amandaw
17-08-2006, 21:33
The Birth Story Of Miss Charlotte Alyce White
Warning that this is a long one, because it's as much for me as for everyone else....
About 3.30 on Friday began to notice some very slight spotting and without having had any other pre labour signs (I’m not even sure I had any Braxton hicks since about week 25!!!) felt really silly ringing the labour ward to let them know of a slight ‘blood loss’ (as the pamphlet says)…not surprisingly got told to ring back in an hour, and did so with no real change.
Had visitors arrive, had dinner and went to bed with no more change, before getting up about 2.30 and coming back to bed feeling a little uncomfortable…possibly now thinking these might be very mild contractions. Woke hubby at about 5.00 coming back to bed a second time, and said that I thought that these might actually be contractions, but said no point timing at this stage (figured that I’d drive myself nut otherwise). By the time I got up at around 6.15, after giving up on sleep, had had 5 contractions.
Decided that maybe I should start timing them and writing them down, because they seemed fairly regular, and from then onwards the discomfort jumped in at about 8 minutes apart. I think I was still trying to convince myself that there was no way I was really going into labour, especially for a first timer. My brother had stayed the night and I didn’t want him to think that anything was up (because thought it would be a false alarm) so spent an hour chatting to him over a cuppa and trying to stay as collected as possible, despite the increased regularity of my discomfort. He left, Joel got up, and I had a little sigh of relief. By this stage, decided that this was quite possibly the real thing, and we sat out the back reading the paper and wondering if the bump was going to have an August 12th or 13th birthday.
About 11.30 my contractions were about 4 mins apart and so re rang the labour ward – told them I was completely comfortable (well except for the short period of the contraction) and that there had been no other signs, so was asked to hang at home for another hour and ring back in. Decided that perhaps I should finish packing my bags (just in case) and the contractions became a little more irregular, jumping from 10 mins to 2 mins apart, so decided that this may not be on, and sent Joel back to bed (since he’d been ready and raring to go for hours now, and thought he might need a break by the end of the process). Tried to have a rest myself, and the contractions slowed right down to 10 mins apart, so started to give up for now. Got up and they jumped back up to four mins apart, so thought I better eat something, threw that back up (after having done the same with breakfast earlier) and decided that perhaps I wasn’t coping as well as I thought. Woke Joel, and rang the Wesley and told them I was coming in (thinking still a little that they may just send me home again, but at least I might know how I was progressing)
Had an extremely uncomfortable car ride (poor hubby trying to concentrate on the road, and a few weird looks from people at lights :p ) and arrived at the Wesley at about 2.30. Have a few key memories from the first hour
- walking in and hearing the voice that belonged to the extremely condescending midwife that I’d spoken to the day before, when she told me to try and hold on because they were so busy, and there’d ‘just been c-section after c-section that day and they just barely had time to clean’ (like it was going to be my decision!!!!)……desperation when I realised she was coming in to me
- Feeling like a failure when trying to pee into the cup! I knew I was severely dehydrated after not having kept anything down all day, and felt like a three year old telling this to the midwife to explain the tiny amount there
- Seeing hubby relaxing in the recliner and just wishing I could trade places
- Seeing the midi shoving page after page of paper at my husband (getting him to pick menus, sign here, stick here, go through an inventory of valuables that we’d packed etc) and then spend 30 mins restocking the supply cupboard, and feeling very ignored!! Got offered gas at one stage, but turned it down, saying that if I wasn’t coping now, then what hope was I going to have.
About 3.30 my water broke in a gush, but the midwife wasn’t even there to notice it happen, and when she finally walked in she said there’s something we don’t like to see (gee reassuring) as bubs heart beat dropped down to about 70 with the first contraction after this (it had been sitting comfortably about 140-150 before this). She’d finally got round to doing the VE and at this stage I was only 5 cm dilated. She had decided to ring the ob, because she was concerned that I was going to be too ‘little’ to deliver bub (again the reassurance was overwhelming). By now I had started on the gas, and I remember missing my mouth twice before being quietly being told by a midwife who was just visiting the room, that I occasionally needed to stop:laughing: ! Had to say to hubby once “I just need you to talk to me” and he started taking a much more active role. They were organising for a drip to be put in (to help with dehydration, and no doubt make easy access if an epidural had to be done) when my ob arrived.
