What They Don't Tell You About L&D (2)

It's weird how I've become so accustomed writing here.. And not gunna lie I totally freaking love it. So to continue my last post...

About a week prior my due date I was feeling like I had been run over by a damn train so off to the hospital I went. My midwife followed the standard procedure of checking every possible issue, which as annoying as it was, was extremely reassuring. Finally the moment came, it was time to check my cervix (lovely). But when you're all kinds of pregnant the thought of finding out how dilated you are and potentially how close you are to having your baby, it's the greatest thought in the world. So of course she suits up and dives in to what feels like her damn shoulder(I apologize about the visual).... and then nothing. Finally after a few minutes and a few profanities and tears on my part later, she looks to me and says the one thing you NEVER want to hear at 39 weeks pregnant, "your cervix is too high". My cervix is too WHAT NOW? WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN'T REACH IT?!? I thought I was gunna lose my damn mind. Due in a week and you can't even tell me if I'm dilated or not? So naturally I thought what any person would at that point.... I was destined to be pregnant forever. Some women find out at 36 weeks that they're a centimeter or two dilated and here I am with a cervix that is apparently located in my throat. Fan-freaking-tastic. So what now? Am I supposed to go home and do jumping jacks? Frustration was seriously overwhelming me at this point.

The moral of the story, my friends? A week later I was holding my little one. Patience may very well be a virtue but my god is it hard to be patient while pregnant, especially that close to go time. It's important to note also that you can sit on 3 cm for WEEKS without having your baby or go from not dilated to having your baby hours later. The only thing you can do at that point is try your best to maintain your sanity and be patiient.

Another extremely common misconception is the stereotypical idea of how our water breaks. Every movie we watch it shows a woman having her water break in the middle of the night or while she's out during the day. What many people don't know is that, in fact, is fairly uncommon. Oftentimes a water is broken by the doctor during labor. My water broke at the hospital literally AS I got into the bed. In typical Kerin fashion. Leave it to me to inconvenience anyone and everyone and it doesn't stop there so be prepared for my birth story to come shortly.