Re: Birth Stories
Thanks Iyla, and good luck to you.
Re: Birth Stories
Congrats MIA, and Sajal.
ok my turn for birht story, but i don't like to write much. I was also induced a week before due date. i was schedule for nov 30. well, went to hosp. at 9 am and delivered baby at 2 pm. so it was fast :p
i was more in pain this time than the first one. My little cutie name is Fatima. ok time to feed the baby :)
Re: Birth Stories
Ok here goes my story........
.
Very nice birth story Sajal...you did it!!! :D
BTW, it's so strange that I didn't feel emotional at all when I was going into labor...:o
Re: Birth Stories
OK, here's my birth story...well, I'll write whatever I can remember.
I was due on July 8th, same day my only niece was born four years ago and it's also a day my friend was born. I actually wanted my son to be born on July 4th so we could always celebrate his birthday on a holiday but Allah miya had other plans.
When I went for my 37th week appointment my OB gyne told me 'you're already 1 cm dilated so you will probably have your baby any day now...very soon' and I got so excited and happy that I'll be done soon because I had gained quite a lot of weight around 40 pounds. But no, it wasn't going to be easy. Every week I'd go to the doctor she'd tell me I was still 1 inch dilated and labor wasn't progressing much.
40th week came I lost my mucus plug but the doctor told me it didn't mean much and scheduled me for induction at 41.5 weeks. I was so depressed because I kept getting calls from people 'bacha kab araha hai? hum sab wait karrahe hain'....It annoyed the hell out of me because each time I wouldn't know what to say! :/ then at 40 weeks and 3 days I started getting contractions but they were pretty mild and irregular. Next day, they started getting more intense and were painful because I woudl feel one contraction at 10 mins and then another at 8, then get contractions every 6 mins for 45 mins and then start all over again at 10 or 8, I could BARELY sleep, eat or sit properly it was that bad.
By the 3rd day early morning I was so exhausted that I called the doctor and she told me I can't come in until my contractions are regular and they're 4 minutes apart. Then, somewhere in the afternoon my contractions started getting regular again at 5 minutes apart and were very painful so I called up and asked to PLEASE let me come in and doctor told me to come and get myself checked out. Unfortunately when I went and when the nurse checked my contractions went back to being irregular again and labor wasn't progressing either. The nurse felt so sorry for me and she told me that in rare cases a person can stay in Latent labor phase for many days without going into active labor. She said she would let me stay at the hospital but it probably won't change anything and they will not induce me until 41.5 weeks. I was SO dissapointed and cried my way back home. :-(
At 40 weeks and 6 days around 4pm the pain got really bad and I couldn't take it any longer, it was hard for me to breathe through the contractions! I started screaming and crying and told hubby to take me to the hospital or I will die. My hubby called the doctor and said I'm in a lot of pain so she asked to come in and I went there with hubby and sister, I had dilated 2 centimeters and 75% effaced(I believe) so they let me stay. The nurse encouraged me to walk until I feel exhausted, I walked and walked and walked until I couldn't anymore:D It helped my labor progress and I was 4 cm dilated now so they finally admitted me at around 6pm. Gave me IV. Nurse asked me if I wanted epidural and I said 'YES AND I WANT IT NOW PLEASE'....She laughed and called up the anesthesiologist. Soon after I was in peace.
They broke my water at midnight and then also gave pitocin around 3 in the morning coz things weren't progressing fast enough. It was a long night! Around 11am, I was finally ready to push but my doctor was busy with another patient doing a C section..I thought my hubby would run away at the last minute and leave me with my sister but he stayed, it was a pleasant surprise! :) Nurse me told me to start pushing eventhough Dr wasn't there and my hubby and sister helped. I was so exhausted from 5 days of labor pains that I thought I would pass out but thanks to my sister and hubby who turned out to be best coaches I used all my energy! After 40 minutes baby's had started crowning and doctor came in to get him out and I delivered within a few minutes.
