titania
22-06-2006, 12:22
I woke up in the morning of the 2nd June at about 5.30am with intense "period pain" through my lower back, lower abdomen and legs. There were periods of it being worse for about a minute at a time, but at no time did it go away. I was pretty confused as that is not how labour was described to me by anyone. After an hour of this it finally subsided and a more "normal" labour started. Contractions every 9 minutes lasting 30 seconds with definate breaks between. This was more like it! My mum thinks that bubs was pushing past a nerve ball during the intense pain period and that is why it was just constant. I hoped she was right.
I got up and had a bath which was lovely and soothing. I barely felt the contractions at all while in there, but I got very restless and didn't want to stay in anymore. I got out of the bath and lay down for a while and then got dressed and came downstairs. Whilst I was in the bath my contractions were weaker, but still consistently happening every 9 minutes. I decided once I was downstairs that I didn't want to sloth all day, so I started doing some housework. After 5 minutes of moving about I needed to go to the toilet, as soon as I dd that the contractions stopped... I felt like I had been labouring for a no 2! :(
Fortunately, 45 minutes later, contractions started up again :) They were still at 9 minutes, but slowly went down to 8 minutes until a good friend turned up to keep me company. And so they stopped again! This time I missed 2 and then started up but at 9 minutes again. We went out shopping for a few last minute things (snacks for my labour bag - redskins for me to suck on and snickers bars for my DH so he didn't have to leave my side!) Contractions were down to 8 minutes again. We got home and I started preparing a big pot of homemade soup for my DH to survive on while I was in hospital, stopping every so often to get through a contraction.
Finally at 3pm, contractions were down to every 5 minutes, I rang DH to let him know and get him to come home and rang the hospital to let them know. They asked all the standard questions (have you had a show, have your waters broken) and was told to come in if either happened, if I started bleeding, when my contractions got to 3 minutes, or if I was just getting distressed!
I finished the soup and went upstairs to put the labour snacks in my bag. I then sat on the floor and completely unpacked my labour bag, checked I had everything I wanted and repacked it. During contractions I was up on my hands and knees, riding them out and in between just sitting normally, packing and chatting to my friend. When the labour bag was done, I started on the hospital bag - unpacking and repacking that.
By the time that was finished, my DH was home, so I came downstairs, the pains sped up and intensified very quickly once he was there, now I was really starting to be crippled by each contraction and felt it was time to go to hospital, but I was only at 4 minutes. So I rang the labour ward and again was asked the standard questions and again encouraged to stay home until I hit the magic 3 minute mark. It being a Friday afternoon, (it was now after 4pm) I was very worried about the traffic getting to the hospital and explained this to them and said I was coming in.
My DH and friend convinced me that I should wait, but after two more contractions, I said "NO, I have to go now, she is coming." Jason went and organised the bags and the car and I went to the toilet again (every time I went to the toilet I would get a major contraction and have to ride it out alone, they were the worst of them at that stage) As we were about to walk out the door, I had a huge contraction, felt my waters break (thank goodness I had a pad on) and I had to lay on the floor through the contraction.
Eventually, I got up and out to the car, opting to lie across the back seat rather than sit up in the front. I won't talk about the car ride much, apart from to say it was the hardest part of the labour to that point and things got much easier again once we were at the hospital. In the car, I felt isolated, alone, unsupported, out of control and all of these things increased my fear, tensing my body so that I was fighting the contraction rather than letting it do it's job.
We arrived at hospital and I was shown to a birth suite. My midwife advised me that my obstetrician had been notified of my arrival and would be coming in to see me shortly. My big sister arrived, very bubbly and excited and ready to cheer me on :) When each contraction arrived she talked me through it. As I am a horse rider, she told me to imagine each contraction as a bolting horse that I needed to calm which helped me to relax my pelvis and throw my weight down into the contraction rather than fighting it. When I did this each contraction, while still painful, became managable.