He did another VE and said, ‘we’ll be delivering this baby tonight’ as I was fully dilated (5cm in less than an hour) and finally removed all the monitoring equipment. He went out (to get suited up …I had a double take at the white raincoat when he came back!) and while he was gone, I obviously felt it really hard, the midwife took a look, and all I could hear as she raced from the room was ‘I can see a head!!!’. From here on in, all hell broke loose…I could hear my ob saying ‘not sure if this was the plan, but you’re doing it all pain free, my hubby going…you’re wonderful, this is amazing, you can do this’ and the midi saying ‘stop making noise…it’s not helping you…here count one, two, three….. do you think I have time for a bickie (in between contractions…arg!!!!!)’
So to end the long story, I ended up needing an episiotomy (5 external stitches which was all he would tell me about…not sure I want to know the other damage…) and suctioning, but I honestly don’t think I could have gone on for too much longer at the intensity that it progressed… my husband eagerly demonstrates the way the suction worked, with my ob literally with his foot on the end of the bed pulling with every contraction….I have an new found respect for my amazing husband, who despite passing out in an antenatal class regarding epidurals, held my chin up by hugging me through the very fast paced, full on second stage labour encouraging me all the way, saw the crowning, cut the cord, and turned with tears in his eyes and said she’s wonderful and that he was the bravest man in the world (he he he), and most rewardingly, a daughter….
Charlotte Alyce spent two days unnamed. She was 7 pound 6 ½ (3368g) at birth and arrived at 5.40 on Saturday the 12th of August, only 3 hours after making it to hospital. She was 50 cm at birth, with a head circumference of 36.5 (the size of an 8 1/5 pounder, but still a massive 6 cm smaller than her daddy’s. She’s a beautiful looking bub (even if do say so myself), with wide alert eyes, and the most gorgeous looking mouth. From behind, she initially had the awful skull cap look from the suctioning, but that’s down to just a faint bruise 5 days later. She’s been a very calm baby, sleeping for long periods (except of course at night!) and feeding well…the only two times she’s screamed so far are the initial needles, and her heel ***** test… and she’s currently got her ‘milk monkey’ look on, asleep resting her chin on my hand with a severe look of concentration, arms hanging forward knuckle dragging style, and I wouldn’t change it for the world!
Warning that this is a long one, because it's as much for me as for everyone else....
About 3.30 on Friday began to notice some very slight spotting and without having had any other pre labour signs (I’m not even sure I had any Braxton hicks since about week 25!!!) felt really silly ringing the labour ward to let them know of a slight ‘blood loss’ (as the pamphlet says)…not surprisingly got told to ring back in an hour, and did so with no real change.
Had visitors arrive, had dinner and went to bed with no more change, before getting up about 2.30 and coming back to bed feeling a little uncomfortable…possibly now thinking these might be very mild contractions. Woke hubby at about 5.00 coming back to bed a second time, and said that I thought that these might actually be contractions, but said no point timing at this stage (figured that I’d drive myself nut otherwise). By the time I got up at around 6.15, after giving up on sleep, had had 5 contractions.
Decided that maybe I should start timing them and writing them down, because they seemed fairly regular, and from then onwards the discomfort jumped in at about 8 minutes apart. I think I was still trying to convince myself that there was no way I was really going into labour, especially for a first timer. My brother had stayed the night and I didn’t want him to think that anything was up (because thought it would be a false alarm) so spent an hour chatting to him over a cuppa and trying to stay as collected as possible, despite the increased regularity of my discomfort. He left, Joel got up, and I had a little sigh of relief. By this stage, decided that this was quite possibly the real thing, and we sat out the back reading the paper and wondering if the bump was going to have an August 12th or 13th birthday.
