After 12 hours on Cirvadil, I had gone from 1cm to a whopping 2cm, but the OB happily pronounced (actually, this guy was quite over-emphatic in everything he said) that there was no turning back, we must move forward! I was given a 1 hr reprieve before the Pitocin began. I took full advantage of the freedom to walk the atrium/outside and down a sandwich before I would be strapped to monitors, an IV and liquid diet! I was hopeful that the few strong contractions that occurred during the break were the start of a natural progression, but no. So much for all the wisdom of the birthing class about laboring comfortably at home and walking through the contractions! At noon I was leashed to a 3ft radius around the monitor and IV.
Not much happened the first few hours while they continued to up the dosage to get a steady contraction pattern started. Drew and I played cards, watched a movie and BSG. By evening, any activity lost interest as I grew more and more uncomfortable. It was nothing like I imagined - in my head I would only need to endure a minute of tightening and then relax between contractions. As it went, the pain was constant, dull and everywhere. Most of the soreness came in my joints, hips and back.
Drew was incredibly patient and supportive as my change from one position to the next went from 30min intervals to 15min to 5min to about 5 seconds before I would get up in agony! It felt like I was constantly working my entire body to support myself. Sitting, laying or any contact created a huge amount of uncomfortable pressure on my body, as if I was a giant bruise that was painful to touch. It was exhausting for us both. I lost my dinner (weak broth and jello) and started violently shaking with fatigue by the time the doctor came to check our progress. After 10 hours I was 3cm. Boo. At this rate, Little Guy would take another 3-4 days to make his debut. He gave the order to allow an Epidural whenever I was ready. I resisted, since it was still so early. The pain was bearable and I wouldn't consider it more than a 7 on the pain scale. ("Worst Pain Imaginable" would have been a bit of an overstatement.) I guess I could still imagine much, much worse.
At some point in all this the nurse was trying to determine which way little guy was facing. She wheeled in an ultrasound to check, but still wasn't sure. We knew he was head down, but we could only hope he was facing my back to make delivery easier. I retrospect, I wonder if she was just diverting my attention for the half hour this took. The doctors didn't seem so concerned or even interested.
I gave my all to wait it out, but at 3cm and forever to go, I didn't last much longer. I couldn't find a moment of relief and just didn't have the endurance! The 2am call for the Anesthesiologist was the only thing that got me through the next hour. The nurse had told me it would be only 20 minutes... another crafty delay tactic? It was a little nerve-wracking being stuck in the spine while shaking profusely (and Drew had to leave the room!) but the effect was almost immediate and very welcome! Finally, I could rest easily and we both fell asleep soon after 3am.
