Isla’s birth story is MUCH different than Caleb’s. If you want to refresh your memory of the traumatic experience we had, you can read it here: Caleb's Birth Story. With this pregnancy we chose to be cared for by an OB. As soon as we found out I was pregnant, my family doctor referred me to an OB specializing in high risk pregnancies. I saw her beginning at 12 weeks and was very happy with my care throughout the pregnancy. I was put on baby aspirin right away as it sometimes reduces the risk of preeclampsia.

My pregnancy felt very similar to Caleb’s, but with an added stress of when/if I was going to start swelling or my blood pressure going up. My blood pressure was in the normal range throughout my pregnancy when I checked it at home and during my appointments. On September 23, I checked my blood pressure at home before heading off for a day of substitute teaching at 36 weeks. It was extremely high, so I waited and checked it again a few minutes later. Still high. I immediately started freaking out, which didn’t help it at all because this was exactly what I wanted to avoid. I tried calling the clinic right away but the phone lines were down that day and I could not get through each time I called. I had a scheduled appointment the next day, so I tried my best to relax and it went down a bit.

The next morning (Friday)  I went to my appointment, the nurse checked my blood pressure when I arrived like always, and she was quite concerned saying it was high and she wanted to check it again. I told her it was high at home, so I wasn’t surprised. When I saw the doctor she gave me a prescription for labetalol, told me she wanted me to go to the hospital for another blood pressure check and a NST (non-stress test), and to come back again on Monday for another blood pressure/NST check, and scheduled my next appointment with her for the following Wednesday - September 29. I was to check my blood pressure regularly over the weekend and if it went high again, come into the hospital immediately. She said I would be induced the following week as I would then be 37 weeks! I spent the weekend at home getting things ready and trying my best to be calm so that my blood pressure didn’t go out of control. We were almost done harvest, so Derek worked like crazy (even combined on Sunday), so that that would be out of the way and we could have our baby the next week! On Monday, mom and Caleb dropped me off at the hospital for my NST. Everything was good, so I went back home and spent my time before Wednesday doing cleaning, laundry, and getting us all packed up before my appointment on Wednesday, when we were 90% sure I’d be induced. 

September 29, 2021

Derek and I packed our bags, dropped Caleb off, grabbed lunch, and then headed to my doctor appointment. At my appointment my blood pressure was high again and I was 0cm dilated, so my doctor sent us over to the hospital for a NST, bloodwork, and to be induced! I was nervous (mostly about which way my baby was coming out of me, I really did NOT want another c-section), but also calm as I had already been to the hospital twice the few days before. We got to the hospital around 1:00pm and were in a pre-assessment room for many hours. I had to get bloodwork, blood pressure checks, NST, get admitted to the hospital, and before the induction could happen the doctor on call wanted me to have an ultrasound. The afternoon was spent just waiting with many different people coming in and out. It seemed like everyone had a student or intern with them, so I was asked everything at least twice. Around supper time we were still waiting for my ultrasound and the last of my bloodwork before the induction. By now I was getting anxious to get things started. It was getting later in the day and I knew I would want to get some sleep and not be in labour all night if I didn’t have to. I had a student finally come to do my bloodwork and she could not get the needle in. She tried many many times and I was so anxious at this point I started crying. She finally got it and then I was able to go down for my ultrasound a bit later. The ultrasound technician was not sure why I had been waiting all day for an ultrasound when I was going to be induced anyway, but she quickly did it and said she’d get the results sent upstairs as quickly as she could. She guessed the baby would be about 6 pounds and said it had lots of hair! Back upstairs, we FINALLY saw the OB on call for the first time. She explained the induction process and said I’d be moved to a delivery room to get comfy for the induction. I met my nurse for the night and had my COVID swab (negative). She was certain that I wouldn’t be staying at the hospital, that I would get to leave for a bit, but I told her that I was ‘special’ and was NOT allowed to leave until my baby was born. Then she came back and said that yes, I would get to stay at the hospital, but would have to stay in the pre-assessment room. We told her that the doctor said we would be moving to a delivery room, and then she came back again saying we were right again. It was kind of funny. Once we were settled in our room, it was just after 8:00pm, the doctor came and placed the folly bulb, which is like a balloon that they fill with water. The folly bulb can stay in for up to 12 hours. It will either fall out when you are 3 cm dilated or at 12 hours you should be 3 cm.  Derek went and got us some supper (Wendy’s cheeseburger and frosty), because my supper was forgotten in the delay of the hospital admission process. After we ate, we watched a bit of Netflix and then went to sleep. I slept as best as I could but the folly bulb was a bit uncomfortable (mostly the tube taped all down my leg) and I was getting cramps, which meant it was working! I had a morphine shot before midnight to help with the pain so that I could sleep. At midnight I went to the bathroom and the balloon came out, so I was 3cm. My nurse said she could start me on oxytocin which was the next step in getting labour going or let me sleep for a bit longer. I chose to sleep for a bit longer. At 2:00am she woke me up to start the oxytocin. I started having contractions but couldn’t feel them, so she turned the oxytocin down a bit because I was having too many contractions. I was able to doze off and on throughout the night, which was really nice! 

At 10:30am I got my epidural. I was surprised when they suggested it, I did not think that I would be getting it so early, but they wanted me to have it in case of a c-section, it would be done and Derek would be able to be with me if I had to have surgery. After my epidural, the doctor came in and broke my water. I spent the afternoon dozing off and on after I had another shot of morphine. I could not feel the contractions, but the nurses kept moving me onto each side using a peanut ball. Around 2:45ish I started to not feel so great and felt like I was going to throw up. My nurse checked me and said I was 10cm! So that was why I was feeling so crummy all of a sudden, but that news really perked me up! She went to get the doctor on call. He came in around 3:00 and said he had to go do a c-section, so I’d have to wait. Uhhhhhhhh. My nurse started getting everything ready in the room for delivery. She went and got a few other nurses to be close by in case I couldn’t wait for the doctor. They told her to quickly take her coffee break. She did go for a very short break but told me that I could NOT have this baby without her! When she was back she had me practice doing some pushes. I could feel very little. The doctor came back just after 3:30. I pushed a few times and Isla Mae Friesen was born (with her foot beside her head?!) at 3:44pm on Thursday September 30. When the doctor held her up for me to see, I said we had had a boy. I blame that on the umbilical cord/being heavily drugged/certain we were having another boy. She was laid on my chest immediately and Derek cut her cord.

Maternity and Newborn photos by Stacey Gabriel Photography.