Kitten-B
Mum of 2 gorgeous boys :)
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Birth story of our lovely little Sam
Born 16 November 2010 5.26am weighing 7lbs 10oz
Our yellow bump was due to make an appearance on Monday 8 November based on the ultrasound scan (or 15 November based on LMP dates). Had no signs at all except what was probably the loss of the plug (without any blood) on about 30 October.
Had a sweep on Wednesday 10 November but didnt appear to do anything. I was 3cm dilated by then and baby was finally engaged but wasnt at all effaced. Without the pain of contractions I think I found the sweep more embarrassing than the actual birth and Im not sure I would bother again! Thought perhaps had a show that evening but not sure, may have just been some bleeding as a result of the sweep.
Woke up on Monday 16 November to dampish knickers and felt a bit odd. Wasnt my waters or anything but as it turned out was definitely a sign things were starting. Had a vets appointment (the poor cat picked this fortnight to develop cystitis and a urinary blockage not ideal, although possibly the stress helped bring on labour!) at 10.30am and was definitely feeling crampy pains on and off by then. They were pretty mild but it was a small effort at least to hide them from my Dad who had driven us. The vet talked to me at length about the cystitis and how I needed to really concentrate on the cat for the next couple of weeks and his stress levels (yes apparently that is why the cat has the condition!) whilst I was thinking I was fairly sure I was in labour and it might be a tad unrealistic to think of prioritising the cat at this point .
Crampy pains kind of stuck around all day, coming and going. They were not time-able or measurable really and I find it hard to describe them. Sort of like period pains (but not as much as I expected) or trapped wind. At around 2pm they were bad enough that I thought about asking Michael (DH) to see if he could work from home for the afternoon but not long after they died down for an hour or two. I didnt want to let anyone know at this stage just in case it was nothing.
Did text Michael and say this might be it. I also offered him a lift back from the train which he accepted surely not the done thing when your wife may be in labour!
It took me about 15 mins just to put shoes on and get into the car at that point (6pm) because of the pains so it was around then I was fairly sure it was happening.
Stayed at home till about 10pm with the pains getting worse and worse (needed to change position to all fours etc to get through them) and a contraction-like pattern definitely started to emerge. Tried to time on the BabyBump app on my iphone but was difficult to see a perfect pattern. But they were coming every 3-8minutes and lasting just under a minute. Michael called the hospital just to say wed be up later and they advised to be careful not to leave it too long. I probably could have managed at home for a bit more but left at about 10pm as I didnt have a clue what I was doing and had a mild fear of leaving it too late (although I thought unlikely).
Got to hospital about 10.20pm, after having 3 or 4 pretty painful contractions on the way. Had to sit in waiting area for about half an hour which was torture as felt too self-conscious to kneel down or make any noise through the contractions. Got taken up to a room in the (deserted!) midwife-led home from home unit (as I wanted, yay!) at about 11pm and was checked and was 4cm dilated. Got the gas and air hooked up which was great. I think even the action of being able to bite down on the tube and listening to the rattle noise as I inhaled the G&A was half the advantage. Didnt feel at all high or light headed or talk b*llocks as a result of it though. Also tried the tens machine which Id rented from the hospital was sort of helpful for a short while but after about half an hour it was annoying me and I just wanted it off.
Got in the pool about 12am ish which was lovely. Has G&A in the pool too. Was there was about 2-3 hours and the contractions were getting really painful. Still able to get though them quietly but the odd one was deserving of a bit of moan of pain (no crazy mooing sounds though thank god!).
Got out of the pool at about 2.30am ish for a break as was getting a bit hot and uncomfortable. Waters still hadnt broken and the midwife offered to break them for me to move things along which seemed like a plan (went against my birth plan but I pretty much threw it out the window at around this point!). She broke them and I was about 9cm dilated. Unfortunately I had meconium staining which panicked me a little. It also meant I no longer qualified for the Home from Home unit but as L&D upstairs was full I was allowed to stay on the condition that the babys heartrate was checked every 5 mins (which was a real pain actually when it felt like I was having contractions about half the time by then). Not long after the midwife said she was happy for me to start pushing. Was definitely on agony by then and despite all my active birth plans was most comfortable lying on my side in the bed. The midwife suggested leaning up and over the top of the bed (which was put in a chair-like position). Tried pushing but I honestly think in retrospect it was too early and I had no real urge to do so.
It all goes a bit fuzzy for me then as it was just so painful. At about 3.30am I think a room in L&D became free and as the baby hadnt made an appearance they decided Id have to be moved. Moving was a nightmare took about 10mins (dont know why they didnt call the elevator before disconnecting me from the G&A . As we got to the L&D room they banged my bed really hard against a metal bin which fell over and it all felt a bit crazy.
