** WARNING ** Graphic explanation of my labour and following experiences.
Understandably I have been a bit slack at blogging because…. Baby Black was born on 30th November 2013.
My labour… WHAT can I say….It was pretty traumatic due to the length of the labour but in the end everything was fine.
I laboured from Thursday morning 28th (my due date!!) right through to Saturday night when he was born so a very long time!!
So, I started some sporadic contractions on the 27th, but officially starting continuous contractions in the early hours of the morning on the 28th. I went to hospital at midnight on the 29th (night of the 28th but morning of the 29th), and despite having what the midwife said were strong contractions 2minutes apart I was actually only 1cm dilated. Considering I had been contracting ALL fricking day I was devastated!
So I was sent home with paracetamol and codeine. I continued to contract through the night every 4 minutes, by 3:30pm on the 29th I was so exhausted and in so much pain that I couldn’t take it any more, so we went back to hospital despite the contractions only being 7-8 minutes apart. When I got to hospital I was STILL only 2 cm dilated, so they gave me a sweep and suggested that I should have a single shot of morphine so that I could at least sleep through for a few hours. So I took it as I had been awake for 36 hours and had had contractions the previous night (27th) so had barely slept that night either. I sort of slept – if you count waking up every 4 minutes to record a contraction!!
At some point in the middle of the night on the 29th (morning of the 30th) they discovered I was 4cm dilated and officially in active labour, however I was in a LOT of pain, which is when they discovered that he was back to back…. explaining why it was taking so long for me to dilate as at this point id been contracting for two straight days with just that shot of morphine and some paracetamol!! (the other reason the labour took so long is that he was really big – but i will explain that later)
My waters broke at some point between 2 and 4am on the morning of the 30th I forget when exactly, but that is when the real pain began it was excruciating I mean really like nothing I’d ever felt. I threw up a full litre of liquid I was in so much pain, so I was given gas an air (a hilarious couple of hours that my wife can regale humorous stories about me demanding to buy the gas and air and waving the tube around and shaking my bump!) I managed to get in the pool (where I wanted my birth) for all of about 10 minutes.
They discovered my cervix was swollen and I had halted dilation at 4cm and wasn’t getting any further. I then asked for an epidural because after 48 hours and then being told he was back to back and not dilating any more I gave up (sad to say) but I literally didn’t have anything left and I was in agony. As it happened they would of given me one anyway because as soon as they put it in they also hooked me up to a syntocinon drip because my waters had broken they couldn’t allow my dilation to stop. Due to the exhaustion however all my veins collapsed in my hands and they had to get an anaesthetist to canula me… think i ended up with 5 failed canulars in total!
My active labour stage was 20 hours…. so I continued to contract from when the epi was put in at 6 or 7am until 9pm that night when he was born. But I was a bit rubbish at pressing the epidural button so I still had a lot of movement in my legs, and knew when I was contracting.
Unfortunately at this point I began to spike a fever due to some unknown infection or other, so they started IV antibiotics but not in time for them all to get through to the baby, so we ended up having to stay in hospital for a week. Baby A also then got jaundice so was under a lamp for the best part of a day.
So the actual birth… I had stopped pressing the epidural button about an hour before I started to push because I wanted to still at least feel part of the need to push. Which I am happy to say I could – I was telling the midwife when I felt like I wanted to push and I was always right –
It took 55 minutes of pushing and thankfully despite a ridiculously long labour I did it, by myself, no assistance needed (except an epidural!) which I am sad that I had to use, but it was necessary anyway in the end.
The midwife said she was very impressed and couldn’t believe I was hiding such a whopper of a baby in there!!
He was born at 20:49 on the 30th November weighing 9lb1oz
My body is totally massacred though, I have some muscle separation but considering his size its not really a surprise!! So I have been referred to a physio in Jan, amazingly because I didn’t panic the Midwife was able to control my delivery and I only had a minor tear 4 stitches – 2 inside 2 out. But I had several grazes and part of my labia ripped/tore off and it wasn’t spotted until I examined myself several days later so it had healed unfortunately – so I feel a bit wounded over that. I am layered in stretch mark scars too. But the worst body torture which could of ended up with me in hospital was a retained placenta. I kept telling the midwives that something was wrong down below, and I was examined twice, but they couldn’t see anything wrong. Well a few days later I started to develop what can only be described as a tongue dangling out of my vagina – I was incredibly concerned that they had failed to stitch a piece of vaginal wall back in or something. The day after leaving hospital a midwife is meant to visit you – It got to 4pm and I started to think that no one was coming, so I phoned the hospital and doctors surgery and they sent the on call midwife…
Now this was actually my community midwife much to my horror – She is incredibly attractive, and I remember saying to the wife how mortified I would be if she ever had to examine me!
Well anyway after a hilarious few minutes trying to find said tongue – which had disappeared she grabbed the end and asked me to cough and much to my horror I felt a long warm sensation – I thought I had urinated on her! – I hadn’t!! She pulled out half of baby A’s membrane one of the largest pieces she has seen- she told me that if I hadn’t been on antibiotics it would have rotted – and she’s not sure why it didn’t rot anyway as it was a week post birth, not only that she’s not sure why I didn’t haemorrhage or get septicaemia (something my aunt got when she had a retained placenta). Anyway – she got it out and I wasn’t infected thank god. But I am so glad I stuck to my guns and kept asking people to examine me.
Baby A has taken to breast feeding like a dream we are both smitten and he’s perfect – but then we would be biased!!
Theres a lot more I can update from our week in hospital and the first three weeks of his life but enough for now 🙂
Kira says
Congratulations!
Sacha Black says
Thank you 🙂
mamaetmaman says
Congrats! Good on you for knowing something wasn’t right with your body. Hope you heal up quickly!
Sacha Black says
Thank you 🙂 and I know pretty shocking really when u think I asked twice in hospital!!
prettycuteovaries says
Congrats!!! So glad to hear an update from you!I Glad little man is just perfect 🙂
Love reading all these birth stories lately but the closer I get (any time now) the more anxiety I have! My nerves have seriously been shot the last few days. Hoping I get through it as strong and gracefully as you!
Congrats again!
Sacha Black says
Ohhhh good luck – Christmas baby 🙂 how exciting you will be totally fine I’m sure of it. Everyone has a different birth no two stories are ever alike!! In excited to hear ur news 🙂 I’ll keep everything crossed for u xx
artofstumbling says
Jesus!! And more importantly massive congratulations to you both 🙂 xx
Isa says
Oh my god. I’m so glad you kept asking and they got that out! Also, congrats on a hard labor and a good birth! I don’t think there’s anything wrong with an epidural, especially after that much pain first. Glad you’re all out of the hospital and doing well!
Doris says
congratulations!!
I have not been posting lately I am busy
but so happy for you 😉
Sacha Black says
Thanks Doris 🙂 hope ur well zx
honesty556 says
Congrats!!! I haven’t been keeping up I know I am very Late!!!
Sacha Black says
Thank you – congrats to u too not long now – over the half way mark anyway! :p