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So its super late but I thought I'd finally get around to writing Dominics birth story. It'll be long, no doubt!
On Thursday 5th of march I was 40+6 and had a midwife appointment that afternoon. My midwife gave me a sweep and told me my cervix was too high to reach properly but she did what she could. We set an induction date for the following Wednesday, eeek!
That afternoon I had an exam (I was doing evening classes). During the exam I started getting period type cramps, I thought nothing if it as she said to expect it.
Around 8pm that night we went for a trip to Tesco and whilst walking around I was getting extremely uncomfortable and my "period" cramps were becoming regular, once we got home and my OH started timing they were around 6 minutes apart. Before we went to bed I made sure all of our last little bits were packed and ready to go, just incase.
I woke up at around 2am and noticed my underwear were really wet. I popped a pad on to monitor it and tried to get back to sleep but I was just too uncomfortable and anxious. I lay in bed timing contractions again and they were every 4/5 minutes.
By 4am they were getting too uncomfortable to lie in bed through and we're coming every 3 minutes. I checked my pad and there was more fluid and pink blood so I decided to ring the birthing centre, they told me to come in and get checked.
We arrived about 5am but my contractions had suddenly slowed right down (nerves maybe?). A midwife checked me, I was only 1cm and was surprised that there was fluid there! I couldn't belive it, my waters had actually gone! Since my waters had gone I would need to be induced earlier, they booked me onto the labour ward for 8pm that evening. The midwife gave me a sweep and assured me she was renowned for her good sweeps and told me I'd have had him by that afternoon! We were sent back home.
I laboured all day at home, went for a bath, kneeled over the couch, tried to sleep. My contractions were now every 5 minutes again and getting worse. I lay on the couch exhausted unable to sleep and the sweetest thing happened. My cat who usually hates me and stays well away came and lay on my belly, curled up and fell asleep. I found it so sweet of her and didn't want to wake her so concentrated on not moving and disturbing her, by doing so I managed to half fall asleep for an hour or so.
By about 3pm my mum woke me and said "right! We're going back in, none of my labours were ever this long, you must be close by now, you're shaking!" I protested that I wasn't ready and they would just send me back home. Neither my mum or my OH were having it so off we went again.
We arrived and they checked me again, I was a "stretchy 3!" My OH and mum were gutted. I knew I was right! It was quiet so they told me I could leave my things in a room in the birthing centre and go for a walk, they would check me again at 8pm when I was booked in for an induction anyway, if I had gotten to 4cm by then I could stay in the birthing centre, if not I would had to go upstairs to the labour ward. 4 hours to dilate 1cm, no problem I though!
We went for a walk around the hospital and stopped in the food court. I couldn't eat at all, my contractions had knocked it up a notch and I was having to stop and really moan through them. I was getting embarrassed in the food hall so we decided to walk back along to the birthing centre. It must have taken us about 45 minutes to do the 5 minute wall because I kept having to stop. I was so embarrassed. Everyone was looking at me.
We got back and I laboured in the room for a bit. I had to lean over the back of the couch that was there and press my head against the wall to cope with contractions. My knees were red raw and my head too. 8pm came and the midwife checked me. I was still a 3! Could maybe stretch to a 4. By this point I was exhausted and in agony. I'd had no pain relief. My little man was totally twisted with his bum pressing out. They told me I could stay in the birthing centre if I wanted or go to the labour ward. I chose the labour ward since my progress had been so slow and I was begging for an epidural. Crying to my OH to let me go home and sleep and I'll come back tomorrow.
They needed to do a staff changeover before I could be transfered upstairs so I had to wait. It was torture! My contractions were every 2 minutes and so intense. The midwife finally came and took us up. The first thing she did when we got to the room was hand me some gas and air. Heaven! Oh my god why hadn't I had this downstairs?
The anesthetist was down the hall and I could have my epidural straight away. I was sent to pee before hand so that my bladder was empty. It was agonising. I missed my gas and air, trying to pee brought on continuous contractions and I couldn't sit properly. I got back to the room and they administered my epidural. It worked perfectly! I was totally pain free, it was heaven. I was given pitocin to speed up my contractions.
