It started with very mild contractions on Wednesday evening. I woke up on Thursday and these had got a little stronger. I phoned the birth centre to make them aware and they agreed that I was in very early labour and to start timing contractions and call back in a couple of hours with an update.
The day passed pretty quickly; I had a relaxing bath, made a nice lunch and watched some TV (mainly the American office – the episode where Pam is in labour at work!). By the early evening the contractions were becoming stronger but still weren’t particularly consistent. We called the birth centre, and they suggested coming in to have a check and make a plan.
We arrived and were taken to triage where we were looked after by two amazing midwives. Henry helped me with my breathing techniques as the contractions were getting stronger. By this point I was struggling to sit/lay so the midwife did as much as she could whilst I stood.
It was established I was 2cms dilated, after a chat it was decided that we should go home in the hope that by having a nice relaxing bath and being around our own things, we would progress faster.
Once home I had a bath and focused on my mountain breathing. Contractions were pretty strong but still irregular. After an hour in the bath, I felt something come out, after a quick call to the birth centre it was confirmed, it was my mucus plug. They encouraged me to stay at home. He called the birth centre again and told them he was bringing me in as I was in too much pain. They asked to speak to me, but I could barely confirm my name!
We arrived at hospital and once in the lift to the maternity floor I told Henry that I didn’t want to do it anymore and to take me home – reflecting afterwards we know now that I was transitioning. I was also mooing!
We were greeted by the midwife on triage. I told her that I couldn’t cope with the pain, and I wanted an epidural. She knew that we had done hypnobirthing and told me to slow down my breathing and coached me back to my breathing techniques. She also told me that it was too late for an epidural but that I was doing really well, and she knew I could get through it.
I desperately wanted a water birth but had already been told by the community Midwife that this might not be possible because I have a high BMI. However, she chatted to us about our plan and said she was keen to get me in the pool because she knew it would help me manage the pain. She went to speak to the head midwife whilst Henry took over coaching me through the contractions with mountain breathing.
The Midwife returned with good news that she had persuaded the head Midwife to let me have a water birth (after checking I understood the risks etc) and we just had to wait for the pool to fill up. She was also going to stay with us as she had lots of experience of water births and women with high BMI’s.
It was just after midnight when we made our way from triage to our birthing room. It took ages as I was struggling to walk so it was more of a shuffle!
The room was gorgeous! The lights were dimmed, there were twinkly lights above the pool and little battery t-lights around the edge of the pool. It felt truly special.
I got into the pool whilst Henry continued to go through the breathing techniques. i also decided to use gas & air. After a few minutes I told the midwife that I felt like I needed to push. She told me to only push when she told me to as this would help with reducing the risk of tearing. I tried to focus on my breathing but was overcome by the need to push, I said again that I felt like I needed to push so the midwife checked and agreed that if I wanted to start gently pushing I could.
It’s difficult to remember how long I pushed for, but Henry and I don’t think it was more than 30 minutes in total. But it felt like no time at all before the midwife told us that she could see a head (and lots of hair!). Next thing the head was out and as I was preparing for another push Molly was out! It was the most incredible feeling!
The midwife passed Molly to me, and we sat in the pool together whilst we waited for the placenta. I had opted for the injection so knew this could take up to 30 minutes. However, my placenta didn’t deliver so another Midwife was called, and they tried massaging my stomach and another injection. When neither of these worked, I was told that a doctor would be called and not to worry.
Suddenly our quiet, relaxing space was filled with people and bright lights. There were people all around me trying different things and hooking me up to all sorts of machines. Although it seemed chaotic, I felt completely calm and relaxed, the head Midwife was keeping me updated and explained things to me. However, the same couldn’t be said for Henry who was sat in the corner of the room with Molly, with no real idea of what was happening.
It was decided that the only option left was to take me through to theatre and see if the doctor could manually pull out the placenta. This was successful.
Throughout the whole process I had lost over 2 litres of blood so it was established that I would need a blood transfusion. Whilst we waited for the blood to be delivered, I was wheeled to recovery where my heart rate dropped, and I think I passed out. I was given some oxygen and felt myself again after 30 minutes.
Once back in our room with Henry and Molly everything else seemed like a distant memory; all I wanted to do was hold my little girl and talk to Henry about how amazing everything had been.
No one quite prepares you for becoming a parent, but I feel that we had the best start to parenthood as we were as prepared as we could be for Molly’s birth, and we can’t thank anyone else but you (Kerry) for that. Without the hypnobirthing classes and reassurance that you have provided to us I don’t think we would have felt so relaxed going into the start of labour and throughout the hours that followed!
My main advice for expectant parents would be to take your class – just knowing what to expect will help you feel more in control and help you manage any changes to your birth plan.
Thank you so much Kerry ☺️ xxx
