From Bump to Baby: Chapter 4: The Birth!

So, last time you saw me I was minding my own business on the morning of September 11th.

I had been having a lazy morning, sat on facebook updating everyone on the fact that I did not want to have the baby on this date. My mum asked me to get my washing together for her so she could put a load in the machine so I moved into the bedroom and managed to get down onto the floor and crawl along picking my washing up which was slung all over the room. Now, I would like to just say that I am sure my mum would not have made me pick up my own washing if she had realised that I had to crawl in order to do it, she is not that mean!

So anyway, here I was crawling around on my hands and knees with dirty washing in either hand when suddenly I felt this sensation down below and water began to trickle onto the carpet! I can see how some people think they have wet themselves, I was a bit unsure until it kept going and I definitely was not peeing! I shouted for my mum to come in and we both kind of just looked at each other like OMG! She was worried about her floor getting ruined (honestly, she really isn't mean!) so got me a towel and I got onto the midwife to tell her that my waters had broken and she told me I needed to put a pad on (sorry for the TMI!) and get down to the maternity hospital soonish to let them establish that it was definitely my waters that had broken. I was a bit silly at this point. First of all I announced it on facebook (as you do!), then called a few people including my other birth partner Aimee (who was alseep!!). I then went and had a shower and washed my hair, oops! Apparently when I finally made it down to the maternity hospital a few hours later (well the midwife had said I didn't have to rush!) they told me I had nothing to show them on the pad as I had waited too long to put it on.....

So followed the midwife not even believing my waters had gone and telling me I would have to wait half an hour and then be examined internally. Luckily I didn't make it to the internal as when she went to take a look my waters broke again right in front of her! I was then told that as I hadn't started contracting that I had to go back home and basically wait it out, hoping that contractions would start on their own that night. Because my waters had broken but I hadn't gone into labour I was told that I may have to be induced the following morning if I hadn't managed it alone as apparently once the waters break you must deliver within a certain amount of time to prevent infection to the baby.

So, off we went back home, stopping off at Tescos for some food first (we had our priorities right!). Aimee came back to my mum's as we still thought it could happen any minute. But, alas, nothing happened despite the final curry I had that night! We watched the X-Factor and then a really sad documentary on tv about 9/11 and then gave up and went to bed hoping I went into labour in the night.

Alas, I woke up early the next morning still with not even a twinge of pain. It was so frustrating! So off I went to the maternity hospital again and within an hour of getting there I was induced. It actually wasn't that bad. It was done with a pessary which to be honest I barely felt. I was informed that if nothing happened after a few hours that I would be given another pessary and so on. I crossed my fingers something happened as I had visions of Rachel in Friends waiting while loads of women came and went before her! I did get this happen once, as a woman who had come in after me was induced and then taken down to the labour ward before me. It was not amusing. I am impatient at the best of times, so try imagining me in labour! I feel sorry for my mum and Aimee who were there throughout listening to me moan.

Within about four hours I had begun to slowly start contracting. At the time I thought it was so painful, I was making a very funny panting noise every contraction I got and we began timing them at 5 minutes apart. However, they seemed to go in a weird pattern. There would be 5 minutes gap then another which would last a while, and then another 5 minute gap and another contraction and then there would be nothing for about ten minutes or even longer and then the whole process would start all over again. Annoying is not the word! And all this time my faithful birth partners sat and waited along with me as I moaned in pain or simply moaned because I was bored, frustrated and stuck in a hospital- my favourite place! At one point I got a bit of bleeding but was told this was perfectly normal. A lot of the time I was strapped up to a heartrate  

on the birth ball

monitor  

Strapped to the monitor

listening to Cameron's little heart chugging away but some of the time I was walking around the hospital or bouncing on the birth ball in the room to Aimee's amusement. I even got to go outside briefly which I was grateful for as I was getting so claustrophobic. It was such a weird experience knowing that I wouldn't be leaving the hospital again until I had the baby.

I did my fair share of moaning to the staff and so at just before 6pm I was informed that I would be transported down to the labour ward. They said that as I was contracting on my own I might not have to have a drip attached to closen the contractions but that I would not be able to have a water birth as was originally planned as I would be in the hospital part of the ward rather than the birthing suite with all the baths etc. I didn't really care by that point to be honest. I just wanted the baby out! At that point I had only eaten lunch and had been coping with the contractions on simple painkillers.

I was transferred to the labour ward just as dinner was being served but was told my dinner would meet me  

In the labour room having a contraction!

down there. It didn't! I was later informed that the midwives upstairs had eaten it, 'thinking I had been discharged'! Bloody thieves! So all I had to get me through labour was a cheese sandwich they provided me with-eurghh... I got changed into my nightdress and was once again strapped up to a monitor. I was also given a canular (tube) in my hand for the drip to be attached later on if it was needed. I am terrified of injections and needles etc so I was really dreading it and must admit I made a bit of a fuss. It was even worse when they told me that something had gone wrong in the first hand so they then had to do it all over again in my right hand. It hurt, but then I knew that what was about to happen would be worse!