At 2am the midwife came back to check me and I was a 5! I was getting uncomfortable on my back so lay on my right side. Baby started to get a bit distressed so with hers and my OHs help I switched to my left. Baby was happy again.
At 6am she came back to check me again, I was at 6. Oh yay.
At 10am I was checked again by a different midwife and I was at an 8! We were so close. She told me she would check me again in 2 hours.
It was about 12:30 by the time I was checked again, I'd gone back down to a 7!! I couldn't do anything but laugh! It's at this point she told me we were most likely looking at a csection or a forceps delivery if we carried on. My sons heart rate had already started to become distressed. I chose csection.
I'd been lying on my left side for a while and I'd started to feel pain in my right side again. I needed to use my gas and air to manage through it. The surgeon who would be performing the csection came to speak to us. I don't remember much by this point I just remember shouting to my OH "you'll have to listen to what he's saying because I can't!". He questioned why I was still using my g&a. I told him I was in pain and he said you can't be you must just like to feel drunk!
They came for me and wheeled me down to theater, my OH went off to change into scrubs and came back. They started testing the feeling in my lower body with the cold spray. I could most of it and all up my right side. They tipped the bed to tip me onto my right side so the epidural would even out. Suddenly all hell broke lose and it was panic. My sons heart rate had dropped and didn't recover. My OH was made to leave the room and they were putting me to sleep. They were all asking me questions over and over whilst the anesthetist had placed a mask over my so I couldn't speak properly. I started panicking, looked at my midwife and broke down sobbing. She held my hand as I was put to sleep. I was relieved to be put to sleep by this point.
At 14:17 my beautiful boy was born weighing 9lb 3oz. His cord had been bundled by his head, it's a good job I'd had a csection and it doesn't bare thinking about what might have happened if I'd tried to push him out. He was perfectly healthy.
I woke up in the recovery room so confused. I forgot why I was there for a moment. I couldn't move or see clearly. I could see my sons plastic cot by my bed but couldn't reach it or see him. I tried desperately to get up on my arms so I could see. My OH was allowed back in with us and he passed him to me. I finally got to meet my son.
On Thursday 5th of march I was 40+6 and had a midwife appointment that afternoon. My midwife gave me a sweep and told me my cervix was too high to reach properly but she did what she could. We set an induction date for the following Wednesday, eeek!
That afternoon I had an exam (I was doing evening classes). During the exam I started getting period type cramps, I thought nothing if it as she said to expect it.
Around 8pm that night we went for a trip to Tesco and whilst walking around I was getting extremely uncomfortable and my "period" cramps were becoming regular, once we got home and my OH started timing they were around 6 minutes apart. Before we went to bed I made sure all of our last little bits were packed and ready to go, just incase.
I woke up at around 2am and noticed my underwear were really wet. I popped a pad on to monitor it and tried to get back to sleep but I was just too uncomfortable and anxious. I lay in bed timing contractions again and they were every 4/5 minutes.
By 4am they were getting too uncomfortable to lie in bed through and we're coming every 3 minutes. I checked my pad and there was more fluid and pink blood so I decided to ring the birthing centre, they told me to come in and get checked.
We arrived about 5am but my contractions had suddenly slowed right down (nerves maybe?). A midwife checked me, I was only 1cm and was surprised that there was fluid there! I couldn't belive it, my waters had actually gone! Since my waters had gone I would need to be induced earlier, they booked me onto the labour ward for 8pm that evening. The midwife gave me a sweep and assured me she was renowned for her good sweeps and told me I'd have had him by that afternoon! We were sent back home.
I laboured all day at home, went for a bath, kneeled over the couch, tried to sleep. My contractions were now every 5 minutes again and getting worse. I lay on the couch exhausted unable to sleep and the sweetest thing happened. My cat who usually hates me and stays well away came and lay on my belly, curled up and fell asleep. I found it so sweet of her and didn't want to wake her so concentrated on not moving and disturbing her, by doing so I managed to half fall asleep for an hour or so.
By about 3pm my mum woke me and said "right! We're going back in, none of my labours were ever this long, you must be close by now, you're shaking!" I protested that I wasn't ready and they would just send me back home. Neither my mum or my OH were having it so off we went again.
