raffee
22-08-2006, 21:25
Friday 18th August:
Spent the day in a really good mood after a very positive hospital appointment that had my EDD officially changed to the 19th August (from the 28th August). I felt relieved and satisfied that I was finally being heard, and was very happy to be booked in for a day assessment on Monday to ensure that all was still progressing nicely and that bub was still happy in utero (little did I know that baby had his own plans and there would be no Monday Day assessment!:cool: )
The children were to spend the night at my parents, so DH and I were free to enjoy an evening together- ah bliss.
"Let's go out for a meal tonight!" Says DH. Not exactly what I had planned but I couldn't turn him down- he was just too excited to be feasting on a buffet of prawns and bay bugs, something we seldom had since falling pregnant.
So off we went, and I happily watched DH devour plate after plate of cold seafood as I feasted on sizzling hot king prawns, a variety of scrumptious salads and devine desserts. We got home close to 11pm and I turned in for my nightly ritual of toilet runs and insomnia in a much better than usual mood.
Saturday 19th August:
I woke up Saturday morning, at around 6am, with wet knickers, and I was sure that it was my waters leaking. Yippee! I thought. This was to be the first time I go into labour in the morning (all 4 of my other labours commenced late evening and had me sleep deprived and exhausted). I decided to busy myself with housework and just let my body do its thing. I tried to stay as relaxed as possible, knowing full well that anxiety could actually stop labour from progressing. About an hour later I had a bloody show and my contractions started thereafter. I posted an update on bubhub (as you do!:D ) and continued with the housework- did a couple of loads of washing, vacuumed, tidied etc, all the while monitoring the ever-increasing contractions.
By about midday the contractions had established a far more regular pace, about 3-4 minutes apart and lasting well over a minute. I decided to try and stick it out at home until at least 130pm before making my way to the hospital (which is only 2 minutes from home). The reason being is that I generally have long labours and I didn't want to be there long enough to be tempted with drugs (as I know I have **** will-power)... so about 1pm I called dad and told him to get ready to come and take me to the hospital. In the meantime my contractions were increasing in intensity to the point that they were taking my breath away and jolting me in my place. Secretly I was starting to get a little panicky and scared and really wanted to get to the safety of the hospital but I tried not to let on (didn't wanna scare DH and dad).
So 130pm we arrive at the hospital and I break down in tears. The emotion and pain gets too much and I start bawling like a baby (very embarrassing). Hubby helps me to the labour ward where Im greeted by a lovely team of nurses and midwives. I'm taken into my delivery room and told that although I didn't test positive for strep B, that I would still need to be treated with antibiotics because I've been positive in a past pregnancy (bummer no.1!!!:thumbsdown: ) I have a cannular put in my arm and I'm given the first dose of antibiotics.
Some time around 2pm a midwife comes in to give me an internal. Now, according to me, I've been in labour since at least midday (if we count anything before that as pre-labour) so I'm thinking that I should be at least 3-4cm dialated. Midwife looks up, avoiding my eyes and says she'll be right back to discuss my progress and trots off to take off her gloves- I knew it wasn't good. "Raf, your bub is posterior and because of this its not putting enough pressure on your cervix to cause dilation". Aha, so what are you saying missy? Am I dilated at all??? "no hun, the cervix still needs to thin out about 2 or 3cm before it will even begin to dilate and that wont happen until bub turns into a more favourable position" WHAT THE H*LL?????? I couldn't believe it. All that pain, all that perseverance and I'd achieved absolutely nothing. I felt so deflated.
The midwife suggests that I try a bath as she did not think that it was in fact my waters that were leaking after all. She said that I could stay in the bath as long as my waters remained intact. I accepted without discussion. At this stage I had lost all positivity and initiative. I got in as the tub filled, and before it had reached to top, I felt my waters break with a gush. DH called the midwife in who said that I needed to come out. Great. Not only was I not to benefit from the warm tub but my contractions instantaneously went from a bearable intensity to my demanding an epidural, something I had not even comtemplated until this point. Midwife suggested another internal, less than an hour after my last (it was now about 3pm), and found that I was still undilated but that the baby had turned and the cervix had thinned completely.
