Ok so here goes the birth story and the first 3 days with baby, I better write it down before I forget everything!
So Wednesday (my due date!!) I woke up moaning that nothing was happening, couldn't feel anything waa waa waa. At lunch time I started getting period pains that I had been feeling for a few days and when I went to the toilet I wiped and there was some brown mucous. I felt excited but also thought it could still be days. Carried on the day as usual. I had a bath inthe afternoon when the period pains were hurting, i put sage aromatherapy oil in the bath as I had read this can bring on contractions (big tip if you are still waiting for your baby to show up!!) By 5pm when I was watching the chase I noticed the period pains were coming in waves and had worsened.mby this point I had also had bright red mucous when wiping. I didn't know what a contraction should feel like though so I thought it should feel like more than period pains (really really really bad period pains) and I thought I should feel my tummy going hard and I couldn't. Joe was at work but my mom was at home with me. I bounced on my ball, I felt so hot I had hardly any clothes on and a fan on me! My mom used a app on her phone to time the contractions!? We didn't know if they were or not, I knew it hurt but I just didnt know what to expect. Anyway they were coming every 5 minutes and lasting 40 seconds each. Wow I thought that's quite close together and regular, maybe this is really happening! Joe got home at 6.30 and by this point I was in pain, hanging on to him and sitting on the ball. Contractions were coming every 4 minutes and lasting 50 seconds. At 7pm I called the labour ward and asked them if I should come in and they said yes so we got all the bags together and called our lift to the hospital.
I live on the 6th floor of a building and I'm contracting every 3 minutes by the time we were leaving around 8pm. The bloody lifts were broken, both lifts!! So I walked down 6 flights of stairs contracting every 3 minutes!!!!! Not fun. I think I should sue the management of the building.
Got in the car and drove 20 minutes to the hospital. Contractions in the car was awful cus i was sat in the fromt seat with no one to hang on to and no ball to bounce on or fan blowing on me, i was desperate to get there! Just as we were pulling up to the hospital another car was coming towards us, you know when there isn't enough room for both cars to pass so one has to give way well this car just stopped as if to say he wasn't going to move. We had cars behind us though so we couldn't move anywhere, this car needed to reverse but he wouldn't!!! Oh my god Joe got out the car "my wife is having a fucking baby now move your car before I move it for you" the guy driving it up until this point had been sitting there so cocky refusing to move and then he just saw Joe screaming, me contracting and he he reversed straight away! What a prick!!!
We got inside the hospital and I got in a wheel chair to be taken to delivery, I could barely sit down. I was pretty sure I was in labour at this point!!
but I was still dreading someone examining me and sending me back home! Contractions every 2-3 minutes lasting 50-60 seconds at this point.
When we got there it was about 8.30pm and midwife shift time change. This is when the worst hour of my life occurred. As we came in there was no one on the desk but I could see the office full of midwives having a jolly laugh and a giggle at the end of their shifts. There were 2 other pregnant women sat down in chairs who appeared to be waiting too but they weren't in labour, if they were then you couldn't tell cus they were just sitting like normal people waiting for a bus. I was manic by this point and soaked through with blood so I was scared!
This mean looking woman came out and said "who are you? Did you call before you arrived?" I said yes and explained what was happening to me and she said "well there is 6 women before you waiting to be seen so get in the queue"
Yes. That's right. Shocking treatment. Basically they were really busy and there were no triage rooms free or midwives to assess me before they can accept me on the labour ward. Even though I could see about 5 midwives just sitting around having a cup of tea!!
So I waited in a corridor. I was screaming by this point, please someone help me, I was crying, the other pregnant women were getting up and going and telling the midwives to see to me but they kept saying I had to wait!? I was in so much pain, bleeding everywhere and I could feel immense pressure between my legs, I thought it must be the waters. I don't understand why I was left there for over an hour just standing in a corridor. For all they knew I could have been about to deliver!?? I could have been 10cms, the baby could have been in distress, they knew nothing?? All I can think is they assumed I was a dramatic first time mum in labour. But even so....a corridor!!!???