About 11.30 my contractions were about 4 mins apart and so re rang the labour ward – told them I was completely comfortable (well except for the short period of the contraction) and that there had been no other signs, so was asked to hang at home for another hour and ring back in. Decided that perhaps I should finish packing my bags (just in case) and the contractions became a little more irregular, jumping from 10 mins to 2 mins apart, so decided that this may not be on, and sent Joel back to bed (since he’d been ready and raring to go for hours now, and thought he might need a break by the end of the process). Tried to have a rest myself, and the contractions slowed right down to 10 mins apart, so started to give up for now. Got up and they jumped back up to four mins apart, so thought I better eat something, threw that back up (after having done the same with breakfast earlier) and decided that perhaps I wasn’t coping as well as I thought. Woke Joel, and rang the Wesley and told them I was coming in (thinking still a little that they may just send me home again, but at least I might know how I was progressing)
Had an extremely uncomfortable car ride (poor hubby trying to concentrate on the road, and a few weird looks from people at lights :p ) and arrived at the Wesley at about 2.30. Have a few key memories from the first hour
- walking in and hearing the voice that belonged to the extremely condescending midwife that I’d spoken to the day before, when she told me to try and hold on because they were so busy, and there’d ‘just been c-section after c-section that day and they just barely had time to clean’ (like it was going to be my decision!!!!)……desperation when I realised she was coming in to me
- Feeling like a failure when trying to pee into the cup! I knew I was severely dehydrated after not having kept anything down all day, and felt like a three year old telling this to the midwife to explain the tiny amount there
- Seeing hubby relaxing in the recliner and just wishing I could trade places
- Seeing the midi shoving page after page of paper at my husband (getting him to pick menus, sign here, stick here, go through an inventory of valuables that we’d packed etc) and then spend 30 mins restocking the supply cupboard, and feeling very ignored!! Got offered gas at one stage, but turned it down, saying that if I wasn’t coping now, then what hope was I going to have.
About 3.30 my water broke in a gush, but the midwife wasn’t even there to notice it happen, and when she finally walked in she said there’s something we don’t like to see (gee reassuring) as bubs heart beat dropped down to about 70 with the first contraction after this (it had been sitting comfortably about 140-150 before this). She’d finally got round to doing the VE and at this stage I was only 5 cm dilated. She had decided to ring the ob, because she was concerned that I was going to be too ‘little’ to deliver bub (again the reassurance was overwhelming). By now I had started on the gas, and I remember missing my mouth twice before being quietly being told by a midwife who was just visiting the room, that I occasionally needed to stop:laughing: ! Had to say to hubby once “I just need you to talk to me” and he started taking a much more active role. They were organising for a drip to be put in (to help with dehydration, and no doubt make easy access if an epidural had to be done) when my ob arrived.
He did another VE and said, ‘we’ll be delivering this baby tonight’ as I was fully dilated (5cm in less than an hour) and finally removed all the monitoring equipment. He went out (to get suited up …I had a double take at the white raincoat when he came back!) and while he was gone, I obviously felt it really hard, the midwife took a look, and all I could hear as she raced from the room was ‘I can see a head!!!’. From here on in, all hell broke loose…I could hear my ob saying ‘not sure if this was the plan, but you’re doing it all pain free, my hubby going…you’re wonderful, this is amazing, you can do this’ and the midi saying ‘stop making noise…it’s not helping you…here count one, two, three….. do you think I have time for a bickie (in between contractions…arg!!!!!)’
So to end the long story, I ended up needing an episiotomy (5 external stitches which was all he would tell me about…not sure I want to know the other damage…) and suctioning, but I honestly don’t think I could have gone on for too much longer at the intensity that it progressed… my husband eagerly demonstrates the way the suction worked, with my ob literally with his foot on the end of the bed pulling with every contraction….I have an new found respect for my amazing husband, who despite passing out in an antenatal class regarding epidurals, held my chin up by hugging me through the very fast paced, full on second stage labour encouraging me all the way, saw the crowning, cut the cord, and turned with tears in his eyes and said she’s wonderful and that he was the bravest man in the world (he he he), and most rewardingly, a daughter….
Charlotte Alyce spent two days unnamed. She was 7 pound 6 ½ (3368g) at birth and arrived at 5.40 on Saturday the 12th of August, only 3 hours after making it to hospital. She was 50 cm at birth, with a head circumference of 36.5 (the size of an 8 1/5 pounder, but still a massive 6 cm smaller than her daddy’s. She’s a beautiful looking bub (even if do say so myself), with wide alert eyes, and the most gorgeous looking mouth. From behind, she initially had the awful skull cap look from the suctioning, but that’s down to just a faint bruise 5 days later. She’s been a very calm baby, sleeping for long periods (except of course at night!) and feeding well…the only two times she’s screamed so far are the initial needles, and her heel ***** test… and she’s currently got her ‘milk monkey’ look on, asleep resting her chin on my hand with a severe look of concentration, arms hanging forward knuckle dragging style, and I wouldn’t change it for the world!