The Story of Amber's birth.

On Wednesday, two days after my due date, the energy that I had seemed to have throughout my pregnancy left me. All I felt like was sitting and relaxing, and eating... I felt very hungry! I wondered if it could be a sign of imminant labour, but I hadn't had a show or any other indications so I didn't get too hopeful. I went to bed at midnight, as usual, and noticed a contraction as I was falling asleep - it was not at all painful but longer lasting than any Braxton Hicks contraction had been so far; I noted that it was 12.08 and fell asleep. At 1.08 I woke up with another long lasting, pain free contraction and this time I dared to get my hopes up, although I still hadn't had a show.

I was next awake at quarter to three, disapointed, as I hadn't felt any more contractions. I fell back to sleep thinking it had been a "false alarm", but I continued to be restless. I woke around 4:30am with my back aching, as it often did at night; I turned onto my other side but it didn't get any better which was unusual. As I layed awake the back ache was coming and going, and my restlessness woke Matthew up. He came and layed with me, but I couldn't sleep, so we played with his cars! At 5am! By now the aches in my back were becoming quite defined, but they were very irregular and not really "painful", just a little annoying. I found it very relaxing and reassuring to have Matthew with me. At 6am thought that I probably was in early labour, and I decided to put Matthew back to bed and try to get more rest myself.

I heard Karl getting up for work at 7am and decided to tell him my suspicians, as I didn't want him to go to work yet. I Also wanted help to put my TENS machine on. TENS machines are supposed to be most helpful if used right from the begining of labour. At this point I was still unsure that it was really labour, but as I began to get dressed I noticed that I had finally had a show and I was convinced. Karl went downstairs to grab some breakfast and re-read the TENS machine instructions, he phoned my mum to say that I was in labour and could she come over when she was ready - no rush. I decided to wait until 8am, after the shift change, before phoning the midwife, so I got onto the computer to e-mail my friends with the news!

I had booked for a DOMINO birth. This meant that I would be attended by one midwife from a team of about 10 midwives, all of whom I had met antenatally for checkups or at the monthly coffee morning they run. I was to phone the midwife once I knew I was in labour so that she could come to my home. In the first instance this is to confirm the labour and give any advice that may be necessary, and also to perform the checks on the feotus. If everything is alright she would then leave me to labour at home on my own for a while. If, or once, the labour is established and progressing well she stays, continuing to monitor the labour and providing some simple pain releif if necessary... however the goal is to actually give birth in hospital, and the midwfe would normally accompany me to hospital once additional pain releif was necessary.

But in reality.......

At 8am Karl went to phone the midwife. My contractions had slowed a little and were every 12 mins by then. I was coping with the contractions, which were noticable but not uncomfortable, by gently rocking the chair at the computer. I wasn't even feeling the need to do breathing exercises. As I stood up I had a more painful contraction, then I bounced downstairs thinking I would grab some breakfast, put a wash on and do a little ironing. The contraction when I got to the bottom of the stairs took me by supprise and scared me a little. I had to concentrate hard on my breathing. I was worried, because I had hoped to stay at home for as long as possible but I had only been in "proper" labour just over an hour and I didn't think I could cope with anything much more painful than that one. With hindsight I am sure the sudden movement, after being so relaxed upstairs, kicked the labour into turbo! I decided to forget the washing and ironing, I wanted Karl to get the TENS machine on now - before I had my breakfast.

I knelt down for Karl to attach the TENS, and another contraction hit me. It was easier to cope leaning over the sofa, than when I had been stood up, and the cold electrodes were conforting on my back. I waited 'til the contraction had gone before turning the machine on. I felt confortable with the pulsing feeling of the machine set at "3". When I used the boost with my next contraction it was great... my back felt odd, I can only describe it as a mixture of strange sensations but it was not painful. My mum arrived to take Matthew. I had a couple more contractions, they were coming every few minutes, but were still very irregular both in timing and intensity. Karl said to mum that he thought we would see the baby by 3 O'clock.... then I had an almightly contraction, turned my TENS up to "4", and looked at the clock. It was 8:30. Something big had just happened - I felt something give, I think my waters broke, and for the next contraction a minute later I had to turn the TENS machine up to "5". At this level the TENS machine boost felt like being hit on the back by something heavy, but after the initial shock, the pain of the contraction took over from the feeling of the machine. However, dispite being an intense contraction, I was able to cope with it by breathing exercies once then TENS kicked in, so it was obviously blocking a good deal of the pain messages. I told Karl then that I thought the baby would be born by 9am....

