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| | Title: A Blessed Event---You should start another catagory called precipitous. We were planning on a hospital birth because suspected a problem with my son's heart. Got there and the staff was pretty awful and they placed cervical gel without my consent, wanted to do all kinds of interventions I would never consent to, especially with my concerns for my son. I knew a c-sec wasn't neccessary, but I didn't want him stressed out during labor. It was either leave or bop somebody over the head!! This world reknowned hospital has had 10 maternal deaths recently---all gross incompetence or excessive interventions. Also considered driving the hour to Abbott as I knew this problem did not require c-sec but was demanding a pediatric cardiology surgical team be on hand. I wanted to be able to act fast once the cord was cut and they were dragging their feet. [They're good people, you just have to light a fire under them sometimes!] We were absolutely planning on returning for the actual birth as it is the only hospital in the area equipped to handle my son's heart problem. We are both physicians, (me-nonpracticing) and have a doppler to monitor FHT and oxygen equipment at home. So we went to the apt [10 min from hospital] where we hoped we would'nt be disturbed by our humongous set of family and friends, to try to start my labor by more natural (and more pleasant!), means! Made love for a long time--seemed like 4 or 5 hours--but I think it was less than 2. [And it was GOOD ladies !!] Had to get up and eat a couple of times because the lovemaking was so intense albeit very very gentle. As things progressed I think you could say that at some point both of our brains fell out, because when I got established in a good pattern of labor, we really didn't even notice, just lying there in a pretty meditative state. I think I really wasn't in active 1st stage labor more than 20-30 min. The contractions felt like orgasms, though there was some pain. Once my husband noticed these were strong contractions, we neither one of us wanted to stop, just fell into each others eyes loving each other and loving the babies. We got a call from the hospital-repentant--"The team's assembled, but we lack the guest of honor --you!" Told them we'd be there in 20 or 30 min. We both thought we had several more hours of labor ahead of us. He said he could feel the baby's head, but we had been experiencing that for weeks. Asked me if I wanted him to break the bag, I said no. I was only 4 cm when the feel of the contractions changed and I felt a great painless opening sensation. The last 4 contractions or so before I realized we weren't going to make it back to the hospital, were completely painless, I just felt a really open feeling high in my vagina. Suddenly realized NO WAY were we going to get back to the hospital---as if I stood up---Baby A would FALL out!!! Have had a 13lb 8oz baby vaginally and we knew this one was less than 8lbs, plus we would have to negotiate a set of stairs to get out, so moving at that point was out of the question! I'm a really large lady, so carrying me was out of the question. My husband too largely walked away from the practice of medicine he doesn't like the way the establishment ignores safer alternatives for treatment and he's not crazy about blood and puke and stuff---big tough guy! Faints at some of my births if he's not the only one on scene, handling things. Sounds crazy, but I love that about him. He goes into intercession for the baby, develops an excrutiating headache curls up in a chair and passes out, though he generally is Johnny on the spot if I truly need him. None of that happened this time , he was very calm for the most part. Once I realized we were not going to make it back to the hospital I started yelling, "Oh Shit! Oh Shit!" Hubby asked me, "Did I hurt you?" Told him, "I know you don't like to catch , so you'd better call the paramedics, and get the shower curtain and some towels, I don't want to ruin the matress!!" Took a minute or two to get him moving. Told him, "We're having a baby, RIGHT NOW!!!" The next minutes were spent with me yelling about the shower curtain and the towels and him running around like a man wakened from a deep sleep. He actually started to get me towels BEFORE he thought to call the paramedics!!! LOL! [We used every towel in the house.] Made sure the paramedics were on the way but initially got hassled on the phone as to why we needed them. They initially refused to believe me I was having a baby NOW!! Guess I sounded too calm on the phone! Got there, and looking at my vagina with the big bag of waters bulging out of it, our guy (the paramedic) froze. I became very concerned for my baby and have since made several trips down to the ambulance service to train them in childbirth in the field because I felt the delay in breaking the waters threatened my baby's life---you only do this if they are already presenting. Her color got dark while we were waiting. [I Had made them bring me a hand mirror.] Any way, when he got over his grossed-out horror at the sight and found something sterile (it would not have mattered at that point) to break the bag with, my daughter slid out on one big gush. She yelled in great indignation (just like Sierra did when she was born) and pinked up immediately. Ran into the same problem with my son--different paramedic, I was yelling instructions, but he wasn't listening. He looked nauseated! It only took 4-5 more contractions to birth my son, but I did have to push a little bit and the contractions were 4 or 5 minutes apart, the main hold up was the bag of waters. I suppose we could have delivered himon the fly but I didn't want him to fall out while we negotiated the stairs. Just seemed safer to stay put at that point. He was born blue and with the cord loosely around his neck. Didn't pink up right away. I let them work on him for a couple of minutes, then told them I thought it best if they worked on him on the fly. They transported him. Came under heavy scrutiny after the birth because it was thought he was impaired and that we had birthed at home on purpose--but his problems turned out to be from another cause. He's pretty robust and healthy now. We're happy with him, and were surprised to find at the hospital that his heart problem was neither as severe nor as immediate as I had feared. Paramedic 2 (there were 3} turned absolutely green when my daughter's placenta came and went into total panic as he thought it belonged to twin B who was still inside. I'm pretty sure he went out into the next room and threw up after bagging it, (I could hear him violently retching into the kitchen sink!). LOL! I didn't want to transfer until the 2nd placenta delivered and it took forever to come because they would not let me get upright. My babies had been sent on ahead of me. Finally all those damn men in the house--God Bless them---I knew my body just would'nt work right if I didn't get some privacy--had had an hour and a half of strangers staring at my vagina! And that seemed like Enough!--so I got them to escort me to the bathroom and leave me alone. I have had to do this at several of my births. Took a few minutes and many worried inquiries from the dear souls, but finally, twin B's placenta plopped out in the toilet without much fuss. Went to the hospital to join my babies by car as I was feeling fine and had very little bleeding. [This was probably a mistake as it required all sorts of back flips with procedure and raised questions in some people's minds as to had we planned this. We had NOT!] We eventually lost custody over having them at home and are still fighting right now. Have worked in their OB dept so they know me well enough to know I would never put my baby at risk, and they said so in the early months repeatedly, but CPS thinks they're God sometimes, and I'm in strife with the hospital now too because I requested the unit be temporarily closed over the maternal deaths. Retaliation? Maybe, but in the early months, I didn't think so. Initially we never had any trouble over it with the hospital, just vicious silly rumors. We're private people. It didn't occur to me I really needed to quelch the rumors by telling my story. The fun part was taking our babies to church very shortly after to show them off and to tell our story about the birth. Really really enjoyed that. Since then, several ladies we know have been able to avoid interventions and have relatively pain-free labors with their husbands' [Ahem!] "Help" ! [One delivered -literally-5 min after she arrived at the hospital--her husband having gone to work some hours prior to when her labor heated up.] Despite all the difficulties we still face I feel truly blessed. Perhaps this is childbirth as God originally intended. It was indeed a " Blessed Event." [I had not the slighest tear nor skidmark and was back at my "favorite activity" in only 2 1/2 weeks!!! LOL!! DH was already looking good to me again!] sara
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