"I couldn’t believe when I was holding my baby in my arms"

Hi Shari,

I just want to say thank you and that I am so glad I attended this course.

I gave birth on December 11, and I have meaning to let you know how it went but with holidays and the joys of having a fresh bub, time seems to escape me lately.

So on Wednesday 4th December, I was sitting on the couch watching Tv when out of nowhere I had this random back throb that followed through to the front and then all of a sudden my whole body felt like it left me, I was SO relaxed I felt like I couldn’t move because if I did I would fall over, it was the most random feeling I have ever felt and it didn’t last long around 30 minutes and I felt normal again.

I didn’t feel anything again from then until the weekend, ALL weekend and so many people think I am a weirdo for saying this but there was this smell that I just couldn’t get rid of, Ben couldn’t smell anything different when I was making him smell my armpits (haha) but wherever I went I just could smell this different type of scent just soaking out of my skin I even turned around to ben and said I am going into labour this week I can smell it.

On Sunday 8th in the afternoon, I had some more backache and types of contractions that came and went around 5 times throughout 3 hours and again I didn’t feel anything until Monday night.

Monday night came and around 7 pm I started getting constant backache and some cramps in my lower back, I finally got the tens machine out so we could make sure we knew how to use it for when I needed it, I tried it out that night and it was so nice, I ended up with it on the highest setting because my lower back was just constantly aching.

I ended up going to sleep and woke up on Tuesday 10th with the WORST lower back pain.. it just wouldn’t go away, I had my chiro booked in and went and got an adjustment and then went to the shops to try distract myself,  and was leaning over the trolley whenever the cramping would follow through to the front, it stayed like this ALL day with my back constantly aching but wasn’t bad enough for hospital or to complain about to much it really felt like sharp period pains  (my baby was sunny side up)

I ended up waking up Early Wednesday 11th morning at 2.30 am with these cramping’s getting worse and worse, I started bouncing on my ball and could really start to feel them get worse.

I lost some of my mucus plug and basically went to and back from the toilet A LOT with vomiting and pooing! I was in and out of the shower and then back on the ball, Ben finally woke up from his work alarm and I told him he can't go in as I am having this baby today! We started timing my contractions and not long after they were exactly what the hospital advised as to come in at.

We left for the hospital at 6.30 am and got there around 6.15-.20am (we only live around 15 mins away!)

As soon I got in the room I felt the contractions fade a little, I felt like I could go back home and wait another whole day the only thing giving me grief was this constant backache, I had on my birth plan I didn’t want any cervical checks however when they asked if they could do one the curiosity got the better of me and I gave in...  I was only 1cm dilated but extremely ‘thin’, they did this first cervical check at 8 am and also advised bubs was still sunny side up.

They wanted to send me home straight away after that and left me and bento talk about if I wanted to stay or not. I decided I want to stay and that I couldn’t go home and come back again...

I had two midwives that would rotate in and out and sometimes both be in the room at the same time... from when I said I was staying as I wasn’t very dilated they both left the room so it was just ben and I. I got the In the shower straight away which is where I spent majority of my time squatting or walking in and out of the bathroom as I didn’t know how I felt or what I wanted to be doing I just had the worst backache ever... I finally remembered the tens machine which ben forgot to pack so he left the hospital to go it while I stayed in the shower when he got back they wanted to do another cervical check which I agreed to, this was at 11 am and I was now 4cm dilated, as soon as I heard 4cm dilation my head shot up and I said “ is this when people get gas, can I try some” and the midwife said, “let's wait and see, I don’t feel that you need it yet”...

My back pain had left FINALLY but the contractions were getting WAY worse, I couldn’t talk or even look at anybody for long enough to communicate anything. I stayed in the bathroom a lot squatting and standing, squatting and standing and was SO silent the mid wide ended up coming in around 11.30 am saying “I don’t know if you're even getting contractions anymore as your so silent and not showing any signs of pain can we do another dilation check at 12 pm” they checked me and  I was 8cm dilated.. again my head shot up and I asked “is it time for gas, I’m pretty sure people get gas by now” and the younger midwife this time said “let's wait and see “ and I dropped the conversation.