So I ate my cheese sandwich and waited around a bit, every so often having contractions.

After a while my contractions got more intense on their own and I was bouncing on my birthing ball and feeling really weak so I asked for the gas and air. When I had it at first it was amazing, the pain just disappeared! After a little while I became drunk on it and was making a complete fool of myself, talking crap to the poor midwife and telling her way too much information about myself! I also ended up with a really hoarse mannish voice which was amusing too! I also told my mum to delete my ex's number and then asked her to call another ex for me. I was in a lot of pain by this point though and he asked me to call him once I had the baby as he was finding it too hard listening to me in so much pain! It becomes hazy at this point but I know that before the pain became too intense my mum filmed some of my contractions on gas and air which I have since watched back! Some of the videos are below...

WARNING: when watching them have the sound right down as interference has made it piercingly loud at parts!

I also went to the toilet across the hall, having sucked in as much gas and air as possible before I went and vaguely remember waving manically and shouting hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii to a complete random couple walking into the labour ward! How embarrassing! I know it happened as well because I then went back into my room and told my mum and Aimee what had happened. I had made three CDs before the birth and had them on repeat during my labour which was funny as at one point a midwife described my room like a club. I had gaga on repeat whilst the contractions got stronger!

After a long time of not really getting anywhere and being in a lot of pain, I was attched to the drip and I hated that as it meant I was unable to move very far, I was stuck on the bed. The drip worked by giving me a hormone that sped up my contractions. It meant that I went from contracting every so often to suddenly having huge contractions really close together and I couldn't bear it! I had worked my way through a whole canister of gas and air so was given another one and this one made a honking noise every time I breathed it in which was awful, it sounded like a goose!

My mum suggested I have the pethidene injection as I was finding it hard just on gas and air, but within a minute of me having the injection (which I barely felt I was in so much pain) I was begging for an epidural. I couldn't actually have an epidural, however, as the labour ward had got incredibly busy and the two anaethetists were busy in surgey with c-sections. I was apparently begging anyone who came into the room for an epidural including a random male nurse I mistook for a doctor! Luckily the pethidene kicked in a while later and that took the edge off a bit but it was still unbearable! My mum and Aimee managed to work out the machine I was hooked up to monitoring the contractions and said they could actually see when I was about to have a contraction so were able to warn me and tell me to breathe gas and air beforehand.

My mum found it really hard to watch me in so much pain. Apparently I wasn't really screaming or shouting but was begging her to let me go home in a tiny little voice. I was offering to do anything for her to take me away from there and I believe I uttered the phrase 'just let somebody else do this bit for me please'! A lot of that time I was without a midwife as they simply had not got enough staff for as many patients as they had, the hospital was in fact closed at a certain point as they didn't have enough room!

I was given a new midwife at one point and it was while she was trying to help me get more comfortable by turning me onto my side that I suddenly felt this weird sensation and the huge urge to push down. I told her I needed to push and she told me I didn't as last time she had checked I was only 6cm dilated. But I still felt it and told her I needed to have my legs open at least which she allowed me to do and then suddenly I just pushed a bit and she looked again and told me I was fully dilated and that she could see the head! This scared me so much as I knew now was the hard part. It was so hard to push as I could feel everything, having not had an epidural.

I took 47 minutes to push him out as I kept stopping, too scared to push as much as I needed to. Aimee was at the lower end and said that she kept seeing his head come out a tiny bit and then go back in where I was  

1st Photo!

stopping myself from pushing the full amount! Disgusting visual there, I know! Eventually I managed to push  his head and then his shoulders and finally his body slid straight out. The shoulders are by far the worse. 

As soon as he was born he was lifted up and placed onto me and I must admit I was terrified seeing this seemingly huge baby covered in blood come towards me. But then I looked down at his beautiful little face  

Just Born!

and I could not believe I had actually done it. I had a baby! He was perfect. I was encouraged to try to breastfeed and managed to eventually but only a little. My mum had cut the cord for me and I was given more gas and air whilst they delivered my placenta. Apparently that bit took 12 minutes but it all seems a blur. I got my mum to update facebook of the birth time and weight (6'9) after the midwife had dressed and weighed him.

 

With Aimee



being weighed

 

 

The Midwife who delivered him!



With his nanny!



  

I then painfully managed to get to the toilet, which without going into too much detail was the worst feeling 
 ever! I waddled back intot the room and then had to get taken up to the ward and say goodbye to my mum. I was terrified about being left alone with this tiny newborn baby and so so exhausted. A midwife came and helped me try to breastfeed and I fell asleep feeding him which panicked me when I woke up a few minutes later. Then the midwife placed him in his cot next to my bed and told me to sleep. But I must have only slept a few minutes as I couldn't take my eyes off him.  

In his cot not yet a day old!


 
 

The morning :)

 

It was simply amazing.

The best day of my life.

I was a mummy!