Amazing Birth

by Kim Daubon
(West Allis, WI)

The Flying Intern

Way back in 1998 I was pregnant with my third, and last, child. I was ten days overdue and very ready for my pregnancy to be over. I went in to the hospital to be induced on a Tuesday afternoon at 12 noon. By 10:30PM I was not having contractions and I was not dilating. They took me off the IV and said we would start over in the morning. So my husband and I spent the night in the hospital.

The next morning the doctor came in and tried getting me to go home and come back. Later I found out she wanted to deliver my baby but it was HER birthday and she was only on call until Noon. I cried, I was miserable and my oldest daughter was having a birthday party that weekend and I just wanted my baby out. She warned me that her associate would likely be delivering my baby and reminded me that he is a male (I don’t like male doctors). I told her at this point I didn’t care if a damn alien came and delivered my baby, I just wanted him OUT!

My doctor started the IV again and was checking on me all the time, finally around 10:30 AM I rolled over to get up to walk some more and my water broke. It broke EVERYWHERE; there was a huge puddle under my bed. At the same time my water broke, the doctor was on the phone checking on my condition. The nurse told her I wasn’t going anywhere. The doctor stayed on call until 5PM, the latest she could. Then it was Dr. Kern’s turn!

When it came time to push, they raised my bed so high my ears popped! In came Dr. Kerns in his little yellow polka-dot bow-tie with an intern tagging along. This is the funniest part of my whole delivery. The intern was a newbie, this was his first delivery and my baby, Zach, was being stubborn and wasn’t coming down. With every push he would go back up inside me.

Dr. Kerns decided it was time to help Zach come into this world. He prepared the intern with items on his scrubs and placed that plunger looking thing on Zach’s head. Dr. Kerns told the intern “on the count of three mom is going to push and you’re going to pull”. So Dr. Kerns counted, I pushed, the intern pulled and all of a sudden the suction let go of Zach’s head and the intern went flying into the wall. The only person that moved any was the intern!

My experience giving birth to Zach was amazing. Along with the intern flying into the wall, I was able to deliver my baby. When Zach’s head came out, the doctor had me grab his head and pull him out! He was a beautiful healthy baby boy!