Eventually I saw new midwives walking in for their shift so I grabbed on and screamed at her please help me please. She took me in the toilet to look at the blood and to listen to baby's heartbeat. Yes the toilet! Baby was ok.
Back in the corridor. I was sat right outside the two triage assessment rooms and the whole time I was there no one had been in or out of them. It made no sense. Suddenly all the new midwives on shift turned up and I was taken into be assessed. 6cms dilated! I had got to 6cms in a corridor on 2 paracetamol! I got whisked into delivery room at 9.20pm.
I was using gas and air and constantly running to the toilet cus I was sure something was coming out between my legs! I kept crossing them I couldn't stand the pressure! I was begging for pain relief, epidural! But they hadn't enough staff to give me one. I asked for pethadine but they needed 2 midwives to sign off on it so I had to wait. I had no midwife with me, let alone 2!!
It got to about 11.15pm so I had been on gas and air for 2 hours. They came to give me the pethadine and I had to lie on the bed for the injection, I couldn't lie still my body was contracting one on top of the other and I could feel my body had started to push by itself, weirdest feeling I had no control over it! The midwife said "Emmy are you contracting?" I said it was doing it by itself lol so she checked me and could see the head!! I knew I was labouring fast but no one believed me!! She said I could push at 11.20 pm so I pushed and at 11.45pm my beautiful boy came out. He had the cord around his knock so he was blue but as soon as they took it off he was on my chest crying and pinking up. He was perfect.
He weighed 7lbs 14 ozs and was born just in time, 15 minutes left of his due date. Can't believe I woke up that same morning thinking he wasn't coming out! It's so amazing what our bodies do.
I had 2nd degree tears so had stitches which were fine, I felt like superwoman by this point! I was bleeding quite a lot so they gave me an injection to help my uterus contract and put me on a drip for 4 hours. I had booked a private room so Joe could stay with me but they said they were all taken. Not only were they all taken but the entire post labour maternity ward was full with no bed for me. So I had to be moved to another delivery room which they had made into a makeshift maternity room by putting a room divider down the middle of the room and another lady and her baby were on one side and I had to go on the other! I got moved there at 3am. To make things worse there was only one bell to press to call for someone and that was on the other ladies side of the room!! I was on a drip and couldn't get up so if I needed help I was fucked! It was shocking!! The other lady wasn't English so she couldn't understand me it was a nightmare!
So I was left there till 10am the next morning when Joe was allowed back. So happy to see him! Luckily Jaxson slept the entire time and I lay watching him I couldn't sleep a wink!
I had breast fed him at delivery but I couldn't get the hang of it again by myself. No one else came to see me while I was there to help me with anything!
They discharged us at about 3pm, couldn't wait to leave! I'm so proud of myself for coping with the treatment in that hospital!!
Jaxson has been a little angel since we came home but I really really struggled breastfeeding. He wanted it constantly! A breast feeding support worker came out to help me. He was latching on properly but it was just really hurting my nipples. Plus he wanted it all the time, as soon as he fell asleep he would wake up for more! It meant I could never go to sleep! I kept trying for 2 days but by last night I decided to formula feed. No midwife has come out to see me so i havnt had anymore help or advice so I just went for it. Jaxson feeds well on the bottle he drinks and then sleeps which gives me chance to rest! Also Joe can feed him which means we can take it in turn to sleep. We still have the same problem which is that Jaxson won't be put down to sleep and refuses to go in the Moses basket. He just wants to sleep on our chests. So we take it in turns. It's working much better so I think I made the right decision.
I love him so much he is so handsome I will post some pcs they took on first day in hospital xx
and I wish you had more support when it came to BFing. It's so important the first time (or even second time, like me!) around to have as much support and information as possible. But I'm glad you're able to get rest and enjoy your little guy! 
I'm beginning to dread nights. I'm so exhausted I just want to get at least one good nights sleep it's so frustrating.
The night sweats are the worst for me. So hard to get good sleep!
So happy that you got your water birth! My first was born inside her sac of waters too. Interested to see if that will happen again this time around. 
