Birth Stories

Love reading these birth stories!

Just looked back and I haven't posted Tane's story in here... so trawled through my due in thread to find it - was so fun just re-living those memories.

Here is Tane's short story:

Well I am still stunned at the speedy arrival of our wee guy!

As you all know waters broke at midnite (I had managed to post to due in thread before labour kicked off) - I sent DP to pick his mum up straight away - it didn't even occur to me labour might not start straight away lol. Anyway it did - contractions started mildly at about 5 mins apart so I fluffed around getting bags ready etc... then when DP got back they had picked up a bit and were more painful but still ok. 2 mins apart and lasting 40 secs! So I had a shower as knew they weren't strong enough yet. After my shower we timed again, still 2 mins apart and 40 secs long. I was ringing the midwife at 1:30am as it just felt like it was time to be at birthcare and I was in major pain by then. Got to Birthcare at 2 and straight in the pool, having a few good contractions and a few mild - I seriously thought labour might have been slowing down and was embarrased to have called MW in too early! Anyway I started to sleep in between contractions and at 3:15 asked MW to check me, 8cms!!! 10 mins later I felt baby drop into my pelvis and he was born in the water with 2 pushes and i caught him!! Was so amazing! Had a physiological 3rd stage about 10 mins later :)

Still on a bit of a high when think about it and the recovery has been so much better!

Tane came out screaming and I was worried that was a sign of things to come but he is actually a lovely chilled baby and just likes to eat and sleep :)

Oh and he is 8lbs 8oz :)

Hi ladies,

I have started a blog to record the experiences I will gain through training to become a CBE and to also bring together positive birth and breastfeeding experiences from other women. By having a wide range of real-life experiences and reflections on what I’m learning I hope to empower women with information and help them to have a positive birth experience.

The point is, I was after more lovely stories of natural (drug-free) birth and breastfeeding and was hoping someone here would be interested in sharing...actually I'm after any positive birth stories you wish to share!

Here is the link to my Facebook page which is just linking through to my blog.
http://www.facebook.com/childbirthjourney

TYIA

Wow what a marathon effort snowdengreen! The baby in the end is definitely worth all the drama for sure;)

Here is micahs birth story (oops should really update my ticker!)

So had a stretch and sweep done on Monday 27th feb at 40+2 and felt nothing for the rest of the day not even single tightening much to my dismay! Then the next morning (Tuesday) started getting contractions about 10 mins apart for a couple of hours while in bed which spaced up once I got up to ds and then disappeared completely. Later that day while getting a cast put on ds s arm at about 4pm starting getting more contractions but wrote it off as more false labour. At around 8pm they were regular 10min apart but thought nah this can be it so took some panadol with warm milk said goodnight to dh and off I went for a shower. While in the shower at around 9pm they started coming every 5 mins and were a bit kore painful so I went back downstairs and got dh to put my tens machine on. At 945 I called mw and she said nah you sound too calm it's probably just earl labour, call me when they get intense. So called her back at 1015 and said we re coming in!! Lol. Got to hospital and got checked by mw at 1045, I was 7cms!! So hopped into the pool at 1115 and started to push by 1145pm but couldn't really feel him moving down so decided to hop out of pool at midnightish and shuffle back to delivery suite and on to the bed and one push and started crowning with my mw in the background going " wait wait let me put my gloves on" lol and then he was out at 12.08am. My perfect little man;)

This birth was so much more calm and peaceful and I joked and laughed all the way through with dh and mw between contractions and sucked the life out of my gas canister when a contraction hit. Awesome birth awesome mw and awesome dh ... Can't wait to do it again;)

Gorgeous story KR - I hope that things with you and Evie are going well

Here is my story...

