Re: Birth Stories
pethidine is an intramuscular injection which makes u drowsy whereas epidural is an injection given in spine which desensitizes your lower body and legs. i got a baby boy at 38wks and 5 days
Re: Birth Stories
thanks for sharing your experience chips! it's nice to have it written down so you can come back and read it all over again. congrats on your little baby girl!
Re: Birth Stories
Thanks everyone...:)
MALL....yes it was an unplanned cesarean as the labor wasnt progressing and the baby was in distress.
Re: Birth Stories
awww chipsyyy! Congrats masha'Allah -
Re: Birth Stories
chips..that was beautiful!!!
thanks for sharing.
Re: Birth Stories
Thanks Afshi and Mysti...:)
Re: Birth Stories
scary and bervous time for mothers to be
Re: Birth Stories
thats why it says in islam that a mothers grave is opened for 40 days around birth time, scary
I was 2 days overdue, over exhausted, sick of being pregnant and decided to try some methods to initiate labour. yes girls i demanded sex that nite and it actually worked. i woke up at 1am with contractions and boy were they strong.
i didnt start off with any pain at all to waking up to full blown labour pains. the contractions were irregular about 18mins apart so i just stayed in bed. i had the desperate need for the loo so i went to the bathroom and was stuck there for atleats an hour. when i stood up the pain was unbearable. so ended up droppin to my knees in the living room. finally we decided to call the hospital at 8am, still 8 mins apart but irregular. when i got to the hospital i was 5 mins apart. i thought ok, this'l be over soon. i was so wrong.
so i got to hospital for 9am, and was given a room straight away. i was checked over and was 3cm dilated. i cudnt believe that in 8 hours i was only 3cm dilated. anyway, this went on and on and on and the pains got worse and worse. nothing worked. the gas made me vomit again and again, the pethidene did absolutely nothing for me and i was in agony. my husband got the brunt of it all.
the baby's heartbeat was becoming a concern as with every contraction the hearbeat fell and so did mine. they ended up clippin the babys head so it cud be monitored.
the baby was lying back to back so my back pain was unbearable. now it was 4pm and i wasnt dilating more than 7cm. they advised me to have the epidural. after that i gave birth to my daughter 4 hours after that, with forceps and a cut as baby was in distress.
after the birth i was left in my blood for 5 hours, everyone had left and i cudnt even reach for my baby. i had to ask a cleaner who came in to bring my baby closer.
the next day i woke up with headaches, for days the headache stayed and i was in agony. 1 week after the labour, going home etc, i was carried literally back to hospital, unable to even lift my head. they took blood out of my wrist vein and put it into my back, very painful. this topped up my blood around the brain, my migranes finally vanished after 7 days of hell. i was finally able to go back to motherhood.
because of my bad experience i was unable to connect with my daughter and went tru 2 months of post natal depression. finally i clicked out of it and now everythin is perfect
19 hours of labour in total
Re: Birth Stories
OMG Ruby, thats a terrrible case, why didnt they clean u right away, the blood i mean and how cna they leave u alone ??!!!!! where was this, in which country?
ok gals...i m really scared after reading all this...mine was a c-sec for the first time in 2006...and still scared to even think about the 2nd baby..everyone in the family is sooo soo concerned about it while we r not...i think it is just the nature of family members to poke their nose so far as the next preg. is concerned...
anyway...after 1st preg (c-sec) how much gap should be for the 2nd one so that it may not result in a c-sec again...in other words...r there any tips for having a normal delivery or VBAC?
i have heard that in uk,usa,even pak..canada..the drs. don't even w8 and go for a c-sec straight away....(esp. if the first one was a c-sec)to what extent this is true??
No that isnt true at all. Every pregnancy is treated differently, only because uv had one c sec doesnt mean all will be, unless u are physically not able to deliver normally.
they will assess the baby's position, condition and take it from there. one thing i have heard of is that in pakistan they generally go for c sec if uv had one before.