I remember nurse placing him in my arms immediately but I asked her to take him away(I felt nothing for poor little guy when he was born). It took a few days before I felt 'maamta' for my baby..lol..Now I feel he's the most beautiful thing that happened to me ever, mashAllah he's adorable! :-)
Re: Birth Stories
congrats corruptangel :) may ALLAH bless both of u :)
Re: Birth Stories
has anyone here got a mcdonald's stich ???
i am so scared and need serious advises related to childbirth from those who have had such problem.
i'm at the start of my 3rd trimester.
Re: Birth Stories
congrats corruptangel :) may ALLAH bless both of u :)
Thanks :)
Re: Birth Stories
CorruptAngel
Wow you were so brave!! Many many congratulations to you!! And thank you for sharing your story!! I hope I'm as strong as you when my turn comes!!
Re: Birth Stories
Hi Sara,
How many weeks are you pregnant? Is this your first pregnancy? Why are the doctors suggesting you get the McDonald cerclage? Is your cervix changing length? I have a weak cervix and have been through a lot pain due to losing three children. I did get the McDonald cerclage with not a happy ending. but that was me and everyone is different. Please ask questions and don't hold back.
Are you in Pakistan? I hope you have some really caring and knowledgable doctors.
please feel free to ask me questions. I hate to see anyone go through what I have gone through. Keep us posted.
I will keep you in my prayers.
Re: Birth Stories
yes libmom, this is my 1st pregnancy and now i'm masha'ALLAH 28 weeks pregnant. i had dialated 2.7cm already in my 22nd week. so they had to put a little stitch down there. now they have advised me to stay in bed all time. i cant move around a lot. i didn't even start baby shopping then :(
well i've heard success stories about this stitch stuff too. a cousin of mine had twins and she went through the same procedure. she has two beautiful children now. and a neighbor of ours here in karachi had to have a stitch for each of her pregnancy. and both of her daughters were born healthy masha'ALLAH.
Re: Birth Stories
i am also suffering from a short cervix, and started dilating from 20 weeks and had the docs scare me inside out saying i would give birth prematurely before 34 weeks!!
i was advised bed rest as well, but my instincts told me to carry on as normal and believe I'd get to full term. of course i'd take things easy and not carry anything heavy and make sure i'd give myself a break often esp at work.
and now i am almost 37 weeks now alhamdolilah.
Re: Birth Stories
i am also suffering from a short cervix, and started dilating from 20 weeks and had the docs scare me inside out saying i would give birth prematurely before 34 weeks!!
i was advised bed rest as well, but my instincts told me to carry on as normal and believe I'd get to full term. of course i'd take things easy and not carry anything heavy and make sure i'd give myself a break often esp at work.
and now i am almost 37 weeks now alhamdolilah.
masha'ALLAH:)
as for me, i'm in bed all time. i hardly get up or do any work.
i am really scared, and want the baby to arrive safely.
insha'ALLAH
Re: Birth Stories
Now that I'm pregnant again I have been thinking about how the birth was when I had my beautiful girl in December 2009.
My estimated due date was 12th December 2009 and ma'shAllah that is the date my baby was born. Apparently it is quite rare that the baby is born exactly on the EDD but my daughter was very punctual.
I would like to start my story from Friday 11th December. On Friday I woke up around 10ish and rang my mum to ask her if she could make paratha for me with some salan and that my hubby would pick it up after Jumma as he parks his car at my mum's house anyway. My mum said that she would make some parathas and some chicken salan and send it over. We had also spoken previously about making somosas and freezing them for all the guest who would come when the baby was born. So my mum asked me if it was okay for her to send the cooked keema with the pastry sheets and I was to roll them, she said their were about 100 sheets. As I wasn't really doing much that day I said that was fine. So I got ready to read Jumma namaz and hubby went to the mosque. On his way back he collected all the food. When he came home we had a big big lunch.
