On August 1st (a Tuesday) and the night before our 39-week check up, I asked Mike if he could get out of work to join me. I just had a “mommy feeling,” that I would need him there (mama intuition is spooky).
We knew that Ky still hadn’t turned from her breech position despite us trying literally EVERYTHING except ECV (External Cephalic Version or version for short). My doctor offered to perform the procedure several times, but I had a sense that if Ky was not going to spin on her own, that there was a reason why, and I didn’t feel comfortable forcing her.
With my first pregnancy, we discovered at Mac’s birth that she had a VERY short umbilical cord, and although everyone assured me that having this happen again with a second child was rare, I still heeded my maternal instinct to not proceed with a version.
I soon learned at my appointment that, in addition to still being breech, I was 2cm dilated, but also that I had very low amniotic fluid or oligohydramnios, a major cause for concern regarding baby’s safety at such a late stage in my pregnancy. Lastly, we also learned that Ky’s weight had been overestimated and that her actual growth had stopped altogether from my previous visit.
These discoveries left us with 2 options: (1) be admitted for a C-section that day OR be admitted overnight for IV fluids (to see if having more fluid would allow Ky to turn on her own), and we would induce or attempt a version in the morning.
Although I still didn’t feel confident proceeding with a version, I wanted one more night to give little Ky a chance to turn. Plus, I was still battling a nasty upper respiratory infection and wicked cough, and I just knew that surgery + a cough and breathing issues = definitely no fun for a post-C-section recovery.
What happened next was a hurried trip home to grab my pre-packed hospital bag, making calls to family, getting big-sister-to-be Mac to my cousins’ house for a sleepover, and admission to the hospital.
We initially decided to deliver at Queens Hospital, but in light of certain developing events and our doctor’s recommendation, we chose Kapiolani Women and Children’s Medical Center, the only hospital on Oahu with a NICU (just in case we should need it).
It was becoming clear that the natural child birth scenario I had envisioned for this second pregnancy was quickly disappearing, and was replaced with the reality that I would likely be having a C-section to deliver Ky.
That first night in the hospital I had AMAZING nurses. They administered boluses of fluid via an IV all night, with intermittent monitoring for Ky.
The entire time, I diffused calming essential oils, attempted some spinning-baby positions, and listened to ALL my hypno-birthing audios (“hypno-birthing” by Melissa Spilsted found on iTunes). I had even downloaded a few hypno-audios that were specifically for baby spinning and C-sections. Although up until that night, I had refused to listen to the C-section ones because I wanted to ONLY visualize my natural birth.
Fortunately, over the course of the night with the help of prayer, the audios, and my loving hubby I grew calmer about what was coming the next morning.
As the sun rose on August 3, 2017, my dear friend and birth photographer Sophia arrived in our room. She captured some of the precious time that Mike and I shared prior to our doctor’s arrival.
At shift change, we got a fortuitous sign from our guardian angels that everything would be alright. Let me preface this next part by saying, I am a nurse and appreciate the effort and love that nurses bring to their profession. That said… the thing about nursing schedules is it’s kind of like Forrest Gump says about a box of chocolates… You never know what (or who) you’re gonna get. 😉
We had not planned to deliver at Kap, but our doula Crystal, knowing that a C-section would preclude her entrance into the OR, told us that IF we ended up at Kap and having a C-section, we should ask for Annette as our labor and delivery (L&D) nurse.
As our concern mounted over our C-section, guess who walked in our door? By random chance, none other than the aforementioned Annette walked in and greeted us. As soon as she spoke her name, Mike and I grinned and both of us instantly felt calmer. Crystal was right to have such confidence in Annette. She took a calm charge over the room and situation and I will be eternally grateful to have had her there as part of our experience.
Our doctor (Dr. Foley) arrived soon thereafter and did another ultrasound to assess the amniotic fluid. Unfortunately, the fluid was still scarcely low… too low to even discuss the option of version. C-section was now our only option.
It’s funny, but at that point, My “nurse mode” took control. I was amazingly calm. Any remaining fear that I had almost immediately dissipated. I looked at Mike with tears in my eyes and said, “We’re gonna have our baby today.”
I should probably explain here that I am a trauma surgical ICU nurse. I am very comfortable/calm in the OR. I had taken care to chose a doctor that I had complete faith in, and now that the unknown of “to flip or not to flip” were all off the table and a clear plan was established, I was ready to go.
