I got my IV inserted and got some blood work done. After that my husband was allowed in and then they checked my dilation. I was at 1cm and they started with the  cervix ripening to help dilate faster. Every four hours they continued to insert until I was at 3cm.  I will tell you once you get this started you can’t get up and move around, I was pretty much stuck to the bed. I was allowed to get up and pee really quick, but back to bed. 

June 3, 2020

After 10 hours I hadn’t changed much and I was so uncomfortable already from laying in bed and them checking my cervix. Them checking my cervix was no joke and painful. I hated it. Later that morning I ended up getting the epidural. I was so nervous about this because you hear so many different stories about getting the shot, but I prayed the whole time and I had such a sweet angel nurse who held my hand the entire time. Her name was Yoselyn and she was super sweet. Of course my husband was not allowed to be in there so having her hold me was truly a blessing. I hate needles, or should say terrified, but it wasn’t too bad.  After getting my epidural they started the pitocin medicine to get my contractions going. Mid day the doctor came in and popped my water. I  felt the gush of warm water flowing out. I always wondered if I would know or feel if my water broke, but let me tell you there was no way I would have not known. After popping my water, the doctor informed me that the baby had a small bowel movement. I had read stories about the cons of a baby doing this and I got so worried and started asking a million questions, probably repeated myself a few times. She did inform me that everything looked good with the baby and there was no sign of distress so for precaution she would have the NIC specialist to receive the baby to drain the lungs to be on the safe side. So on top of the nerves and anxiety I already had, this got me worried too. My husband and I prayed and I tried my best to calm myself down, because I did not want to pass on any stress to the baby. Later that night when I was measuring 7cm I started to feel contractions really strong on my left lower abdominal. They started to get stronger and pretty painful. The nurse called in the anesthesiologist to troubleshoot a stronger dose and then I was asked to lay on my left side to get the medicine flowing there. From there they also started rotating my position every 2 hours with the peanut ball. 

June 4, 2020

Early that morning I started reaching close to a  fever temperature. My husband and I began praying again, because a fever during labor is not good and can lead to  c-section. At 10 cm I started to feel contractions again, but this time on my right lower abdominal. I wasn’t going to wait for it to get stronger this time so I asked for the anesthesiologist  again. After two hours of being at 10cm I was still between zero to one station. I had a team of nurses come in so they could help me start pushing so the baby could drop more before I started pushing with the doctor. My husband called them the varsity squad because they were so motivating with the process. It wasn’t long before the doctor entered and I began to push. My husband was so supportive and helpful with the process and by the time I knew it, Jonah Michael was born at 5:22am. Since he had the bowel movement in my womb, as soon as he was born they let my husband cut his umbilical cord and passed him over to the specialist so that they could drain him. After this, I was able to have my skin to skin time with the baby. As soon as I heard him crying, my heart melted and I forgot about any pain I had. He is incredibly beautiful.

June 5- 6, 2020

We were asked to stay an extra day for two reasons. To monitor his status and blood work. Since I had gotten a fever right before and during birth they wanted to make sure he didn’t get an infection. Praise God, his results came out great and we were able to go home June 6. While staying at the hospital, it was recommended that my husband just stayed at the hospital instead of going through the check in process each time. The only time my husband stepped out of the hospital was to pick up food that was dropped off by family members so Michael wouldn’t have to leave me. Whenever he stepped out of the room, he was required to wear his face mask.  Everyone who entered my room had a face mask and my husband and I really enjoyed our experience at Regional Hospital. We felt things were cleaned, everyone was so willing to help, the nurses were patient, and we felt like they were taking proper safety precautions. 

Michael and I are extremely overjoyed with our son Jonah. We are blessed to be chosen to be his parents and we look forward to raising him with Christ. Although it has been stressful and overwhelming with concerns of being first time parents and adding COVID, we count our blessings and try to remind ourselves that God is in control. We believe in his promise and are patiently waiting for his timing for things to get better and for Jonah to meet our family. If any mommas out there have any questions in regards to procedures and policies I went through at the hospital and I did not mention it above, please do not hesitate to reach out! 

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♥ Robin

 “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born I set you apart.”

Jeremiah 1:5