labor day story
for those of you who still not aware of nathan's arrival, here's my birth story!
our dear nathan is born on the 4 aug @ 3.12pm, weight: 2.405kg. i thanked God for speedy delivery...i mean VERY fast. and of course, have some lessons learnt from this delivery which i'm going to share with you.
the contraction started at 8 plus in the morning! uhm...i really thought that day is not THE day you know...coz i had 3 false alarms before that, and probably this was one of them. contraction is 5 mins apart, pretty consistent (ok ok, sometimes 6, 7 or even up to 10 mins, but most of the time 5!!!), still think it's not that day...
then we went to bishan...my in laws are planning to visit ah bo in hospital. jem asked me to stay at home and i refused :P, i insisted to go out, told him "i really think today is not the day lah". so there we went...to see ah bo...
at 12++pm, contractions become closer, 3 mins apart. i really feel not quite mobile already, feel bit discomfort when contraction comes but no pain.
then mother in law said "let's go tiong bahru, been wanting to bring you to eat the fish head noodle".
i said "come, let's go!!! i'm starving". jem said "your contractions is so close, STILL WANT TO EAT FISH HEAD NOODLE!!!". in the end, to be on the safe side, have to give fish head noodle a miss and heading to thomson medical center.
while on the way, contractions become 5 mins apart. jem and i were actually considering to go home...really felt convinced that i'm not in labor...but still go hospital in the end.
when we reached hospital, we didn't go straight to labor ward. i was really really hungry! then told jem i want to have lunch! ordered red wine/date mee suah soup. not very nice, but am glad it filled my tummy :D
there we go, standing outside labor ward, my contractions become 6-7 mins apart....still not sure. alright, went into labor ward in the end. talked to the nurse "hi, i've been having contractions since morning and about 5 mins apart but am not sure whether i'm in labor"
at 2++ pm, in labor ward, was put on the ecg, monitoring the contraction and it looks pretty intense, nurse said "your contraction look intense, but you still look ok yeah", then checked my cervix
"let me check...you're 4cm dilated already, your baby's head is very very low, can feel he wants to come out already, you're in labor!!! i get your gynae now"
i was shocked ok, actually not so ready to hear the news. excuse me....you mean i'm in labor NOW???!!! my waterbag still not burst leh!! how?!
at 2.35pm, my gynae checked my cervix,
gynae: "you're about 5.5cm dialted, let me break your waterbag"
me: "huh??!!! now?? break my waterbag now???" (showing me a long hook) "wah...what's this??"
gynae: "use to break your waterbag. yeah, you're already dilated, what are you waiting for? you can deliver shortly after that"
me: "oh okie, is it painful??" (the next moment, i felt very warm water gush out from bottom)
me: oh...waterbag broke already huh? not painful eh"
gynae: "yeah, not painful"
gynae: "ok, i'll go and have lunch. see you later"
at 3+ pm, contractions get intense. and this time, really feel bit painful liao!
nurse: "if you feel like passing motion, let me know by pressing the button" (it means, want to push baby out)
the next 2 contractions, i pressed the 'bell'...
me: "i feel like pushing now"
nurse: (checked my cervix) "no no, hold hold, you're only 6cm dilated only, don't push"
i was thinking, you got to be kidding me, i want to push so badly and you asked me to HOLD!!! hold your head ah!!! then next contraction, this one is really strong and ouch.
me: "i want to push" (and start pushing liao)
nurse: "let me check again, you're fully dilated already, let me call doc" (ran out)
i was like ....thinking in my heart ....huh? so fast? from 6cm jumped to 10cm...that's quite a big jump, i wondered whether she measured properly in the 1st place...anyway good good...if still ask me to hold, don't think i will listen to her!
jem was guiding me to breathe by then, coz all i want is to push and forgot to breathe properly and have to wait till gynae come too.
gynae came shortly afterthat....oh thank God...finally can push liao!
less than 5 pushes, at 3.12pm, nathan is out. phewwww....thought it's the end?? not yet.
i felt dizzy and nausea all of sudden. strange, i didn't have that when i gave birth to ian last time...very very uncomfortable. then a very friendly nurse came to congratulate me and asked me "did you eat anything before this"
yeah...the red wine mee suah...
she said "you'll either have stomach digest very very slowly and feeling discomfort for long time or most women do ...will throw up later"
eeeeokkk!!! you mean i'm going to throw up...later...which i wondered God knows when!....feeling nausea, not very nice feeling you know.
then after checking on nathan, they wheeled me (nathan was lying beside me on the bed) to the room...and placed nathan in the nursery on the way. sometimes i really think God is protecting my newborn child, coz i started to feel like throwing up after nathan is carried away. and here's the gross part.
i threw up a whole bowl of mee suah into the plastic bag...i really think people around me probably think i'm throwing out bagful of blood. yeah...look very bloody you know. and what's the best part??!!! jem was holding the plastic bag and later told me "it still smell nice as though never eaten!!! don't have the stinko puking smell at all"
apparently, a person's stomach went on strike when the rest of the body busy preparing for labor. can't remember what the nurse said why stomach can't digest food but have to 'expel' them out when labor is ended. so my advice to all mother to be...
DON'T EAT BEFORE LABOR!
and that's not the end again...God is absolutely humorous and probably make fun of me...when my dinner comes, guess what is it???
it's red wine soup!!!! which supposedly a very good confinement soup, just without mee suah only. goodness gracious!!! "yiiiiiiiaaaakkkssssss!!!!"
feeling as though God is telling me "you want to eat right??? i give you!!! i give you back what you've threw up...speaking for your hubby, in labor still want to eat"
i still drank it in the end...what to do??!!! for nathan's sake!!! i need nutrients and need to breastfeed nathan after that! every mouthful, i simply "yiaks yiaks yiaks"
oh well...that's my labor story....i better thank God for answering all my prayers and of course beyond what i asked for...i thanked God for
- very speedy delivery
- very good timing (it's on saturday and my in laws can take care of ian when i'm not around)
- gave birth in day time (gynae was still working that day....can you imagine if it's midnight, nurse ask me to hold and the amount of time i have to wait for gynae to DRIVE to hospital)
- cervix dilated very fast
- ian cope very well without me (which i will share in my next entry)
