Scar of honor: The birth of Savannah

I had my first contraction just three short hours after ringing in 2017. I was 41 weeks and 5 days pregnant, and I was READY for my girl to make her entrance. Momma is always about 15 minutes late, so it only made sense for my daughter to show up late as well. My contractions were very sporadic, going from 7 minutes apart, to 25 minutes apart and then back down to 5 minutes apart.

After laboring at home until 6 p.m., my hubby and I headed to the hospital. When we got there, I found out I was only 1 centimeter dilated, which was very discouraging considering the amount of pain I was in. Within 2 hours at the hospital, I was dilated to 3 centimeters. I was told I could finally get an epidural (thank you to whoever invented this sweet miracle), and I tried to go to bed (keyword “tried”).

The next morning, I was only about 4 centimeters dilated, and my daughter hadn’t fully dropped yet. After 36 very long hours, I was starting to feel a lot of pain in my back and hips. I was told I could try and wait it out, or if I would like a C-section, they could get me in the operating room within the next 5 minutes. My husband and I asked for a minute to discuss.

Throughout my entire pregnancy, I said over and over that I didn’t want a C-section. I had never had any major surgery, and the thought terrified me. I also felt like I would be judged for taking the “easy way out.” But let me tell you, after being pregnant for almost 42 weeks and in 36 unsuccessful hours of labor, I just wanted to meet my daughter. So, we agreed to the C-section.

My anesthesiologist was great! He talked me through the entire process, and within a few minutes, my husband and I heard the best noise in the entire world—our little girl crying away. Seeing my husband’s reaction as they lifted her up is something I will never forget, and getting to hold her for the first time was so overwhelming that I could never even describe it. It just felt like something I had been waiting for my whole life.

In the end, I couldn’t be happier with my birth story. I love my C-section scar. It’s my constant reminder of how my sweet girl entered this world.

Send us your birth story! Whether you had a home birth, hospital birth, 37-hour labor or emergency C-section, we’d love to read the tale of your little one’s grand entrance. Write up your birth story (click here for tips on getting started) and email it, along with a few photos, to birthstory@pnmag.com. We’ll share it on our Birth Day blog and may even print it in an upcoming issue!