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first baby could have been worse!!

I was only just 21 when i was due to have my first baby. My mum had asked me if i had wanted to come out shopping and get my mind off the fact that i was already a week overdue. So we left to do some Christmas shopping, we had only been there an hour when i really felt constipated but i kept pushing on. About 15 minutes later i told my mum i think this is it and we started to head back to the car, by the time we got to the doors of the shopping center i was hurled over in agony , my mum got the car and picked me up at the door. whilst heading home i started timing contractions i was 8 minutes apart and lasting 30 seconds. We got home and i was 5 min apart and mum rang the hospital and they said its my first i am probably just not coping with the pain to sit down and rest and drink some water to get the baby moving as she had not moved all day. My mum called my partner and got him to come home after an hour i was having contractions ever 4 minutes so my mum rang the hospital and they said bring her in and we will check but if she is not dilated enough we are going to have to send her home.

We got in the car and headed towards the hospital i was in such agony it had all just come on so quick. When we got to the hospital the obstetrician on duty checked me out and told us i was only 2 cm but the midwife double checked and sure enough i was 9 cm and the doctor then agreed so i was admitted.

I was placed in a room where i was offered gas and air but no other pain meds as i was to far along so i just pushed through the pain. i was still 9cms after a couple of hours so the midwife told us she would just grab a bite to eat and be back in 10 min, as soon as she left the room my waters broke and my mum said that they did not look right so she ran to grab the midwife, as soon as they saw my waters they put me on the bed and called for the doctor as something was not right, i started to panic but then really needed to push so i was told to push if thats what i felt like doing, after 10 minutes i had my beautiful little girl, after the birth i found out what all the panic was about she came out breech bum first and the midwife had not delivered a breech bum first for a good 10 years so they had called the doctor to get me to go for an emergency c section but it was too late.


since ,my daughter i have had a little boy who i had a normal vaginal birth with and this time was able to get a pethidine shot to help but i still feel that my daughters labor was quicker and less painful than his. I am now expecting number 3 and can't wait to meet my new bub.

Candice

The pain

HELLO FOLKS!!

So I just had a child and there is a rough story that goes with the birth of little Grezelda!! i thought i was going to die...she was 13 pounds 5 oz. We all thought that it was going to be a quick birth but as she started coming, Grezelda just was so big that I didnt think I would be able to make it through the process. its all worth it now...we have a lovely daughter...huge but lovely! So no matter what you are going through, remember that in the end it is all woth it.
Have a good pregnancy:)

Martha Antoine

Birth without pain meds

I just recently gave birth to my second child, a boy. With my daughter I was induced and gave birth without any pain meds. I planned on doing it again with my second birth. I was hoping to not get induced, but my son had other ideas. My water broke on Holy Thursay at 5 in the morning. I went to L&D and they told me that my water had not broken. On Friday afternoon I went to my doctor who confirmed that my water had broken. Because it had broken for over 12 hours ago they decided to induce. I was bummed because I really wanted to have this baby totally naturally, without any kind of medicine. However, there I was with a Pitocin drip. I labored for 30 hours and then gave birth to my son. It was hard since I was in hard labor for 9 hours at the end.

Thankfully I had a wonderful support group (my husband and sister-in-law). After only a half hour of pushing I had my son. This sure beat the 3.5 hours I pushed with my daughter, only to be assisted with a vacuum...that was awful since I hadn't had any pain meds. All in all both experiences were wonderful and I do not regret any of the decisions I made. Our bodies are made for childbirth...yes it is very hard, but a labor of love!

Suzette

Delivery by forceps

I first met John in 1994 when he began year 9 at my local high school. We got on great as friends but didn't date until Dec 9th. 2 weeks later i left him to go overseas for 6 weeks. We continued our relationship after i came back. Around July 1995 i found out i was pregnant. we were both happy but very scared at the same time especially being so young. My mum found out and told me either to have an abortion and stay home and continue to finish my schooling if not i would have to leave home. she was thinking i would have no choice but choose her way. I ended up packing my bags. John took me home to his parents and they accepted me with no questions asked.

My due date past in the begining of April 1996 and still no baby. i was worried sick. Then on 11th of April at 9pm at night i started to have mild cramps. They continued through the night like that until i had enough of the pain and hoped into a hot bath to sooth my pain. I got out, rang the hospital and they told me to come in, so i woke up john, his parents and little sister. It was pouring down hard with rain and thunder, and we got to hospital at 4am. i didn't have baby until the next afternoon at 5.18pm on 12th April 1996! It was a very painful and long labor. Being my 1st baby i didn't know how to push or anything about contractions so the baby ended up having to be delivered by forceps. My baby boy came out with an enlong head shaped like a cone because of being in the tunnel for so long. i was lucky to get an epidural and it gave me no feelings at all and didnt know how or where to push when it was time!! 7yrs later we had a baby girl and it was the quickest labor for me! i was induced on the 6th of Nov 2003, after they put in the IV pitocin.

My parent in laws asked the midwife when about would baby arrive and he said late afternoon, because it was only morning my parents in law decided to go home and asked john to ring them to come in when its near time. John also decide to go downstair to move the car in case we got fined. By the time he got back i was 10cm dilated and ready to push! the pain was much faster and more intense this time around. I did scream out for an epidural but there was no time for ordering one and i was already starting to push so I had to go without. My baby girl came after a few pushes. She was perfect in every way!

