It all started with a craving, spicy noodles(aka two minute noddles, instant ramen etc or whatever you call them in your country). I didn't really have cravings as such during my pregnancy unless you count all the tomatoes that I ate so me requesting that my partner pick up some spicy noodles was a rare request.
Monday January 11th and I was now officially a week overdue. At my midwife's appointment that day my blood pressure, heart rate(suffered from Tachycardia during my first labour/delivery so midwife checked to get a base rate), pee, everything was fine. My feet were massive however and I could only fit in jandals(A.K.A flip flops or thongs). Baby's heartbeat was normal and it was head down(though not in an optimal position). I booked in to see my midwife the next day for a stretch and sweep and went home with some positions to try for turning the baby or my stretch and sweep wouldn't happen.
I spent a fair amount of Monday afternoon on my hand and knees in an attempt to get my baby from a slight back to back(posterior) position into a more favourable one. But they were a determined wee thing and wouldn't budge. Bear in mind however that while my son spent most of my pregnancy in the optimal position during labour he moved and was posterior making my labour and birth with him long and hard.
Monday evening rolled around and after an early dinner my partner and I were feeling a bit peckish again. E was in bed asleep and we were watching some tv when my partner decided he wanted pizza so went out to get some. I was craving those spicy noodles that I mentioned earlier so asked him to pick some up while he was out. About 20 minutes later he returned home with pizza and a 5 pack of spicy noddles. While my noodles were cooking I stole some of the pizza then gobbled up the whole bowl of spicy noodles. Man they tasted good. While I knew that they were in no way good for me I was beyond caring, I was fat, uncomfortable and running out of time until an induction needed to happen.
I finished my noodles and within 30 minutes I started to get contractions. Throughout the whole pregnancy I had had relatively painful braxton hicks contractions so I wasn't holding out much hope that these were the real deal. Due to a very stubborn baby being in a slight posterior position these "contractions" started in my back and then progressed round to my stomach. At about 11pm after approx 30-60 minutes of regular contractions I decided to try and get some sleep. At this stage they were lasting 30-40 seconds and were 3 minutes apart. I took a panadol(paracetamol) to try and relieve some of the discomfort and laid down in bed.
The contractions didn't ease and despite doing all the helpful positions during the day the baby didn't flip to a more favourable position until I had been lying down for a bit. I felt it move and suddenly the contractions were easier to deal with. They no longer centered in my back. Sleep became illusive as they became more intense and more frequent. By 1.45am when I called to midwife they were about 60-90 seconds in length and 3 minutes apart. My midwife had told me to call her once they were 5 minutes apart but they were never that far apart always 3 minutes right from the first one. We had a chat about how I was doing and then I talked to my partner.
We decided it was time to go to the birthing centre so text the midwife and took E over to the neighbours for the night. By 2.15am we were at the birthing center and all settled into the birthing suite.
I was very calm at this point, very collected, the total opposite to the birth of my son. I had the oil diffuser going with some calming lavender oil and I was breathing through my contractions, while walking around the birthing suite. I couldn't stay still, I just had to keep moving even when a contraction was upon me. I would just stand on the spot and sway my hips while I breathed in an out calmly. It was kind of a surreal experience.
At about 2.50am the pressure down there was starting to get a bit much so I decided that I wanted to get in to the birthing pool/bath. My birth plan had been to use the bath while in labour and then move elsewhere to actually give birth. But my body was telling me otherwise, I wanted to try the bath. As soon as I got in I relaxed and the pressure while still there was far more bearable.
I just concentrated on what my body was telling me. There was no " ok time to push, thats it keep pushing" etc from the midwife. In that moment when I realised mentally and physically I was ready to start pushing it was like a release of some bind that had been holding me back. At that moment I trusted myself and I trusted my body(it had kind of failed me a bit during the birth of E) and I began to push.
Not long after I got into the birthing pool and felt the true need to push my baby was born. I had done it, I had conquered all my fears that my body wouldn't hold out like last time and I would need an assisted birth again. I had released all the negative thoughts that was holding me back and embraced what my body had told me to do. Giving birth had been a massively empowering experience. I had read multiple stories about empowering births and that amazing feeling that you could get, but I never experienced that with E's birth. I don't and never have felt disappointed by the type of birth that I had with E. I had tried, I couldn't cope and had needed help and I have always been fine with that. Sure I would have liked to have had an all natural empowering birth but for me to cope with what the universe had dealt me birth wise I needed an epidural(though ended up being a spinal block), I needed the help of the forceps and I needed all the drugs afterwards.
This time round however the universe dealt me a different set of cards. The labour while being more intense, was easier to cope with. It was shorter, 4hrs and approximately 45 minutes from first contraction to the birth of my baby. I only pushed a couple of times before the baby was born. I did it and the only pain medication I tried was a panadol(paracetamol) when I had attempted sleep at the start of labour. Sure I was exhausted, but I had done what I had once thought impossible. I had birthed my baby without any medical interventions or any pain relief. The only unfavourable bit this time was having to get stitches for a minor tear along my old episiotomy scar from E birth.
At 3.13am on Tuesday January 12th we welcomed a little baby girl, C into the world. And while she may be nearly 6 months old when this is posted, she still amazes me, just like she did when I first laid eyes on her.
So for any of you pregnant ladies out there wanting to know my secret of how I coped this is what I did. I spent the whole labour thinking and chanting in my head " I made it through the last contraction I can make it through this one". I just keep repeating that in my head while concentrating on breathing in and out. I found it helped to concentrate on the breathing rather than the pain. I have always been a firm believer of the power of positive thought and it worked. Now it may not work for you and you may require a c-section or possibly an epidural to cope with the pain but just remember no matter what type of birth you have, all births are magical as all babies are miracles.
