Planned Epidural Labor Report Part 3: From Post-Anesthesia to Temporary Stop

Click here for reports 1 and 2

🕒12:15
Internal examination. The cervix is dilated 2-3 cm. I couldn't help but react, saying, "What! Still that far to go?" but both the doctor and the midwife said in unison, "It can sometimes progress all at once suddenly."

However, on the other hand, they said there are cases where it doesn't progress at all and the baby isn't born that day. "That's just individual variation," they said.

🕒12:30
The labor-inducing drug was increased in strength. But since the anesthesia is working, I'm no longer scared or in pain.

Come to think of it, the stomach pain has also subsided! The midwife said it's unrelated to the anesthesia, so maybe the baby has descended a bit, or it's the effect of hydration, or perhaps the healing effect of talking to my older child via video call from the delivery room.

After that, I spent the time relaxing and dozing off since I had no pain at all. Even lying on my back, which should be difficult, wasn't hard.

🕒13:30
Internal examination. Cervix is 3 cm dilated. The doctor said, "It's still firm," and performed a sweep in time with the contractions. Even though I don't feel the pain of the contractions, the sweeping is painful😭

When I asked Chappy what was firm, they said it was the cervix, the area around the entrance. The progress of labor is determined not only by the dilation of the cervix but also by whether the cervix is firm or soft, and thick or thin.

I heard them say "50%" regarding the thickness, so I understood that it is thinning out, but it is still firm. The doctor manually softened it a bit, and they said they would wait for it to soften further from here.

At this point, the labor-inducing drug was also set to maximum power.

🕒14:45
Although the softness improved somewhat, the cervix did not progress beyond 3 cm... The doctor uttered the prediction I feared most: "It's possible that today might be difficult."

The reason is that this hospital cannot handle epidural deliveries at night, so if progress is poor, the decision is made to try again the next day...

They said that if labor starts in the middle of the night before we can try again, I'll have to endure it on my own😭

I don't mind if the birthday is today or tomorrow, but I just want to avoid a natural delivery at all costs😭

🕒15:30
Since it didn't progress beyond 3 cm, a temporary stop was officially decided. "Maybe the baby isn't in the mood yet," they said... The doctor and midwife's assessment was that the current abdominal tightening seems to be caused by the labor-inducing drug, so if we stop the drug, the tightening should subside.

We will wait for the tightening to disappear, then stop the anesthesia, spend the night as usual, and try again from tomorrow morning.

When I said, "Was it too early?", both the doctor and the midwife said that wasn't the case, and that if we had waited any longer, natural labor might have started. They said this is just something you can't predict.

If I were to have another child, I thought I would definitely want to choose a more flexible hospital that provides 24-hour support...

🕒17:00
Anesthesia stopped.

I hope labor doesn't start in the middle of the night...!

Continued in Report 4