The wonderful birth of DD (4/11/07)

[Yael]

Ok, so here is the birth story of our beautiful girl. She was born Sunday 4th Nov at 11.00pm. I was 12 days overdue, and was booked in for an induction that Tuesday (cup day), but managed to avoid it thankfully! I was induced at 11 days overdue with my DS, and I had a long (24 hours) difficult labour (he turned posterior at the end, had morphine and a vac extraction), so I was desperate to avoid a repeat performance, and I was very worried it would end up the same.

This time labour was fantastic! Seriously, I was saying to Rob in the car on the way home from hospital that it was just perfect birth and I don't think it could have been any better. I mean obviously it was painful, and at the time I was asking him why I wanted to do this again, but for the most part I felt relaxed and in control, that the pain wasn?t so bad, and really that it was a positive experience and that I was trusting my body.

Anyway, I started writing a summary, but it?s turned into the birth story anyway, so here it is:

Ok, so about 10 mins after posting on here on Sunday morning at around 9.30am about nothing happening, I get my first contraction. They started coming every 10/11 mins apart. After about 40 mins think we better call Kelly just to chat... I think she said she wanted to come back, but I wanted her to wait a little while longer just to make sure it didn't just stop again, but I had a feeling this was it! After about 1 hour they hadn't stopped, so I said to Rob to call Kelly and get her to find out what flights were available. She said to call her back in 1hr to decide what to do.

So at this point we decide (well, I decided) to go to Baby Bunting to show Rob the pram we wanted, and then to take DS to my mum's house (she was going to have him anyway). It was funny, the lady in the store asked when I was due (she said I didn?t look sooo pregnant), and I said "anytime now", not wanting to say "I?ve been having contractions all morning", thinking it might freak her out a little! When we get out of the store I call Kelly from the car (now they are about every 7 mins, lasting around 25 sec), and she says she is on a 2.15 flight back.. This was around 11.30am.

Drive back to mums (I insisted on driving 1) so Rob could time them and 2) so I could take my mind off them?. he wasn't happy with me, because he thought I would crash the car ), drop off DS (my mum says I was cr@p at breathing through them.. I remember why I don't want her around in labour!).

Get home; tell Rob I want take away pasta for lunch, so he orders it for me. Somebody charity collector calls that Rob has promised money to, so he comes over and Rob invites him in, so I hide upstairs why Rob gives this guy a coffee and biscuits! And then gives him a lift home. Then he gets my pasta, drops lunch back to DS (we didn?t have time to make any before we left for the baby shop). This must be around 1.40pm or so. Now they are probably every 4-6 mins, lasting around 40 secs. Call the hospital, they insist on speaking to me, not Rob, even though I just don't feel like talking to anybody on the phone. Tell them I want to stay home as long as possible, they say fine, but remember you have a 40 mins trip, so leave 40 mins before you get really uncomfortable, and try not to let your waters break in the car because Rob might freak out & have a car accident. They want me to wait around another hr, and leave at 3pm. Speak to Kelly just before she gets on the plane. She is worried she will miss it, I say it won't be until 9-10pm that night, but its def. happening. I tell her I?m very comfy at home and don't feel like leaving at all, so Kelly tells me to stay.

Print off Robs uni notes for his exam Monday morning, and then do some washing, rearrange the furniture in the baby's room, mop the floors, you know how it is! It is funny, in between the contractions I forget I?m in labour! And during the contractions I walk around kind of squatting every few seconds. Oh, and I check BB but don't want to post anything, in case things stop or something.

Go on like this until around 3.45 or so, when Kelly's plane lands. We tell her to go home first, not straight to the hospital, and then to call us. By this stage they are picking up in intensity, but still around 4-6 mins apart, for 40 secs. Now I?m leaning over the fitball between them, and moaning a bit, saying "they really hurt!? All of a sudden I know this is it, and I was to leave now! So I tell Rob we have to go.

