babyphoenix
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Birth story time!
So I was having totally painless but regular (4-5 minutes apart) Braxton Hicks all day until OH got home when they started being slightly painful. They got more and more so until I really started to believe this was the real thing. OH lit candles and we had a cuddle which just stalled things (completely stopped them!) Thought it was another false start so had a total crying breakdown lol that I was going to be pregnant forever! OH decided it was necessary to take me for a walk around Tesco to take my mind off things. We did and as I was getting ready they started up again, strong enough to stop me from walking, but we went anyway and wandered around, stopping every time I had a contraction and hoping random strangers didn't notice! Bought a couple of t shirts for baby with some clubcard vouchers we had and then back home we went!
OH started setting up birthing area and at about 12.30 he was pretty much done with the pool. I went to the toilet hoping that I wouldn't poop in the pool (oops I did anyway!) and contractions suddenly really picked up going from 4 mins apart to 2 mins apart straight away! I managed to get off the loo after a few lol and headed downstairs and got in the pool!
OH rang doula and we rant midwives not long later too to let them know things were happening but I didn't want them out yet. Doula arrived at 2.30 ish when contractions were becoming quite strong to the point of doubting if I was capable. Midwives came at 3.30ish at a guess, 2 plus some health worker of some sort? I didn't care, by this point I was starting to get quite noisy through contractions and didn't care who was there!
Contractions kept getting stronger and I kept getting louder. Cue transition, a few "I can't do it I can't do it!"s later I was asking for the gas and air (wasn't in my plan). Started puffing immediately which made me feel stoned at which point I started talking to the midwife for the first time other than just responding to her requests. Most their equipment was useless, the thermometer took almost as long as I had between contractions to beep, the blood pressure machine had a leak in it so wasn't very effective, and they dropped the doppler in the pool just before second stage and broke it and ended up using my angelsounds one with a pair of OHs headphones!
Anyway, being at the point of transition and so obviously not able to do it any more, I had G&A which made me feel stoned and high enough to ask to be examined! OH had kept asking midwives questions like how will we know she can push etc if she doesn't get exams etc. He wanted me to have exams as he was quite keen on knowing progress. So high on G&A I had an internal, this was at 5am.
Yikes was painful! MW was moving her hands around baby's head and it hurt a lot. I wonder if she might have sweeped me without asking but by this point I didn't care. She asked how far I'd want to be on scale of 1-7cm dilated, I said 7 obviously! She said good because you are! I CRIED with overwhelming hormonal joy at this point! And then got back in the pool.
Contractions were getting stronger and stronger all the time. By now I was screaming through contractions, literally SCREAMING I couldn't help it. OH kept pushing the gas and air in my face as I was thrashing around with the pain, which pissed me off as the gas and air didn't help the pain at all, in fact by this point I didn't know why I was taking it so just stopped in favour of screaming and shouting "I can't do it!" through contractions instead (I would have been amazing on One Born Every Minute!)
Cue a shift change but the old MWs stuck around after their time as I think they were anxious to see the end result knowing I was close. Had like 5 midwives in the room by that point but was beyond caring. Contractions were constant with no let up in between so Mickey Mouse could have walked in and I wouldn't have cared!
Eventually by 8am ish I was starting to feel like pushing with contractions. I wasnt 100% sure I was feeling the urge to push though until they asked if I was and I said yes and they said go for it. So I pushed with contractions, still screaming and swearing and saying I can't do it. Until I felt my baby's head coming down! I could feel her head stretching the inside of my vagina, it felt like she's pretty much out, I shouted of midwives to say her head was there, they looked and said nope the head is not there. Angrily I was thinking, why lie! Her head is obviously there! I can feel it. This happened about 3 times, and a combination of them saying no head seen and also me being overwhelmed by the feeling of her head coming down led me to suck her back in rather than push her out (feel like I could have had her out in 2 pushes!)
Anyway when I did eventually decide to get her out, screaming the street down still, I pushed her head out in one push. I think this is when my waters went, I didn't feel it though. I shouted that the head was out! I moved my hand down and felt a head with lots and lots of floating hair. OH could not see as I was leaning over side of pool and had my arm around him but he was amazed that I could feel her head and her hair. One more contraction and the rest of her body was out. Midwife nudged her through my legs and encouraged me to catch her. She wiggled around in the water for a bit before I came around enough to catch her.
Out of the water she came, instantly screaming. I held her out in front of me at first, just staring at her. I didn't bring her to my chest I just held her out in front of me and looked at her. OH was crying and kissing her head and I was just looking at baby with mouth hanging open, watching her scream, unable to believe what had just happened. I birthed a baby!!!
It took me about 20 minutes to stop being in shock but only took her a few minutes, if that, to latch like a pro and start feeding! Cue 1 hour of mummy and baby skin to skin with cord still attached before midwife happily used the cord ties despite never having done before. OH cut the cord, took him ages lol.