Re: Birth Stories
be clear with your doc that you want to try a vb after your c-section. they can be pushy sometimes from what i've heard of friend's experiences, but you are the mother and unless your baby is in distress, there isn't any need for you to have another major surgery to have your baby. consider working with a midwife the second time around- you still get all the medical care you would from a doctor plus more holistic care for you too, and once you are in labour in the hospital, they are your advocate for whatever birthing technique you wish which, i imagine, as being very helpful when you and hubby are both in such an emotionally charged situation and susceptible to pressure.
ruby, thats a crazy birth story! why were you left alone? what country was this?? i know if they did that to you in the US or Canada, you could sue for malpractice and negligence probably.
it was in the UK.
i was left for nearly 4 hours, on the bed, in my blood, my gown, numb with the effects of the epidural, so cudnt move my legs and no one in sight.
my hubby had gone to take my mum home and as it was late evenin he cudnt come back.
i hadnt eaten for nearly 24hours aswell and was offered no food.
i was just glad the ordeal was over, well so i thought
RR...ufff Allah..how did u manage all dat alone ...by reading that i feel so bad!!!!!!..and yeah thanks for your reply... about pak i am sure also bcz 3 ladies in my family had the histroy of 1 c-sec and their 2nd one was also a c-sec...dat is just horrible to even think of:-(
somegroovy...by midwife u mean the DOULAS? bcz in dubai the doulas can be hired ....but by hiring a doula would i need a doctor as well for monthly checkups and tests etc or not?
Re: Birth Stories
uff red ruby you had an accidental dural puncture? 
being an anesthetist, I dreaded this complication of an epidural the most ! I am glad that patching it with your own blood worked for you MA 
so here’s my story :
I had a terrible experience with my first one and I expected things to be the same this time as well as I was overdue by 10 days last time and was induced; I never knew how does it feel to have pains spontaneously at home. This proved to be a blessing in disguise actually. I took pineapples and castor oil in milk for two days and the third day I woke up at 3 am with dull ache (which felt like those I had during my cycles) in my lower abdomen which completely disappeared after 15-20 secs. It was still a day to go until my due date and I was sure I will be overdue this time as well, so I stayed in bed reading any duas/surahs i remembered for an hour, said my fajr prayers,back to bed for another 30 mins. they came every 20 mins iniitally, going down to 15 mins interval by 5. 30am when I knew I was in labour. I still had doubts back of my mind as the pains were totally bearable and 'shareef 
’ and all I kept doing was comapring things with my last time’s experience where all I remember was PAIN 
So, first thing I did (after I knew it is D-day) was getting on to my hair straightening iron 
and then packing the hosp bags for the baby, my elder son,hubby and myself (yes! I never had a chance to do that earlier..according to hubby : logoan kay kaamoan se fursat milay gee tau apna kuch karo gee I had sent out my last parcel the night before and I was driving until last day) , woke husband up at around 7 and told him to call at his hospital telling them he is not going at work. this was really important for me as he had his operation theatre day and he NEVER takes an off on thursdays :halo: . The pains were still bearable, getting to 10 mins regular intervals , no leakage or waters so far. I decided to stay at home for as long as I could as I hated to stay in bed at the hospital for hours!
I called my obst doc around 8 30 am and told her, her response was ‘ALHAMDULILLAH..iss dafa khudi start ho gyaa sub’ (she always tells me that my previous delivery is still her worst nightmare) and told me to get to the hosp in an hour. I was done with packing and changing by then. I and hubby recited Surah Mariam, Surah Yaseen, Surah Yousaf, Surah Inshiqaq meanwhile for an hour or so, I made breakfast and woke my son up, got him ready while hubby went out for getting a sheep for sadqa,etc. We left for hospital at 10 30am and the contractions were 5 mins apart and totally bearable and ‘nice’
we reached there at 11, I went to the stage 1 labour room, telling hubby that I will be right back after checking if the doctor was there yet ( I was sure it will be another 10-12 hours from then like last time, so I was all cool and trying to be patient with everything) My Obst was not there yet, she talked to the doc on duty to do an initial check up and report her back. she checked and told I was already 7 cms dilated !! I was SHOCKED and told her to call the anesthetist for an epidural as I am NO WAY going ahead without it. She told me I cannot go to see hubby as I am not left with much time, told me to change, and kept convincing me that I can do without an epidural as I have been tolerating contractions nicely but I wont listen. I got an epidural at around 11 45am, my obst was there by then, instructed the staff to shift me to the labour room and I was again shocked as last time it took 6 hours from the time I got an epidural till I was shifted to the delivery table. the doc kept telling me to FORGET what happened last time and concentrate on this one as it was going really good MA.
