Quick shout-out to the excellent nurses/doctors at Sibley

[Anonymous]

I delivered at Sibley last week and just wanted to share that I had a great experience with the hospital, the doctors, and the nurses. I had a difficult delivery and required a lot of assistance and support both during labor and during recovery. The nurses were simply great. The nurse who helped me through the pushing part of my delivery was amazing - I don't think any doula could have done a better job at guiding me through the process and keeping my confidence high notwithstanding some unexpected developments. My recovery nurse was understanding, knowledgeable, patient, kind, and overall good at what she does. The staff pediatricians were incredibly helpful and attentive. I read some not great reviews about Sibley on DCUrbanmom over the course of my pregnancy that left me apprehensive, and although I'm sure everyone's experience can vary and the stars may simply have aligned in my favor to give me the most talented of the staff, I just wanted to share that I thought Sibley and its staff were both top notch.

[Anonymous]

Thank you so much for posting this, I'm a first time mom-to-be set to deliver at Sibley this summer and am also apprehensive due to the stories on here. It sounds like you had some complications -- so I'm happy you're feeling great about your labor! Sounds like you did a great job, too.

If it's not too intrusive, would you mind sharing if you had a vaginal delivery, drug free delivery, and any interventions? If so, how much you participated in those decisions? I promise, no judgment here on any front, I'm just wondering if it's only moms trying for natural childbirth who get the stink eye at Sibley.

Congrats on your new baby!

[Anonymous]

Not the OP but I thought I'd chime in as I had a very similar experience. I had my baby this summer at Sibley and also had a wonderful experience with all of the nurses and doctors. I had some complications too so we had a neonatologist in the room when I delivered and he was very good.

To answer 21:22's questions, I asked for an epidural and the doctor who gave it to me was great. Despite the complications, I had a vaginal delivery. I asked the doctor about a C-section but he didn't feel that we were at the point of needing to consider it.

I really can't say enough good things about Sibley and the doctors and nurses there. The nurse who was with my through the pushing was incredible (I know I sound just like the OP). Through two plus hours of pushing she was positive and encouraging and told my husband what to do (and not to do!).

I completely believe the bad experiences others have had but I really had a wonderful experience. I felt like every decision was between me and my doctor and the nurses were genuinely nice, helpful people.

[Anonymous]

This is 21:22 again. It's great to hear two stories now of excellent deliveries. I've still got my fingers crossed that OP will say she had a natural childbirth and was up and movign around, doing relaxation, etc. Most of the "horror" stories from Sibley seem to center on battles with nurses who don't support a woman trying to have natural childbirth. If you're in bed, you're less of a pain in the neck to them. That's not to say that I think they are bad or that your great experience doesn't count! I hope it doesnt' come across that way. Frankly I don't even know what I want from childbirth yet, but I think I'm hoping at least, to try going naturally. Would love to hear someone say they aimed for natural and had a ton of support, caught no flack for getting up (which means you have to remove the fetal monitor) and so on.

Congrats on your baby, as well!

[Anonymous]

NP - I also delivered at Sibley last week and can't say enough great things about the nurses and aides, both on the labor side as well as post-partum. They were all truly fantastic and professional, to the point where I had to hug the labor nurse (who herself was in her second trimester) once she got me to my room. FWIW, this was my second time around at Sibley; last time I wasn't thrilled with the level of care after delivery, but this time I have to say that everyone I enountered was just amazing and kind as well.

PP, I can't speak to the natural delivery issues, as I'm a huge proponent of epidurals (especially now that I experienced one that worked properly; with my first child, we had some fluke issues that kinked the line and blocked the pain meds). FWIW, both times I had big babies (around 9lbs each) and even though I'm a pretty small person, there was never anything but encouragement from either the nursing staff or my doctors for a vaginal delivery, even though I probably would have jumped at the chance to avoid that.

[Anonymous]

I also want to say thanks for posting these. I'm due in 6 weeks and some of the posts here about Sibley were freaking me out. So - thanks for the positive notes and congratulations!

[Anonymous]

I've delivered twice at Sibley (and a third time coming in about a month). I got epidurals with both and pretty easy deliveries. I thought the labor and delivery nurses were great. The labor and delivery rooms are very nice and everyone was helpful and made it a really positive experience.

The only criticism I had (and friends who have delivered as well) has been the post-partum nurses, in particular the night shift. It can be a bit of luck of the draw, and it really depends on how busy the hospital is on the day you happen to give birth. My second birth was easy, but the hospital was so crowded they put me in a shared room with someone who had complications and a C-section and was in pain, had numerous visitors coming and going, etc. After the first awful night they moved some of us up to a quieter floor with private rooms which was a huge improvement.

I think it is hard in that exhausted, hormonal, post-giving birth state to be an effective advocate for yourself (at least I found that my first time). When I finally asked direct questions and insisted, my needs were quickly met at Sibley. I'm normally a pretty assertive person (I'm a litigator at a big law firm), but I just wasn't prepared the first time around for what my mental state would be. So speak up! (and tell your partner/friend/doula they may need to be your advocate).