Maria’s Positive Birth
? FTM 40+1 ? Hormone Drip
? Positive birth experience ?
Can’t believe I’m writing my story!
Although things didn’t go all to plan I can certainly draw out positive experience from my labour and birth.
Waters broke on due date 27th December at 6.45pm whilst watching only fools and horses ???
Had it confirmed by a midwife at the delivery suite that it was my waters and got sent back home to naturally progress, if not induction would start 24 hours later.
So happily, I went back home at 9pm, carried on with my night having a bite to eat and watching telly. Surges and period type pains started to progress quite quickly. Husband and I started to use distraction techniques using massage, tens machine – which I used right up to the very end of my labor and was fab! Don’t think I even needed it on full for the most part! Surges seemed to progress quite quickly at home and didn’t seem to get much rest in between, however I found them bareable once I focused my mind on my breathing, got my music on and tens machine I knew I had my plan.
I even remember telling a contraction “you will not defeat me I will hold my baby in my arms “ ?? husband must have thought I was mad.
After hours of laboring at home I felt the surges calm a little and I managed to grab about 15 minutes of sleep which felt like a lifetime! However when I woke up I suddenly felt like they had got a lot stronger and so phoned ahead the delivery suite for guidance.
Arrived at the delivery suite about 6.30am They told me I could come in to be assessed to my surprise I had done a whole 3cm at home!! Which I was so happy with ! When I got there I chose to have some codiene to help with pain, which it really did relax me. However, due to a problem with baby plotting just under on my growth chart I wasn’t able to have my water birth and had to be hooked up to a monitor to progress. However, I wasn’t too fussed by this part as I was progressing and that’s all that mattered to me. The next few hours I was still having contractions but remember the codiene taking the edge off. Unfortunately, the next time I got checked I hadn’t progressed any further even after hours of surges but I chose to let go of what I couldn’t control! As I hadn’t progressed as quickly as the midwife wanted (due to concerns with baby’s growth) I was started on a hormone drip which I did dread but I thought if it gets baby here quicker and safer why not and I’ve done this far …. totally got this!
At this point I asked for more codeine and diamorphine (which I couldn’t really feel do anything for me). The drip was ok, it started off slow again and gradually picked up. I used gas and air too which felt like I’d had a wine or two haha ? and allowed me to focus again on breathing.
Before I knew it, I was 9/5 – 10cm and ready to push! Pushing was a big effort. I was tired by this point and needed assistance so a suction was used, which was ok.
And there we are, on the 28th December at 5.34pm our baby girl Ella was born weighing 7lbs 4oz. We couldn’t believe it. I think after going through labour my husband has a new found respect for me too, he can’t stop crying ?. All in all not a bad labour at all. I did most of it on codiene , paracetamol, gas and air and diamorphine. You have totally got this!
The course was an absolute god send. What a brilliant education to have. Thank you xx
For more information about The Bump to Baby Chapter’s Hypnobirthing and Antenatal Online Course. Know what you can do to stack the odds in your favour for the birth that you want. Videos, checklists, audios & a support group all created by a midwife to get you feeling excited, prepared and confident for birth.
