So many people had told me 'you'll know when you're in labour. Trust me, you'll just know.' This was the one piece of advice that is definitely true!
Active Labour:
Between the hours of 9.40am and 12pm I decided to ignore what was happening to my body, 'maybe if I don't focus on it then it will go away'. I was home alone and as my dad lives just across the road, I asked him to pop over just incase things escalated. By 10am the slow, shooting pain was coming every 10 minutes or so. May reminded me that the hospital would not want to see me until my contractions are at least 3-4 minutes apart so I decided to just keep doing the housework. I decided to call my mum and let her know I thought today would be the day, just to give her enough time to get to me from work, but in the meantime she suggested my dad come and keep an eye on me until she arrived.
So what did the pain feel like? This is a question I have been asked a thousand times and the only way I know how to describe it is a slow burning cramp, similar to a period pain. The pain wasn't strong enough to take me by surprise, it started very small and insignificant and it slowly built it's intensity so my body knew how to adjust itself with each contraction.
Once my dad arrived he was following me around the house like I was a high profile celebrity and he was my security guard. He kept trying to stop me from climbing the stairs, followed me to the toilet, kept telling me to sit down and eat something and not move about much. Moving about a lot is what kept me going! So I made myself some lunch. 2 sandwiches, a yoghurt and a packet of crisps. FYI carbs on the day of labour is what everyone needs to preserve their energy. Looking back, I'm so glad I ate a hearty meal before I left for the hospital.
At 11.40 things really began to get interesting. My contractions were 4 minutes apart so I knew that I would need to leave for the hospital very soon. Riddled with nerves I emptied and checked my baby changing and hospital bags twice (I still managed to forget shampoo and a toothbrush!!) and decided to straighten my hair to keep busy until my mum arrived (don't ask why - I had planned a water birth but my brain just needed to steer away from what was going on). My mum arrived at 11.50am and she instantly knew it was time for the hospital. No mum, I need to change out of this outfit and into something comfortable if I'm going in today.
I called the hospital at 11.55am and explained that I was having strong contractions and that my baby was on the way. I had the phone in one hand and I was also bouncing on my birthing ball to help with the pain at this point. For anyone that doesn't know, the midwives like to listen to your breathing over the phone and keep you on the line for around 5 minutes. If you have more than one contraction on the phone then they will encourage you to come in for an examination. Granted this does not happen in every pregnancy but for me it worked, I had 2 contractions in a 5 minute window - the midwife on the phone was so confused as to why I wasn't screaming, the pain was so intense I just couldn't talk, all I could manage was to blow puffs of air. This is the 'breathe baby down' technique that May had spoken to me about. I was automatically putting it into practice!
Luckily for us, we live on a small island - so our local hospital is a 2 minute drive from my house. My dad and mum jumped in the car with me and took me down for my examination.
Where was your partner at this point? Don't worry guys! Inbetween contractions I had been updating Michael over text. I was wary about asking him to leave work over a little twinge, as he was only granted 2 weeks unpaid paternity leave from the minute he left work. Had it been a false alarm we would have delayed his quality time with baby by a day so I decided to get checked out at the hospital first (and if they said I couldn't go home) then I would give him the go ahead to come down! He works 10 minutes drive from the hospital so I wasn't worried.
Arriving at the hospital doors I almost lost control. You almost get a little more dramatic once you know that there are medical professionals on standby to look after you, am I right? Just kidding. My contractions were exactly every 2 minutes lasting for at least a minute each time, with each contraction now bringing me to my hands and knees. I fell to the floor at the door of the hospital and my mum was stood behind me rubbing my lower back. A nurse spotted me at the door and was running and shouting 'someone bring me a wheelchair!'. By the time she got back to me, I was back on my feet as though everything were completely normal. I thanked her for the wheelchair but we were already power walking our way to the lift to maternity! Thanks but no thanks.
Funnily enough my contractions were now strong enough to a point that I would not speak or even open my eyes, but as soon as the surge went away, I was back on my feet, sipping water and joking with people around me. It is so weird how I went in and out of that state for a matter of hours. I could feel a contraction coming on, the pain would slowly start at my back and would run around to my pelvic bone at the front. The worst part of the contractions was the high intensity pain. Remember that contractions come in a wave that slowly builds and intensifies, the highest point of pain lasted roughly around 3 seconds, and then I would feel it slowly drift away. The only way I was able to get through this was to count down the seconds. I constantly found myself repeating in my head: OK 10 seconds left, the worst part is over, a few more seconds and I can sip on my water again.
By this point I was at the maternity ward. 'Is this Martina? Hiya, I'm the midwife you spoke to on the phone a few minutes ago'. She led me straight into the deliver suite for an examination. Now, I had been dealing with the pain of my contractions all morning and was doing just fine. What nobody had prepared me for was this examination. The midwife told me to remove my knickers and that she was going to check how many centimetres dilated I was. This would mean she needed to reach my cervix....with her fingers. I'm not sure what I was expecting but I certainly did not expect her to push her hand THAT far up. That part hurt more than childbirth. My body had been gradually preparing me for this pain but the midwives go in so quick I was so shocked! That's the first time I yelled every swear word at her that I could thing of. Great news - I was 4.5cm dilated (over half way!)
'Phone your boyfriend and let him know he needs to make his way down here. There's plenty time, but if you keep dilating at this rate your baby will be here before this evening'.
I cannot believe I had managed to stay at home until the half way mark! That was already an accomplishment in itself. I hadn't even taken a paracetamol, just my breathing techniques and keeping myself distracted had worked for me at this point. I was not opposed to having an epidural or any other medication they had to offer, but I had come this far, so I decided to test myself and see how much longer I could hold out. I really wanted a water birth and some medications (such as the epidural) would mean that I would not be allowed in the water.
I phoned Michael and was so short with him. 'You need to leave work now. Ok I can't talk I'm having a contraction bye'. He would figure it out! The phonecall to Michael was around 1pm, he arrived shortly after and I was on my hands and knees on the delivery room floor, rocking back and forth and groaning my way through my contractions.
Minutes turned to hours and in all honesty, the contractions became so repetitive and continuous that I didn't even focus on the time. Michael must have arrived around 1.40pm and in between rubbing my back and feeding me snacks, before I knew it, it was 4.30pm! Once I looked up at the clock and realised I had been breathing and hypnobirthing this baby down, I had a moment of weakness and I asked the midwife what pain relief was available. My contractions were now so intense that they were coming back to back (2 contractions at once). I know it may sound strange but when you're counting the seconds for the 1 minute of contractions to pass and another surge hits you straight after - those moments were the bits that were unbearable.
Before the midwife offered me any pain relief, she asked if I was able to get up off the floor and onto the bed so that she could examine me. She wanted to check how many centimetres dilated I was before any decisions were made. In this moment of weakness and desperation, I forced myself onto the bed to allow her to examine me once more. I am aware that on my birthing plan I asked them not to offer me even a paracetamol unless I asked, and thankfully when she examined me, I was 9cm.
'Quick, lets take her next door into the pool, it's time for her to push!'
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Time to push? I survived 4 and a half hours of active and intense labour with not even a sip of gas and air, could I make it to the end?
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