The happy gas and My obstetrician arrived around 5.45 and she did an internal to check my progress, I was 5cm dilated. She asked if i wanted any pethadine and when I wasn't sure, she wrote it up just in case. She said she'd be back at around 10.30 and headed off. I moved in to the shower as soon as she left with my husband standing in the corner holding either the gas or the shower head for me as I spun around with him spraying beautiful hot water relief on my belly or back depending where i needed it most.
I was in the shower for about 45 minutes, riding out the contractions as they got stronger and stronger. I finally decided that I wanted the pethedine but to have that I needed to move out of the shower. So I turned the shower off and made my way back to the bed. I was given the pethedine and spent hte next few contractions trying out different positions to find the right one. I also started to feel the contractions changing and feel the need to push. The midwife asked me if I was feeling that, she could obviously sense the change and said she would go and call the obstetrician.
I finally found the best position, I had Jason sitting leaning against the headboard of the bed with me cradeled between his legs leaning back against his chest, holding his hands. We stayed that way for the rest of the labour, he was a brilliant support and kept me going the whole time. His hands must have been squashed to pulps during some contractions, but he just kept encouraging me.
I don't know how long this phase of labour must have been, but I remember in between contractions saying how much I was enjoying the experiance. The pethedine helped me relax in between contractions and savour the fact that I was about to meet my little girl. The pushing itself was hard work though, I won't try to tell you it's not the most excrutiating pain I have ever been through, but each contarction is only for a little while and I knew it would be over soon, which made it bearable.
I remember feeling her head when she was about halfway out, and thinking it felt like a walnut that had been soaked in water until it was soft, it was a strange feeling and I had troube believeing it was my daughters head! I finally pushed her out at 20:22, the cord was around her neck so had to be cut immeadiately but then she was put on my chest, Jason and I were stunned at how big she was. She was perfect and all ours.
As I lay on the bed cuddling my beautiful daughter, the obstetrician gave me a few stitches from the little bit of internal tearing I had, Mackenzie was busily sucking her thumb and snuggling and then we were left to get to know each other for a while before moving to the ward to recover and spend our first night together.
Birth Details:
Born: 2/06/2006 8:22pm
weight: 3.1kgs (6pound 13ozs)
length: 46.5cms
head: 33.5cms
I got up and had a bath which was lovely and soothing. I barely felt the contractions at all while in there, but I got very restless and didn't want to stay in anymore. I got out of the bath and lay down for a while and then got dressed and came downstairs. Whilst I was in the bath my contractions were weaker, but still consistently happening every 9 minutes. I decided once I was downstairs that I didn't want to sloth all day, so I started doing some housework. After 5 minutes of moving about I needed to go to the toilet, as soon as I dd that the contractions stopped... I felt like I had been labouring for a no 2! :(
Fortunately, 45 minutes later, contractions started up again :) They were still at 9 minutes, but slowly went down to 8 minutes until a good friend turned up to keep me company. And so they stopped again! This time I missed 2 and then started up but at 9 minutes again. We went out shopping for a few last minute things (snacks for my labour bag - redskins for me to suck on and snickers bars for my DH so he didn't have to leave my side!) Contractions were down to 8 minutes again. We got home and I started preparing a big pot of homemade soup for my DH to survive on while I was in hospital, stopping every so often to get through a contraction.
Finally at 3pm, contractions were down to every 5 minutes, I rang DH to let him know and get him to come home and rang the hospital to let them know. They asked all the standard questions (have you had a show, have your waters broken) and was told to come in if either happened, if I started bleeding, when my contractions got to 3 minutes, or if I was just getting distressed!
I finished the soup and went upstairs to put the labour snacks in my bag. I then sat on the floor and completely unpacked my labour bag, checked I had everything I wanted and repacked it. During contractions I was up on my hands and knees, riding them out and in between just sitting normally, packing and chatting to my friend. When the labour bag was done, I started on the hospital bag - unpacking and repacking that.
