Now for the story...
Well... I had my fifth sweep on Thursday with the consultant - sorry for TMI but his hands were like shovels no wonder it put me into labour!
Started getting pains around tea time, so jumped on the birthing ball to try and encourage them...
about 11pm started contracting every 5 minutes so tried to get some rest in bed...
Ended up on the birthing ball again as was too uncomfortable, and they progressed until about 2am when i popped round to my midwifes house (2nd mum) and she confirmed i was 3cm and in very early labour...
Went home and tried to rest, doing my hypnobirthing cd etc - pains got bad so got a bath 4 until 6.30am!
everyone got up about half 7 so went downstairs adn decided it was time to go to hospital...
Got to hospital for 8 oclock and met Jan my midwife who checked me over and told me i was 5cm, also told me she had spoken to her boss and i was fine to have my waterbirth (woohoo)!
Jan broke my waters, and turned out there was fresh Meconium - so pool birth out the window and regular monitoring on the baby... she was perfectly fine!
No pain relief at all and left for 3 hours to see what goin on, after 3 hours i was no progressing as i should have been - should have been about 8cm but was only 6 and hit the action line followed by all of a sudden having huge pains in my back.
MW examined me to find baby had flipped over and was OP - hence the pain in my back... with the SPD i was really starting to not cope and hypnobirthing was going out the window - dscussed with Jan as she was worried i would panic etc and she thought it best i have an epidural just so i could relax...
Spent 40 minutes trying to get epidural in after i being put in twice in the wrong place - so much so i screamed at one point as it was to the left of my spine and i was having shooting pains up my spine and down my legs - wonderful!
Eventually they got it in and dosed me up..
Jan had to put monitor on babies head as as soon as the epidural medication went in babies heartbeat dropped right down...
Heartbeat went back up after few minutes just as the epidural stopped working and the pains came back...
the machine wasnt workign so they had to get another pump and top me back up - babies heart beat dropped again and so Jan had head midwife in adn peadiatrician etc...
They were monioring heartbeat as evertime i contracted babies heartbeat was dropped 15 seconds or so after and so causing concern...
after a short while epidural stopped working again - turned out it wasnt the pump it just wasnt working - so turned it off and Jan went to get me some Pethedine to take the edge off...
While she was out the room i felt like iw as going to poop sorry tmi and then got a huge urge to push...
Peter ran out to get Jan who came back to find i was 10cm and babies head was literally cm's away...
as heartbeat still dropping she grabbed the head midwife who came in and they decided i was going to need some help delivering and they were going to get the Ventouse...
I was heartbroken and asked to be able to try to push while they set up - they said this was fine and they would give me a minute or two...
So, Jan became mummy Jan and got me focused - told me she was delivering this baby - not them - and that we were having the natural birth i wanted...
By this time i had no pain relief but was coping as was determined to get my baby out wihout interfearance...
So...
1st contraction - I pushed like my life depended on it, and all the midwives stopped and were shouting "shes moving her - shes doing it"... 3 pushes and contraction over, but Jan could see the head - she was really focused telling me i could get this baby out before they had set up the Ventouse and that i just had to really push...
2ns contraction brought the babies head half way out, when i started panting etc but then her heartbeat dropped again so jan said had to get her out right away had one last chance to push before they were going to have to pull her out...
3rd contraction came and she shot out from half her head being out to all the way!
All in all i was pushing for 6 minutes - and she was out and perfect - peadiatrician took her and examined her becuase of the Mec and low heart beat - she ws absolutely wonderful and wondering what al the fuss was about - not a thing wrong!
I am so so proud of myself as Jan said that she didnt think i would have been able to get her out as can take up to 2 hours to get first baby out - hence her getting Ventouse ready etc...
Over the moon that i could do it myself adn get my princess out into safety...
Sorry for the super long post but it was quite a traumatic day!
Had special obs over night for low blood sugars etc but her readings were all fine and at 12 hours old they left her alone!
My beautiful girl was born at 4.28pm on her due date 11.2.2010 weighing a beautiful 8lbs!
Thankyou for reading!
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