A positive induction: Rosalind's birth story
Six hours after the first dose of suppository of my induction, I was in a delivery room. I found using the TENS machine and watching movies to be really effective at pain killing, it really helped me until I was 3cm dilated. From 4cm, I asked for a mobile epidural and was able to rest and sleep, saving up energy for pushing later.
The active stage took me one hour of pushing and I had a minor non-perineal tear that didn’t require stitching. I was so focused at doing my best with the pushing and in the last moments, my epidural ran out and I felt pain. I had no idea what was going on when people rushed in as Rosa was born. I heard one of the doctors saying ‘the baby is a bit a bit limp’ - I was in shock.
My husband tells me he felt me go cold and rigid, my vision went white and I couldn't hear very well for a minute or two. The doctors had to rub Rosa until she cried and breathed on her own, and when I heard her cry, that's when I could focus back to reality and could cry that I had finally done it.
I remember seeing Rosa's face for the first time and thinking that she looks just like me.
I was able to hold her for a second or two before they had to quickly cut the cord to help her breathe. After she normalised, we got skin to skin for a couple hours before we were taken to the postnatal ward and my husband had to go home. I felt bad that my husband did not get to spend more time with his first child and had to go home by himself, where he had nothing else to do but worry.
I felt helpless that I had to take care of my baby by myself while trying to gather myself and recover, trying to stay on top of everything for me and my baby. It certainly felt like I was thrown into the deepest end of the pool.
Now we are at home, having family around to help when I came home would have been helpful for me to recover, but I like that our new family can really bond and get to know each other without distraction. I do find that being demanded to share photos/videos daily quite tiresome when I have not had much sleep. We are currently still on paternity leave, so haven't yet experienced what it's like to have my husband work at home, but I am sure it will help so much and he will get to spend so much time with baby Rosa. In terms of feeding, I am pumping and breastfeeding and the feeding itself, I don't have any trouble with. My breasts hurt when they are full and the occasional leaking is uncomfortable. We make sure to burp her and sit her up to avoid reflux. The best thing that came out of my 3 night and 4 day stay at the postnatal ward is that I came out with firm knowledge of breastfeeding and that I could keep on breastfeeding at home.
All the information we got from HPHB was great. I used the booklet to pack for my hospital stay and it was very helpful.
Top Tips
● Don't assume you will be discharged from the postnatal ward on the same day, pack for at least 2 days just in case.
● All sorts of things can happen during your stay at the hospital, so keep an open mind and remember to stay strong for you and the little one.
● When my waters leaked, it was a very small amount. When I called the delivery suite, I was told very firmly by a midwife that unless my water is soaking a pad all the way through, it is discharge and not water. I made a judgement call for myself and went into hospital anyway. When midwives examined me, they agreed that it was water and I was induced within the next hour. Water can leak, instead of break. Leaked water can lead to infection and can be dangerous for you and the baby. It is always better to be safe than sorry.
You can read lots more Positive Birth Stories here. We have positive birth stories from all types of births, including homebirths, water births, induction of labour, instrumental deliveries and Caesarean section births.
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