Birth Stories
Ciara and Anna’s Induction Birth Story
Hi Elaine ,
Just sitting here waiting to be discharged so thought no time like it to write the birth story.
So yet again my due date came and went and I was sure I was in for another 42 week pregnancy. But she didn't keep us waiting that long.
This labour was very different from my first. It started very slowly. Waters broke on Monday night at 9:00pm.
I was in no rush to get to the Coombe , as I knew they'd admit me , so I tried to rest and get a good nights sleep. At 3:00am , I was excited to be woken by some sharp pains and I thought this was it , but no they came and went and then I had absolutely nothing , no little twinge at all. At 9:00am I rang the Coombe and of course they said come on in to be assessed , again I was in no rush. My husband had to take a work call, we both showered and got Mia sorted. We arrived at the Coombe at about 10:30am (still no pains at all) They said that they would give me until 3pm and if nothing started they would put me on antibiotics. I agreed to this. So off we went bouncing and walking. 3 pm came and went without any sign of a little twinge. At this stage I just knew nothing was going to start. They said that they would induce me at 9:00pm (a full 24 hours after my waters broke) So as the evening went on I gave up on the bouncing and walking and thought it best to save all my energy for the night ahead. I listened to gentlebirth and tried to stay calm. At 10pm, I was brought to the delivery room. I have to admit all the waiting made me very anxious but I kept listening to the tracks. Induction started at midnight , contractions started about 1am. They were very hard and fast with little to no break in between. I was hooked up to a drip and the monitors. But I just ignored all the wires and let the midwife adjust as she needed. I wasn't going to stop it from letting me move.I experimented with a few different positions. The ball wasn't doing anything. The midwife was so kind and she got me a thick yoga mat so I kneeled on the floor against the bed. Lots of hip circles and figure 8s helped a lot.As the contractions got harder the midwife suggested all fours on the bed. So I switched. This worked very well.
The monitor showed a drop in heart rate so she asked me to lie on my left side which I refused to do but then agreed and I think the change in position helped her as little Anna was born pretty much straight away at 2:36am weighing 7lb 8 so not quite the monster baby I was told I was having
Thank you so much for all your advice and the really enjoyable classes. Good luck to all the girls and Anna and I will see you in baby massage.