I was booked in to be induced on Friday 27th Jan much to my dissapointment. I so wanted her to come naturally...but time was ticking on and and I was 9 days overdue and very much over it! According to the scan she was a big baby so I had visions of this 12 pounder entering the world and my vjajay being torn to bits! Haha..
The morning of the 27th I woke up around 5.30am to dull period like pains...but I'd been having them on and off for a week so I didn't pay too much attention. Jumped in the shower to see if they would go away but they didn't, they just kept getting stronger so figured I was in labour. Yay! So happy she decided to come on her own - everything going to plan. So far. We had to be at the hospital at 8am so off we tootled, me feeling quite calm at this stage and DH looking like a dear in the headlights. Got to hospital, midwife confirmed I was in labour and after an hour of monitering she sent DH and I off on a walk around the park. Well, no sooner had I stepped off the hospital grounds the contractions started coming thick and fast. Oh. My. God. I was totally unprepared for how painful they were - they went from zero to a hundred in about 15 minutes. I hobbled around the park clutching on to DH hating every minute of being out in public. It was 9am on a Friday and lots of people in the park heading off to work! Took me 15 minutes to walk in one direction and 40 min to walk back! Got back to the hosptial and jumped in the shower to see if that would help me relax. Midwife gave me a small, flat swissball to help ease the pain - I'm 6ft tall so yeah...it didn't. Started vomiting in the shower, was in horrendous pain and my wish for a natural, drug free bith slowly started going out the window. I was only 4cm dialiated and not coping very well at all! My midwife offered me an epidural which I accepted much to my dismay, I had no idea I'd be such a wimp. So from 11am - 5pm everything went according to plan, I dialted like clockwork and my midwife was happy with my progress. The only thing was that the epidural made me sick so I vomited every 20-30 min from 11am til 8am when she was born, it was horrible. You cant eat when you have an epidural so I just had to keep drinking water as there was nothing in my stomach to spew. Was in a bit of a mess and feeling a tad sorry for myself. Kept thinking of the final outcome, it would be worth it. Anyway, it came time to start pushing ..... hour and half later no progress. I was exhausted from vomiting and so was my baby, her heartrate kept peaking for a contracton and then dropping back as if she was sleeping. It didn't help that she was posterior as well...she was lying in an odd postion which wasn't helping. And they make the contractions extra painful. I could tell by the look on my midwifes face that she wasn't happy with how things were going. She got all the big-wigs in, numerous people with their hands up my fanny trying to figure out what to do - not that I cared at that stage! I started to panic that something was going to go wrong which was my worst fear. I begged them not to leave me like I was. The doctors decided to do an assisted birth using the forceps but said they would prep me for a c-secion just in case. Thank god I didn't have a birth plan! More drugs pumped into me, I could hardley keep my eyes open at this stage, sooooo tired. Once we got into theatre they had another feel around again to see where she was sitting in the birth canal. They decided to get her out then, apparently she backed away from them which indicated she wasn't happy. 15 min later my beautiful baby girl came into this world, screaming her lungs out. At 7lb 12oz she was hardly the monster they told me I was having! My world changed at that moment - she was simply perfect and I felt like the luckiest person in the world. After everything we had gone through, here she was and she was mine. DH cut the cord and they gave her to me for a cuddle. I was so out of it though and shaking heaps so I passed her back to DH. I just remember her staring at me so intently and she stopped crying when I talked to her. I was in hospital for 4 days, c-sections are bloody awful! I was told I wont be able to labour naturally again, my pelvis is too small. Really? I'm just not that tiny - baffled me! I couldn't wait to get home and get things underway. The first 3 weeks passed in a blur - it really knocked me on my butt! I had no idea on how hard it would be. I had so much support though, thank god for Mum and my friends. 9 weeks on I am loving being a Mummy. Our wee girl is beautiful, she smiles and burbles away to me - so in love
She was worth every single bit of pain in took to get her and I cant wait for number 2!!

I hope so Emmi!! I'll be giving a natural birth another crack next time round

Warning! Traumatic and LONG story. Skip if you like!!

I dreamt of a water birth, with no drugs or interventions. I wanted things as natural and as beautiful as possible.

