Hunter Karl Jacksons Birth Story
This is quite long :)
Hunter Karl Jackson’s arrival really began on Thursday the 18th of August…. Late that night, after my shower, I had passed some fluid & was worried it may have been amniotic. After some advice from friends I called the hospital & a midwife assured me that it sounded like Luccor (hind water) & not to worry.
The next morning I passed a considerable amount & called Andrew to let him know it made me nervous, he was adamant that I call the hospital straight away for some more advise but they suggested that I come in & have it checked out. We arrived at the hospital & I was put on a monitor which indicated that Hunter was fine but I was having regular contractions (I couldn’t feel them though). The nurses suggested that I go walking for an hour to see if there was any progress so Andrew & I spent the next hour doing laps around a nearby football oval. Needless to say by this time I was extremely tired & uncomfortable but upon getting back to the hospital everything had become incredibly busy so we were told just to relax & go home.
I was feeling pretty dejected & Andrew went to get the hottest Indian curry he could find for dinner so I relaxed & ended up in bed at around 10.45 (Friday night)
At around 11.15 I started to feel a bit strange & agitated so I went to the toilet & had begun my show, I was shaking all over with the realization that everything was about to begin. Moments later my water broke. At the hospital that afternoon we were given a swab to detect amniotic fluid & it indicated immediately that my waters had indeed broken.
We still had our bags in the car so it was easy to head back into the hospital after putting on some comfy clothing…. As yet I wasn’t having contractions but my water was still coming & I was very agitated. We were taken to the birthing suite & the first midwife talked about our preferred birthing plan & assured us she would get some sleeping pills to help me relax & get some sleep. It seemed as though the moment she left my contractions began.
I was under the impression that I would start with some warm & fuzzy contractions & then slowly proceed through the first stage but Hunter had vastly different ideas. I went head first into multi-peak contractions lasting anywhere from 3 to 7 minutes. It was unheard off…. When the nurse came back in she did an internal only to tell me that I was 1cm dilated. I was crushed. Everyone in my family births really quickly & I was scared that I would be the exception. We were left alone & things only seemed to intensify. In earnest I began at 1.30am & at 3am I was given another internal & was 4cm. Andrew was coping really well but I think he had underestimated his ability to see me in that much pain. I was still only using hot packs.
I was stuck on the loo for a 7 minute contraction at 4am & Andrew finally had to call for help. A new midwife came in & she was a gift from above. She helped me back into bed & got me started on the gas, organized a new sheet for me & began to coach Andrew on how to coach me…. this bought us some time but Hunter was posterior & so the pain just seemed to increase & I was getting worn out with no break between contractions.
At 5am I was willing to do anything to stop the pain… I had begun to ‘zone’ in and out a lot & was afraid I was going to vomit…. On top of everything else uncontrollable I was desperate to avoid that. Many times during my pregnancy I had stated that I wanted a natural, drug-free, birth. My opinion had been “Never say never but I don’t know what would have to be going on for me to put my hand up for an epidural†Well….. now I know. I’m allergic to Pethadine so there was no middle ground for me & I called the midwife in to request one. She gave me an internal & I was 7cm. I had dialated very quickly & she wanted me to know that I would have this baby by 7am one way or another. I wanted to stop the pain & felt I had gone as far as I could.
The anesthetist arrived within 20mins & he was amazing. All business but incredibly good. It was administered by 5.40 & I had pain relief at 5.50am. It was a whole new world & I felt like I had come back to the planet. The nurse rolled me on my back to do an internal & I was 9cm but as soon as I got on my back Hunter’s heart rate plummeted dramatically, everyone was immediately alarmed & my obstetrician was called. He gave me an internal & I was 9 ¾ but he wanted to wait & see what Hunter was doing.
I started to panic & just wanted to start pushing. I told Dr Fowler I was having an urge to push but he was concerned because Hunter was still high in the birth canal &, because I had only just had the epidural, I might not have the sensation to push effectively…. Being that I had to give birth on my back this posed a danger to Hunter. Truthfully, I knew deep inside that, given the chance, I could find what it took to get the job done. On my next internal I completely overstated my senses & assured them I was ready to go.
Dr Fowler prepared the Vontuse & told me to follow his instructions to the letter. Another midwife came in & once again she was exactly what I needed in that moment. Older & very matronly she took my hand & assured me we would do this as a team. I was told to start pushing & I reached deep inside myself for every ounce of strength I had…. I looked up at Andrew & just gave everything I had. I kept chanting to myself "Stay with me baby, nearly there Hunter" & his heart rate was going a bit haywire, it was the most intense thing I have ever done in my life. I didn’t know until later but the Vontuse had actually come off after the first push so I did it all myself & Hunter was born 8 minutes later (around 5 contractions) at 9lb 1oz (4.13k) 55cm long & 34cm head circumference.
I must say also that I am very glad I chose to have the epidural…. Not only did it give me an hour to rest & recuperate enough to go that last mile it allowed me to interact with Andrew & enjoy witnessing him experiencing the birth of his son.
Actually birthing him was nothing compared to the 4 hours of contractions I had had & amazingly I didn’t tear or sustain any damage. Moments after he was on my chest, crying out, I had forgotten every ounce of pain. I was a mother & felt like a timeless secret had been whispered in my ear.
Now I know what it is to be human, I know why I am here.
