Rach27
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Well, I had spent the day explaining to my sister-in-law the very definite difference between Braxton Hicks contractions and the real thing as, at 36+4 weeks pregnant, what I had been experiencing for the past few hours couldn't possibly have been real labour. How wrong I was!
My last baby was induced and that was so painful I opted for an epidural, which caused a nasty headache complication postpartum and involved a very clinical delivery and 2nd degree episiotomy. He was back to back and we narrowly missed a c-section by the skin of our teeth so, with this one, I was keen to avoid this type of birth again.
When we had got home, I was still having these BH contractions; they weren't painful at all and if I busied myself with something, I forgot they were there but I had made a point of timing them on the journey back and they were every 10 minutes. After I had been home an hour, they were every five mins so I gave the delivery suite a call. They said to come in and get a CTG, which I did. This showed the contractions and the fact bubs was doing fine with them. Then, Joanne, my midwife, wanted to examine me and I think we were both shocked when she discovered I was already 4cms dilated!!
Right! So, having driven myself to hospital (it was midnight-ish and my eldest one was asleep) in our only car with no phone, a broken GPS and in the rain, I had to call my husband and try and organise childcare for Thomas! NOBODY at the in-laws picked up for 45 mins as they thought it was a sales call!! But thankfully they did eventually and brought my hubby and son in and then took our son for the night.
So I laboured over the next four hours or so with no pain! I rocked on the birthing ball, read several magazines, had a lower back massage with lavendar oil...
My waters broke a few hours later at 7cms, at which point, I tried gas & air (to see what it was like) and thought it was rubbish and just made me feel funny. So I put it down. I was on my knees against a beanbag on the bed at this point.
At about 5.30am I told the midwife there was 'something down there that usually wasn't' (why I didn't just say that I have the urge to push I'll never know!) so I swivvled around so I was sitting up and within a few good pushes, out he came! The placenta followed on cue and I didn't tear
Loving every moment with Cameron! He was 7lb 4oz so a good weight for a slightly pre-term baby. And, as well as having my dream birth experience, the best thing of all is that I've had an extra month of cuddles!!!
I am one happy mummy right now!
My last baby was induced and that was so painful I opted for an epidural, which caused a nasty headache complication postpartum and involved a very clinical delivery and 2nd degree episiotomy. He was back to back and we narrowly missed a c-section by the skin of our teeth so, with this one, I was keen to avoid this type of birth again.
When we had got home, I was still having these BH contractions; they weren't painful at all and if I busied myself with something, I forgot they were there but I had made a point of timing them on the journey back and they were every 10 minutes. After I had been home an hour, they were every five mins so I gave the delivery suite a call. They said to come in and get a CTG, which I did. This showed the contractions and the fact bubs was doing fine with them. Then, Joanne, my midwife, wanted to examine me and I think we were both shocked when she discovered I was already 4cms dilated!!
Right! So, having driven myself to hospital (it was midnight-ish and my eldest one was asleep) in our only car with no phone, a broken GPS and in the rain, I had to call my husband and try and organise childcare for Thomas! NOBODY at the in-laws picked up for 45 mins as they thought it was a sales call!! But thankfully they did eventually and brought my hubby and son in and then took our son for the night.
So I laboured over the next four hours or so with no pain! I rocked on the birthing ball, read several magazines, had a lower back massage with lavendar oil...
My waters broke a few hours later at 7cms, at which point, I tried gas & air (to see what it was like) and thought it was rubbish and just made me feel funny. So I put it down. I was on my knees against a beanbag on the bed at this point. At about 5.30am I told the midwife there was 'something down there that usually wasn't' (why I didn't just say that I have the urge to push I'll never know!) so I swivvled around so I was sitting up and within a few good pushes, out he came! The placenta followed on cue and I didn't tear
Loving every moment with Cameron! He was 7lb 4oz so a good weight for a slightly pre-term baby. And, as well as having my dream birth experience, the best thing of all is that I've had an extra month of cuddles!!!
I am one happy mummy right now!