Beginning the 42nd week of pregnancy, and with an ultrasound showing a mature placenta as well as my baby’s head still not being engaged, induction ended up being booked for Monday 12th March at 1pm, despite how much I didn’t want to be induced if things had gone better. My Braxton hicks had been amping up for well over a week, normally in the evenings. Sunday afternoon they got really strong. Over the next few hours they got closer together and more intense until it became apparent that I wasn’t going to be able to sleep because they woke me up. I was excited! It looked like I may not need that induction! We went in to the hospital at about 11 am on Monday to see what was happening – contractions were still painful but not increasing in strength or being regular enough - and see if I still needed to have the first part (the prostaglandin gel) of the induction. Thankfully, after an internal exam, we found that I was moving along all by myself but they still wanted me to either stay in or go home and then return the next morning to break my waters. I went home with a pill to help me try and get some rest if I couldn’t sleep still. Induction was booked for 8am but it was agreed I could come in earlier if necessary. 3pm: Took pill to help sleep. Could still feel contractions, they’d still wake me but I could fall asleep again straight away. Slept for about 2 hours on and off.
Contractions came on quite strongly again in the evening, but not very frequently. I was too tired to try much to get them going and couldn’t sleep either. At about 3.30 am 13th March I woke Ian. I’d realised that waiting for the 8am appointment was only going to mean I was even more exhausted...so we may as well get to the hospital sooner and get things moving. This had been discussed with Lindsay, my midwife, at the hospital when we’d gone in earlier on Monday.

Arrived at the birthing suite room at about 4.50 am. When they did a vaginal exam they found I was about 2-3 cm dilated and that there wasn’t much liquid left when the waters were broken. The conclusion: I’d been leaking waters for a while and we needed to consider antibiotics. I don’t remember when exactly, but we did eventually agree to take the antibiotics. They weren’t sure if there was meconium in the waters or not and so my hopes for a water birth were already sinking rapidly.

My contractions were still not frequent enough to be considered established labour so Ian and I decided to go for a walk and to grab a coffee. The idea being hopefully we could get my contractions flowing more so as to avoid needing to use syntocin, which would definitely rule out a water birth. Initially we planned to walk to the cafe by the river not far from the hospital, but once downstairs I realised I didn’t want to go so far. We got coffees from the little stall near reception and, whilst Ian paid, I went to the loo. Cue big contraction. I came back to Ian and stood by the sugars and stirrers as another contraction hit me. They were pretty strong and after it had passed, and I could talk/walk again, I decided I didn’t want to be in public anymore! So back to the birthing suite we went.

I remember one of the doctors coming in to check up on us at some point and her commenting on how cool it was that we had coffee and ‘dance’ music (Shpongle) during labour, as well as how smiley I was for someone in labour!

It was getting on a bit now and contractions were about 2 every 10 minutes; still not enough. It looked like I was about to have to take the first major step in the opposite direction of the birth I hoped for: syntocin. Either that or risk this latent labour going on for who knows how long and, ultimately, me being too exhausted to labour well. Having the drip meant monitoring on the CTG; all in all leaving me much less mobile, though I was still able to stand and sway. I think, by this point, I was about 3-4 cm dilated. Not only that, but they realised that although baby’s head was ‘high’, it was actually well into the pelvis thus, my pelvis was an unusual shape: wide and shallow as opposed to narrower and deeper. This was good for me to hear: baby was basically engaged.


As the syntocin took hold there was a noticeable increase in the intensity of my contractions. When they got really strong, and Ian’s thumbs in my lower back stopped helping much, I decided that –as I couldn’t use the birthing pool – I was definitely entitled to some entonox (gas). It took me a while to get the hang of how to use it, but it certainly helped take the edge of the peak of my contractions. I can’t remember at which point it was, but somewhere around here Ian left to move the car and was gone for about 40 minutes. When he returned the contractions were amazingly intense. I was no longer able to withhold from making pretty damn audible noise. They became so strong that the gas seemed to do next to nothing, and I took to breathing it in constantly...at the peaks of contractions, I’d often end up letting it go so I could moan, wail or gasp. I needed 2 mouths: one for releasing pain in the form of noise and one for inhaling gas!

Poor Ian was quite shocked I think when he returned and witnessed –not only the dramatic change since he’d left, but – the quick increase in intensity and pain I felt from his arrival onwards. Apparently I was on the birthing ball and he was still trying to push on my lower back but the pain was so much I stopped being able to hold myself up. The contractions amped up to about 4 every 10 minutes and I was in another world. A world of pain like I never imagined could exist. I was no longer aware of anything much but the pain...I dread to think what people could hear from outside the room as I wailed, sobbed and cried. It was time for an epidural...there was no way in hell I could go on. I think it’s the closest I’ve ever been to wanting to die, literally. I just wanted the pain to end.

