PinkyEyes
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The short story is that I had my beautiful baby boy - Peter Michael - on February 8 at 1.35am. I had been to daisy birthing classes and had used the natal hypnotherapy cd for several months. I wanted to have a drug free water birth. Due to circumstances beyond my control, that wasn't to happen but I still feel Peter had a beautiful, positive birth and I credit that to the daisy birthing and natal hypnotherapy.
The long story -
I felt different on Tuesday 5th, by Wednesday I was contracting regularly and after watching 'one born' I rang the hospital asking if I could come in to check I was definitely in labour. We got to the hospital around midnight and waited to be checked. I was convinced they would send me home to relax, so when they wanted to keep me in due to signs of pre-eclampsia I started to panic and the pain seemed to multiply. I was only 2cm dilated and my cervix hadn't thinned at all at this point - I had no idea how I would cope with the rest of the labour, especially as i was stuck on the bed being monitored. I started projectile vomiting at 2am, and was given an anti sickness injection. I asked for pain relief and was given paracetamol - this kept me going (although I kept saying I couldn't cope) until about 8am.
At this point I was begging for more pain relief but thankfully a delightfully bossy midwife examined me again and i was 4cm and paper thin so she practically forced me into the bath and thank god she did! The hot water worked amazingly for my contractions and I calmed down enough to breathe through everything and felt completely back in control.
The midwives were great, knowing I wanted a water birth and put me top of the list to go into one of the pool rooms as soon as one was free and cleaned. At about midday I was examined again before going into the pool - 7cm and paper thin with bulging waters. The lovely bossy midwife joked that I'd have my baby by 1pm.
Getting in the pool was amazing - exactly how my dream birth would be - except for the rumbling in my tummy where I couldn't keep food down, but I just kept joking about having tea and toast once I'd given birth. The midwives kept saying I had a poker face as they couldn't tell what was going on because i was so calm.
When the midwives switched shifts at about 4.30, I was examined again and still only 7cm. I got back in the pool and tried to keep moving - rotate to dilate and all that. The midwife checked me again a while later - still 7cm, so she broke my waters, which were clear and let me back in the pool. A couple of hours later she checked me again and I was still 7cm. It was as though my body had stalled.
The midwife and I talked and agreed that I would have to go on the hormone drip to make my labour progress - by this time it was after 9pm, so it wasn't a decision I took lightly. I was exhausted, had zero energy, and concerned about my baby getting distressed, even though there were no signs of any problems with him. I knew I had no reserves left, so I asked for an epidural. Yep, I went from nothing to epidural in one move!
So I was moved out of the pool room and into a standard delivery room, got my epidural and hormone drip, strapped to the bed for monitoring, lying on my back - exactly what I would have said was my nightmare labour, but it actually came as a relief. I knew I'd done everything I could have tried to fulfil my dream birth and it hadn't happened, but I was in safe hands. I even got a few minutes rest!
Eventually, at about 12.45am on the Friday (over 24 hours since I arrived at hospital) I was 10cm and baby was getting ready to be born. I found the pushing bizarre as I couldn't feel what I was doing and felt like it was having no impact. I kept apologising to the midwife because I was doing a crap job and I felt too tired to manage, but I was still calm and quiet. I kept saying I couldn't do it on my own, and could I have some help like ventouse or forceps! Never thought I'd ask for that. I also had no control over my right leg, which kept falling off the bed and I'd ask very nicely if someone could bring my leg back for me!
Well, at 1.35am, the midwife told me to use my lungs and push. I felt something and said "was that baby's head?" to which I was told "that was the whole baby!". I pushed him fully out in one go, soaked the midwife with the hindwaters and did some damage to my lady bits! They tried to pass him to me, but the cord was short, so it was cut immediately rather than the delayed clamping I'd originally wanted. We got skin to skin for a little while, but due to heavy blood loss I had to pass the baby to my husband - I was still so calm,despite the panic in the room, that I told hubby to take his top off so baby still had skin to skin contact.
Things now started to get a bit scary apparently - I remember calmly saying "I don't want to be a nuisance, but I feel like I'm going to faint and I'm already lying down" which made all the medical staff go into over drive. They put an oxygen mask on my face but after a minute I said "this mask isn't doing anything for me but smelling of rubber" at which point they realised it wasn't switched on. The blood loss got to me after this and I can't remember much more.
After being stitched up and having fluids etc. I was finally given my tea and toast! Which I promptly vomited back up - I think my body had been through too much and wasn't ready for food.
