So I've finally got around to posting my birth story! As the title says, it's not pretty so heed the warning if you're faint hearted! I'll start from the very beginning...
I went into hospital at 9am on Saturday morning to be induced. Obviously i was very nervous but i had the luxury of being prepared and was pretty calm. Was given a pessary at around 11am and told that i was 1cm dilated before they'd even given me it so that was a good start. My mum and OH spent the day at the hospital with me and everything was fine. I didn't really get any pain and was happy bouncing around on my ball, going to the cafe and watching Britain's Got Talent! Then at about 10pm i went for a bath and my waters broke. I told the nurse but she looked at my pad and said it was 'just show' and that i should try and get some sleep. They said i was only 1.5cm dilated by this point so there was nothing they could do other than give me a couple of paracetamol. I can honestly say that Saturday night has to be the most horrendous night i can remember. After my waters broke i was in so much pain. I couldn't even get up to sort myself out and my waters had soaked through my pjs, pad, mat and all of the bedding so i basically laid in a pool of my own amniotic fluid all night in agonising pain. By 5am i couldn't take it anymore, so i called a nurse who examined me and said i was 5cm, my waters HAD gone and i needed to go to the delivery suite straight away. I quickly rang my mum and OH who arrived just in time to witness me projectile vomiting all over the ward - i'd got myself into a bit of a state by this point lol.
Once i got up to the delivery suite things got a little better. I had a lovely midwife who was very strict and abrupt to start with (my mum and her had a little bitch at each other which was quite funny). She encouraged me just to go with gas and air and by dinner time i was 8cm dilated and everything was progressing well. Then things just came to a halt. The pain continued but my contractions weren't getting closer and baby wasn't moving at all. They kept me on gas and air for a while and then advised that i be put on a drip to make my contractions stronger and more regular. They also said at this point that there was a chance baby was back to back and that it would be best for me to have an epidural. I really didn't want to because i'd gone so far without anything, but by this point i was knackered and couldn't cope with much more so i went for the epidural thinking it would all be downhill from there...pah! If only i knew!
After a few hours of the drip, i finally became fully dilated and was told i could start pushing. Obviously i found this hard because i'd had an epidural and was relying on the midwives to tell me when i was having a contraction. But despite this i knew that i wasn't going to be able to move baby, i was just so tired and he wasn't co-operating at all. A doctor came to see me and they started using a suction cap to try and get baby moving. Then forceps. Then there was talk of an episiotomy. All of this with about 7 midwives in the room screaming 'PUSH HARDER, LET ME SEE THIS BABY, PUSH THE PAIN AWAY' and other motivational cliches - it really didn't help. In the end the doctor said that the safest thing to do was to perform an emergency c-section...cue my mum and OH going into absolute panic. I was actually quite relieved at the prospect of it all being over.
The c-section itself was very straightforward (or so i'm told). It was over in about half an hour and baby Jack came out crying at 10:53pm which was a huge relief. I went into shock afterwards and got the shakes really badly. I was also running a temperature throughout surgery so there were a few concerns that i might have an infection, but personally i just think i was knackered from all of the pushing beforehand! Afterwards i was gutted that OH couldn't stay with us overnight and Jack had to be taken away to be looked after by the nurses as i was hardly in a fit state to care for him. I didn't get much sleep as i had nurses coming in at hourly intervals to check on me - some of them were pretty unsympathetic too. I asked one of them if she could turn the light off and she called me 'moany'. Not really a pleasant thing to say to an emotional wreck who has just had major surgery and given birth.
I had to stay on the maternity ward for another 2 days during which time OH was amazing. He came at 8:30 every morning and stayed til 9pm so that he could do everything for me and baby. We were finally allowed home on Tuesday.
It certainly wasn't the birth i'd planned or hoped for. I didn't even get to see my baby until about 10 minutes after he'd been born which was upsetting. But the main thing is that he arrived safely and he's here now. We're massively in love with him and even though my labour was a hellish horrible ordeal, i've already forgotten it to be honest. As everyone says, you would go through it a million times for your baby.
One thing i would say to anyone who is booked for an induction or going into hospital to give birth is to stick to your guns. It's probably just my hospital that were crap but i honestly felt patronised and ignored by some of the nurses on the maternity ward. When i told them my waters had broken they fobbed me off and because it was my first baby i thought they knew best, so i spent an entire night on my own in agony which was very stressful for me and baby. Some of them were also quite unfriendly, unapproachable and unhelpful when i went back down with baby afterwards. I understand that they're busy ladies but giving birth is one of the biggest, scariest things you'll ever do so i would advise anyone not to take no for an answer if you feel you're being fobbed off.