Now the contractions were coming hard and fast, without any break in between. I begged for an epidural, so the midwife hooked me up to a drip to hydrate me in prep for the epi. At this point everything became a blur. All I could think about was the fact that I had not dilated and the excruciating continual pain that I was in. I couldn't even fathom how I would survive until the epi had been inserted and started to take effect without completely losing it.
For the first time in any of my labours (this being my 5th) I began to scream with every contraction-really scream, all the while begging for the epi. Then, out of nowhere I got the urge to push. The midwife didn't take me seriously but I insisted that she examine me again. She did so reluctantly, saying it had only been ten minutes since the last exam, but as soon as she checked, her tone significantly changed as she declared that I was 7cm dilated! With the next contraction I started to push, listening only to my body, it was like the world went silent and I took control again. With every contraction I pushed and within 5 contractions baby's head was born. The midwife said something about my baby having done somersaults but all I could think about was the unbearable burning pain and my desire to get relief, so again, I pushed and pushed, sreaming at the top of my lungs each time, and as I felt the body slide out of me I could breathe again. Finally.
Eamonn was immediately taken to be given oxygen. The cord had been wrapped around his neck-twice- and he was blue and silent. His initial apgar was 1. But, with God's grace, within a minute he was screaming his little lungs out, and given to me to cuddle for the first time. He had a head full of dark hair and a most heart-melting look in his eyes. At that point, all the pain dissipated and I breastfed my son for the first time. It was all worth it.
Eamonn Sean, my 3rd son and 5th child, came into the world at 3:56pm, less than an hour after being 0cm dilated! weighing 3.78 kg, 53cm long and a HC of 38cm! He is beautiful and wonderful and has managed to evoke more love in me than I thought possible. He is a blessing and I simply adore my little man.
Spent the day in a really good mood after a very positive hospital appointment that had my EDD officially changed to the 19th August (from the 28th August). I felt relieved and satisfied that I was finally being heard, and was very happy to be booked in for a day assessment on Monday to ensure that all was still progressing nicely and that bub was still happy in utero (little did I know that baby had his own plans and there would be no Monday Day assessment!:cool: )
The children were to spend the night at my parents, so DH and I were free to enjoy an evening together- ah bliss.
"Let's go out for a meal tonight!" Says DH. Not exactly what I had planned but I couldn't turn him down- he was just too excited to be feasting on a buffet of prawns and bay bugs, something we seldom had since falling pregnant.
So off we went, and I happily watched DH devour plate after plate of cold seafood as I feasted on sizzling hot king prawns, a variety of scrumptious salads and devine desserts. We got home close to 11pm and I turned in for my nightly ritual of toilet runs and insomnia in a much better than usual mood.
Saturday 19th August:
I woke up Saturday morning, at around 6am, with wet knickers, and I was sure that it was my waters leaking. Yippee! I thought. This was to be the first time I go into labour in the morning (all 4 of my other labours commenced late evening and had me sleep deprived and exhausted). I decided to busy myself with housework and just let my body do its thing. I tried to stay as relaxed as possible, knowing full well that anxiety could actually stop labour from progressing. About an hour later I had a bloody show and my contractions started thereafter. I posted an update on bubhub (as you do!:D ) and continued with the housework- did a couple of loads of washing, vacuumed, tidied etc, all the while monitoring the ever-increasing contractions.
By about midday the contractions had established a far more regular pace, about 3-4 minutes apart and lasting well over a minute. I decided to try and stick it out at home until at least 130pm before making my way to the hospital (which is only 2 minutes from home). The reason being is that I generally have long labours and I didn't want to be there long enough to be tempted with drugs (as I know I have **** will-power)... so about 1pm I called dad and told him to get ready to come and take me to the hospital. In the meantime my contractions were increasing in intensity to the point that they were taking my breath away and jolting me in my place. Secretly I was starting to get a little panicky and scared and really wanted to get to the safety of the hospital but I tried not to let on (didn't wanna scare DH and dad).