In the end, I had four blood transfusions after giving birth and stayed in hospital for one night, which I thought would freak me out, but it didn't. I look back on labour and birth as a positive experience with fond memories. The next day I was already talking about next time! I think the natal hypnotherapy and daisy birthing helped me so much, I'd recommend it to any mum - it won't guarantee your dream birth but it will help you cope with whatever labour throws at you!
Xx
The long story -
I felt different on Tuesday 5th, by Wednesday I was contracting regularly and after watching 'one born' I rang the hospital asking if I could come in to check I was definitely in labour. We got to the hospital around midnight and waited to be checked. I was convinced they would send me home to relax, so when they wanted to keep me in due to signs of pre-eclampsia I started to panic and the pain seemed to multiply. I was only 2cm dilated and my cervix hadn't thinned at all at this point - I had no idea how I would cope with the rest of the labour, especially as i was stuck on the bed being monitored. I started projectile vomiting at 2am, and was given an anti sickness injection. I asked for pain relief and was given paracetamol - this kept me going (although I kept saying I couldn't cope) until about 8am.
At this point I was begging for more pain relief but thankfully a delightfully bossy midwife examined me again and i was 4cm and paper thin so she practically forced me into the bath and thank god she did! The hot water worked amazingly for my contractions and I calmed down enough to breathe through everything and felt completely back in control.
The midwives were great, knowing I wanted a water birth and put me top of the list to go into one of the pool rooms as soon as one was free and cleaned. At about midday I was examined again before going into the pool - 7cm and paper thin with bulging waters. The lovely bossy midwife joked that I'd have my baby by 1pm.
Getting in the pool was amazing - exactly how my dream birth would be - except for the rumbling in my tummy where I couldn't keep food down, but I just kept joking about having tea and toast once I'd given birth. The midwives kept saying I had a poker face as they couldn't tell what was going on because i was so calm.
When the midwives switched shifts at about 4.30, I was examined again and still only 7cm. I got back in the pool and tried to keep moving - rotate to dilate and all that. The midwife checked me again a while later - still 7cm, so she broke my waters, which were clear and let me back in the pool. A couple of hours later she checked me again and I was still 7cm. It was as though my body had stalled.
The midwife and I talked and agreed that I would have to go on the hormone drip to make my labour progress - by this time it was after 9pm, so it wasn't a decision I took lightly. I was exhausted, had zero energy, and concerned about my baby getting distressed, even though there were no signs of any problems with him. I knew I had no reserves left, so I asked for an epidural. Yep, I went from nothing to epidural in one move!
So I was moved out of the pool room and into a standard delivery room, got my epidural and hormone drip, strapped to the bed for monitoring, lying on my back - exactly what I would have said was my nightmare labour, but it actually came as a relief. I knew I'd done everything I could have tried to fulfil my dream birth and it hadn't happened, but I was in safe hands. I even got a few minutes rest!
Eventually, at about 12.45am on the Friday (over 24 hours since I arrived at hospital) I was 10cm and baby was getting ready to be born. I found the pushing bizarre as I couldn't feel what I was doing and felt like it was having no impact. I kept apologising to the midwife because I was doing a crap job and I felt too tired to manage, but I was still calm and quiet. I kept saying I couldn't do it on my own, and could I have some help like ventouse or forceps! Never thought I'd ask for that. I also had no control over my right leg, which kept falling off the bed and I'd ask very nicely if someone could bring my leg back for me!
Well, at 1.35am, the midwife told me to use my lungs and push. I felt something and said "was that baby's head?" to which I was told "that was the whole baby!". I pushed him fully out in one go, soaked the midwife with the hindwaters and did some damage to my lady bits! They tried to pass him to me, but the cord was short, so it was cut immediately rather than the delayed clamping I'd originally wanted. We got skin to skin for a little while, but due to heavy blood loss I had to pass the baby to my husband - I was still so calm,despite the panic in the room, that I told hubby to take his top off so baby still had skin to skin contact.
Things now started to get a bit scary apparently - I remember calmly saying "I don't want to be a nuisance, but I feel like I'm going to faint and I'm already lying down" which made all the medical staff go into over drive. They put an oxygen mask on my face but after a minute I said "this mask isn't doing anything for me but smelling of rubber" at which point they realised it wasn't switched on. The blood loss got to me after this and I can't remember much more.
After being stitched up and having fluids etc. I was finally given my tea and toast! Which I promptly vomited back up - I think my body had been through too much and wasn't ready for food.
In the end, I had four blood transfusions after giving birth and stayed in hospital for one night, which I thought would freak me out, but it didn't. I look back on labour and birth as a positive experience with fond memories. The next day I was already talking about next time! I think the natal hypnotherapy and daisy birthing helped me so much, I'd recommend it to any mum - it won't guarantee your dream birth but it will help you cope with whatever labour throws at you!
Xx