We arrived and they checked me again, I was a "stretchy 3!" My OH and mum were gutted. I knew I was right! It was quiet so they told me I could leave my things in a room in the birthing centre and go for a walk, they would check me again at 8pm when I was booked in for an induction anyway, if I had gotten to 4cm by then I could stay in the birthing centre, if not I would had to go upstairs to the labour ward. 4 hours to dilate 1cm, no problem I though!
We went for a walk around the hospital and stopped in the food court. I couldn't eat at all, my contractions had knocked it up a notch and I was having to stop and really moan through them. I was getting embarrassed in the food hall so we decided to walk back along to the birthing centre. It must have taken us about 45 minutes to do the 5 minute wall because I kept having to stop. I was so embarrassed. Everyone was looking at me.
We got back and I laboured in the room for a bit. I had to lean over the back of the couch that was there and press my head against the wall to cope with contractions. My knees were red raw and my head too. 8pm came and the midwife checked me. I was still a 3! Could maybe stretch to a 4. By this point I was exhausted and in agony. I'd had no pain relief. My little man was totally twisted with his bum pressing out. They told me I could stay in the birthing centre if I wanted or go to the labour ward. I chose the labour ward since my progress had been so slow and I was begging for an epidural. Crying to my OH to let me go home and sleep and I'll come back tomorrow.
They needed to do a staff changeover before I could be transfered upstairs so I had to wait. It was torture! My contractions were every 2 minutes and so intense. The midwife finally came and took us up. The first thing she did when we got to the room was hand me some gas and air. Heaven! Oh my god why hadn't I had this downstairs?
The anesthetist was down the hall and I could have my epidural straight away. I was sent to pee before hand so that my bladder was empty. It was agonising. I missed my gas and air, trying to pee brought on continuous contractions and I couldn't sit properly. I got back to the room and they administered my epidural. It worked perfectly! I was totally pain free, it was heaven. I was given pitocin to speed up my contractions.
At 2am the midwife came back to check me and I was a 5! I was getting uncomfortable on my back so lay on my right side. Baby started to get a bit distressed so with hers and my OHs help I switched to my left. Baby was happy again.
At 6am she came back to check me again, I was at 6. Oh yay.
At 10am I was checked again by a different midwife and I was at an 8! We were so close. She told me she would check me again in 2 hours.
It was about 12:30 by the time I was checked again, I'd gone back down to a 7!! I couldn't do anything but laugh! It's at this point she told me we were most likely looking at a csection or a forceps delivery if we carried on. My sons heart rate had already started to become distressed. I chose csection.
I'd been lying on my left side for a while and I'd started to feel pain in my right side again. I needed to use my gas and air to manage through it. The surgeon who would be performing the csection came to speak to us. I don't remember much by this point I just remember shouting to my OH "you'll have to listen to what he's saying because I can't!". He questioned why I was still using my g&a. I told him I was in pain and he said you can't be you must just like to feel drunk!
They came for me and wheeled me down to theater, my OH went off to change into scrubs and came back. They started testing the feeling in my lower body with the cold spray. I could most of it and all up my right side. They tipped the bed to tip me onto my right side so the epidural would even out. Suddenly all hell broke lose and it was panic. My sons heart rate had dropped and didn't recover. My OH was made to leave the room and they were putting me to sleep. They were all asking me questions over and over whilst the anesthetist had placed a mask over my so I couldn't speak properly. I started panicking, looked at my midwife and broke down sobbing. She held my hand as I was put to sleep. I was relieved to be put to sleep by this point.
At 14:17 my beautiful boy was born weighing 9lb 3oz. His cord had been bundled by his head, it's a good job I'd had a csection and it doesn't bare thinking about what might have happened if I'd tried to push him out. He was perfectly healthy.
I woke up in the recovery room so confused. I forgot why I was there for a moment. I couldn't move or see clearly. I could see my sons plastic cot by my bed but couldn't reach it or see him. I tried desperately to get up on my arms so I could see. My OH was allowed back in with us and he passed him to me. I finally got to meet my son.