After that I did some house work etc and arount 7pm I sat down infront of the TV with my husband and started to make the somosas. Whilst making the somosas I watched Eastenders, Live at the Apollo and the Jonathan Ross show. It ended up taking me around 3.5hours to make 100 somosas. After this I put them in separate bags and into the freezer. We went upstairs around 11pm and I started to feel some twinges, I had actually felt them once or twice during the day but they were more frequent now. So I asked my hubby to call the hospital, he rang them and they asked him when baby was due and it was about 12am by then so he said 'today' and they asked him if this was our first and he said yes, they said that it was unlikely I was in labour and said I should have 2 paracetamols and a hot bath. I didn't have the paracetamols (note to myself…don't be such a hero next time and have the painkillers) but I did have a hot bath but it wasn't very comfortable so I was only in there for a few minutes. I came out of the bath and started to feel the contractions more frequently but I was still okay but I asked hubby to ring hospital again and asked if we could come in. He rang them and they said that I could come in but if I wasn't in labour they would send me home. So we started getting ready for the hospital…it was around 2am when we left the house and got to the hospital about 2.30am.
I got taken to the labour room where the midwife checked me and told me I was 4cm dilated and indeed in labour. She asked if I wanted Gas & Air..i said yes and she brought it over but after taking it I vomited all the chicken salan out which was kinda yuk. I got myself cleaned and into my second new outfit. The pain started to get a bit more intense….so the midwife asked if I wanted pethidine. I said yes and she injected it in my thigh which made me fall a sleep for about 2 hours. I woke up around 4.30 and the pain was back. There was a table in the room on the other side so I walked over there and leaned over it while my husband rubbed my back each time the contractions came….by the way my waters had not yet broken. The midwife asked me many time if I wanted her to break my waters but I kept saying no I wanted her to wait a bit more. My hubby kept rubbing my back (poor guy) and then gush and my waters broke..and my socks got wet. The midwife looked and the water and was happy it was nice and clear. It was around 8.30am by then and I could feel baby was really low down and ready to come out…so I went back to the bed…yes I had been standing for over 4 hours! I lay on the bed and pushed when the contractions came and for the first time through the whole labour I let out a small shriek, hubby got excited and started saying..i can see the head…I can see the head! And out popped the baby at 9.15am. For some crazy reason I stripped off my top so I was completely naked and held her…(I don't know why.. I think I was thinking skin-2-skin or something…who knows…pethidine does drug u up). When I looked at her I didn't cry even though I'm an extremely emotional person and cry at everything! I just looked at her and I could not believe and seriously im not just saying this coz she's my baby but I could not believe how beautiful she was…she had the most gorgeous lips and nose and was very fair…even though hubby is very dark. Her lips were small but like a mini pout. Wow I couldn't believe it!
Midwife stitched me up and said that I was amazing and that I should come back next year ( no way I thought…never again! Now look at me I'll be back there in September) She then gave me some tea and toast. The toast was burnt and the tea was too milky but I didn't care. Hubby rang my mum who did not know I was even in labour she was shocked and started crying…so did I. Then we rang hubby's parents who were also in complete shock as no-one knew I was in labour. After that midwife said I could have a shower which was a bad mistake. The water was cold and I was bleeding lots. I shampooed and conditioned my hair, put my contact lenses in…I was in the shower for an hour…I don't recommend that I think you need to let your body rest for a day at least before you shower…did you guys shower straight away? Anyway I got out of the shower and put new clothes on and they moved me to another room.
I hadn't really held my baby much…I can't explain why it's not that I don't love her but I just didn't know what was going on. I put my make-up on and earrings etc (mad I know). Then I tried to breast feed her but she just slept. At 3.30pm everybody came my mum, dad, sister, mother-in- law, 2 sister in-laws, 2 brother-in laws, my hubby's cousin sis and cousin brother. They were all thinking and saying wow u look amazing doesn't look like you have given birth. They were also shocked when they saw baby…she was so fair and beautiful…no one was expecting that especially as hubby is almost black. Everyone said make-up kar ke ayi ha like her mummy. My dad did the Azaan in baby's ear and everyone took pics. It was nice but I wanted them to go because I wanted to hold my baby, I wanted to try and breast feed her….when would they all go and then they did. As soon as they did the midwife came and changed babies nappy she had black poo you know that's that normal stuff and I felt bad I had let her stay like that…don't know how long she was like that.