3 yrs later i gave birth to a baby boy but by vaccume this time and right on father's day 2006! we were joking i would! My water broke when i stood up while cleaning my fridge. We rang the hospital and was told to go in straight away . When doctor did an internal he found the baby was up to high and wouldn't come down. John was extremely unhappy with this labor because he saw how much pain i was in when the doctor was doing the vaccume but worse yet was the baby. It looked to him like they were trying to rip out the baby's head! a lot of force was used.

Its March 2007 now and i am 6mths pregnant with our 4th baby and its a boy this time. I am praying for a natural birth this time. I have been very lucky to have John, he is such a wonderful father and partner. He helps to feed, change and bath the kids before and after work each day. i wouldn't have any more babies if he didn't help out. After 14yrs together we are still as in love as the day we first met! lucky i didn't take my mum's advice and dump him! my kids are now: 11yrs boy (12yr in a few wks) in 7th grade in high school, 4yr old girl in preschool and a 18 month old boy still at home with mummy. I love my kids and wouldnt have it any other way.

Tien

Number 11...things didn't turn out as I had planne

I am 37 yrs old and have just had my eleventh baby six weeks ago. I was due on February 8th 2008. But as you know they always let you go a week past your date. I had asked to be induced on Wednesday night or Thursday morning the week of my due date as my hubby was going to have a few days off from work and wouldn't have to call off to watch all our other kids while I went in. My doc called me the next morning and said the head docs gave the okay...but it was a few days sooner than what I asked for. So hub had to call off two days anyway. So I was to come in on Tuesday night at seven for a low dose of pit overnight...then start turning it up on Wednesday morning. That works best for me as I can't have the cervix gel or pill because I have asthma. So that low dose pit acts somewhat the same as that for me. I was having alot of contractions on my own before they even hooked me up to the pit, and once they did as luck would have it they became erratic and eventually stopped. I was checked and was only a two. I tried to sleep but as everyone knows those beds and belt monitors make it pretty much impossible to do so.

Anyway, next morning they started turning up as planned and the contractions started coming really strong pretty quick. They checked me again and much to my disssapointment still only a two. They wanted to break my water then...but I was afraid at only a two after all those intense contractions that I might not dialate and would have to have the dreaded c section as the doctor said once the waters were broke you are commited to delivery one way or another. And my joke with my doctors with everyone of my last five births is I don't care if you gotta reach up there and pull the baby out no c section!! And of course I was concerned with his head being engaged with it being so early on. And he reassured me they don't even consider breaking your water unless the head is there. And he assured me it was but I still refused and said I felt more comfortable waiting till I was a four dialated. So he respected my wishes and said think about it, maybe I'd change my mind. If not fine too. So they kept turning me up and they were really strong and getting hard for me to breathe through. Which was unusual for me as I can usually do the breathing till like a five dialation. But the nurse assured me every induction is different and the docter said I could have the epidural now even though I was only two cm.

At first I said no as I said I usually like to wait longer as to assure pain relief at the end of the delivery when it really hurts. As you know sometimes they wear off later on as the baby decends down. But after a few more intense ones I changed my mind and got the epidural. The epidural was one of the best ones I've had and I was really excited and thought to myself wow this is gonna be a piece of cake. After about two more contractions they checked me again and I was a four almost five. All in a matter of twenty minutes. I was excited and thought for once I'm gonna have a quick delivery!! Yay!! The resident came in and said she was going to break my water. I was on the phone with my grandma from Florida and told her I was a four to five had a great epidural but had to go cause they were going to break my water.

She broke my water and soon after the baby's heart rate dropped with my contraction. And she had a hard time getting his heart rate seperate from mine on the monitor belts. So she called a head docter down to put one of those little electrode things on his head to better monitor his heart rate. So when he came in he said I'm going to check her first. He said shes a six. He continued to feel and looked up at me and said we got a problem. The cords down over the head...you can't have this baby vaginally. I was like you"re kidding, well just move it. I guess not realizing the seriousness of it at first. He said I tried I can't. Although I'm not really sure he even did. Then from there it was rush rush rush.

My resident docter had to ride into the OR with her hand up my crotch holding his head up off his cord. I was scared to death of everything. Mostly the section as I still didn't really realize the seriousness of a cord prolapse. But they put me to sleep and the whole experience was terrible. I didn't even get to see him after he was born. And I awoke in such horrible pain from the section. Anyway to make a real long story short I really am having a hard time dealing with all of it. I hated not being able to come home and do everything I could always usually do after childbirth. I know I should just be thankful he came out healthy and alive even.

But I am so depressed over it and am now second guessing everything. Like maybe if I hadn't asked to be induced and waited to go on my own. Because I really feel like the resident doctor that broke my water didn't check to see if the head was engaged. Of course after when I asked her she said she did. But I honestly have doubts. And it takes me back to the head doctor that wanted to rupture me at two cm....maybe I should have let him do it then as I know he checked. And after research of cord prolapse I now see not letting them break your water at all no matter how many cm...unless fully dilated is the best way to avoid a prolapsed cord. Especially in my case as I've had ten vaginal babies before this last one. So even if his cord would have prolapsed with me being dialated at ten I could have gotten him out fast...I never push for more than maybe five minutes if that. I just can't seem to get over it. And now on top of all that I ended up with a hernia after the section which is the size of a softball by my belly button, which means more surgery...which I'm schedueled for on April 3rd. And I'm scared to death especially after just being put under and having the c section so recently. And it's going to be so hard having eleven kids and trying to not lift stuff for so long. My hub has two weeks vacation that he's taking but the not lifting part is a lot more time than that. I just wish I could turn back time....I feel so terrible. If anyone reading this has had an experience similar to mine please contact me. I hope somebody out there can relate...I feel so alone. Thanks, Dusty

Dusty