My VBAC - warning - extremely long post ahead

I had been having bouts of regular contractions for two or three weeks. They weren't like the braxton hicks I had with my other children, they were crampy and too uncomfortable to sleep through. They would begin suddenly, maintain at 6-7 minutes apart for 4 or 5 hours, and then peter out. I wasn't sure if I was experiencing the same thing again this last Lord's Day, until they began to get closer together throughout the afternoon. By 3:30PM they were 5 minutes apart and starting to lengthen in time, so I asked Josh to take me to the hospital. Normally, I would have waited to be absolutely positive it was the real thing, but we're living a good 45 minutes from the nearest hospital that will allow a VBAC and I have a history of rapid labor. I didn't want to chance having him in our van.
It was a beautiful day out. Sunny, warm, and summer-like. I munched on an apple as Josh, Ann (my lovely s-i-l), and I enjoyed a pleasant drive up to Cooperstown. I wanted Ann to come so she could see what a semi-normal birth looks like, rather than the typical hospital routine. The contractions got to about 3 minutes part in the van. I was thinking it wouldn't be long at all once we reached the birthing center.

I was wrong.

There's something about a full moon that brings on labor and we arrived to a packed house. They put me in an observation room while they tried to locate my missing chart. I was glad to see a familiar midwife. She was the kind woman who fit us in that day we were so late because we drove over an hour past our exit.
By about 5PM, they'd located the chart and checked my cervix. About 4 cm. I was informed that because I was a VBAC, I'd be hooked up to the monitors continuously and I wasn't to eat or drink anything except for clear liquids in case I had a uterine rupture and had to be rushed to the OR for an emergency c-section. Oiy. I was starving. Aside from the apple, I hadn't eaten anything since lunch.
Talk about frustrating. I understand the reasoning and I know they're just doing their job, but it seems to me that they are setting women who want a VBAC up for failure. The continuous monitoring restricts you from all but a couple of positions; to your bed for the most part, and how is a woman to keep up her strength without nourishment? Especially with a long labor.
All of this combined with not having a quiet room to settle into and the sting of the catheter being inserted into my hand for the administration of antibiotics as well as to have a line in place in case of the dreaded c-section, was enough to all but halt my contractions.
At around 6pm, they moved me to the larger observation room. There were still no labor/delivery/recovery rooms available so this was to be it. I voiced my complaints to the midwife and asked if I could sign a waiver so I could at least walk around freely to get my labor to progress. She was really very nice about it, but made it clear that I didn't want to go there unless I wanted trouble with the pediatricians, the OB's, and ultimately Child Protective Services. BUT, she said they had a new portable monitor that they could hook up so I could roam about the maternity ward. They put the monitor on, gave me the first dose of antibiotics (for GBS - I was positive this time), and out Josh, the pole, and I went a-walking.
My contractions were all over the place for the next 3 or 4 hours. I wasn't really watching the clock too closely so I can't remember exact times. It was so weird not to have a fast labor. And so boring. I felt sorry for Ann and Josh having to be there with me. I think around 10 I laid down for a bit. I was very hungry and since the contractions weren't getting any closer together, I thought it might be good to take a breather from the walking and squatting stuff. The nurse turned the lights off so I could sleep if I wanted to. A new midwife that I'd never met before came on shift around then and checked to see if I was any more dialated. I was still 4-5cm so she tried to "stir things up" which was quite painful. I wanted to kick her in the head. ASK FIRST, people! Eeps. That didn't do much, so she offered to break my water since the baby's head was very low. She thought it would kick things into high gear. Being hungry and tired with a long night looming before me, I decided to let her do it even though I knew I'd then be on the 18 hour clock for infection.
I had my second dose of antibiotics and another hour passed. I was discouraged so I laid down again and listened to the 16 year old girl down the hall scream her lungs out, poor thing. I heard later that she had her baby and they were all ok. Ann had fallen asleep in the chair so Josh and I chatted quietly. He was of the opinion that if I didn't get back to trying to get the baby to come down, I would be in for it seeing that I wasn't going to get any stronger as the hours went by. It was enough of a pep talk to get me up and going again.