I promised never to let that happen again. To this day actually she is 13 months..she has never had nappy rash. I wash her bum evertime I changed her nappy and I am told I am over-the-top with nappy changing because I do it at least every 2 hours. But when I promise myself something I stick to it.
Anyway breast feeding was a nightmare…I'm not going to go into that now but if you really want to know let me know. The next day the midwife came to give her a bath and oh my god she looked even more beautiful…after her bath the photographer came and as I knew I was having a girl I put a gorgeous baby girl outfit on her and as she had quite long hard I brushed it…she was an angel from heaven. The photos came out gorgeous. Beautiful healthy baby girl born 12 December 2009 at 9.15am weighing 7.5 pounds.
Re: Birth Stories
Now that I'm pregnant again I have been thinking about how the birth was when I had my beautiful girl in December 2009.
My estimated due date was 12th December 2009 and ma'shAllah that is the date my baby was born. Apparently it is quite rare that the baby is born exactly on the EDD but my daughter was very punctual.
I would like to start my story from Friday 11th December. On Friday I woke up around 10ish and rang my mum to ask her if she could make paratha for me with some salan and that my hubby would pick it up after Jumma as he parks his car at my mum's house anyway. My mum said that she would make some parathas and some chicken salan and send it over. We had also spoken previously about making somosas and freezing them for all the guest who would come when the baby was born. So my mum asked me if it was okay for her to send the cooked keema with the pastry sheets and I was to roll them, she said their were about 100 sheets. As I wasn't really doing much that day I said that was fine. So I got ready to read Jumma namaz and hubby went to the mosque. On his way back he collected all the food. When he came home we had a big big lunch.
After that I did some house work etc and arount 7pm I sat down infront of the TV with my husband and started to make the somosas. Whilst making the somosas I watched Eastenders, Live at the Apollo and the Jonathan Ross show. It ended up taking me around 3.5hours to make 100 somosas. After this I put them in separate bags and into the freezer. We went upstairs around 11pm and I started to feel some twinges, I had actually felt them once or twice during the day but they were more frequent now. So I asked my hubby to call the hospital, he rang them and they asked him when baby was due and it was about 12am by then so he said 'today' and they asked him if this was our first and he said yes, they said that it was unlikely I was in labour and said I should have 2 paracetamols and a hot bath. I didn't have the paracetamols (note to myself…don't be such a hero next time and have the painkillers) but I did have a hot bath but it wasn't very comfortable so I was only in there for a few minutes. I came out of the bath and started to feel the contractions more frequently but I was still okay but I asked hubby to ring hospital again and asked if we could come in. He rang them and they said that I could come in but if I wasn't in labour they would send me home. So we started getting ready for the hospital…it was around 2am when we left the house and got to the hospital about 2.30am.
I got taken to the labour room where the midwife checked me and told me I was 4cm dilated and indeed in labour. She asked if I wanted Gas & Air..i said yes and she brought it over but after taking it I vomited all the chicken salan out which was kinda yuk. I got myself cleaned and into my second new outfit. The pain started to get a bit more intense….so the midwife asked if I wanted pethidine. I said yes and she injected it in my thigh which made me fall a sleep for about 2 hours. I woke up around 4.30 and the pain was back. There was a table in the room on the other side so I walked over there and leaned over it while my husband rubbed my back each time the contractions came….by the way my waters had not yet broken. The midwife asked me many time if I wanted her to break my waters but I kept saying no I wanted her to wait a bit more. My hubby kept rubbing my back (poor guy) and then gush and my waters broke..and my socks got wet. The midwife looked and the water and was happy it was nice and clear. It was around 8.30am by then and I could feel baby was really low down and ready to come out…so I went back to the bed…yes I had been standing for over 4 hours! I lay on the bed and pushed when the contractions came and for the first time through the whole labour I let out a small shriek, hubby got excited and started saying..i can see the head…I can see the head! And out popped the baby at 9.15am. For some crazy reason I stripped off my top so I was completely naked and held her…(I don't know why.. I think I was thinking skin-2-skin or something…who knows…pethidine does drug u up). When I looked at her I didn't cry even though I'm an extremely emotional person and cry at everything! I just looked at her and I could not believe and seriously im not just saying this coz she's my baby but I could not believe how beautiful she was…she had the most gorgeous lips and nose and was very fair…even though hubby is very dark. Her lips were small but like a mini pout. Wow I couldn't believe it!