By the time that was finished, my DH was home, so I came downstairs, the pains sped up and intensified very quickly once he was there, now I was really starting to be crippled by each contraction and felt it was time to go to hospital, but I was only at 4 minutes. So I rang the labour ward and again was asked the standard questions and again encouraged to stay home until I hit the magic 3 minute mark. It being a Friday afternoon, (it was now after 4pm) I was very worried about the traffic getting to the hospital and explained this to them and said I was coming in.
My DH and friend convinced me that I should wait, but after two more contractions, I said "NO, I have to go now, she is coming." Jason went and organised the bags and the car and I went to the toilet again (every time I went to the toilet I would get a major contraction and have to ride it out alone, they were the worst of them at that stage) As we were about to walk out the door, I had a huge contraction, felt my waters break (thank goodness I had a pad on) and I had to lay on the floor through the contraction.
Eventually, I got up and out to the car, opting to lie across the back seat rather than sit up in the front. I won't talk about the car ride much, apart from to say it was the hardest part of the labour to that point and things got much easier again once we were at the hospital. In the car, I felt isolated, alone, unsupported, out of control and all of these things increased my fear, tensing my body so that I was fighting the contraction rather than letting it do it's job.
We arrived at hospital and I was shown to a birth suite. My midwife advised me that my obstetrician had been notified of my arrival and would be coming in to see me shortly. My big sister arrived, very bubbly and excited and ready to cheer me on :) When each contraction arrived she talked me through it. As I am a horse rider, she told me to imagine each contraction as a bolting horse that I needed to calm which helped me to relax my pelvis and throw my weight down into the contraction rather than fighting it. When I did this each contraction, while still painful, became managable.
The happy gas and My obstetrician arrived around 5.45 and she did an internal to check my progress, I was 5cm dilated. She asked if i wanted any pethadine and when I wasn't sure, she wrote it up just in case. She said she'd be back at around 10.30 and headed off. I moved in to the shower as soon as she left with my husband standing in the corner holding either the gas or the shower head for me as I spun around with him spraying beautiful hot water relief on my belly or back depending where i needed it most.
I was in the shower for about 45 minutes, riding out the contractions as they got stronger and stronger. I finally decided that I wanted the pethedine but to have that I needed to move out of the shower. So I turned the shower off and made my way back to the bed. I was given the pethedine and spent hte next few contractions trying out different positions to find the right one. I also started to feel the contractions changing and feel the need to push. The midwife asked me if I was feeling that, she could obviously sense the change and said she would go and call the obstetrician.
I finally found the best position, I had Jason sitting leaning against the headboard of the bed with me cradeled between his legs leaning back against his chest, holding his hands. We stayed that way for the rest of the labour, he was a brilliant support and kept me going the whole time. His hands must have been squashed to pulps during some contractions, but he just kept encouraging me.
I don't know how long this phase of labour must have been, but I remember in between contractions saying how much I was enjoying the experiance. The pethedine helped me relax in between contractions and savour the fact that I was about to meet my little girl. The pushing itself was hard work though, I won't try to tell you it's not the most excrutiating pain I have ever been through, but each contarction is only for a little while and I knew it would be over soon, which made it bearable.
I remember feeling her head when she was about halfway out, and thinking it felt like a walnut that had been soaked in water until it was soft, it was a strange feeling and I had troube believeing it was my daughters head! I finally pushed her out at 20:22, the cord was around her neck so had to be cut immeadiately but then she was put on my chest, Jason and I were stunned at how big she was. She was perfect and all ours.
As I lay on the bed cuddling my beautiful daughter, the obstetrician gave me a few stitches from the little bit of internal tearing I had, Mackenzie was busily sucking her thumb and snuggling and then we were left to get to know each other for a while before moving to the ward to recover and spend our first night together.
Birth Details:
Born: 2/06/2006 8:22pm
weight: 3.1kgs (6pound 13ozs)
length: 46.5cms
head: 33.5cms