The time between agreeing on an epidural and getting one seemed eternal. I knew it wasn’t. I didn’t shout at the anaesthetist, as easy as that could have been. When she explained that, once it was hooked up, I would still have a few contractions before it kicked in, it felt like my world could be on the brink of collapse. How could I take even one more?

When the relief did come, it was amazing. I think I cried some more...I know that I turned to Ian, whose face leant in close on my right hand side, and shakily told him how pleased I was to see him again. Of course, he’d been there all along, and I knew that...but, I hadn’t been with him. Being able to look into his eyes and actually see him again; to feel his love and support was overwhelming.

The next internal exam, I believe, showed me to be a good 7-8cm dilated. I was so relieved: my body was doing it! And quickly! I think I was meant to try and sleep at this point but I don’t remember managing it. Despite the epidural I sometimes felt the strength –without the pain – of the bigger contractions. At about 1pm I said I felt some pressure down low, around the anal area. We ended up checking my progress a bit later because of this...
I was fully dilated! Amazing! I was so excited. I was advised to wait a bit longer, up to an hour, before trying to push as sometimes a little bit of cervix can still be caught over a bit of the head. But the news of how quickly we’d got to this stage, after all that agony, was awesome.
I’ll tell you, pushing when you can’t feel what you’re pushing on, or when the contractions are taking place is downright weird. It’s also hard to let go and really go for it when there isn’t the pain to make you forget the audience you have. So, it took me a while before I was able to feel comfortable making noises while pushing, but once I did, it really helped. It meant I could breathe out/push for longer with just a sharp intake of breath in between.

<Some time during this I took a funny turn; I was suddenly dizzy, sick and felt so weak. I had to stop pushing and just lie there. I was sick a few times but eventually, as it started subsiding I said I wanted to keep going. It felt like I was so close, I couldn't give up!>

After a while, another examination was done. It seemed that baby hadn’t really moved much. They could feel the head, but it was still a few centimetres inside the opening. They got me pushing whilst they felt the head and I was definitely pushing correctly. I also had a couple of comments about baby having a good head of hair. Had I not been so eager to get the birth going I might have been a bit annoyed at having that surprise taken from me...but there were bigger fish to fry.
On further examination, some time later, it seemed that the baby’s head was asynclitic - basically it was at a bit of an angle instead of chin down and tucked under. My baby was stuck at the ‘spines’; the narrowest point in the pelvis.

Knowing this, the options were becoming less. They didn’t want me to push for too long if nothing was happening. My baby’s heart rate was dropping with a lot of the contractions, but were quickly recovering; so not a huge worry but too much stress on the baby is never good I guess. One of the doctors came in to discuss possibilities. Basically it came down to: attempting forceps or ventouse delivery in theatre...and if that failed; a caesarean section. It felt like my world was closing in on me and time was running out. In the end I pushed for about 2 hours. Though I was really low on energy by now I was also determined to give birth to my baby and so, during those 2 hours, I switched back and forth between sitting upright on the bed and turning onto my knees, holding on to the back of the propped up mattress. I remember Lindsay asking if I was sure about it after a few switches; evidently she hadn’t expected me to keep moving so much...but I was pretty desperate to give birth vaginally! So, when it was time to take the next step, my trepidation and determination grew...

In theatre I was surrounded by so many people and the lights were so bright and memories of the first time, in adulthood, that I’d been in a similar room came swimming back: the minor op back in January 2009 when I’d had a miscarriage and had to have an ERPC/D&C. I tried to shut out those thoughts and focus on my last chance to birth this baby as close to the way I wanted as was possible.
I had to wait for Ian to come in as he had to get into some scrubs. Lindsay sat next to me on my right. Ian on my left. I tried to focus only on them, mostly on Ian. The attempt to get my little baby out went like so: I had to wait for them to be ready and when they were, with a contraction, I would push as hard as I possibly could for as long as I could. Quick inhale. Repeat two more times. This whole procedure was repeated 3 times. I remember that towards the end, someone said ‘just one more time’....I put everything into pushing, I thought my baby was coming and I just had to push once more, so I gave it my absolute all...Sadly, I’d misinterpreted those words. That was my final push, but my baby was nowhere to be seen. It was the end of the line...and realising that it was time for the surgeons was heart-wrenching; truly, utterly. All the stress and strain of my efforts and hopes came crashing down on me like a huge broken damn of water. I couldn’t help it; I bawled: big, chest shaking sobs.

