Mitchell shared the highs and lows of her intense labor in the final episode of her YouTube series, 'Almost Ready.'
Shay Mitchell has shared an intimate look at her scary and exciting journey from having her water break at home to delivering her baby girl.
Mitchell and her boyfriend, Matte Babel, announced their daughter’s joyous arrival on Instagram on Sunday, but in the final episode of her YouTube Original series, Almost Ready, the actress fears for the little one’s life at one point.
After her water break in the bathroom, Mitchell, 32, films her journey to the hospital during which she is visibly distressed and expresses her concerns for her daughter.
“I really thought I was going to be able to stay at home for a long time, no,” she says. “Especially when he’s asking me if I can feel her moving and I can’t. I’m like, this freaks me out, it really does. 'Cause the last time I felt pain like this, was not a good experience.”
Mitchell was presumably referring to the miscarriage she suffered in 2018.
After arriving at the hospital, doctors confirm the baby is fine, however, the Pretty Little Liars star is in for a long and arduous labor.
After 13 hours, she takes Pitocin, a drug that helps move labor along faster, but makes contractions more intense. Her parents, meanwhile, are shown eagerly awaiting their granddaughter’s arrival in the waiting room.
Struggling and in tears, Mitchell considers an epidural 23 hours into the labor. “I honestly think I just have to get an epidural,” she says as her doctor points out she’s still only in the early stages of labor.
Despite the idea of an epidural previously being a point of conflict between Mitchell and Babel, the dad-to-be happily supports the actress by massaging her back and feet, in between eating snacks and taking a nap -- while sporting a shirt reading, “No ovaries. No opinion.”
Finally, 33 hours after her water broke, Mitchell is told she is 10cm dilated and can start pushing, finally welcoming her little girl while bawling with emotion.
“I can’t,” she says in tears as her doula tells her she can look. “Oh, it’s so crazy. Oh, god!”
“I was 99 percent excited to meet her and one percent excited to eat something,” she later laughs, before her and Babel toast with a small glass of bubbly.
Mitchell later muses about how a whole new journey has just begun for her and Babel.
“This is definitely the most intense experience of my life,” she says. “Matte and I are parents and I can’t believe it. We thought being pregnant was a journey and I’m realizing we have just begun.”
Mitchell announced her pregnancy in June and has documented her journey toward motherhood in biweekly episodes of Almost Ready. The series chronicled everything from her epic Power Rangers-themed gender reveal to reflecting on her heartbreaking miscarriage.
“Women go through a lot during pregnancy,” she explained about why she wanted to document her pregnancy for the public. “It's exciting, difficult, emotional and amazing all at the same time, and I wanted to share my journey with more than just a photo.”
See more on Mitchell and her road to motherhood below.
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