I’ll be honest, my birth experience wasn’t as traumatic as some people. Yes, I was induced and stuck in a hospital bed with an IV for over 48 hours. Yes, my son came out sideways and ripped me six ways to Sunday. Yes, it took over an hour for the doctor to repair the damage. But was it that bad? Well…let’s talk about that.
There are a few things I haven’t shared yet about my delivery.
First, I went into my delivery knowing I would be in a teaching hospital, which is all well and good, but I don’t think anyone could anticipate what that really means without going through that themselves.
Second, as opposed to most vaginal deliveries, I got to spend an extra day in the L&D ward before going to the Mother-Baby Unit. It gave me time to compare the two units.
Third, I got lucky and not only spent an extra day in L&D, I got stuck an extra day in the Mother-Baby Unit, so I really had the opportunity to get some fun perspectives on the two groups of staff.
So with no further ado, let me share some fun lessons I learned from my labor and delivery experience.
- In a teaching hospital, just say no to students. I don’t mean say no to whatever a student asks you. When I was admitted, they asked me if I was okay having students come in and use my L&D for teaching moments, I stupidly said yes. I had no idea this meant my door would go from revolving to being blown off the hinges with the people coming through to take care of me and my son. I had physician’s assistant students, nursing students, and student and resident doctors coming in and out of my room, all with a list of repetitive questions that got very tiring at 5 and 6 am after being up all night. So, if you like repetitive questions and a door that seems to never shut, feel free to allow students in your room.
- If you allow students, expect your delivery to be a feature-length attraction. I can’t tell you how many people were in my room when I delivered, and probably half of them were students of one variety or another. With my mom and husband in the room, it became extremely crowded very quickly. I know I had my OB, two labor nurses, a pediatric nurse, a physician’s assistant, and two or four nursing students.
- Forget your modesty at the door. Everyone says it, so I’m really just echoing it. It was surprising how quickly I lost my modesty and didn’t care. The most amusing moment was when a resident came into my room one morning to find me nursing. He turned beet red and almost turned away, but I told him I could stay. He did, but he was noticeably attempting not to stare at my boobs.
- Day shift is better than night shift. I’m sure this isn’t always true, and some nurses might disagree with me. However, my experience was that the night shift nurses (specifically in our Mother-Baby Unit) were less than stellar. In fact, one night was so bad I wound up crying my eyes out because no one would come take my son to relieve me after I’d been attempting nursing for over an hour. I hit the call button twice, talked to four different staff members, and waited well over an hour before a nurse came to take my son back to the nursery so I could attempt to get a little sleep before they brought him back in two hours.
- Charge nurses are your best friend. Following the awful night in the Mother-Baby Unit, the charge nurse came in to see how things were going for me. When she asked, I almost broke down in tears and admitted what had happened that night while apologizing because I was exhausted. She immediately told me she would change my nurse and make sure I got some sleep the following night. And she was true to her word. I had a new nurse who took my son to care for him that night and only brought him in when I was ready to handle him. It was glorious.
- Hospital staff are pretty awesome. Seriously. I mean this. Yes, doctors and nurses are huge, and I adored my doctor and labor nurse. But I also adored the sweet lady who came and delivered my meals to me. She was seriously the sweetest, and I loved being able to tell her that we’d finally been discharged to go home. She seemed so happy for us. I really appreciated her kindness, and she even brought us an extra cup to take home, which we used and still use to get in enough water. It’s people like her who help your stay in a hospital be a little nicer.
- A hospital is not a hotel. Our hospital advertised their Mother-Baby Unit rooms as being hotel-like. It’s a nice thought, but it simply isn’t true. Hospital beds, no matter how you put it, are uncomfortable, especially after several nights in them. Hospitals have that same smell no matter how you try to mask it. And there are always strange noises in hospitals. The good thing is that they are wonderful places to be when you need medical help, and the ones that staff well really do amazing work. So even if our hospital was not a hotel, it was still a good hospital to stay in for having to deliver a baby.
I still have more to say, but my son is asleep. The presidential debate is on. And it’s time for me to watch the circus while I work on my newest hobby of book folding. I’ll share a little more about my recovery from delivery and subsequent hospital visits in the coming posts!
– RaeNezL
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