So late wednesday afternoon I had a bloody show and thought "oh goody hopefully this is the start of something"
I had irregular contractions all night and was so restless, and I knew then id be having a baby in 24hours.
My OH made me ring my mw at 10am thursday morning, no answer. Rang again at 12 and finally got her and we organised for a home visit so she could assess me as I didnt believe I was in established labor but something was definitely happening. Contractions were still irregular but where getting closer and longer.
My midwife didnt get to our house until 2.15pm and by this time my contractions were 4-6 mind apart and lasting a good minute or more.
She did an internal and I was a good 6cms and a stretched 8cms. Fully effaced and waters bulging... she told us to go straight to the hospital as she was concerned my waters would break pretty soon.
We got to the hospital just after 3pm and now contractions were even closer and more intense. Whilw the bath was being filled, I labored standing up leaning over the bed and made my partner rub my back and surprisingly him rubbing my back made it feel less painful.
Once I was in the bath I dont really think it helped with the pain but it was nice to just float around and do my own thing. Contractions were pretty close now and strong and sooo much pressure.
My waters broke at 5.40pm and it was like a big pop!! And I said to the midwife "its popped, they popped, the waters" And almost instant relief from the pressure that had been building.
But then the contractions started coming one after another. There was barely a minutes break between them. And my gosh it was painful. All of the sudden the baby just dropped into the canal and began crowning and my gosh Id forgotten how much it burns and all the pressure. I put my hand down and almost cried "its got hair, i dont have a bald baby" then the contractions got even stronger.
Everytime I had a contraction my body just automatically pushed and I was saying "nooo no no no" because I knew what was coming. That head was coming whether I wanted it to or not. I jist kept saying "its my bum that hurts, its burning" but I was just whispering, I could barely talk. I had my hands down cupping myself and the midwife was saying "dont you push that baby back in" which I was I just thought having my hands there relieved abit of the pressure. Lol
You get to this point where you know the baby is coming and with that push it just goes on and on and you cant stop it and pop out came her head and seconds later her body followed. I had to pull her out and up to my chest. This is why I loved my waterbirth because really I delivered my baby with no one else interfering or touching her. She was bor at 6.23pm labor was 4hr long. She was a whopping 4.040kgs ( 8lbs 14.5oz ) 50cm long and head circumference was 36cm. My oh cut her cord and my sister was just crying. I cried and then cried even more when my baby had her first cry.
she was posterior so her spine was against mine which apparently makes labor harder and more painful. And tbh it did feel harder than my other 2. Drug free, no tears. And a gorgeous baby girl. I could not be happier.
hope I havent scared any of you, labor truly is an amazing thing. And once the babies head is out the pain just disappears. Its like it never happened. It does hurt, but its nothing you need to be scared or worried about. Nothing anyone says will prepare you because its nothing you could imagine. All the emotion s. Joy. Tears. Fears. Its all worth it once youre holding your little baby. Dont be afraid to say you need pain relief or help/support. I had to tell my OH to come sit closer and when he did and iwas holding his hand I felt safe and protected. Such a rush of emotions. Sometimes all it takes is something little a small gesture and all your worries, nerves, fears, they all disappear.