Midwife stitched me up and said that I was amazing and that I should come back next year ( no way I thought…never again! Now look at me I'll be back there in September) She then gave me some tea and toast. The toast was burnt and the tea was too milky but I didn't care. Hubby rang my mum who did not know I was even in labour she was shocked and started crying…so did I. Then we rang hubby's parents who were also in complete shock as no-one knew I was in labour. After that midwife said I could have a shower which was a bad mistake. The water was cold and I was bleeding lots. I shampooed and conditioned my hair, put my contact lenses in…I was in the shower for an hour…I don't recommend that I think you need to let your body rest for a day at least before you shower…did you guys shower straight away? Anyway I got out of the shower and put new clothes on and they moved me to another room.
I hadn't really held my baby much…I can't explain why it's not that I don't love her but I just didn't know what was going on. I put my make-up on and earrings etc (mad I know). Then I tried to breast feed her but she just slept. At 3.30pm everybody came my mum, dad, sister, mother-in- law, 2 sister in-laws, 2 brother-in laws, my hubby's cousin sis and cousin brother. They were all thinking and saying wow u look amazing doesn't look like you have given birth. They were also shocked when they saw baby…she was so fair and beautiful…no one was expecting that especially as hubby is almost black. Everyone said make-up kar ke ayi ha like her mummy. My dad did the Azaan in baby's ear and everyone took pics. It was nice but I wanted them to go because I wanted to hold my baby, I wanted to try and breast feed her….when would they all go and then they did. As soon as they did the midwife came and changed babies nappy she had black poo you know that's that normal stuff and I felt bad I had let her stay like that…don't know how long she was like that.
I promised never to let that happen again. To this day actually she is 13 months..she has never had nappy rash. I wash her bum evertime I changed her nappy and I am told I am over-the-top with nappy changing because I do it at least every 2 hours. But when I promise myself something I stick to it.
Anyway breast feeding was a nightmare…I'm not going to go into that now but if you really want to know let me know. The next day the midwife came to give her a bath and oh my god she looked even more beautiful…after her bath the photographer came and as I knew I was having a girl I put a gorgeous baby girl outfit on her and as she had quite long hard I brushed it…she was an angel from heaven. The photos came out gorgeous. Beautiful healthy baby girl born 12 December 2009 at 9.15am weighing 7.5 pounds.
sweet.. MA.. sparrow i cudnt stop laughin cus one of my husband's cousin said the same thing(make up kar ke ai hia) when she saw my daughter for first time cus she was fair with dark pink lips and rosy cheeks... she was fair also (my hubs is med dark) but unlike u m not crazy abt make up :D
Re: Birth Stories
sparrow, I have read many birth stories but never I have heard you take a shower so quickly after giving birth and that too with cold water :shudders: I think the body definitly needs a rest.
I really liked your story :k: good for you that u had such a nice delivery, my first one was a horror; in labor pain for 4 days and not opening up internally. But the second one was quicker.