I was shifted on the delivery table, I was all smiling and chatting as epidural worked SO WELL MA, they broke the waters and told me to push !! I asked the doc ‘itni jaldi’ and she yelled ’ FORGET ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED LAST TIME and follow her instructions’ 
and the baby was out within 5 mins or less from then. (around 12 10pm) I heard her saying CONGRATS and I couldnt believe it was all over so easily ! she told it was a boy ( I didnt know about the gender earlier), showed me the baby and took him to the nursery. She didnt do an episiotomy as it was all flexible (I had been doing kegels for weeks) and it as a tiny tear that was stithed. I was shifted to the sideroom in 20 mins and then to my room at around 1 30pm where I met mom and hubby and my son
So, it went all fine and easier MA this time around, mainly because (according to the doc) I had stayed active and walking and shopping and driving all the time instead of staying in bed during the final weeks. I got bored at hosp all day after that. I got my epidural removed at around 8 pm, and they discharged me (on my request) at 10 pm. I came back home and went to my bed and wept for a whole hour for no reason.. I just couldnt believe things could go that straight with me, and kept cehcking the baby if he was fine all night and having all kinds of negative thoughts
the only thing that went against my wish was that I wanted a daughter this time around
Re: Birth Stories
Proto, you went home the same day? eek
When I had my first baby I requested to be discharged the next day cause I was in such a hurry to take my baby home and start enjoying motherhood but you went home the same day? Such a brave woman you are. 
somegroovy...by midwife u mean the DOULAS? bcz in dubai the doulas can be hired ....but by hiring a doula would i need a doctor as well for monthly checkups and tests etc or not?
nope. a doula and a midwife are different.
a midwife goes through medical school and is qualified in that sense. she can assist with everything except for high risk births (usually if you are over 35) and with multiples, and cannot administer pain medication like an epidural. midwives frequently have privileges at hospitals though so they can accompany you there when you are in labour. from what i've read here in my research and from talking to friends who've opted for them over ob-gyn's, they're on call 24/7 from day 1, their appointments are around 45 minutes to an hour (vs. ob-gyn's ~20 minutes), and they are more about holistic mother and child care. in ontario, they also follow up with you at home for up to 6 weeks with daily visits to ensure you and baby are doing fine. the postnatal care is what sold me on the decision to have one when iA i am expecting.
a doula is someone who has inherited birthing practice knowledge usually by observing and training with other doulas in hands-on practice. they are not medically qualified as such, i.e. with degrees for universities.
it was in the UK.
i was left for nearly 4 hours, on the bed, in my blood, my gown, numb with the effects of the epidural, so cudnt move my legs and no one in sight.
my hubby had gone to take my mum home and as it was late evenin he cudnt come back.
i hadnt eaten for nearly 24hours aswell and was offered no food.
i was just glad the ordeal was over, well so i thought
you should have sued!!! i'm livid just reading your story- i can't believe you didn't hold them accountable.
@ proto : I pray my first childbirth experience is like your second... aameen.
@ Uetian : Adding to what SGC is saying doulas are there more for the mother than the baby, sometimes partners are not there or are shocked or surprised and can't provide the support the woman needs, the doula is the person looking out for the mother... She also meets with the woman and finds out what her wishes and her birth plan is so that she can convey it to the doctors and nurses....