I was offered some Remifentanil (administered by an IV in my hand with a button to control the dose) as the midwife thought I might be too tired to push the baby out and this may help. Really didnt want anything like this but in the haze I clearly agreed to it and I will admit it helped so much. Slightly regretted it after but who knows, I might not have done well without it. I basically slept for the next hour through the contractions. I had no idea what was going on and remember waking up and asking what was I supposed to be doing. They put the continuous fetal monitor on me (apparently the reason for moving to L&D) in case the meconium staining was a sign the baby was in distress. It was this huge uncomfortable box strapped to my belly and I think in my mild irrationality I kept trying to pull it off!
Started pushing again at 4.30am. Lying down on my side again this time though the midwives in L&D recommended the position as the baby was quite back-to-back (which hopefully is a good reason for the more intense pain relief!). Pushing was exhausting but in a way it did feel better to be using the contractions for some good. I was a bit scared of the pain/tearing of the baby coming out so I found it hard to put that out of my mind and push as hard as I could. As it was the birth was painful but nowhere near as bad as I thought. The midwife tried to talk me into an episiotomy during this stage but I really wasnt keen and Im glad she didnt insist. Anyway finally baby Sam was born at 5.26am and placed on my stomach totally the most surreal overwhelming moment ever! He was perfect mild meconium marks and the biggest bruised cone head (gladly subsided!) Ive ever seen included. He cried a little but not much and we had a hazy bit of skin to skin contact for a few minutes.
Unfortunately it wasnt over. The midwives tried for over an hour to get the placenta out (much much violation possibly the worst part) without any success. Had the injection and they tried to do another injection into the cord but it was falling apart. They then said Id have to go to the theatre and have a c-section to take it out
which was absolutely devastating. Thankfully one of the doctors tried again for about 5-10 minutes (serious violation here!) and had me pushing again for ages and it came out. Several of them looked at it for a few minutes and did a quick ultrasound before being happy it was all there, phew!
I needed a few stitches and had to wait (not pleasant) about an hour to get them (something to do with paperwork and the computers being down bloody nhs!). Had about half a dozen and the local anaesthetic / G&A worked fine and they werent as painful as expected.
Had to wait another hour in that bed (that I really really wanted to get out of and was getting quite frustrated) before I was allowed to go for a shower and after that we were allowed back down to our room in the Home from Home unit. Was so good to be back there, just the 3 of us!
All in all wasnt the easiest experience but I am grateful it wasnt the worst either. And of course the most important part is that we have a lovely healthy baby boy to show for it
. Totally all worth it (although will be a couple of years before the memory dims enough to consider doing it again! ).
Born 16 November 2010 5.26am weighing 7lbs 10oz
Our yellow bump was due to make an appearance on Monday 8 November based on the ultrasound scan (or 15 November based on LMP dates). Had no signs at all except what was probably the loss of the plug (without any blood) on about 30 October.
Had a sweep on Wednesday 10 November but didnt appear to do anything. I was 3cm dilated by then and baby was finally engaged but wasnt at all effaced. Without the pain of contractions I think I found the sweep more embarrassing than the actual birth and Im not sure I would bother again! Thought perhaps had a show that evening but not sure, may have just been some bleeding as a result of the sweep.
Woke up on Monday 16 November to dampish knickers and felt a bit odd. Wasnt my waters or anything but as it turned out was definitely a sign things were starting. Had a vets appointment (the poor cat picked this fortnight to develop cystitis and a urinary blockage not ideal, although possibly the stress helped bring on labour!) at 10.30am and was definitely feeling crampy pains on and off by then. They were pretty mild but it was a small effort at least to hide them from my Dad who had driven us. The vet talked to me at length about the cystitis and how I needed to really concentrate on the cat for the next couple of weeks and his stress levels (yes apparently that is why the cat has the condition!) whilst I was thinking I was fairly sure I was in labour and it might be a tad unrealistic to think of prioritising the cat at this point .
Crampy pains kind of stuck around all day, coming and going. They were not time-able or measurable really and I find it hard to describe them. Sort of like period pains (but not as much as I expected) or trapped wind. At around 2pm they were bad enough that I thought about asking Michael (DH) to see if he could work from home for the afternoon but not long after they died down for an hour or two. I didnt want to let anyone know at this stage just in case it was nothing.
Did text Michael and say this might be it. I also offered him a lift back from the train which he accepted surely not the done thing when your wife may be in labour!
It took me about 15 mins just to put shoes on and get into the car at that point (6pm) because of the pains so it was around then I was fairly sure it was happening.Stayed at home till about 10pm with the pains getting worse and worse (needed to change position to all fours etc to get through them) and a contraction-like pattern definitely started to emerge. Tried to time on the BabyBump app on my iphone but was difficult to see a perfect pattern. But they were coming every 3-8minutes and lasting just under a minute. Michael called the hospital just to say wed be up later and they advised to be careful not to leave it too long. I probably could have managed at home for a bit more but left at about 10pm as I didnt have a clue what I was doing and had a mild fear of leaving it too late (although I thought unlikely).