Comment below with your story, how did your birth go? Was it exactly as you planned, or did nothing go the way you had wanted?
Monday January 11th and I was now officially a week overdue. At my midwife's appointment that day my blood pressure, heart rate(suffered from Tachycardia during my first labour/delivery so midwife checked to get a base rate), pee, everything was fine. My feet were massive however and I could only fit in jandals(A.K.A flip flops or thongs). Baby's heartbeat was normal and it was head down(though not in an optimal position). I booked in to see my midwife the next day for a stretch and sweep and went home with some positions to try for turning the baby or my stretch and sweep wouldn't happen.
I spent a fair amount of Monday afternoon on my hand and knees in an attempt to get my baby from a slight back to back(posterior) position into a more favourable one. But they were a determined wee thing and wouldn't budge. Bear in mind however that while my son spent most of my pregnancy in the optimal position during labour he moved and was posterior making my labour and birth with him long and hard.
Monday evening rolled around and after an early dinner my partner and I were feeling a bit peckish again. E was in bed asleep and we were watching some tv when my partner decided he wanted pizza so went out to get some. I was craving those spicy noodles that I mentioned earlier so asked him to pick some up while he was out. About 20 minutes later he returned home with pizza and a 5 pack of spicy noddles. While my noodles were cooking I stole some of the pizza then gobbled up the whole bowl of spicy noodles. Man they tasted good. While I knew that they were in no way good for me I was beyond caring, I was fat, uncomfortable and running out of time until an induction needed to happen.
I finished my noodles and within 30 minutes I started to get contractions. Throughout the whole pregnancy I had had relatively painful braxton hicks contractions so I wasn't holding out much hope that these were the real deal. Due to a very stubborn baby being in a slight posterior position these "contractions" started in my back and then progressed round to my stomach. At about 11pm after approx 30-60 minutes of regular contractions I decided to try and get some sleep. At this stage they were lasting 30-40 seconds and were 3 minutes apart. I took a panadol(paracetamol) to try and relieve some of the discomfort and laid down in bed.
The contractions didn't ease and despite doing all the helpful positions during the day the baby didn't flip to a more favourable position until I had been lying down for a bit. I felt it move and suddenly the contractions were easier to deal with. They no longer centered in my back. Sleep became illusive as they became more intense and more frequent. By 1.45am when I called to midwife they were about 60-90 seconds in length and 3 minutes apart. My midwife had told me to call her once they were 5 minutes apart but they were never that far apart always 3 minutes right from the first one. We had a chat about how I was doing and then I talked to my partner.
We decided it was time to go to the birthing centre so text the midwife and took E over to the neighbours for the night. By 2.15am we were at the birthing center and all settled into the birthing suite.
I was very calm at this point, very collected, the total opposite to the birth of my son. I had the oil diffuser going with some calming lavender oil and I was breathing through my contractions, while walking around the birthing suite. I couldn't stay still, I just had to keep moving even when a contraction was upon me. I would just stand on the spot and sway my hips while I breathed in an out calmly. It was kind of a surreal experience.
At about 2.50am the pressure down there was starting to get a bit much so I decided that I wanted to get in to the birthing pool/bath. My birth plan had been to use the bath while in labour and then move elsewhere to actually give birth. But my body was telling me otherwise, I wanted to try the bath. As soon as I got in I relaxed and the pressure while still there was far more bearable.
I just concentrated on what my body was telling me. There was no " ok time to push, thats it keep pushing" etc from the midwife. In that moment when I realised mentally and physically I was ready to start pushing it was like a release of some bind that had been holding me back. At that moment I trusted myself and I trusted my body(it had kind of failed me a bit during the birth of E) and I began to push.
Not long after I got into the birthing pool and felt the true need to push my baby was born. I had done it, I had conquered all my fears that my body wouldn't hold out like last time and I would need an assisted birth again. I had released all the negative thoughts that was holding me back and embraced what my body had told me to do. Giving birth had been a massively empowering experience. I had read multiple stories about empowering births and that amazing feeling that you could get, but I never experienced that with E's birth. I don't and never have felt disappointed by the type of birth that I had with E. I had tried, I couldn't cope and had needed help and I have always been fine with that. Sure I would have liked to have had an all natural empowering birth but for me to cope with what the universe had dealt me birth wise I needed an epidural(though ended up being a spinal block), I needed the help of the forceps and I needed all the drugs afterwards.
This time round however the universe dealt me a different set of cards. The labour while being more intense, was easier to cope with. It was shorter, 4hrs and approximately 45 minutes from first contraction to the birth of my baby. I only pushed a couple of times before the baby was born. I did it and the only pain medication I tried was a panadol(paracetamol) when I had attempted sleep at the start of labour. Sure I was exhausted, but I had done what I had once thought impossible. I had birthed my baby without any medical interventions or any pain relief. The only unfavourable bit this time was having to get stitches for a minor tear along my old episiotomy scar from E birth.
At 3.13am on Tuesday January 12th we welcomed a little baby girl, C into the world. And while she may be nearly 6 months old when this is posted, she still amazes me, just like she did when I first laid eyes on her.
 |
| Me and baby C 24hrs after birth. |
So for any of you pregnant ladies out there wanting to know my secret of how I coped this is what I did. I spent the whole labour thinking and chanting in my head " I made it through the last contraction I can make it through this one". I just keep repeating that in my head while concentrating on breathing in and out. I found it helped to concentrate on the breathing rather than the pain. I have always been a firm believer of the power of positive thought and it worked. Now it may not work for you and you may require a c-section or possibly an epidural to cope with the pain but just remember no matter what type of birth you have, all births are magical as all babies are miracles.
Comment below with your story, how did your birth go? Was it exactly as you planned, or did nothing go the way you had wanted?