I went straight back to the shower and started squatting when the contraction would hit and would stand when it was leaving.. not that much longer after doing that I couldn’t stand the water hitting me I was like WTF am I doing in here and just felt the deepest heaviest sensation inside I have ever felt, it felt like a bowling ball was inside me about to pop out. Ben suggested to try the tens machine so I went and got straight up on the bed and got on my knees while my head and arms were over the back of the bed and just kept feeling this heaviness while he put the tens machine on after two seconds of it being on I ripped them off, it was the worst thing ever, the contractions were so deep and I think I was to far along to use it and then all of a sudden I FINALLY had a bloody show!

Ben went and got the midwives who came back in and wanted to check for baby's heartbeat which they couldn’t find... they wanted to do an internal fetal monitoring after that but I KNEW baby had moved I just couldn’t describe to them that the feeling I had was like my body was pushing for me, they kept trying to do the internal monitoring between a contraction but I couldn’t give them time and I refused to move from the position I was in I just kept nodding my head in agreeance.. and little to there knowledge when I had a contraction all I felt like my body and I was doing was pushing.

They finally checked and they saw baby's head was RIGHT THERE! The younger midwife turned to ben and said your baby will be here VERY SOON!!

I couldn’t talk I just breathed and made the loudest deepest ugghhh noises (I don’t know how people stay silent but this was the only way I felt like the baby was moving down and out, I’m glad I had her during the day as I would have woken up the whole hospital with my roars)

Around 20 minutes after I had my bloody show and the midwives realised baby's head was crowning my water finally popped, it really felt like a balloon inside me burst, after my waters broke everything sped up a lot quicker.. all of sudden I REALLY felt her head coming out and yep a bit of it did although it got stuck and the position I was in wouldn’t let her come out further, the midwife suggested changing positions and after two contractions to see for myself that she wasn’t coming out further I lifted my leg up and got onto my side and within 3 pushes she was out!

My little girl Milahni was born Wednesday 11th Dec at 1.07 pm at 39 weeks 3 days completely drug and tear-free and didn’t end up having the internal fetal monitoring either!  I only had 3 very minor grazes.

I also got to birth my placenta naturally, they wanted to speed that along and ben stepped in and asked them to wait 20 minutes and sure enough around 10 minutes of having Milahni I got sensations of pushing again, but only half of the placenta came out.. and within another 5 mins I felt like pushing more and the other half came out, it was all perfectly intact except for some membranes left inside me and the baby after my waters broke also pooped inside of me which made them cut the cord after one minute of Mil arriving.

I couldn’t believe when I was holding my baby in my arms.

They said I only really had two hours active labour.. and they said it was nice for once that they didn’t have to really do anything ( I birthed at tweed heads hospital)

I looked forward to my labour and I couldn’t wait to experience it and the’ pain’ and whenever someone said “feeling scared yet” I would laugh because I wasn’t scared I just didn’t know what to say as I had never done it before so I felt like I couldn’t say no but now I know and I know that all labours and births are different but I honestly cannot wait to go through it all again.

If there’s one thing I could say to any of your classes is that it is definitely a mind over matter thing. I am so thankful the mid wifes seen passed it when I was like oh gas where’s the gas, because they were right, I didn’t need it, I just thought I did as I’ve heard stories “this is when I had gas, or this is when you have gas” so I thought I should ask as I was at the point I thought I would need it and that’s when others take it...but I didn’t need it.

Thank you so much for your classes, I listened to the mediation for weeks and placed all the birthing cards around my house and ben knew exactly what to say and do to help me and when to step in.

When I’m pregnant again in a few years ill be back for another mind refresher for sure !!

Katie & Ben

Gold Coast

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