Birth story - Rachel and baby Sophia

*Trigger warning* - use of word contractions (not negative to me) mention of previous, less positive, births (skip background info if you don’t want to hear about that)

Background:

Third time lucky! had such a positive experience that I wish I could do it all again!

After a long difficult induction first time round resulting in an episiotomy, and a rapid delivery second time (born within two hours of first sign of pain, arrived at the hospital 17 minutes before birth) resulting in being rushed to theatre immediately after birth with multiple internal and external tears and needing two blood transitions, I finally had the birth I always wanted.

Birth story:

I went to bed the night of my due date feeling a lot of pressure down below but otherwise no signs. I then woke up multiple times through the night with pains, but nothing strong enough to stop me from going back to sleep. By around 2.45am I was having definite contractions. I had a bath which helped and timed contractions with the Freya app.

At around 5.30am we called my mother in law to come to look after our other children. I called the hospital to let them know I was coming in, because I could talk calmly and normally to them I don’t think they were convinced I was ready to come in but I told them them I wanted to come in, so they told me to make my way to pregnancy assessment. I got my husband to put my tens machine on for me and off we went.

Once we got there they suggested we go for a walk or for some breakfast, I declined and asked to be examined, she was surprised that I was 4cm and said baby’s head was very low. They said the birthing suit was full and asked if I was happy to continue breathing through contractions in pregnancy assessment, which was fine by me. I continued to use my up breathing and was managing fine with just the tens machine, but after about 3 1/2 hours I told them I thought I’d need gas and air soon, so shortly after I was moved up the delivery suit. I was examined again 4 hours after my first exam (I was happy with this as was keen to know how things were progressing) and I was 7cm.

I then spent the next 4 hours in the zone, loving the gas and air , and stayed upright kneeling on the hospital bed leaning over the raised back. The last couple hours were quite intense, the contractions had definitely ramped up and were more painful but I feel like I was able to cope pretty well. When another 4 hours had passed since the last vaginal exam I was examined again and was really disheartened to hear I was 8cm, just 1cm more than I’d been 4 hours before, especially when contractions had been much more painful for the last few hours.

The midwife offered to break my waters as it may speed things along. I accepted as at the very least thought it will ease the pressure, I remember with my second the pain dramatically decreased when my waters broke so decided to go with it. Well as soon as she broke my waters I immediately felt that she was coming, I was on my back which I didn’t want, I really wanted to be upright, but I couldn’t get get up, there wasn’t any time, I could feel her coming, but luckily despite being on my back she came within 2 minutes of the waters breaking and I had no tears and didn’t need any stitches.

My husband was the one to tell me she was a little girl. She fed on me straight away, and we had skin to skin and she fed for over 4 hours before they took her to be weighed and to be checked over, it was absolute bliss and such an amazing experience, especially after being rushed to theatre last time and missing out on that. We stayed in over night as she needed to be monitored for 12 hours due to meconium in the waters, but she was absolutely fine and we went home the following afternoon.

Recovery has been so easy, worlds apart from my other births, not needing stitches or anything is a game changer, I’ve just felt normal from the off which has been so lovely as I just get to enjoy her.