Shontelle’s Positive Birth; Hormone Drip for Placenta Delivery

Love reading positive birth stories? You’re in the right place! This birth story is with second-time mum Shontelle who delivered her second baby girl, Ava, at 40 weeks and 4 days. She delivered in UFO position (upright, forward and open), using gas&air for pain relief. Shontelle had a hormone drip following her daughter’s birth to help with her placenta delivery following a previous retained placenta with her first birth.

*brief mention of previous trauma-retained placenta*

Early Labour

I was 40+3 & feeling fed up that the baby we’d all said was going to be early was still in my tummy with no signs that she was going to be making her appearance. The thought of anything other than spontaneous labour made me nervous so I tried to keep myself occupied. I took my daughter to nursery for 8:15am. After coming home I couldn’t sit still. I pulled the sofas out, cleaned the window shutters slat by slat, hoovered the house top to bottom, sorted washing, wardrobes and hospital bags… The list went on.

At 7pm I fell asleep on the sofa, absolutely exhausted. I had a stinging type back pain and deep down, I knew what was to come but I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I woke at 3.22am with my first contraction. It automatically took me back to my first contraction with my first labour. Initially I felt a wave of anxiety but that soon passed and excitement kicked in. The tightening across my hips and tummy lasted about 40 seconds. As soon as it wore off I tried to take myself back to bed. By the time I was comfy, I was back up swaying and slowly crouched down with the intensity.

Using Hypnobirthing Techniques

My husband was due to wake for work at 4am so I told myself if the contractions stayed strong and regular up until then, I’d tell him it was the start. His alarm went off, the contractions had gone from 10 minutes to 8 minutes and were lasting between 30-60 seconds and were strong enough to stop me talking. I used my hypnobirthing breathing techniques. In for 4 out for 7. I already noticed a huge difference in how I was handling each contraction this time round. There was no panic, no holding my breath, I just breathed through each one and tried to keep focussed, visualising waves and reminding myself that it would soon peak and the intensity would lessen.  

We went downstairs, I put my favourite candle on – Jo Malone, sweet almond. I bounced on the birthing ball and put friends on the tele; hoping to get my oxytocin flowing! My husband made us both a cuppa and the contractions continued coming regularly and intensifying over short periods of time. Leaning over the birthing ball and rocking was really helpful. I was determined to be upright so I paced around the front room and used the stairs to lean up, breathing deeply every time. I’m still in shock at how much this helped!! We called the hospital delivery suite and they asked all the usual questions. Hearing that I wasn’t able to talk through the contractions and that they were regular at a few minutes apart lasting 45 seconds, they asked us to come in for an assessment. Luckily my mum & sister had already arrived at 5.45am to look after our daughter. 

Heading to the Hospital

6.35am- we were packed and ready to go. My contractions were getting stronger but staying regular, now every 3 minutes or so. I kissed my big girl on her head and told her we’d be home with her baby sister very soon. This was the hardest part – leaving my daughter with all the thoughts and feelings of what had happened in her labour, worrying about what could be. I had a little cry in the car (between contractions!!). I was worried but I put myself back in the zone. 

Reminded myself that I could do it, my body was ready and so was I.”

We arrived at the hospital for 7am, were quickly shown to our own room and settled down. At 7.10am they requested to examine me. I was desperate to know if I was in active labour and I was! 6cm! Thank goodness for that. I’d had thoughts of having the epidural because the contractions were so raw, so different to how I felt in my previous labour, but wanted to wait to see how far along I’d made it in the 4 hours since labour began. I never ruled out pain relief but wanted to make sure I remembered to use EBRAN if necessary.

Changing Position; UFO

I was laying sideways on the bed and didn’t feel I had the energy to move. A student midwife recommended being up and over the bed with my knees wide apart. I could’ve kissed her for pushing me to do this, it was the position I planned to use for birth and I’m so glad she encouraged me to do so! 

Pain Relief

Gas and air got me through each contraction, breathing in a deep breath for 4 seconds and out for 7. The distraction was so welcome at this point. It kept me calm, focussed and really took the edge off between the contractions. The midwives were amazing, leaving me to do what I felt I needed to. I asked for some pain relief for the stinging in my back. Deep down I knew I was coming to my transition phase & looking back, I don’t think I needed pain relief but was feeling overwhelmed. My midwife suggested sterile water injections and I agreed as I didn’t want pethidine (personal choice). I heard the midwife say to another, by the time she’d have prepped the injections, baby will be born. I needed that. 

Baby’s Magical Arrival

I felt a huge rush of adrenaline and a sudden urge to push. My waters were bulging and with two pushes they burst, the immediate release of pressure was immense and gave me the next level of energy to push baby out. There was an intense feeling in my back at this point, like a bearing down heaviness. I told the midwives and they said it was baby girl rotating down the birth canal.

Within a few more pushes, our baby girls head was crowning (ouch! Bit stingy but over very quickly!). She was then out to her eyebrows, then nose, shoulders and out! She had done her first poo during labour so the doctors were very quick to take her and suction any meconium that may have entered her mouth/ears/nose etc. Once she was born she was between my legs and the midwives asked me to pick her up, this was a moment I’ll never, ever forget.

A huge feeling of love and adoration came over me for this beautiful bundle. However, the panic struck when I saw her being given oxygen and not hearing a cry. She was taken away from me quickly following cutting her cord. The doctors and nurses reassured me that all was fine and she just needed a little bit of help to clear everything away. I cried and screamed until I heard it, her little murmur. Those short moments felt like a lifetime! That overprotective mum feeling was already there. 

Having the Hormone Drip for my Placenta Delivery

When she was placed on me I had a rush of emotion, feeling like I was on top of the world whilst wishing for my placenta to come away quickly because those fears of a retained placenta and haemorrhage happening again were creeping in quickly. I had the injection in my thigh, quick and painless and the nurses asked my permission despite it being in my birth plan which I really appreciated. My cannula in my hand (due to previous birth complication) had come out during labour so the nurse redone it and put the hormone drip straight on to help my uterus contract and encourage my placenta to come away. I didn’t feel any change in pain at all with this. 

Ten minutes later and lots of questions asked… “is everything okay?, is it coming out? Can I do anything to help?” The midwives told me to give some short pushes and my placenta came out! What a relief. I remember distinctly reading Beth say about letting your placenta come away, trying not to tense up but relaxing and preparing yourself the way you do for birth, and I did this… it worked. I am so thankful for it. 

Thank you to The Birth Chapter

I couldn’t be more grateful to Beth for this course. 

I’ll always feel happy and positive about my labour and birth, mainly because I understood everything that happened and felt in control of every step.”

In my previous birth I didn’t feel prepared, I didn’t know what was happening at each stage and I went in with a blind approach because as a first time mum, I didn’t know how important it is to have a toolkit ready for labour/birth. I am so glad I found The Bump to Baby Chapter, I genuinely feel that I enjoyed my labour and birth experience because of what I’d learned from Beth. 

Welcome to the world, our Ava Shannon.

Click the link 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.