This is around 4.30pm or so. Get the last things together. Call my mum to tell her we are heading in, and for some reason I insist she drives over and brings me a wheat bag for labour. She wasn't that long but I?m getting antsy wanting to leave. Everything is in the car, I put towels on the backseat in case my waters break, and go around and lock the doors... I know when I walk back in I?ll be coming home with my baby.

Rob calls Kelly, says we are leaving now. Then he calls the hospital to tell them we are coming. I?m pacing in the front room, waiting for my mum to come. Mum arrives, we get in the car, and mum gets all emotional. Finally she reverses out (she was blocking us in) ? we are on our way (5.00pmish)!

Car trip was ok, I was fine between contractions, but it really hurts sitting down through them. I take to punching the roof of the car or hitting the seats. Apparently I freak out the people behind us, Rob is watching in the rear view mirror.

Must have had around 8 or so on the way in. I remember the last one, about 2 mins away from the hospital. I get annoyed with the car in front of us not going, so I say I?m getting out and walking. Have another in the car park; people are looking at me funny! Get inside, nobody in our lift but waiting for the lift I?m leaning against the wall and half swatting again. Think I freak out the 2 ladies in the foyer

Get to the labour ward, nobody is there, and so Rob goes to find them for me. I'm the only one in labour, last lady had hers at 1am that morning. It must be around 5.30pm now.

Get the midwife who monitored me like 8 weeks earlier when I was really sick. She remembers me. Have to lie down for monitoring for 20 mins (tried to get out of it) but agree to have a quick trace. I just didn't want to lie down. During this I said to Rob we should call Kelly, and just as I finished she walked in through the door - I was so happy to see her!!

Have the trace, baby is good. Whoever decided women should lie down on their back during labour seriously is just cruel! Oh the pain!! Whoever would chose to be in such a position?? Contractions are now around every 6 mins or so, so slightly slower, but I think it?s from the car trip & being on the bed. Get up and walk around, insist of re-organising everything in the room. Get the oil burner going, and walk around for a little while.

We chat to the midwife, turns out she is totally into natural childbirth, and said she would have a homebirth herself. I'm so relieved by this! We chat about the conference that Kelly was at.

After a while I decide to get in the shower. Water is good on my front during contractions. Kelly stays with me. I say I?m hoping to be 8cm, but I think I?m around 6cm. Not sure how long I was in there for, but I get out around 8pm when my obs arrives. He checks me, I?m 6-7 cm, but he stretches it to 7. It was ok, it didn't hurt so much. Asks if I want my waters broken, I say no, and he is ok with that. Don't think the baby will be out by 9 or 10, but maybe by 11 or 12.

Think I walk around for a little while more, contractions are still only about 3-4 mins apart, lasting probably around 50sec - 1min. Then I decide I need a bath. Tell Rob to fill it... He does, it's taking to long.. I tell him to make it happen faster, he says "I'll try". I tell him it wasn't a question! Get in the bath and its good, but contractions are getting painful and I start getting upset during them. I try so hard to hold out, during each one I think I want the gas, but in-between I think I?m doing ok. Get Rob to put some music on, but don't like anything that is on the CD I made. Talk to Kelly about the gas, but she talks me out of it. After about and hour I think I really am finding them hard. Ask for the gas again, but Kelly suggests just the oxygen, because I like biting down on things during contractions.

Pure oxygen is just great. I like the rattle noise, it helps me concentrate. I know each contraction takes around 14 breaths, at 7 it is the worst, 10 is starts the get better, 12 it is almost gone and 14 its fine. Some of them last like 22 and I?m not happy. In-between I almost am asleep I am so relaxed, and most of them I can just breathe through without even making noise. Kelly keeps wiping my face with a cold face washer which is great, and giving me sips of water. The nice midwife is in there with us, I think we just sit in silence for most of the 2 hours. I tried pushing a little bit in between trying to see if I can make things happen. Kelly said maybe getting out would help, but if I?m happy to stay, because plenty of people need to push in the bath. I tell Kelly I need to have this baby by 10pm, because the nice midwife ends her shift then. The nice one says if it looks like I?m anywhere near having the head on view, she will stay. This is around 9pm.
Just before 10 she finds out who I?ll have next, and I?m so lucky when she says it?s another one who is really nice and into everything natural also. Besides having no other patients, I think she likes staying with us, I get the impression not many people have natural childbirths here, most people ask for an epi as soon as they arrive I hear. Anna the new midwife comes in while I?m still in the bath.

