My Birth Story - Ava Riley Kim

I was hoping I'd go into labor naturally, but just like with my first pregnancy, fluid levels were decreasing faster than what my doctor wanted, so an induction was insisted. My EDD for Ava was January 23, 2016. My induction was scheduled for January 17, 2016.

We checked into the hospital around 10:00 pm on Sunday, January 17. It took a good 1.5 hours to get all the paperwork done and me hooked up and ready. Around 11:30 pm, the nurse checked to see if I was having contractions at all and apparently I was. They were only about 7 minutes apart so my doctor said to give me pitocin anyway. By midnight, I was getting my pitocin and I was trying to get some rest. My contractions were gradually getting more painful, but it was tolerable. By 4:00 am, the pain was increasing, but I resisted any drugs. By 5:30 am, I insisted they check how far along I was and the nurse told me I was already at 8 cm. I was relieved because I was almost there! She told me then that I had to decide if I wanted the epidural. It was now or never. I said no. The pain was awful. All of this was new to me because I got the epidural with my first pregnancy. It seriously felt like I had to poop real bad and my insides were being torn apart. By 6:30 am, my doctor had arrived and broke my water. Once that happened, I was ready to push. There are really no words to truly describe the pain I felt when it came down to the pushing. I see now that the epidural is actually beneficial for the pushing portion of labor. The contractions were manageable/bearable, but the pushing was terribly painful. I'm not a very loud person, but lets just say I got unnaturally loud during this part and it definitely surprised Ken. Lots of burning and tearing and just lots of unpleasantness. So with all that pain, I knew I wanted the baby out asap. Ava was out in 3 pushes and entered the world at 7:00 am on January 18, 2016.

I did tear, but not as badly as I did with Erin. I'd say the recovery this time around was easier than my recovery after having Erin. I'm sure not having the epidural had something to do with it. I was less swollen and less achy and was up walking around right away. This was definitely an experience I will always remember. Props to all the mamas who have un-medicated births continuously! I'm not sure I'll be doing that again if I were to have a third. Hah. I'd say I got lucky Ava was a tiny baby.

Ava Riley Kim

6 pounds 2 ounces

18.5 inches