I asked the nurse (who was a dairy farmer, Mom) if she could get me a birthing stool since it seemed like every time I sat on the toilet, the contractions would get closer together. Her shift ended at 11. My contractions were about 4 minutes apart by that point. The new nurse came in, introduced herself, and brought me some ice to munch on. Thankfully, she didn't turn the lights back on. I told her I'd let her know when I needed her and she left me to labor in peace.
I alternated standing up and doing hip swirls, side squats, and pelvic tilts until a contraction would begin, and then I'd sit down on the birthing stool, rock back and forth, and do low hums through them to help me stay relaxed. Eventually, I asked Josh, who was hovering around feeling quite helpless I'm sure, to use his thumbs and fists in my back and hips for counter pressure since the contractions were getting more intense. The time went by very quickly and pretty soon I could feel that familiar burning in my nethers. I was also chilly and shaky so I figured I was in transition. I had Josh get the midwife so she could check me. I climbed up onto the bed for that, and thankfully, she didn't make me stay on my back for more than a few seconds because it was excruciating. I could feel that the baby was crowning so I begged to get off my back and the midwife was totally cool with that. Josh helped me up to my knees and continued to squeeze my hips with his fists as hard as he could. I could feel his arms shaking. He was sore the next day from it. I had a hard time staying on top of the pain at that point. I had to remind myself out loud to hum again and not think too much about the burning. I wish the midwife had applied warm compresses to help with that, but in all fairness, it was happening so fast, I don't think she would have had time to get them. Suddenly, I was in that wonderful place. The place where your body just takes over and pushes involuntarily. Two for his head. I could then feel his shoulders rotating for the first part of the next contraction so I reached down to catch him. Another little push and he slid into my hands. Relief!
The midwife and nurse worked by the light of one lamp to help me unwrap the cord from his torso, clean the goop off of his face, and stimulate him to cry. As I had requested, they didn't take him from me, they didn't cut the cord until it had finished pulsing, they let the placenta come out on it's own (hooray for less bleeding and a MUCH faster recovery), and they delayed his vit k shot and eyedrops, which are mandatory in NY, until he was an hour old and already nursing. They were also very gentle with the uterine massage which was a pleasant change from what I've come to expect. If you haven't had an epidural, having your uterus punched down like a lump of stiff dough is every bit as painful as the worst of contractions. They just let me love my baby. I appreciated that so much since all of the others were whisked away for one reason or another.
After he'd nursed well, the nurse gave him a bath, weighed, measured, and tagged him, and then escorted us to a recovery room with two beds. They also let Josh wheel a recliner in for Ann to sleep on. We got to bed around 3:30am, but it wasn't long until little Walt was awake and looking for Momma. He slept 6 hours the next night though, blessed sweetheart. It was the most continuous sleep I'd had for 6 weeks. I didn't have to pee! haha
The after pains were worse than with Joshy and Emmy, but there's just no comparison between this time and after my c-section. I can't believe women choose to have them over natural birth.
Homecoming was good. We got the kids some gifts and had a little birthday celebration for the baby. I always get emotional when I first see my kids again after being away from them. Addie is a giant as I expected she would be. The kids are all in love with their little brother and want to hold him and love on him all the time. I was worried that Addie would be jealous, so we prepared her ahead of time by making her sit with Josh more instead of me when I was big and pregnant. She isn't a bit jealous, though she cries when I can't pick her up. She absolutely adores him. She tenderly strokes his hair and coos at him whenever she can gain proximity. I have to watch her like a hawk though since she would love to pick him up (most likely by one leg :P ) and pack him all over the house like she does her babies.
As for me, I'm tired from nursing around the clock and I've had a headache today, but otherwise I'm doing well. I have such an incredible family. My m-i-l and sisters-i-l have taken all responsibility off of my shoulders. They cook! They clean! They change diapers! They wipe tears! They are such a blessing. And my husband, my dear husband, has been such a servant. It would be hard not to have a quick recovery under these conditions. :D Now to get rid of this ponch. I gained 45lbs this pregnancy. I'm not sure how much of that is left, but it ern't pretty.