My obs comes back finally just after 10, but by then I think I want to get out anyway. He watches me for a bit, to see where I?m up to, but I feel uncomfortable with him watching me, and keep asking if he wants me to get on the bed. I remember being all nice and normal between contractions, and just moaning and squatting a lot during them. I must have had one or two.

Then I get on the bed, I?m 9cm. He asks if I want my waters broken, apparently while getting the hook thing out of the packet! I say ok, would like to get things moving by this stage, but I know if I said no he wouldn't have done it. He does it, and doesn't try to make me 10cm, because I asked him not to, after my experience with him moving the lip back with DS. This is 10.35pm; I remember looking at the clock while he does this. I get off the bed, and put my pants back on, as I was a little cold. I have 1 more contractions, and gosh they hurt so much more.

I ask for the oxygen back, and then another one hits and I demand the gas now. I remember asking for it only a little bit, but the midwife says it doesn?t make a difference. She puts it on 50/50.

I suck on it, quite quickly, and I remember being told to calm down and slow my breathing down. I freak out at this point, knowing it?s so close. I never needed to push last time, and I had the vacuum with a local, so I don't know what it will be like. I get really really scared saying I don't want to do this. I remember asking for morphine (Rob says I also asked for a c-section). I'm told it?s too late. Kelly asked me if it?s from the pain or if I?m just scared. I want to lie to her (the gas was making me do it!), and say the pain so maybe they would give me something, but I remember saying I?m just scared. She said it?s just your body doing what it?s supposed to, reassuring me. I think in this time (between 10.40 and 10.50) I have 2, maybe three more contractions.

Then suddenly I have this feeling really low down and I know I need to push. I manage to get the thing out of my mouth just as I start to grunt saying I need to push.

The nurse asks if she can take of my tracky pants, (I?m thinking you better because I?m pushing and it?s really hard to have a baby wearing pants!) She takes them off me, I remember trying to wriggle out of them (at this stage I?m on the bed leaning over the bed head), not really the position I thought I would be in, but still upright. The pushing urge is just so overwhelming, I can't not do it. It hurts though! She says there is the bloody show, and that the head in on view, and tells Kelly to push the red button for the doctor? I remember wanting to see the show, but I can?t even talk at this stage.

My obs comes back in. Rob is by my head, and says we need to make a decision about whether to delay the cord clamping or not. I?m so angry with him for not just making a decision about it.. Now is not the time to be asking me! He is upset; he doesn?t want to make the wrong decision. I say do whatever, he says ok, we won?t, and for some reason I say ?no, tell them to leave it?. He tells the doctor this, who says ok (we asked him last week, and he said until the week before he recommended delaying it, but now a new study has come out saying it make increase the baby being jaundice and its not so necessary in western countries, so now he says to clamp.. I wanted to read it myself, but didn?t have a chance? I?m still not certain what is the best, because she did end up jaundice). I'm sucking on the gas for dear life, thinking nobody had better take this away from me! In fact I think I told Rob not to let anyone touch it. I remember thinking I have to act with it, or they will take it away. Then I need to push again. It was a huge push, and I remember thinking that had better be the head because I can't push that much again. For some reason I think Kelly has left because I can't see her, but I think (?? Kelly ? what were you doing) she was watching or holding a compress on my perineum. She tells me she is there. Then comes another push, and this had to be the head because it was the biggest pushing/stretching sensation I had ever felt. I screamed because I hurt so much, but it didn't feel like burning. I think Rob turned white at this point. Kelly says something ?that is the babies head? and having hair. I feel something running down my leg, and I think (in the same tone of voice) ?that is the blood running down my leg?.

