corey's arrival - 1 jul 09 (lonnnng)
i've been umming & ahhing about writing corey's birth story for, well, about 5 months now. i kind of feel like it's not the most interesting of stories but i think i have a couple of unresolved issues that i will feel better about if i write this out.
the long version:
i had high BP diagnosed at about 6 weeks PG & was medicated from then on. it was pretty much okay for my whole PG, with the meds only needing to be upped once or twice. i also had GD from about 24 weeks & was put onto a low dose of insulin at about 31 weeks.
anyway, when i got to 38 weeks the dr mentioned getting induced & said he could book me in for the end of the week :o. i'd been having weekly CTG & occasional scans to check that the baby wasn't going to be too big (:rolleyes:) and everything had been fine so i said no way to the induction & told him 40 weeks was the earliest i'd consider it. somehow i allowed myself to be bullied into an induction at 40 weeks & i'm still really annoyed with myself.
so on 30 jun (day before my EDD) i had a 4pm appt to be checked & for them to insert the tape. i had to stay in overnight for monitoring. DP stayed till about 10ish when i sent him home cos it we decided i'd need him more the next day!
at 6am i was told it was time to go off to one of the birth/labour rooms. i sms'd DP & told him to arrive around 8am. sometime around 7am the ob came in to break my waters (i'll never be able to look at rubber gloves the same!) & then she took off for an emerg c-section that was about to happen. the midwife came back in & decided that the ob hadn't done it right & so he had a go as well. great. but at least he got it right.
they hooked me up to the drip at some point before 8am & the day shift came on. with my first contraction i had a small panic - it was so painful, how was i ever going to manage this??!!!
DP arrived & that made me feel a lot better. i remember losing any shame & throwing a sopping wet pair of undies out of the bathroom & telling the midwife to chuck them in the bin. why i thought it would be a good idea to still have them on until that point is a mystery :lol:
i really felt the contractions in my back & asked what could be done. the midwifes offered a sterile water injection. when they put those in i think is the only time i made any noise during my whole labour. i informed them that i now knew what a 10 was on the pain scale & i think i nearly broke DP's hand.
the contractions got totally intense & obs came in a couple of times to check how much i'd dilated. after all my research & desire not to labour while lying on my back, it turned out that it was the most comfortable position, i tried walking & being on the fit ball but nothing was as comfy as the bed. i was congratulated on how far i'd dilated & i felt kind of impressed with myself.
at some point i decided that gas might be a nice option. it really worked for me & i felt fab....and up to having conversations with the midwives although i could see DP out of the corner of my eye giving me the shut up now, you're talking crap hand motion.
they turned the drip off or right down because i was having one long contraction for about an hour. that really sucked.
i remember getting this intense pushing feeling like i needed to poop. i didn't say anything & just tried not to push. the midwife asked if i had the feeling after a bit & i realised that it was the pushing stage, not just a desperate need to poop :doh: i was fully dilated by 4 or 5 i think & was told to push if i felt the urge. they took my gas away which i remember being quite unhappy about!
then things get a bit hazy - corey's heartrate started dropping, someone called in the ob & he told me that the baby couldn't be delivered there & i'd need to go to theatre. he said he'd try to get the baby out with forceps but they'd have to prep me for a c-section. i started to panic a little bit when they told DP to grab the camera, we were going NOW & they started running with my trolley. the midwife forgot something & DP had to push me down the hall with her shouting "run, go, now". i was taken straight into theatre & then i lost it - there were so many people in there, they were all introducing themselves & telling me what they did. i remember being absolutely petrified, esp as at some point, DP had been ushered away & wasn't there. i asked for him & they realised he'd been left in a waiting room outside. the dr said it was okay for him to come in (too bloody right it was okay!) & he rushed in looking very fetching in a gown & cap with booties that were about 7 sizes too small for his size 12 feet.
i was given an epidural & they managed to deliver the baby with forceps & vacuum. it all felt so surreal. we were told it was a boy (oops, should really have settled on a boys name before this point!) & he screamed within seconds of being born. i was congratulated on his healthy size.
when i was taken back up to a room (luckily got one to myself), DP went with corey & the midwives whilst they weighed him & gave him injections. i hated this bit because we'd had no skin on skin contact, DP & i hadn't had any time alone with him yet & they gave him formula for his first feed cos his blood sugars were low :( i felt so weird lying on a bed in a room by myself. it was visiting hours & all these people were walking up & down the hall & i was just watching them, waiting for DP to come back with our baby.
all in all, i think the midwives were fantastic. they never offered pain relief, i had to ask & they were incredibly supportive. i just wish that the birth hadn't been so medical. i was so set to try and avoid as much intervention as possible & i feel like i failed myself a bit. i just allowed myself to become so overwhelmed by the medical environment.
thank you to anyone who has read this far. it's all a bit of a jumbled mess straight out of my head.
the short version:
corey wade was born 1 july, assisted delivery, weighing 3.99kg, length 51.5cm, first stage 7hrs, second stage 48mins. i had gas & an epidural despite wanting to try and have a natural birth.