Midwives had started panicking about my placenta still not being out. I hadn't realised they had some urgent time limit and as they started panicking and telling me to try get this placenta out I felt a bit overwhelmed as with all my research, retained placenta was something I had just never considered! I was feeling cramps/contractions but placenta didn't seem to want to come. It didn't help that I really did not want to push it out as when I felt like it might come, I realised I had tore. So I ended up scared to push it out but also now scared of threat of hospital transfer (really? After all that work to stay home!?)
So after the hour, I tried standing in the pool to deliver, tried on the sofa, on the toilet, on the bed in several positions, midwife tried pulling it out (bad idea I know, but with threat of transfer I didn't know what to do but agree. I also was being suggested a catheter, and the answer to that was hell no. So it was either pull the cord or transfer so they could pretty much do the same thing there!
After pulling cord failed, I requested baby back to feed (she was having screeching skin to skin time with OH downstairs at this point), all to no avail. On came talk of transferring to hospital. I requested to be left alone, just me, OH and baby for 5 mins to try pushing it out with no added pressure, OH looking to see if it was coming down to no avail. Hospital transfer seemed imminent now!
But alas doula saves the day! She comes up and informs me midwives have agreed to either an extra half hour with the injection, or without it. I agreed to try injection despite it apparently not being very effective after the hour and a half or so that had passed. Midwives were all keen to avoid transfer! My community midwife even showed up at this point to join in the fun lol so there was like 5 or 6 midwives in my house all wanting to know how the story ended!
Regretted the needle when it kicked up the cramps a notch and I already wasn't particularly enjoying them. Midwife said placenta was just pretty much sitting in my vagina so clamped it and pulled it out, hurt a lot! And came with a tidal wave of blood that might have ruined our mattress, sheets and memory foam mattress topper! But it was out and transfer was avoided woohoo! My home birth became a success and not a transfer story!
Midwives were all very pleased and so impressed with my wonderful baby girl who is a natural at breastfeeding! She weighs 7lbs 9oz, 19.5 inches long, born at home in water at 08.25am (head born at 08.22am) on 11/11/2014. She was absolutely amazing all of the way through labour, never any concern for her movements or her heartrate. She is totally perfect. Scored 99% on her oxygen test too!
I spent the rest of the day in an emotional weepy mess, as did OH a bit. Seeing him as a daddy just melts my heart! So pleased I got my home birth. OH was amazing all of the way through, very grateful to doula who kept the kettles of hot water coming allowing my OH to stay with me, and also for her basically saving the day by getting midwives to agree to the extra 30 minutes with injection.
So I was having totally painless but regular (4-5 minutes apart) Braxton Hicks all day until OH got home when they started being slightly painful. They got more and more so until I really started to believe this was the real thing. OH lit candles and we had a cuddle which just stalled things (completely stopped them!) Thought it was another false start so had a total crying breakdown lol that I was going to be pregnant forever! OH decided it was necessary to take me for a walk around Tesco to take my mind off things. We did and as I was getting ready they started up again, strong enough to stop me from walking, but we went anyway and wandered around, stopping every time I had a contraction and hoping random strangers didn't notice! Bought a couple of t shirts for baby with some clubcard vouchers we had and then back home we went!
OH started setting up birthing area and at about 12.30 he was pretty much done with the pool. I went to the toilet hoping that I wouldn't poop in the pool (oops I did anyway!) and contractions suddenly really picked up going from 4 mins apart to 2 mins apart straight away! I managed to get off the loo after a few lol and headed downstairs and got in the pool!
OH rang doula and we rant midwives not long later too to let them know things were happening but I didn't want them out yet. Doula arrived at 2.30 ish when contractions were becoming quite strong to the point of doubting if I was capable. Midwives came at 3.30ish at a guess, 2 plus some health worker of some sort? I didn't care, by this point I was starting to get quite noisy through contractions and didn't care who was there!
Contractions kept getting stronger and I kept getting louder. Cue transition, a few "I can't do it I can't do it!"s later I was asking for the gas and air (wasn't in my plan). Started puffing immediately which made me feel stoned at which point I started talking to the midwife for the first time other than just responding to her requests. Most their equipment was useless, the thermometer took almost as long as I had between contractions to beep, the blood pressure machine had a leak in it so wasn't very effective, and they dropped the doppler in the pool just before second stage and broke it and ended up using my angelsounds one with a pair of OHs headphones!
Anyway, being at the point of transition and so obviously not able to do it any more, I had G&A which made me feel stoned and high enough to ask to be examined! OH had kept asking midwives questions like how will we know she can push etc if she doesn't get exams etc. He wanted me to have exams as he was quite keen on knowing progress. So high on G&A I had an internal, this was at 5am.
Yikes was painful! MW was moving her hands around baby's head and it hurt a lot. I wonder if she might have sweeped me without asking but by this point I didn't care. She asked how far I'd want to be on scale of 1-7cm dilated, I said 7 obviously! She said good because you are! I CRIED with overwhelming hormonal joy at this point! And then got back in the pool.
