I just wanted to share my experience of my unplanned CS.
I went into labour just after midnight on June 15th, and after enduring 3 hours of back-ache labour, I conceeded that I need an epidural. My contractions started at 1min & 40seconds apart & neever changed, and I was in intense pain between the contractions too. I was already very tired, and although I said I never wanted an epidural, I was too exhausted to continue without one.
At 5am, my contractions started to die off. This seems to be fairly typical for me as I'd been contracting over night for about 2 or 3 days, but when the sun came up they all stopped. Mum & DH joked it was so I could go ack to work in the fields. So I was given syntocinon to get things started again. I was 7cm dilated. Baby Jack was rebounding after the contractions brilliantly. The midwife estimated his arrival at 7am.
7am, and there was no baby. I was stuck at 9cm, so the 'jungle juice' was increased & I got out of bed to sway & squat, and otherwise encourage baby down. That got me where I needed to be, so it was time to push. I, however, couldn't feel the bearing down pressure I was meant to. I could feel the Middy's fingers, but not the sensation of needing to push. Jack wasn't descending. Apparently, a boney point in my pelvis was longer on the left than the right. Combining this, and Jack facing the wrong way, and my birth canal being too tight (no one said you could do too many pelvic floor exercises!!), he couldn't come down. I pushed hard, and he'd come only so far before not being able to get any further down. The Middy warned us of the increasing possibility of a CS, even though we really didn't want one. The OB was called & we tried more pushing. He said we could try to do it vaginally, with a ventouse, but to be honest, both Jack & I would sustain some damage (because he was still so far in), and the best option would be CS. Thanks to the Middy warming us up to the idea, we agreed. "Lets go have a baby", I said through tears of disappointment. Not in myself, and not in Jack, and not because I was pushed to make the choice - but because I really did want to deliver vaginally, just not at the cost of my baby's health.
So off I was wheeled to surgery. DH came with me & sat by my head the whole time. I don't remember holding his hand, but it sounds like something I would do. They filled me up with epidural drugs & I was numb from the arm pits down. The blue sheet went up, the camera handed to on orderly to take a photo of the crucial moment, and then I began to feel all the pressure & tugs of them cutting me to find my baby. I'm sure they were talking, but I don't remember a word. To me, the whole world was quiet & hushed, waiting for Jack's arrival. I heard absolute silence.
Then I felt the student OB pushing just below my ribs, very firmly, and then with more pressure, and a second later, sound came back to my world in the form of Jack's first squark. Two tiny little squarks! A symphony to my ears and my heart. DH stood up & peeked over the blue sheet like a Meerkat. More squarks rang out, and my heart melted & broke all at once. My little boy was here!
They whisked him over to the pediatrician, who suctioned him. I could just see a writhing purple blur of baby through the tears streaming from my face. And before I knew it, a neat little package was placed on my chest.
That was the best moment of my life (second to my wedding, and finding out we were pregnant). My teary DH & my tiny little son. We were officially a family, in every sense.
Below is a link to my photos. The orderly took so many! I'm so impressed because these are the photos of the birth of my son. I don't see the blood, and the medical stuff, and the blue sheets - I see my baby being born through a different passage, but safely & beautifully. Image hosting, free photo sharing & video sharing at Photobucket
and this is my favourite picture of all because of the look of pure excitement on DH's face. There's no fear, and he doesn't see the surgery being performed. He's only seeing the pure birth of his son. Still - not the kind of photo you get framed. http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...n/IMG_6463.jpg
Gorgeous!
I had a little chuckle... everyone is very serious and concentrating on the subject at hand. And then there is your DH, head popping over the blue sheet with a big grin on his face that just says "proud daddy"
Congrats chick! Glad it all well well xx
Congratulations on a beautiful birth! Your descriptions of little Jack's arrival has warmed my heart and brought a tear to my eye .
You do make a beautiful family, and that photo of your DH is just gorgeous!! The orderly certainly did an awesome job - you should put them together in a printed book through snapfish or someone similar, the images tell quite a story!
It really does make a difference when you have made the decision to have the c-section rather than feeling bullied into it. It was that way for me too.
how lovely I got teary at those pics! the midwife only took 2 pics of my son after the c section, you were so lucky you had a great photographer! I can't believe they let your hubby peek over! its great!
Lol at the meerkat comment Entreat! My hubby was not really keen to stand up and peek over but he did see it all anyway cause I asked them to take the screen down when they were about to lift Ds out.
Entreat - I wanted to thank you for sharing your positive experience. I was reading it last Friday night after being induced (and therefore not sleeping!). When it was clear mid-late Saturday that despite 3 induction attempts, labour was not progressing, my OB started talking about the very likely possible need for a c-section the next morning. I had always been dead against a c/s, but having read your experience, I was able to think things through and discuss with DH, and by the next morning felt very comfortable about heading into my operation.
Once my little girl joined the world, it was all very worthwhile to go through what I did just to be able to finally meet my little one. The stress and upset I'm sure I would have been putting myself through if not for reading your story seems like a very distant worry now.
I'm glad our story helped you see the good in the 'unplanned' c-section. Were you able to get some photos take?
Ya know, I had a great birth plan written out & I was really adament about a few things, but in the end I got what I REALLY wanted: a healthy baby. And I can never argue with that!
Positive C-section experience
So I was given syntocinon to get things started again. I was 7cm dilated. Baby Jack was rebounding after the contractions brilliantly. The midwife estimated his arrival at 7am.
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