Saturday morning and we're just playing the waiting game. The contractions are definitely more intense, but are inconsistent, time-wise. We had long night… the first of many, of course… as Heather averaged 2-3 per hour.
Unfortunately, as the intensity grows the pain has actually moved from being focused in the stomach/uterus area to her lower back area. After consulting our library of baby books, there could be a couple of reasons for such intense back pain. The most obvious reason is that as the baby moves lower in the pelvis, there is pressure as she begins to squeeze through that area. The other reason (And according to Heather’s doctor, this may be the case) is that the baby has not yet rotated to face the correct direction. Basically, it is ideal for the baby to be born face-down. Most babies start the other way then turn during the birthing process, but if they don’t turn right away, the hard part of the back of the head presses on mama’s lower back straining the joints and causing pain in the entire lower back area. Here’s a diagram. It’ called the occiput posterior or OP position.
Heather has had a bunch of these "back labor" pains throughout the night and into this morning and it breaks my heart to see her in such pain. BUT, even as I’m writing this, the contractions are less intense, especially on her back. This may be due to the fact that we have been trying some coping positions and she’s been up and walking to try to help the baby along. It seems to be working.
What’s next? Well, all we can do is help her cope with our balance ball and other positions our birthing class and books have taught us. At this point, there are really only two things that get us to the hospital. One is if and when her water breaks and the other is when the contractions become five or less minutes apart and last at least a minute in duration. Unless Finley decides to kick it into high gear, we could be in for a long day. Stay tuned for more!
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