The caesarean itself was horrible...they say it’s like someone doing the washing up inside you but painless...well, it’s also damn creepy and terrifying especially when you haven’t prepared for it. It seemed an age before someone said ‘They’ve got the head out’...and even more of an age before the rest of the baby was born and I heard those cries. They whisked my baby to the resuscitation table, as a matter of course, but there were no problems. Lindsay, knowing what I wanted, made sure they only did the absolutely necessary checks (no measuring or weighing yet, despite everyones curiosity due to the size!) and ensured that Ian brought our baby girl to me as soon as able to. She was laid on my chest as I was being sewn up. She was crying and rooting about trying to feed, I just wanted to get out of there and let her do so...but we had to wait til I was in the recovery room. Another age.

I love my daughter so much already...and I am SO grateful that we’re both here and that we live in a society where we could be saved from devastation. But, I am still grieving for the birth I never had. I still get flashbacks that bring me to tears, and I wish more than anything that I could have brought my daughter into this world, not some man in scrubs. People want to tell you that the most important thing is that you and your baby are OK (excepting the fact I have a serious post-op wound). Well, perhaps, but –as Lindsay has supported me in acknowledging – it doesn’t mean I can’t feel the sadness, grief and trauma of that day. And one day I will be at peace about it, but I won’t forget it.






Edited by Reffinej

BG sounds like a similar story! I am lucky my baby has been so good since being born, 3weeks today! Glad you're enjoying motherhood too.

Emmi - are your birth stories on here? One armed (due to bfing) and so not looking thoroughly. I'm so scared about the idea of having a 2nd baby, (wanted 2 kids) so I guess talking to others about it would be a good idea. Obv. no more until this one is older but I would like to try and deal with my issues earlier rather than later!

Baby's EDD: 28th March
Actual Date and Time of Birth: 30th March 5.59am
Gestation at Birth: 40 + 2
Sex on Ultrasound: Surprise
Actual Sex of Baby: Girl
Baby's Name: Greer Rachael
Weight: 7lb 3oz/ 3.26kg
Length: 51.5cm
Head Circumference: 33cm
Place of Birth (Home, Hospital, Birth Centre, Carpark etc): At Home
Type of Delivery: Normal
Pain Relief: None

Story about labour and birth:
Had been having cramps for a couple of weeks so knew cervix was gearing up & probably had 4 nights of thinking ohhh maybe tonight & then 29th the cramps moved lower down & I text mw at 12.30pm to say maybe tonight's the night, around 10.30pm text and said I reckon it'll be all on tonight as cramps were more intense than I had been feeling (downloaded contraction timer for phone!), plus I just got the idea that this was different. So went to bed around 11pmish & woke at 3am to go to the loo and nothing happening! Was gutted! 3.36am I messaged on FB say oh well back to sleep [:/]

Sorta went back to sleep & then went hang on these are starting up, had three cramps that I though hmmm contractions so started timing at 3.52am, at that point were 30 secs long at 2 1/2 mins in between. About 5-10mins later they were 50 sec and I thought I need to walk around. So got up & thought yep contractions, will run bath to help ease them in case they're bh's so I start running bath & then woke DH & said I think you need to light the fire. So he gets up, does that, hangs up the rest of the sheets over the windows (we have minimal curtains) & I jump in the bath.

I text my mw friend & mw at the same time saying it's all on (4.20am), K (mw friend) keeps texting me talking to me through them & I said come in (lives 20 min away) rang mw around 4.50?? And could talk to her in the bath through them & so said I'd let you know, next contraction off the phone it was like Holy mother f**ken god, how the hell does water ease these bloody things! So I decided to get out.

Went to the loo & then Mr 3 woke up! he wouldn't go to bed in my bed, wanted to be in the lounge & I knew I then that I didn't want to labour/birth in my bedroom so rang Mum and said come pick up the kids & she asked do you want to bring them here & I said no I'm not leaving home.