Mike on the other hand, who had been the calm, steady rock up to this point, was now quiet. For me, a C-section was a controlled procedure that brought forth some certainty, but for him, it was exactly where he didn’t want to go. The idea of seeing me in that sterile environment, with a doctor cutting me open and pulling out our baby, was so far out of his comfort zone there was little-to-no chance that he would ever feel comfortable with this course of action.
We took a brief time-out together and before he put on his gown and gloves, I told him that if he didn’t think he could handle the OR, he didn’t have to come in. I also told him that I KNEW he could handle it, that I would be fine, and that I would love for him to be in there, but I didn’t want the arrival of our daughter to be traumatizing for him.
We then said a prayer together and got ready to roll.
I shared with Annette my “new” birth plan that Mike and I had come up with the night prior. I had never considered having an “alternate” birth plan “if” I needed a C-section, and now I recommend to every mama have both just in case! Here was our new plan:
- To the extent possible I wanted to do delayed cord clamping
- Cord Blood Banking (using the kit I brought from CBR) which is who we used to bank MacKenna’s (our oldest) cord blood
- I wanted to keep my placenta with me for placental encapsulation (I didn’t want it taken to biopsy, and would immediately be turning it over to my doula for placental encapsulation)
- Have a reduced sterile field so that I could do –
- Skin-to-skin contact as soon as, and as much as possible. (an extra nurse is needed to make post-C-section skin-to-skin possible, so be sure you verbalize this to your nurses beforehand)
They took Mike and Sophia into a waiting area while they took me into the OR to get prepped and get my spinal. Dr. Foley asked me for my music preference. I told him he could choose whatever made him the calmest 🙂 (as a surgical nurse I know the value of having a happy and calm surgeon). He chose oldies which I was cool with. Nothing like making your grand entrance into the world being serenaded by good ol’ Frank Sinatra.
My anesthesiologist was incredible, as was ALL of the nursing staff in the OR. I seriously couldn’t have asked for more supportive and competent staff. I felt truly safe the entire time.
Once the sterile curtain was up and I was prepped they let Mike & Sophia into the room. Mike sat on a stool at the head of the surgical table beside me, right by my face, and Sophia was given a place to view and capture the birth of baby Ky for us.
They soon began their incisions and I knew baby Ky was on her way.
The nurse in me REALLY wanted to see beyond the sterile field curtain as they took out our baby girl, but I knew Mike wouldn’t be able to stomach that. But Dr. Foley was great about giving us (me) a play-by-play, and I knew we had Sophia capturing it all in pictures for us.
Kyla was complete butt down Frank Breech meaning her feet were up by her face. So Dr. Foley took her out butt first and then needed to do some tugging to get her out completely since she was securely wedged up under my rib cage.
He reported that her umbilical cord was around her neck. His exact words were “Good call on not wanting to do the ECV, Mum (did I mention Dr. Foley is British, and I get a kick out of his accent all the time?), this little one would not have tolerated a version at all, and we would have ended up here in a C-section sooner and definitely emergently”(Again… I ALWAYS heed that mommy intuition, friends!).
I felt a tug, and with my eyes locked on Mike’s I said, “Babe, I think our baby was just born.” And within a few moments we heard her cry. Kyla Emmalyn Hughes, born August 3, 2017 at 8:39am (my mom later reminded me that I was born at 8:39pm a fun little coincidence).
They were able to delay her cord clamping for 1 full minute, then took her cord to assess, cut, and collect the blood for our banking kit. Then as they closed me up I was able to have my skin-to-skin contact for a beautiful 5-10 mins, as I officially met our daughter. She was so teenie and the minute we touched and she heard my voice, she immediately stopped crying.
Mike accompanied her to the nursery, and I was taken to recovery where I awaited them both.
Within a couple hours we were all reunited and big sister Mac was brought to the hospital to meet her baby sister.
I am so abundantly grateful to God for the gift of this precious tiny human, and to everyone that was there to help us safely bring Kyla into this world. Although this was not the birth story I had envisioned and hoped for, I am just eternally grateful she is here, and that we both were in the best hands.
HUGE Mahalos to my loving hubby for being my ROCK, to Mac for being THE BEST big sister there is, the amazing talented Sophia at Sophia & Co Photography for documenting that special day in a way we will treasure forever, and Imua Garza of Zeo Music for helping me record the lullabies I got to sing for her birth video.
And to you for sharing in the memory of this special day in our lives!
Please enjoy a few of our favorite captures of Ky’s birthday!
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| The look of hearing your baby cry for the first time |
