Jill Duggar's Emergency C-Section Documented on 19 Kids and Counting
Jill Duggar gave birth to her son, Israel David Dillard, on a special episode of 19 Kids and Counting, and her delivery didn’t exactly go as planned. The 23-year-old student midwife hoped for a home birth, but ended up having an emergency C-section after more than 70 hours of labor. Get all the details of her dramatic delivery below.
The Never-Ending Labor Story
Baby Dillard was late to his own birthday party! This little man came into the world more than a week after Jill’s due date, and his delivery was far from easy. Jill originally planned to give birth in an inflatable pool at home, but after having her water break she took caster oil and began painful contractions. “Contractions kicked in very hard and with not a lot of break in between,” she told cameras.
Jill’s “birth team” (including family matriarch, Michelle Duggar) came to the rescue after two full days of labor, but the expectant mom was ready abandon her home birth plan and head to the hospital. “With my water being broke, you don’t wanna introduce infection,” she said.
Plan B
Jill made the final decision to nix home birth after realizing that her baby was in distress. “I went to the bathroom and I noticed some meconium staining on my pad, and usually that is a sign of fetal distress in the baby,” she explained. “It was more mild so it was like, ‘okay, he’s not doing too well but it’s not an emergency at this point.'”
Despite Baby Israel being safe and sound, Jill went to the hospital — and it was the right choice: Doctors discovered that Israel was in breech position (aka feet first), which meant she needed an emergency C-section. “It’s time for us to do what safety calls for and go with plan B,” a doctor told the first-time mom.
Jill’s surgery took place after 70 hours of labor (that’s right, 70 hours), and you better believe Michelle Duggar was decked out in scrubs and supporting her daughter in the OR!
Meet 19 Kids’ Newest Cast Member
Oh hay, Baby Dillard! The Duggar family’s new addition arrived safe and sound after Jill’s emergency C-section on April 6, and the new parents couldn’t have been more thrilled. “He’s worth every contraction,” Jill said. “Every pain that I had. All this long labor. Just getting to see that little baby and hold him. Everything — just all worth it.”
Derick Dillard also expressed his love for daddy-hood, saying “I love him. I’ve known him on the inside of my wife for nine months and thought about what it would be like, but nothing could quite come close to describing exactly how I felt.”
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Jessa Seewald Has Baby Fever!
Jill’s just-married younger sister, Jessa, had babies on the brain during Jill’s baby shower: “It’s really fun being here at this celebration,” the newlywed 22-year-old said. “It kinda makes me think ahead and what it will be like when it’s our turn.” Jessa and husband Ben Seewald are expecting their first child on November 1, so it looks like she’s following in her big sister’s footsteps.
19 Kids and Counting airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on TLC.
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