Then the midwife tells me to sit up a bit more, and my obs says "we need to get the baby out with this one". He is quite calm, and i misheard him so I think he is just encouraging me, saying "you can get it out with this one". Turns out the cord was around the neck 3 times (longest cord they have ever seen, so they claim!). And the heart-rate was dropping, that?s why I was told to sit up more. I didn't realise anything was wrong, I don't even remember a sensor being on me. I push again with the next urge, and then I feel something warm between my legs and I know it?s over. I remember turning over, somebody must have helped put the baby through my legs. She was born at 11.00 on the dot, 10 minutes after I started to push, 20 mins after having the gas, 25 mins after having my waters broken.

The baby is half on my stomach, and on my arms. Kelly says "don't you want to know what it is", and it actually hadn't even occurred to me to think about it. I look down, and I can see she is a girl... I remember looking to Rob saying "it's a girl"... we are so happy! Kelly says she is so little, and she is, she is really small, but long.

I remember feeling the placenta coming out, but it didn?t hurt. Kelly takes a photo for me. Then my obs stitches me back up, I got a small tear. He finishes this why I?m cuddling my little girl, who has just pooed all over me. I remember saying that everything still really hurts, so they give me some panadol forte. My obs leaves, he did a great job and I was so impressed. I felt he really listened to my wishes the whole way through.

The midwife helps us to do the breast crawl. She takes off my top, and we put the little girl on my chest. It takes her a while, she is getting up on her knees but it?s a bit hard for her, and she is so little, so we help her a little. She latches on, and has such a strong suck. She ends up sucking for almost an hour. We cuddle and call people, she still seems hungry, and so I give her the other side.

I think in the middle of this Kelly leaves; she has done such a great job! I couldn?t have done so well with her, I can?t believe I made it to 9cm with no pain relief at all, and only needed 20 mins of gas in total. And that she kept me so calm during it all, and helped me to stay active (although I couldn?t stay still during any of it, even if she had tried!) I feel bad she didn?t get a cuddle straight away.

Soon the midwife takes the baby from me, and gives Rob a cuddle. I call my mum to tell her. Then she gets weighed ? 2770g (her brother was 3230g), so she is tiny. She has the biggest feet I have ever seen! Her brother also had huge hands and feet when he was born (seriously, they said to me ?it?s a boy, he has huge hands and feet?), but these are bigger.

Rob has some cuddles with her, and I have some dinner. Then I go off to have a shower. They put her under the heat lamps just to stay warm. Her apgars were 8 and 9, but they said that the first one was really good considering about the cord. I have a shower and start feeling really unwell, all clammy and am almost sick everywhere. They walk me over to my room on the next ward, and give me something for the nausea after checking my BP and everything as they are a little concerned. In the end they think it was just the panadol forte that did it to me, but I sill don?t feel so good the next morning. Rob leaves me around 3am. They gave her vitamin K just when we left the labour ward (and she had fallen asleep, so she is now awake and not so happy), so I give her another feed. 3 feeds in the 4 hours, she is doing good! She is a little unsettled, but I?m feeling so unwell by now they take her because they want me to rest as I?m not looking so great.

I get to sleep until around 5.30, I just can?t sleep anymore, and doze on and off until 7.30am when they bring her back to me.

Rob was exhausted, but ended up going to his exam at 9.30am that morning, with 1 hours sleep, and a few hours revision!

That?s basically it! So here is the abridged version:

1st stage: 13 hours approx (9.30am ? 10.50pm)
2nd stage: 10 mins
Time of birth: 11.00pm
Weight: 2770g
Length: 52cm
HC: 33cm
Apgars: 1min: 8, 5 mins: 9, 10 mins: 10