My Birth Story.

After an early miscarriage I became pregnant again in September 2008 at 13stone. Determined to do everything I could for this little one I used progesterone cream and took low dose asprin till 12weeks. I also ate well.... very well and the last weight recorded was 18st 12lbs.

All through my pregnancy my checks were fine... blood pressure normal, no protein or glucose in samples. Lots of morning/all day sickness, heartburn and started to bloom despite the downsides, and I walked everyday.
Around week 34 it all started to go abit wrong though. My blood pressure rose, my foot/ankle swelling got worse and I had glucose in my pee samples so I was refered to hospital care.

I was monitored nearly every other day, put on blood pressure pills and had to check my glucose levels twice a day. My dream of a soothing waterbirth was going out of the window, and ontop of that they were telling me to expect a baby weighing 10lb plus and scans were confirming large for dates.... So I was offered an induction at 39wks+2 which I took as I thought it best for me and baby.

39wks 2days - Arrive at delivery suite and gel strip is used to dilate me. The only thing is it didn't stay inside me so by the evening we didnt know how long it had actually been working for as it was meant to be in for 24hours - so this was kind of the start for things going wrong. The next thing to go wrong was my hubby pulling the emergency cord in the shower thinking it was for hot water, so there I am standing in all my glory when a midwife rushed in for the 'emergency'!!

babies hb & my niggles (ctg)

all ready for arrival

39wks3days - Checked to see how much progress I made overnight and very disapointed to be told only at 2cms. Doctor comes to see me with 'options'. One in particular is being pushed - a balloon catheter - it'll be put in my cervix and it'll blow up and when I reach 10cms it'll just fall out. Sounds easy but I needed diamorphine and gas and air for it. To say it was painful is an understatement! And I am left with 2 lovely tubes tied to my leg while it's in!

delivery suite

39wks 4 days- Checked and nothing has happened! Still at 2cms! Doctor checks me over and decides to break my waters and see if we can't get somewhere today to get this baby out! After my waters are broken I am started on the drip that starts contractions. I kept being asked if I need pain relief and I just keep saying my periods are worse, and I am like what's the fuss?!! Then the machine is turned up and up and I am on the gas and air and before I know it I am begging for diamorphine! I end up with the max doses of it (3) and by night time I am asking for the drug menu! My only real option is an epidural so I take it as I can't take the pain as been on the machine all day. I had a sleep in comfort that night while still on the drip. I am checked and at 4cms so officially in labour!!

my friend gas and air

39weeks 5days - Wake up feeling contractions and checked. OMG, only 5cms!!! For 11 1/2hours of enforced labour I had dilated 1cm! So there was only one option left at this point as I had no waters either and that was a c-section. It all happened so fast, one minute there was no one in the room and the next I am being prepped and my hubby is in scrubs. I had a catheter put in after several people tried which was one thing I dreaded. That morning though they delivered our daughter and it was all just as well as she had flipped over, was facing upwards with her head back with the cord round her neck. I would have not been able to have her normally as her head angle measured 14cms. My hubby thought they were taking their time getting her out so he afforded a sly look just as she was coming out! He said she was purple with black hair - then we heard her cry twice. It seemed like forever till I got to see her and when I did I couldnt see properly as had an oxygen mask on, so I thought bugger it and took it off! I was too scared to hold her so hubby got all the first moment bonding stuff. I feel a little jealous that he got to see her ''born'' and hold her when I went through the mill to have her and made all the sacrifices. I felt kind of robbed as for months I envisaged this wonderful waterbirth and everything would be rosy when in reality those days beforehand were a nightmare - but as everyone always says, I would do it again to have her, but I am not doing it again and one is enough... !!

one of her first piccys

I then spent the next day and a half in a private side ward as they made a dispensation for my hubby to stay with me due to my sleep disorder. They wern't really wanting me to go home so early but I had had enough and I was mobile and urinating ok and to me I would recover better at home, and I am.

I breastfed her in hospital but she's on a bottle now and thriving and I want to lose the weight again so she doesnt ever feel embarrassed about having a fat mummy not to mention I want to be a good role model - an old mum I can't do anything about but size wise I can....and I will!

(I did get weighed that evening after having her and I was only 1 stone down which I thought was a bit disappointing as I had heard of women being 2 stone down, but 2 weeks later I am 2st 1lb down so I can't complain. I still have ''water'' so am hoping for another good loss this week! I'm also hoping the blood pressure will right itself naturally as the weight goes down and I wont be verging on diabetes either).

C-section after pics
My scar when staples were still in. The ironic thing is all the way through the pregnancy I took care of my stomach muscles and was chuffed how I didn't get one stretch mark - now I have ripped stomach muscles stitched back together and a big long scar!