fairykate
Mad as a box of frogs
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- Mar 8, 2011
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So I know it's a bit late but have just about got over it mentally now in order to get it all down. So here's my birth story:
Labour was long and traumatic - went into labour (after a failed sweep, apparently - where she said my cervix was very tightly closed) on the Tuesday evening (baby was due on the Sunday before) and gradually got stronger til contractions were 5mins apart on the weds evening. They were quite strong by this point so we went into hospital and they sent me home as I was only 1cm!!! Went in again during the day on the thursday during the day and was 2cm and was sent home again.
By the Thursday evening (24hrs later) I was begging to be taken in and have some pain relief - (after going into hospital twice and being sent home already) and they agreed to admit me. We were given a private room and I had a shot of pethadine which did absolutely nothing and I was left in agony the whole night. At about 4am on the Friday morning I asked to be examined again and the MW on duty checked, said I was still 2cm but broke my waters and sent me off to have a bath. I was pretty much left then with no pain relief after having been in latent labour for about 60hrs.
My Mum arrived and they examined me again at 8am and I was 4cm, so they transferred me to Delivery Suite. Of course by this time I'd been having contractions for so long and was begging for an epidural (having been insistent I didn't want one before)!!! However when they yet again examined me I was 9 1/2cm and there was no time for epidural. I was offered Gas and Air and was dubious as the Pethadine is supposed to be really strong but once I started on it all of the pain was gone!!!! If I'd been on that to begin with I might have had an easier time!
So we started pushing and they had to put a clip on his head as they were losing his heartbeat. Kept slipping in and out and after about an hour they hit the red button on the wall, and suddenly about 15people came rushing into the room. A consent form was shoved in front of me which I struggled to sign but they started to shout about it so I managed it in the end. I was on the bed, being rushed though to a theatre where IV's and canulars etc were being put into me and a spinal block was rushed in. It seems he'd twisted at a funny angle, and was back to back and kept when I'd tried to push him out he was apparently squeezing his umbilical cord and was going back in and out and his heart rate was dropping massively. OH was thrown some scrubs and came in about 5mins after me, by which point they had cut my nightie off and I was pretty much completely numb from under the bust downwards (blessed relief after all those hours of contractions!).
At 14.11 Joshua was born after episiotomy and forceps - when he came out OH said he was limp and lifeless. They plonked him into the heated bed-thing and gave him oxygen etc. I couldn't see any of this and hadn't seen him still but I remember hearing a tiny weak cry after a few minutes - quite possibly the best moment of my life to date. They worked on him for a bit longer and he was then wheeled off into my recovery room while I delivered the placenta and was sewn up.
At about 15.10 I finally got to meet my little man for the first time and have my cuddles. They took him off to SCBU for a few hrs and gave him a feed and then returned him once they were sure he was OK.
Joshua was born at 2.11pm on the Friday and we were released from hospital on the Sunday. They did a lot of checks on him and as you can see from the pics below he had some massive bruising on his face & eye and they checked everything possible but he doesn't seem to have suffered from the lack of oxygen and his dramatic rescue!!!
https://i1228.photobucket.com/albums/ee442/fairykate80/IMG-20120127-00227.jpg
https://i1228.photobucket.com/albums/ee442/fairykate80/403604_10150644073891414_516461413_11049692_1095761080_n.jpg
Labour was long and traumatic - went into labour (after a failed sweep, apparently - where she said my cervix was very tightly closed) on the Tuesday evening (baby was due on the Sunday before) and gradually got stronger til contractions were 5mins apart on the weds evening. They were quite strong by this point so we went into hospital and they sent me home as I was only 1cm!!! Went in again during the day on the thursday during the day and was 2cm and was sent home again.
By the Thursday evening (24hrs later) I was begging to be taken in and have some pain relief - (after going into hospital twice and being sent home already) and they agreed to admit me. We were given a private room and I had a shot of pethadine which did absolutely nothing and I was left in agony the whole night. At about 4am on the Friday morning I asked to be examined again and the MW on duty checked, said I was still 2cm but broke my waters and sent me off to have a bath. I was pretty much left then with no pain relief after having been in latent labour for about 60hrs.
My Mum arrived and they examined me again at 8am and I was 4cm, so they transferred me to Delivery Suite. Of course by this time I'd been having contractions for so long and was begging for an epidural (having been insistent I didn't want one before)!!! However when they yet again examined me I was 9 1/2cm and there was no time for epidural. I was offered Gas and Air and was dubious as the Pethadine is supposed to be really strong but once I started on it all of the pain was gone!!!! If I'd been on that to begin with I might have had an easier time!
So we started pushing and they had to put a clip on his head as they were losing his heartbeat. Kept slipping in and out and after about an hour they hit the red button on the wall, and suddenly about 15people came rushing into the room. A consent form was shoved in front of me which I struggled to sign but they started to shout about it so I managed it in the end. I was on the bed, being rushed though to a theatre where IV's and canulars etc were being put into me and a spinal block was rushed in. It seems he'd twisted at a funny angle, and was back to back and kept when I'd tried to push him out he was apparently squeezing his umbilical cord and was going back in and out and his heart rate was dropping massively. OH was thrown some scrubs and came in about 5mins after me, by which point they had cut my nightie off and I was pretty much completely numb from under the bust downwards (blessed relief after all those hours of contractions!).
At 14.11 Joshua was born after episiotomy and forceps - when he came out OH said he was limp and lifeless. They plonked him into the heated bed-thing and gave him oxygen etc. I couldn't see any of this and hadn't seen him still but I remember hearing a tiny weak cry after a few minutes - quite possibly the best moment of my life to date. They worked on him for a bit longer and he was then wheeled off into my recovery room while I delivered the placenta and was sewn up.
At about 15.10 I finally got to meet my little man for the first time and have my cuddles. They took him off to SCBU for a few hrs and gave him a feed and then returned him once they were sure he was OK.
Joshua was born at 2.11pm on the Friday and we were released from hospital on the Sunday. They did a lot of checks on him and as you can see from the pics below he had some massive bruising on his face & eye and they checked everything possible but he doesn't seem to have suffered from the lack of oxygen and his dramatic rescue!!!
https://i1228.photobucket.com/albums/ee442/fairykate80/IMG-20120127-00227.jpg
https://i1228.photobucket.com/albums/ee442/fairykate80/403604_10150644073891414_516461413_11049692_1095761080_n.jpg
It was awful, and so not what I had imagined and hoped for. I didn't get the bit where he was pushed out and put onto me for cuddles, and felt like a failure for not being able to complete the final bit after all that work 