So 130pm we arrive at the hospital and I break down in tears. The emotion and pain gets too much and I start bawling like a baby (very embarrassing). Hubby helps me to the labour ward where Im greeted by a lovely team of nurses and midwives. I'm taken into my delivery room and told that although I didn't test positive for strep B, that I would still need to be treated with antibiotics because I've been positive in a past pregnancy (bummer no.1!!!:thumbsdown: ) I have a cannular put in my arm and I'm given the first dose of antibiotics.
Some time around 2pm a midwife comes in to give me an internal. Now, according to me, I've been in labour since at least midday (if we count anything before that as pre-labour) so I'm thinking that I should be at least 3-4cm dialated. Midwife looks up, avoiding my eyes and says she'll be right back to discuss my progress and trots off to take off her gloves- I knew it wasn't good. "Raf, your bub is posterior and because of this its not putting enough pressure on your cervix to cause dilation". Aha, so what are you saying missy? Am I dilated at all??? "no hun, the cervix still needs to thin out about 2 or 3cm before it will even begin to dilate and that wont happen until bub turns into a more favourable position" WHAT THE H*LL?????? I couldn't believe it. All that pain, all that perseverance and I'd achieved absolutely nothing. I felt so deflated.
The midwife suggests that I try a bath as she did not think that it was in fact my waters that were leaking after all. She said that I could stay in the bath as long as my waters remained intact. I accepted without discussion. At this stage I had lost all positivity and initiative. I got in as the tub filled, and before it had reached to top, I felt my waters break with a gush. DH called the midwife in who said that I needed to come out. Great. Not only was I not to benefit from the warm tub but my contractions instantaneously went from a bearable intensity to my demanding an epidural, something I had not even comtemplated until this point. Midwife suggested another internal, less than an hour after my last (it was now about 3pm), and found that I was still undilated but that the baby had turned and the cervix had thinned completely.
Now the contractions were coming hard and fast, without any break in between. I begged for an epidural, so the midwife hooked me up to a drip to hydrate me in prep for the epi. At this point everything became a blur. All I could think about was the fact that I had not dilated and the excruciating continual pain that I was in. I couldn't even fathom how I would survive until the epi had been inserted and started to take effect without completely losing it.
For the first time in any of my labours (this being my 5th) I began to scream with every contraction-really scream, all the while begging for the epi. Then, out of nowhere I got the urge to push. The midwife didn't take me seriously but I insisted that she examine me again. She did so reluctantly, saying it had only been ten minutes since the last exam, but as soon as she checked, her tone significantly changed as she declared that I was 7cm dilated! With the next contraction I started to push, listening only to my body, it was like the world went silent and I took control again. With every contraction I pushed and within 5 contractions baby's head was born. The midwife said something about my baby having done somersaults but all I could think about was the unbearable burning pain and my desire to get relief, so again, I pushed and pushed, sreaming at the top of my lungs each time, and as I felt the body slide out of me I could breathe again. Finally.
Eamonn was immediately taken to be given oxygen. The cord had been wrapped around his neck-twice- and he was blue and silent. His initial apgar was 1. But, with God's grace, within a minute he was screaming his little lungs out, and given to me to cuddle for the first time. He had a head full of dark hair and a most heart-melting look in his eyes. At that point, all the pain dissipated and I breastfed my son for the first time. It was all worth it.
Eamonn Sean, my 3rd son and 5th child, came into the world at 3:56pm, less than an hour after being 0cm dilated! weighing 3.78 kg, 53cm long and a HC of 38cm! He is beautiful and wonderful and has managed to evoke more love in me than I thought possible. He is a blessing and I simply adore my little man.