Got to hospital about 10.20pm, after having 3 or 4 pretty painful contractions on the way. Had to sit in waiting area for about half an hour which was torture as felt too self-conscious to kneel down or make any noise through the contractions. Got taken up to a room in the (deserted!) midwife-led home from home unit (as I wanted, yay!) at about 11pm and was checked and was 4cm dilated. Got the gas and air hooked up which was great. I think even the action of being able to bite down on the tube and listening to the rattle noise as I inhaled the G&A was half the advantage. Didnt feel at all high or light headed or talk b*llocks as a result of it though. Also tried the tens machine which Id rented from the hospital was sort of helpful for a short while but after about half an hour it was annoying me and I just wanted it off.
Got in the pool about 12am ish which was lovely. Has G&A in the pool too. Was there was about 2-3 hours and the contractions were getting really painful. Still able to get though them quietly but the odd one was deserving of a bit of moan of pain (no crazy mooing sounds though thank god!).
Got out of the pool at about 2.30am ish for a break as was getting a bit hot and uncomfortable. Waters still hadnt broken and the midwife offered to break them for me to move things along which seemed like a plan (went against my birth plan but I pretty much threw it out the window at around this point!). She broke them and I was about 9cm dilated. Unfortunately I had meconium staining which panicked me a little. It also meant I no longer qualified for the Home from Home unit but as L&D upstairs was full I was allowed to stay on the condition that the babys heartrate was checked every 5 mins (which was a real pain actually when it felt like I was having contractions about half the time by then). Not long after the midwife said she was happy for me to start pushing. Was definitely on agony by then and despite all my active birth plans was most comfortable lying on my side in the bed. The midwife suggested leaning up and over the top of the bed (which was put in a chair-like position). Tried pushing but I honestly think in retrospect it was too early and I had no real urge to do so.
It all goes a bit fuzzy for me then as it was just so painful. At about 3.30am I think a room in L&D became free and as the baby hadnt made an appearance they decided Id have to be moved. Moving was a nightmare took about 10mins (dont know why they didnt call the elevator before disconnecting me from the G&A 
. As we got to the L&D room they banged my bed really hard against a metal bin which fell over and it all felt a bit crazy.I was offered some Remifentanil (administered by an IV in my hand with a button to control the dose) as the midwife thought I might be too tired to push the baby out and this may help. Really didnt want anything like this but in the haze I clearly agreed to it and I will admit it helped so much. Slightly regretted it after but who knows, I might not have done well without it. I basically slept for the next hour through the contractions. I had no idea what was going on and remember waking up and asking what was I supposed to be doing. They put the continuous fetal monitor on me (apparently the reason for moving to L&D) in case the meconium staining was a sign the baby was in distress. It was this huge uncomfortable box strapped to my belly and I think in my mild irrationality I kept trying to pull it off!
Started pushing again at 4.30am. Lying down on my side again this time though the midwives in L&D recommended the position as the baby was quite back-to-back (which hopefully is a good reason for the more intense pain relief!). Pushing was exhausting but in a way it did feel better to be using the contractions for some good. I was a bit scared of the pain/tearing of the baby coming out so I found it hard to put that out of my mind and push as hard as I could. As it was the birth was painful but nowhere near as bad as I thought. The midwife tried to talk me into an episiotomy during this stage but I really wasnt keen and Im glad she didnt insist. Anyway finally baby Sam was born at 5.26am and placed on my stomach totally the most surreal overwhelming moment ever! He was perfect mild meconium marks and the biggest bruised cone head (gladly subsided!) Ive ever seen included. He cried a little but not much and we had a hazy bit of skin to skin contact for a few minutes.
Unfortunately it wasnt over. The midwives tried for over an hour to get the placenta out (much much violation possibly the worst part) without any success. Had the injection and they tried to do another injection into the cord but it was falling apart. They then said Id have to go to the theatre and have a c-section to take it out
which was absolutely devastating. Thankfully one of the doctors tried again for about 5-10 minutes (serious violation here!) and had me pushing again for ages and it came out. Several of them looked at it for a few minutes and did a quick ultrasound before being happy it was all there, phew!I needed a few stitches and had to wait (not pleasant) about an hour to get them (something to do with paperwork and the computers being down bloody nhs!). Had about half a dozen and the local anaesthetic / G&A worked fine and they werent as painful as expected.
Had to wait another hour in that bed (that I really really wanted to get out of and was getting quite frustrated) before I was allowed to go for a shower and after that we were allowed back down to our room in the Home from Home unit. Was so good to be back there, just the 3 of us!
All in all wasnt the easiest experience but I am grateful it wasnt the worst either. And of course the most important part is that we have a lovely healthy baby boy to show for it
. Totally all worth it (although will be a couple of years before the memory dims enough to consider doing it again! ).
