Birth story - Kerry and baby boy

🤚TRIGGERS - premature baby, use of word contractions, episiotomy, coaches pushing, resuscitation breaths.

I really want to share my birth story as when I found out my baby was breech at 28 weeks I spent the whole third trimester panicking about my birth when I really didn’t need to! I was so terrified about a vaginal breech birth and it was a worry I didn’t need to have at all! I want to let all the mums with breech babies know and hope to alleviate their worries

Last Monday at 3am, I awoke needing to go for a wee. As I stood up fluid gushed from me and I woke my partner and ran to the bathroom where it continued to flow. I had been told that it didn’t always gush like it does in films, but for me it really did!

We phoned Triage who told us to come in to be assessed. We arrived and as it was on delivery suite, Craig was able to come with me. The midwife checked my pad and confirmed it was my waters and a doctor was called in to do a scan to check positioning. He told me baby was still breech (I knew this already as I could feel his hiccups under my ribs!) and he could see my waters had gone. I was given some antibiotics to avoid infection and a steroid injection to help baby's lungs and was told if I hadn't gone into labour in 48 hours I would go home and we would try and keep him in until 37 weeks.

I went down to the assessment unit where I had to leave Craig. I was really emotional and wobbly at this point as shock had started to set in and I desperately didn’t want to be alone but the midwife was great and so supportive.

I arrived on the assessment unit around 6 and by 9 I was starting to feel pains in my back. The midwife put me on a monitor and started to watch, at this point I didn't think I was in labour as I had no pain in my abdomen and they were very manageable. By midday, I was uncomfortable but still managing by listening to my affirmations and practising my up breathing. My contractions seemed to be incredibly long - some lasting up to 2 minutes. Around 3pm I asked to be examined. The doctor had been reluctant due to infection risk but agreed to use a speculum... I think actually they maybe thought I wasn’t too far along as that morning I had been told my cervix was hard and closed..... she checked me and I was 5cm 🙈 things had moved quickly! She told me to phone Craig and that I was going up to delivery suite and baby would be here today!

I was wheelchaired up to delivery suite where I met my wonderful midwives who gave me gas and air... what a relief! Craig arrived and I was asked how I wanted to deliver the baby. I had assumed that I would have to have a c-section as baby was breech but I was being given an option to have him vaginally, something I had always been keen to do! I panicked and said I wanted a c section as I was terrified he would get stuck and that I would have to be rushed for an emergency c section. My brilliantly calm doctor suggested that we get ready for theatre and just see what my body wanted to do and then make a choice (I'm fairly certain she knew what would happen!). This made me feel instantly relieved and we were gowned up and taken into theatre. I was introduced to the team looking after me, 11 wonderful professionals and then had my spinal block. The relief was instant and those long uncomfortable contractions disappeared!

My doctor then said we would have a look and decide how next to proceed. She told me I was 10 cm and she could see his bum was I ready to go for it!

My partner interrupted at this point and told them I had been practising hypnobirthing and could we change the environment (yes Craig!!) So the lights were dimmed and they asked what music I would like to listen to!

Although I couldn't feel the contractions, I was totally supported by the team and told when to push. I did have to have an episiotomy but this was no where near as awful as I was expecting and the discomfort afterwards was minimal.

I laboured quickly (from established labour to delivery of the placenta in two hours!) and after an hour of pushing, our gorgeous baby boy was born at 6:06 vaginally on a theatre operating table to Westlife 'Hello my love!" - so cheesy you couldn't write it!

I was given seconds of skin to skin as he had to be whipped off for resuscitation breath but we had plenty afterwards and unfortunately he didn't have delayed cord clamping but the main thing was to make sure baby was well so I was fully accepting of this!

Seconds later we heard his screams and the midwife invited Craig over to 'trim' the cord! 😂 and Craig and baby went back to delivery suite for skin to skin cuddles while I received stitches before joining them for tea and toast!

Although my birth did not go as I had planned, I really want to emphasise that despite having a breech baby on a theatre operating table with coached pushing to deliver, I feel nothing but pride and positivity about my birth. I feel incredibly lucky that I had such a wonderful team that enabled me to do that and I will be forever grateful that they helped me to deliver my gorgeous little man safely and as close to my plan as possible.