Piccys to follow, still haven't had chance to upload any to my computer yet. Best of luck to all of the ladies due to give birth, i'm sure yours will go a LOT smoother than mine! xxx
I went into hospital at 9am on Saturday morning to be induced. Obviously i was very nervous but i had the luxury of being prepared and was pretty calm. Was given a pessary at around 11am and told that i was 1cm dilated before they'd even given me it so that was a good start. My mum and OH spent the day at the hospital with me and everything was fine. I didn't really get any pain and was happy bouncing around on my ball, going to the cafe and watching Britain's Got Talent! Then at about 10pm i went for a bath and my waters broke. I told the nurse but she looked at my pad and said it was 'just show' and that i should try and get some sleep. They said i was only 1.5cm dilated by this point so there was nothing they could do other than give me a couple of paracetamol. I can honestly say that Saturday night has to be the most horrendous night i can remember. After my waters broke i was in so much pain. I couldn't even get up to sort myself out and my waters had soaked through my pjs, pad, mat and all of the bedding so i basically laid in a pool of my own amniotic fluid all night in agonising pain. By 5am i couldn't take it anymore, so i called a nurse who examined me and said i was 5cm, my waters HAD gone and i needed to go to the delivery suite straight away. I quickly rang my mum and OH who arrived just in time to witness me projectile vomiting all over the ward - i'd got myself into a bit of a state by this point lol.
Once i got up to the delivery suite things got a little better. I had a lovely midwife who was very strict and abrupt to start with (my mum and her had a little bitch at each other which was quite funny). She encouraged me just to go with gas and air and by dinner time i was 8cm dilated and everything was progressing well. Then things just came to a halt. The pain continued but my contractions weren't getting closer and baby wasn't moving at all. They kept me on gas and air for a while and then advised that i be put on a drip to make my contractions stronger and more regular. They also said at this point that there was a chance baby was back to back and that it would be best for me to have an epidural. I really didn't want to because i'd gone so far without anything, but by this point i was knackered and couldn't cope with much more so i went for the epidural thinking it would all be downhill from there...pah! If only i knew!
After a few hours of the drip, i finally became fully dilated and was told i could start pushing. Obviously i found this hard because i'd had an epidural and was relying on the midwives to tell me when i was having a contraction. But despite this i knew that i wasn't going to be able to move baby, i was just so tired and he wasn't co-operating at all. A doctor came to see me and they started using a suction cap to try and get baby moving. Then forceps. Then there was talk of an episiotomy. All of this with about 7 midwives in the room screaming 'PUSH HARDER, LET ME SEE THIS BABY, PUSH THE PAIN AWAY' and other motivational cliches - it really didn't help. In the end the doctor said that the safest thing to do was to perform an emergency c-section...cue my mum and OH going into absolute panic. I was actually quite relieved at the prospect of it all being over.
The c-section itself was very straightforward (or so i'm told). It was over in about half an hour and baby Jack came out crying at 10:53pm which was a huge relief. I went into shock afterwards and got the shakes really badly. I was also running a temperature throughout surgery so there were a few concerns that i might have an infection, but personally i just think i was knackered from all of the pushing beforehand! Afterwards i was gutted that OH couldn't stay with us overnight and Jack had to be taken away to be looked after by the nurses as i was hardly in a fit state to care for him. I didn't get much sleep as i had nurses coming in at hourly intervals to check on me - some of them were pretty unsympathetic too. I asked one of them if she could turn the light off and she called me 'moany'. Not really a pleasant thing to say to an emotional wreck who has just had major surgery and given birth.
I had to stay on the maternity ward for another 2 days during which time OH was amazing. He came at 8:30 every morning and stayed til 9pm so that he could do everything for me and baby. We were finally allowed home on Tuesday.
It certainly wasn't the birth i'd planned or hoped for. I didn't even get to see my baby until about 10 minutes after he'd been born which was upsetting. But the main thing is that he arrived safely and he's here now. We're massively in love with him and even though my labour was a hellish horrible ordeal, i've already forgotten it to be honest. As everyone says, you would go through it a million times for your baby.
One thing i would say to anyone who is booked for an induction or going into hospital to give birth is to stick to your guns. It's probably just my hospital that were crap but i honestly felt patronised and ignored by some of the nurses on the maternity ward. When i told them my waters had broken they fobbed me off and because it was my first baby i thought they knew best, so i spent an entire night on my own in agony which was very stressful for me and baby. Some of them were also quite unfriendly, unapproachable and unhelpful when i went back down with baby afterwards. I understand that they're busy ladies but giving birth is one of the biggest, scariest things you'll ever do so i would advise anyone not to take no for an answer if you feel you're being fobbed off.
Piccys to follow, still haven't had chance to upload any to my computer yet. Best of luck to all of the ladies due to give birth, i'm sure yours will go a LOT smoother than mine! xxx
And well done!! xx