Re: Birth Stories
here is my birth story
so it was my 1st baby n i didnt know what vl happen on that day
anyhow at 35th week my doctor told me that baby is breach n i would be ending wth a c section but v vl wait till 40 week incase normal delivery can happen....so my due date was 2nd feb..... at 37th week doctor told me baby head had turned down so i can have a normal delivery on 20th jan morning at fajar time i had slight bleeding n it stopped after a while i ignored it n waited for labour at night i went out wth frnds n v had party all the night didnt know i l be ending wth labour pain soon v reached bck home at 2 am n went 2 sleep but couldnt sleep due to slight pain in my bck at 6 this pain became worse n bleeding started i told huby i think i m in labour n v have 2 go to hospital so i reached hospital since it was friday n i was a holiday i went 2 emergency.. there the nurse asked me how many weeks pregnant i told her 38 weeks n that stupid nurse heard 8 weeks i m still shocked she didnt saw my big tummy that she told doctor a patient 8 week pregnant is here n the doctor asked nurse 2 wait.i waited almost 2 hrs n then i shouted y doctor is not chcking me so finally doctor came n she told me that nurse told her that u r 8 weeks at that time i wanted 2 kill that nurse n doctor asked me what r u doing here u should be in maternity ward i was like i m saying this from last 2 hrs
so finally doctor checked me n told mde that i m in labour but the progress is v slow bc contraction r only at the bavk not in front n i m only 2 cm dialted it might take some days n asked me 2 leave if pain increases come again i went bck 2 home in the evening the pain became worse almost 5 mins apart.... i went 2 doctor again n she said i m still 2 cm awwwwwwwwwwww.................... it was raining outside n there was danger of traffic jam n since my house was far away fom hospital doctor decided 2 admit me n asked me 2 walk n i kept walking till night still no progress same 2cm pain was getting worse but only at bck not in front doctor asked me 2 sleep at take rest n vl check me in the morning i couldnt sleep bc of pain so she gave me painkillwr n 1 injection for sleep awwww it was great i slept peacefully n didnt even know that my water bag has burst in my sleep early morning at 5 nurse came wth breakfast n make me up i told her i m feeling v watery watery doctor came n checked me n she said ur water bag has burst but u r still 2 cm awwwwwwww so they decided 2 induce me n i asked 4 epidural first thn induce me
i had hot water bath n then went 2 labour room my huby was wth me n finally at this time v informed our families that v r in labour room every1 was like as if v were joking
anyhow i got epidural n it was just heaven for me n then thaey induce me at 7 am n told me that i l finish by this evening my huby was sitting next 2 me it was as if v r on some kind of vacation v were having juices talking on fone wth every1 using internet i didnt know i l enjoy so much in labour room
anyhow i slept at 9 n doctor came at 10 n told me that i m 5 cm dialted it will still take 5 to 6 hrs i was sleeping n i suddenly listened that doctor is saying i m ready 4 pushing i just looked at clock it was 11:30 n i was like i m ready now
since i was not feeling any pain so when contraction came i didnt know n i was not able 2 push the baby timing was not correct so they stopped my epidural so that i can feel pain n push the baby i tried hard pushing baby but it was not coming out doctor asked me 2 push as baby is stressing out n when she said i can c the head come on i asked her if u can c the head then just grab it i myself was so tired n my huby was like come on yar just do it n finish it i was like u can come at my place n finish it finally doctor used vaccum n my baby came AT 12:03 awww i was relaxed at once n the next moment i was having severe pain n i asked now what is happening n the doctor said i m applying stiches i was like now u can again start the epidural n she was like u didnt felt any pain in the begining so now just ctrl urself n i just started shouting it is hurting how much left suddnely huby came n asked me y r u shouting now baby is delivered i was like u just go wth the baby n leave me alone .... they kept me in labour room for another 1 hour in order 2 monitor the bleeding
finally at 2 pm i took hot water bath n was shifted 2 my room all my frnds came :)
indeed a nice experience :)
Re: Birth Stories
Congratulations DA
Re: Birth Stories
Congratulations to all the new Mums :)
Here's my story.