Contractions were getting stronger and stronger all the time. By now I was screaming through contractions, literally SCREAMING I couldn't help it. OH kept pushing the gas and air in my face as I was thrashing around with the pain, which pissed me off as the gas and air didn't help the pain at all, in fact by this point I didn't know why I was taking it so just stopped in favour of screaming and shouting "I can't do it!" through contractions instead (I would have been amazing on One Born Every Minute!)
Cue a shift change but the old MWs stuck around after their time as I think they were anxious to see the end result knowing I was close. Had like 5 midwives in the room by that point but was beyond caring. Contractions were constant with no let up in between so Mickey Mouse could have walked in and I wouldn't have cared!
Eventually by 8am ish I was starting to feel like pushing with contractions. I wasnt 100% sure I was feeling the urge to push though until they asked if I was and I said yes and they said go for it. So I pushed with contractions, still screaming and swearing and saying I can't do it. Until I felt my baby's head coming down! I could feel her head stretching the inside of my vagina, it felt like she's pretty much out, I shouted of midwives to say her head was there, they looked and said nope the head is not there. Angrily I was thinking, why lie! Her head is obviously there! I can feel it. This happened about 3 times, and a combination of them saying no head seen and also me being overwhelmed by the feeling of her head coming down led me to suck her back in rather than push her out (feel like I could have had her out in 2 pushes!)
Anyway when I did eventually decide to get her out, screaming the street down still, I pushed her head out in one push. I think this is when my waters went, I didn't feel it though. I shouted that the head was out! I moved my hand down and felt a head with lots and lots of floating hair. OH could not see as I was leaning over side of pool and had my arm around him but he was amazed that I could feel her head and her hair. One more contraction and the rest of her body was out. Midwife nudged her through my legs and encouraged me to catch her. She wiggled around in the water for a bit before I came around enough to catch her.
Out of the water she came, instantly screaming. I held her out in front of me at first, just staring at her. I didn't bring her to my chest I just held her out in front of me and looked at her. OH was crying and kissing her head and I was just looking at baby with mouth hanging open, watching her scream, unable to believe what had just happened. I birthed a baby!!!
It took me about 20 minutes to stop being in shock but only took her a few minutes, if that, to latch like a pro and start feeding! Cue 1 hour of mummy and baby skin to skin with cord still attached before midwife happily used the cord ties despite never having done before. OH cut the cord, took him ages lol.
Midwives had started panicking about my placenta still not being out. I hadn't realised they had some urgent time limit and as they started panicking and telling me to try get this placenta out I felt a bit overwhelmed as with all my research, retained placenta was something I had just never considered! I was feeling cramps/contractions but placenta didn't seem to want to come. It didn't help that I really did not want to push it out as when I felt like it might come, I realised I had tore. So I ended up scared to push it out but also now scared of threat of hospital transfer (really? After all that work to stay home!?)
So after the hour, I tried standing in the pool to deliver, tried on the sofa, on the toilet, on the bed in several positions, midwife tried pulling it out (bad idea I know, but with threat of transfer I didn't know what to do but agree. I also was being suggested a catheter, and the answer to that was hell no. So it was either pull the cord or transfer so they could pretty much do the same thing there!
After pulling cord failed, I requested baby back to feed (she was having screeching skin to skin time with OH downstairs at this point), all to no avail. On came talk of transferring to hospital. I requested to be left alone, just me, OH and baby for 5 mins to try pushing it out with no added pressure, OH looking to see if it was coming down to no avail. Hospital transfer seemed imminent now!
But alas doula saves the day! She comes up and informs me midwives have agreed to either an extra half hour with the injection, or without it. I agreed to try injection despite it apparently not being very effective after the hour and a half or so that had passed. Midwives were all keen to avoid transfer! My community midwife even showed up at this point to join in the fun lol so there was like 5 or 6 midwives in my house all wanting to know how the story ended!
Regretted the needle when it kicked up the cramps a notch and I already wasn't particularly enjoying them. Midwife said placenta was just pretty much sitting in my vagina so clamped it and pulled it out, hurt a lot! And came with a tidal wave of blood that might have ruined our mattress, sheets and memory foam mattress topper! But it was out and transfer was avoided woohoo! My home birth became a success and not a transfer story!
Midwives were all very pleased and so impressed with my wonderful baby girl who is a natural at breastfeeding! She weighs 7lbs 9oz, 19.5 inches long, born at home in water at 08.25am (head born at 08.22am) on 11/11/2014. She was absolutely amazing all of the way through labour, never any concern for her movements or her heartrate. She is totally perfect. Scored 99% on her oxygen test too!
I spent the rest of the day in an emotional weepy mess, as did OH a bit. Seeing him as a daddy just melts my heart! So pleased I got my home birth. OH was amazing all of the way through, very grateful to doula who kept the kettles of hot water coming allowing my OH to stay with me, and also for her basically saving the day by getting midwives to agree to the extra 30 minutes with injection.
