A Birth Story – 01/05/12

I was woken by a wife in pain around 5am – she’d been awake since 4am. It looked like Baby Hakes was on his way!

The contractions seemed to be stronger than she’d felt a week or so earlier, each one made her pause and catch her breath. I suggested that I time them using the App on my phone to see if there was any pattern at all but there wasn’t really; they seemed to be regular and then go wildly out. Around 9.30am her waters broke and the contractions started to snap into a regular three minute cycle.

Loz called the Labour Ward and explained we already had an appointment with the consultant at 10.15 and they suggested we go along to that to see if Loz was indeed in labour. We made our way to the hospital and in the car the contractions dropped to every two minutes. With the pain seeming to get more and more intense I dumped the car in the car park and took Loz into the Hospital.

After negotiating the large amount of security doors we finally got to the Labour Ward. Then a nasty contraction hit. With Loz doubled over in pain in the corridor a nurse told us something we didn’t want to hear.

‘Erm…. we’re full.’

I looked back blankly at her. I had no words to say.

After taking some details, she found a room for us. It looked like a disused bedroom. She sat Loz down and got her some water and promised she’d get us sorted out. The contractions seemed to get more furious each time they hit – everything was happening very fast.

The nurse said we could have a cubicle in the ‘Day Assessment Unit’ for now, and they’d do their best to get us into the Labour Ward and into a Birthing Room as soon as possible. The DAU cubicles were all very quiet, with the sounds of little heartbeats of unborn children providing a rhythmic soundtrack. It wasn’t really the place for labour. Loz was strapped to the monitor and then told she’d be examined soon. The contractions didn’t seem to end and she looked in agony.

The midwife came back, examined her and said she was 4cm dilated and doing well. As the DAU didn’t have any Gas and Air piped into the walls she said she would try and get a canister bought up to ease the pain. It was about 11.00 by now and the canister was nowhere in sight. The pain looked excruciating and constant. Loz grabbed my arm, stared hard into my eyes and growled…

For someone normally so calm and placid, it was pretty odd hearing Loz say that, and the way she said it – think Reagan when possessed in ‘The Exorcist’ 🙂 I ran off to find the midwife and she promised me the gas and air would be there soon. I went to back to a screaming Loz who was feeling the need to push. The midwife came back and said they’d found a bedroom on the DAU and that had Gas and Air on tap, they moved the bed into the room.

The midwife explained to Loz how the Gas and Air worked. Loz snatched it from her, taking some deep breaths on it… Within minutes, the room was quiet. The G+A was working its magic and helping Loz through the pain. Not long after Loz’s Mum arrived and I filled her in on what had happened so far. Loz snapped out of her G+A haze and smiled a squiffy smile and said, ‘Mum!’

The midwife came back and looked at the monitor. Little man’s heart rate was all over the place and she summoned a doctor to look at the trace. The midwife examined Loz and seem to spring into life. She ran out of the room and grabbed a trolley full of implements and came back. She quickly unpacked lots of bits and pieces and it looked like little man’s arrival was imminent.
The doctor came and left soon after. Little man’s heart rate was back to normal and he was actually being born. I had told Loz that I didn’t want to watch ‘the business end’ when he was being born as I’m a bit squeamish. I didn’t really have a choice as the midwife ordered me to hold back one of her legs. I did as I was told! The midwife took away the G+A and gave Loz some instructions. There were two or three pushes and out popped his head, then three more and he was out!

Cleaning up!

They promptly put him on Loz’s tummy. He was blue. Very blue and deadly silent. I saw him twitching, but Loz was concerned as he wasn’t crying (as was I). I reassured her he was moving and okay, but the midwife took him out of the room and asked me to come outside with her. They used a bit of suction, and some oxygen, and he sprung into life with an almighty scream. They cleaned him up, clamped the cord and swaddled him.

I carried him back to the room and let him have a cuddle with Grandma while they delivered the placenta. I must admit, I concentrated on getting a few nice photos of little man rather than watching the last stage. Just the thought of a placenta makes me gag, let alone watching it being delivered! 🙂

Cuddles with Grandma

Finally, Loz was able to have her first proper cuddle with her Son! It was clear she was in a state of shock though as in less than three hours from arriving in the car park, she was a Mum!

Cuddles with Mummy

Baby J is here!!

We’d been told that a first labour is normally slow and painful. This one had been quick and painful! I still can’t believe it how fast everything happened as I really thought we’d be there for hours. They gave Loz the option of staying overnight in the ward but as little man was well, Loz wanted to come home. We were home for 19.30 and we had a lovely ‘Two for Tuesday’ from Dominos as a naughty treat 🙂

Pizza, Baby, Beer #win