I absolutely love reading birth stories as every experience is so unique, and after sharing my own two very different birth experiences [emergency c-section and natural VBAC] I decided to ask other mums and dads to share their beautiful birth stories with me, too. If you’d like to share your birth story, send me an email or get in touch via Twitter or Facebook.
Today Ami from Through Ami's Eyes is sharing her birth experience. Ami had quite a tough experience, but lots of love and support from her family helped her through it.
The day my life changed forever...
It was Sunday 14th September 2014. Dawn had broken and I was getting regular contractions, bouncing on a birthing ball and sucking on that good old gas and air each time the wave of pain came over me. I was overjoyed that this was finally happening. You see, I had been in hospital for six days prior to this being induced due to high blood pressure. If I hadn't gone into labour I would have had to go for a C - Section and I didn't want that, so getting contractions and knowing that things were happening was making me so happy.
As the day went on I was told I wasn't progressing as expected, so I was hooked up to an oxytocin drip and offered an epidural, as apparently the hormone drip can make the contractions 100 times worse so I took them up on the offer. The epidural being fitted was actually fine (I'd heard some horror stories) and soon I was snoozing away whilst my body contracted and hubby and my mum played top trumps. Sounds pretty sweet right? If I'm being honest, it was but it didn't stay like that for long.
I remember it got to about 11pm and I said to hubby that I could feel a lot of pressure ''down there''. It wasn't painful but it was just so much pressure. I actually told hubby to have a look and see if he could see the baby's head down there! Instead of looking he went to grab the midwife. She was really sceptical that it was anything major so casually walked in and had a check.
''Ohh... okay. I think baby is ready and we can start pushing!'
I was so excited that the time had finally come for us to meet our little boy that I wasn't even nervous about pushing. I didn't know at the time but apparently the midwife had said to hubby and my mum that they should be prepared for a bit of a wait as it would probably take me 2 hours to push him out. Well I showed her! I started pushing at 11.30pm and by 11.55pm our perfect little man came into the world.
The moment he was born the first thing I said was 'why isn't he crying?'. He wasn't crying and I started to panic. Why wasn't he crying? That's what babies are supposed to do as soon as they are born isn't it? Finally after what felt like hours he cried. I heard the most perfect little scream come across the room and my panic melted away. Pickle had needed a little help breathing but he had done it on his own eventually and he was finally placed on my chest. I looked at him and I felt completely and utterly in total infallible love. He was perfect and in that moment I promised him I would always do everything to protect him, love him and keep him safe.
After a short while pickle was taken away and I could see him on the little bed with the light over it whilst the midwife checked him over. I was speaking to my mum and in a little happy world of my own that I didn't even see one of the midwives leave the room. I was being ''finished off'' when all of a sudden there were 2 doctors in the room and a host of nurses. I didn't know what was happening. I was trying to ask why they were in the room but everyone just kept telling me not to panic. I can't really remember exactly what happened next but I do remember my happy little world was shattered very quickly.
The doctors through that pickle had an infection. He wasn't able to maintain his temperature and his blood sugar kept falling too low. He had a rash on his body that they doctors thought was a side affect of the infection. My poor little baby had a tiny cannula fitted on his hand, he had to have a heel prick test after every feed and he had to go to NICU twice a day to be given antibiotics. Pickle and I stayed in hospital for 3 days after he was born and if I am being honest those 3 days are such a blur.
I remember crying and feeling helpless as the doctors spoke about lumber punctures. I remember the pain of having to say goodbye to my newborn 2 times a day for 30 minutes at a time as I wasn't allowed to go with him when he was given his antibiotics. I remember holding hubby as we both sobbed into each other, feeling helpless that our tiny baby was having to go through all of this. It was honestly and without exaggeration the worst time of my life.
The only thing that got me through it all was the kindness of people. Hubby was the most attentive, wonderful human being that he could have been. He would be at the doors when they opened the and he would be the last one to leave each night. He went with pickle for tests whenever he was allowed as I was too much of an emotional wreak to do it. He looked after me and let me cry on his shoulder even though I knew he was cracking inside as well. he was my rock. He couldn't have been my rock though with out the people around him that were supporting the both of us.
My Mum was a godsend. She came to the hospital whenever she could bring food and snacks and a shoulder for me to have a good old sob into. She was a support to me and Hubby as was my mother-in-law. Our families were amazing sorting the time we were in hospital helping doing washing, cooking and sorting the house for when me and Pickle finally got home. The last people I want to mention were the midwives. I cannot tell you how many times I cried to them telling them how helpless and awful I felt that my baby was having to go through this. No matter how busy and under pressure they were I never once felt like they didn't have time for me. They helped me mentally more than I think they will ever know and I will be forever grateful for that.
Fats forward 2 and a half years and pickle is now a crazy, caring and funny toddler and you would never know he had such a rocky start. Over time speaking about pickles birth and what happened afterwards has got easier but those feelings of helplessness and fear will never leave me.
You can read more beautiful birth stories here.
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