Forty Years Ago Today...

...I was in hard labor - had been for almost a day.
I was not a happy camper.
I wanted the baby out and he/she wasn't moving.
I was also pre-eclamptic and very ill. I remember the Director of Nursing coming to see me in the labor room because the rumor out in the hospital where I went to nursing school and worked was that I may not "make it". She never left her office. Even in labor, I was impressed.
My obstetrician finally came in (his partner had left me in labor) and said I needed a C-section.
"Oh, crap," I thought. "That will mean more money for the hospitalization* and more time off from work."
But there was no choice for me or for the baby.
By 9 PM that night I had Heather Bronwyn and it was the best day of my life.


* Forty years ago I couldn't get maternity benefits on my hospitalization until I'd been married for x number of months. I got pregnant a month after getting married and my maternity benefits didn't come into effect in time for my labor and delivery. I had to have everything paid before going into labor. The C-section added more to the cost. I even worked at the hospital where I delivered - but I had it paid off within the year.