Funnily, I then had to decide between contractions what to wear! Euge's T-shirt, no too hot, my breastfeeding nighty, no to tight, right my summer pj top plus I decided to put on undies with a super pad in it (just as well!!) Then ran, yes ran, to the loo & vomited!! (I vomited once with Miss 8 & I vomitted continually with Mr 3)At 5.18am text mw to tell her & she asked if she should come, I was in between contractions then I was like...maybe nahhhh... cue contraction, yes come now! K had arrived at this point. MW would have got there about 5.35am as Mum & Dad were there picking up kids, Mr 3 was rescued from behind chair as he was a little scared, he was so cute cause he ran to give me a kiss good bye (just as a contraction hit) everyone else rushed around getting things ready while K stayed with me in the lounge, Mum rang & asked DH if she should come lol which seemed like ages later but can't have been as she got there just after Greer was born. Was standing leaning on stool, trying to figure out how JPP (March Mummy) mooed through contractions, and as they got more intense I was kneeling leaning on stool. I think I started feeling pressure about 5.40? and was thinking holy crap that shouldn't be happening, I had no control over it. Waters broke about 5.50 while there was still nothing on the floor & when I said my waters just broke, everyone is like where! Go the budget super pad!!

Apparently I panicked a little then cause my pants were still on plus I didn't know if I could lift my legs (prior hip/spd) to get stuff under them, but we got there & when my pants came off the next contraction showed heaps more water coming out! Yay budget pads saved my floor!

From waters breaking it was all on, I was just trying to breathe through the contractions and had my hand down there trying to feel what was going on, her head was basically there but I was sure that I wasn't supposed to push her out yet! Interestingly this time I didn't need to think about pushing into my bum it was already happening, I tried to hold her in as the ring of fire hit & then though no get her out, so let her head out & then I felt her turn & then pushed her shoulders out. OMG the relief when her head came out!! I lifted her up and didn't look and then took a glimspe and said it's girl, they said are you sure & I was like did I miss something lol, so looked again & yep it's a girl. So she was born at 5.59. Then the back up mw arrived LMAO, got towels and put her skin to skin & then my Mum arrived & we said it's girl & told her her name.

We had skin to skin for ages waiting for the placenta, I wasn't feeling cramps or anything really, so we just waited and talked & chilled on the couch, I tried to push but nothing really happening, we let her do the breast crawl and apart from getting stuck on the cliff of my boob she got there by herself & latched.

About 6.50 they started getting worried about the placenta not coming out so had to do some hard out pushing to get it out, we were going to give the shot but Mum said no wait 5 more mins, we were waiting for DH to get back from supermarket, he was off getting the loaf of bread I wanted to get the night before LOL and just as well she said wait, but we managed to get it out, 3 grown women telling you that you have to push means business! Got it out & then had to get all the membranes out. K admitted later they were all slightly freaking out! We examined the placenta and found it was almost in two parts & was heart shaped, so either I have a funky uterus or I retained some placenta (don't think that now), still feeling quite wary about that & still have an injection in my fridge just in case. Also found to have a short cord!

Rang DH after placenta was out to see how long he was going to be & if he wanted to cut the cord but he said let your Mum do it, I've done two LMAO So Mum was really chuffed to cut the cord!

So then I got to relax on the couch in all my naked glory while they did blood pressure etc I had an internal tear but opted for it to not be stitched.

So total labour time is 3 1/2 hours with long 3rd stage but baby only took 2hrs 10 mins. Baby was given apgars of 10/10 MW said it was weird doing that cause the highest she's gives usually is 9/10

Then the funny bit came while DH was posting on FB & trying to get the right weight, he couldn't find the website so I got up with babe in arms and typed it in for him LMAO Reading his posts on my page afterwards were hilarious!

Was so nice to shower in my own shower & then sit on my couch hanging out with the people that mean the most to me Kids came back around 9am & got to meet their sister, they brought flowers which would be from another March Mummy's shop

I wasn't allowed to be alone for 24 hours in case of bleeding, I learnt more about my own welfare this time that I ever knew! DH loved the idea of jabbing me in the thigh & ringing 111, me not so much!!! This was in case of bleeding.