Based on the LMP, my girl was to arrive in this world on the 16th Nov, US said the 14th. I was in sydney at my Mum's place, my hubby was to arrive on the 13th. Morning of the 11th i started getting signs that things had started rolling, but no contractions. Morning of the 13th, around fajr i started getting contractions, rang the MW and she told me to stay home until they were more consistent. I'd read enough to know it wasn't time to run to the hispital. I prayed to Allah SWT that the baby would come after my hubby lands, actually, i prayed for whats best but He knew what i'd wanted. Contractions were painful enough that i couldn't go to sleep, and i had this sudden urge to clean up the house! there wasn't anything to clean really but i was finding things to keep me busy.
Alhumdulillah midday hubby arrived from the airport. The pain was there but manageable. around 3pm, it was getting worse, i went to the hospital only to be told that i'd dialated only 1cm and to come back when it was much worse.
Contractions were getting stronger from then onwards, so much so that i couldn't do much, went back to the hospital around 9pm, i was 6cm dilated! MW told me i'd be done before midnight. Epidural and teh sort are really discouraged in Australia so the only thing i was offered was this gas i'd inhale between strong contractions. Hubby was in charge of that :) 1 hour in the MW changed and this Asian was sent to my room. She was, umm, a bit stern. But boy she was good, I did exactly as she said and thats what helped me in the end (the first one was this super sweet Aussie who just kept telling me how well i was doing!). My water hadn't broken so MW did that... and i had to be cut eventually... the stitches of which were later infected! that was soooooo sooooo painful!
My baby's head popped through, with the cord looped around her, twice!!! but Alhumdulillah it was loose. I obviously didn't know this but hubby got saw it, poor thing :( Our baby girl came into the world at 11.31pm :) half and hour short of the earliest delivery date we were given :)
They cleaned her up and put her on my chest, i think i was so exhausted that i managed to not have a reaction at all! so weird but i dont remember being happy at all, i was more numb by the sight of having her on me! But now, when she looks into my eyes, i dont want her to look away... :)
So all in all, 2 hours in the labour room and i was done, Alhumdulillah. I pray that my future kids cause me even less pain, iA.
Re: Birth Stories
Well I've been lurking around this thread for a while so here's my story.
On Monday I noticed that I had begun to lose some of my mucas plug. I got super excited thinking that labour was on its way until I went to see my midwife on Tuesday and she mentioned that labour may still be weeks away.
On Wednesday I woke up feeling really lathargic. I know it sounds wierd but I just knew that I would be going into labour that day.....I had even joked with my student midwife about it. So stupid me, instead of listening to my instincts and resting I spent the day cleaning like mad and cooking up a storm. Finally around 6:30 pm on Wednesday I sat down on the couch and heard a loud "pop pop"' sound and immediately felt my first real strong contraction. I had constantly asked my midwife how I would know the difference between a braxton hicks and a real contraction and she always said you'll know.....and she was right. It was strong right away....I got up and started pacing and then felt the urge to go pee, went to the toilet and my water broke.
My husband came home at 7:00 pm and I told him that I thought we'd be having this baby today....now this was nine days before my due date so he was a little caught off gaurd. Its funny, he's the most calm person I know but I instantly saw the look of panic on his face. He asked me if I was okay and I said yes and then said he needed a minute. He sat on the couch for about 2 minutes and then looked up and me said he was ready.
We had dinner and just sort of relaxed....the contractions were about 10 minutes apart at this point and were strong but not so bad that I couldn't talk though them. Then around 9:00 pm I took a shower and we both headed off to bed to try and get some rest, though we were too excited to sleep. At around 11:30 pm I woke up with a really strong contraction, this is when we decided to start timing them. They were 4 minutes apart and about 45 sec each. I paged my midwife, we spoke for about 10 minutes and she listened to me as I went through a few contractions......I'm still amazed at this but just by listening to me going through a contraction she could tell if I was ready to go to the hospital or not. She told me to try and rest some more and page her when the contratctions were a minute long or strong enough that I couudn't talk through them. Again I went back to sleep, waking up with each contraction. Finally arounf 5:00 am on Thursday morning the contraction got really strong. I wanted to wait some more but my husband insisted on paging the midwife.