I asked mum to get rid of Matthew as I was no longer able to be quiet during contractions and I didn't want to frighten him. I also asked Karl to phone the midwife again. My contractions were in batches of four of five, 30 seconds to a minute apart, then a longish gap. I was getting scared, I was coping but I was turning my machine up with every batch of contractions and the midwife was only expecting to come out for an assessment, so she wouldn't have entinox with her. We all decided to get to the hospital as quickly as possible, and forget meeting the midwife at home! In one of the gaps we dashed to the car but as soon as I stood up another, worse, contraction hit me. I grabbed a pillow, bit it to stop me screaming, and we were on our way. I was kind of excited.

I had my eyes shut, my TENS machine on boost and my pillow in my mouth for the whole horrable journey. I was glad the hospital was only 10 mins away as I don't think mentally I would have coped with anything longer. When we arrived I was in too much pain to get out of the car so Karl went to fetch a porter and a wheelchair, but as I relaxed from the journey I had a gap in my contractions, and decided not to waste it waiting for the porter. Right in the main entrance I got my next contraction, the receptionist paniced, and threatened to bleep the consultant... the porter, who had arrived and obviously sees women in labour every day, was very calm and just waited 'til the contraction was over. I couldn't sit in the wheel chair properly and someone was trying to tell the porter that I was breaking regulations by not sitting down! Luckily the porter told him politely where to go... he obviously realised - better than me - that we didn't have long. By coincidence we met the midwife in the lift on the way to the delivery rooms, and I remember appologising for screaming too much. When we got to the delivery room a midwife went to fetch some gas and air for me and I got onto the bed to be examined, I was fully dilated, and the next contraction I got was a push contraction!

..I was in transition and my body felt chaotic. The odd feeling made me feel sick, and I abandonned the TENS machine in favour of gas and air. The midwife asked if I wanted to change position from the half-layed position I was in, and two things made me say no. Firstly I able to rest and relax comfortably between contractions like that, but more importantly the fact I had given birth to Matthew in that position gave me some confidence. During transition I couldn't coordiate pushing with the contractions, and I had another dilate contraction mixed in, but then suddenly the pushing clicked. It felt totally different to the transition contractions, and as with Matthew I found push-contractions less painful. (I didn't really need the gas and air any more!)

The push-contractions were about five minutes apart but in between I felt totally normal. I remember thinking that another couple of minutes in between would be nicer, as I could get my breath back properly. I also remember thinking that it was a good job you didn't get a choice in this, the urge to push is super-human. I felt scared as each contraction was starting, but once it was fully happening I just felt unstoppable. A monitor finally turned up, far to late to be strapped to me, but the midwife quickly checked the baby's heartbeat by placing the receiver on my tummy. I must have had three or four goes at pushing which didn't feel very useful, so I was really pleased to be told that the midwife could see the baby's head! Unfortunately after that contraction, the baby slipped back which was the worst feeling imaginable - as she moved backwards it felt like she was scraping up all my insides, and emotionally I felt very disheartened as I would have to make up all that hard work with the next contraction. As it came I pushed really hard, and I could feel myself stretching!... I was about half way through the contraction and I felt like I had about another 10% effort in me which I was going to use when the midwife said "It's a girl!". I couldn't believe she was born already, I had hardly felt it! Stupidly I said "Has she been born then?", I looked at the clock - it was exactly 10am.

I was blown away with how quick, and relatively easy, it had all been. I had managed all but the last half hour with only the TENS machine. I had also got away without being strapped to a monitor which was the only thing I had been dreading from last time. I was looking forward to the hug that I had missed out on with Matthew, I was too exhausted to hold him just after he was born. I was supprised though, that I had the shakes this time, as I had thought they were caused by the drugs last time, but obviously it has more to do with the birth. I was given the injection for a managed third stage, but I don't really remember feeling anything here because I was so wrapped up in getting to know Amber. My midwife encouraged me to put Amber to the breast shortly after this. She latched on beautifully and fed for half an hour. I had a small tear along the line of my old tear, both myself and the midwife had hoped it would not need stitching, but later on I had five stitches, and this was the only down side to the whole experience.

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Read about Matthew's birth

Return to diary: December 1998