For a homebirth that was organised/decided on at 38 weeks it all went really well

I think it's time to post my story. I was 6 days overdue and had been having lots of strong Braxton Hicks for a few days, and as per usual I was up from 2-4am feeling pretty uncomfortable but then managed to get back to sleep until 7.30am when I woke up with a strong painful cramp, enough to get me out of bed. Then I felt a pop and realised my waters had broken so hobbled to the bathroom where it seemed like a river was pouring out. I was quite upset to see the waters were greeny brown, and then I had another cramp, and was surprised by how much it hurt. I made enough noise to wake my other half who went into a bit of a frenzy when I told him it had started. We rang our midwife who said she would meet us in the hospital in half an hour, so off we went. I don't know how much amniotic fluid there was, it was still pouring out of me with each contraction, and they were still surprisingly painful - so much for baking a cake as my midwife had suggested for the early stage. All I could think was thank god my waters hadn't broken in the supermarket.

By the time we got to the hospital 10 minutes later at 8am the contractions felt really close together, I couldn't talk through them, and I was horrified by all the meconium that was coming out. It was thick and black and I started freaking out a bit, especially as they wanted a urine sample. I have no idea what they got, could have been urine, was probably amniotic fluid and meconium. They put me on my back and strapped on the monitor - it was hard to find the heartbeat but once they did it was a good one. By this stage I was in a lot of pain, and I desperately wanted to get off my back but couldn't because of the monitor. They put in an IV and gave me some antibiotics, I'm sure they told me why at the time but I can't remember. With each contraction the midwife would press the lower monitor onto my tummy, which seemed to make things so much worse. By 9am I was on the gas, which did bugger all. I would suck it in then groan it out, and it sounded like I was making quite a lot of noise. I told them I had to get off my back so the midwife said she would attach a scalp clip.

She did the exam and told me I was 5-6cm which set me on a bit of a high. However, she didn't attach the clip, and said she wanted to get the Registrar to check the baby's position. I though oh crap she must be posterior or something. SO half an hour later at about 9.45am in comes the Registrar, she does another exam, says that I'm 8cm and by this stage I'm losing it because I HAVE to get off my back because I can't cope. She then gets an ultrasound machine to do a scan, and everyone goes a bit quiet (except for me, I was roaring the place down by now, much to my other half's horror) then my midwife told me my baby was breech. I think I may have shrieked and sworn for a minute just in time for the Consultant to come in and ask why I was panicking. He was lucky he didn't get a smack in the head. So I sign off for a C-section, which was not part of my ideal birth but there was no suggestion of a vaginal birth and I was quite beyond questioning anything.

Off to theatre, and I have to say the best moment apart from meeting our wee girl, was when the spinal anaesthetic started to work. I think I cried with relief, and my other half said the look of bliss was lovely to behold! I still get a happy shiver when I remember that moment. So out came our lovely breech girl, 8.8lb, and that moment of wonder wasn't diminished by the c-section. The instant love was incredible.

Suffice to say I will be requesting a 3rd trimester scan with my next pregnancy, and I hope to have a VBAC. Nothing in my birth plan happened, apart from my baby being born safely, which I reckon is the only thing that really matters in the end for me.

Edited by Fernfrond

Hi Reffinej, I was devastated at needing a c-section, and I am a theatre nurse so being on the other side of the drapes was one of the weirdest experiences of my life! I had to focus really hard on the outcome being what mattered, and that there was nothing I could have done to change what had happened. I will be much more proactive with my next, I was a bit timid with my midwife this time around, but now I know what to ask and what to expect I will be much more outspoken during the pregnancy. I will also be spending many hours with my bum in the air.

I'm sorry you had an awful experience, it is such an emotional time and has an enormous impact on every part of your life, which I don't think people can comprehend until it happens. 3 months later I was looking at the photos of our baby seconds after she was born, lying on the resus trolley being checked, and it felt like my heart broke because she wasn't lying on my chest in a quiet dark room like I'd imagined. I don't think my other half quite understood why I was crying that long after...

I had quite a quick initial recovery, but it took my wound a long time to heal up. It opened a bit on one side and leaked for about 6 weeks which really upset me, apparently it didn't need to be resutured. It seems to be fully sealed up now at 5 months but it still looks red and I really don't like looking at it :(

Edited by Fernfrond