Again I spoke to the midwife and she told me to head to the hospital and that she would meet us there. Off we went, we live fairly close to the hospital so we were there in about 10 minutes. My husband said he would drop me off at the door and then go park but I felt like I could walk from the parking .... bad idea. I had a few really strong contractions on my way to L&D.
At 6:15 am we were in our room, my midwife checked me and I was 5 cm dialated. We called my mom and started walking the halls. Around 9:00 am the midwife asked if I wanted to use the jacuzzi offered at the hospital to help manage through the contractions....and I did. The jacuzzi room was wonderful. It was dimly lit, we could listen to music the whole atmosphere was a lot more relaxing then the hospital room. I stayed in the jaccuzi for about 2 hours when my midwife suggested that I should get out. It seemed that the jaccuzi worked too well at relaxing me and my contractions went from being 3 mins apart to 7 mins. We went back to the room where the midwife checked me and I had only dialated 1 cm in 5 hours. My contractions were monitored for an hour and we decided that because my labour had slowed down so much that I should get some pitocin to speed it back up.
So far I hadn't gotten an epidural and felt that I could manage fine without one. But as soon as they gave my the pitocin the contractiones picked up with a vengence. They gave me the pitocin at 3:00 pm, at 6 cm dialated and the contractions went from 7 mins apart to 1 minute in about 30 mins and I went from 6 cm to 8 cm.....I sort of lost my mind at that point. The calm collected person went out the door and out came this emotional lady. I asked for the epidural and right away my midwives sprang into action. They got everything set up, paged the doc and in about 20 minutes I was in heaven.
The whole time my mom and husband were on either side of by bed messaging my back or feet during the contrations....as soon as the epidural hit I told them both that they could stop, the mood in the room changed completely.....my husband later told me that when we have our second child he's voting for the epidural right away :)
At about 6:20 pm the midwife checked me again and we were ready to push. They asked me if I wanted a mirror and I had always thought I wouldn't but found the mirror to be really motivating. When I felt like I couldn't push anymore I could see that one more push would get the head to crown, or get the head out. I really found the pushing to be the best part....finally I had some control over things.... how hard I pushed or how effective the pushes were was in my control, it was so much better then waiting around for the magic 10 cm.
at about 6:45 pm my midwife told me that she thought I might need an episiotomy......midwifes are generally against them so I was a litte surprised. I told her that I would rather tear, and she said that that was the problem....my skin was so strong and was not tearing ( I guess my perenium messages pre-labour helped). She told me that she would give me a couple more contractions and then she would have to cut as the baby's heart rate had started to drop. And just to motivate me she took the sissors and put them by my leg. That was the kick in the pants and needed and a few pushes later at 6:55 pm on March 17th my son was born at 6 pounds 12 ozs.
I reached down and grabed him and layed him on my chest. We hadn't found out if we were having a girl or a boy and at that point I was so mesmerized I forgot to check....it was about 15 minutes later when my husband asked what we had that I found out I had a son. I had alays thought that I would bawl when I had my child but I was surprisingly calm....my husband and mom were tearing up but I just closed my eyes and felt him breathing on me......it was the most remarkable feeling. My whole birth experience was long but holding him I instantly forgot all the pain. He latched right away and thankfully I didn't tear so no stiches were needed. Because we had a midwife and a healthy delivery I was able to come home three hours after birth.
Its now 16 days later and everyday I feel more love for him....breastfeeding has been a little bit of a challenge, there have been times at the middle of the night when I just feel like crying and crying and I did not know it was possible to be this tired, even now as I type this I'm feeding him but every once in a while he gets the biggest grin and I forget how tired I am or how sore my boobs are, I didn't know it was possible to feel so much love for another person.
Some of you know that we had a hard time concieving so even now its a little hard to believe that he's here, mashallah healthy and happy and that he's ours.
Re: Birth Stories
Amazing! I cried when I read this! I am so happy for you....congratulations! May we all have just as wonderful birth experience as yours! Xxxx