6th November 2006 04:42
Hi girls,
Haven't posted in ages but some of you who've been around for a while may remember me. I had my baby 4 weeks ago, a little boy, his name is Conall Sean. We're doing fairly well...the sleep deprivation isn't the easiest but we're managing...4 hours of uninterrupted sleep now seems wonderful to me!
My birth story for anyone who's interested:
Labour was just that...a lot of tough work! I had quite a long go of it, 30 hours total..the first 15 hours were pretty good, I was dilating well and dealing with the contractions pretty well using my breathing techniques and different positions, etc. However, himself was posterior (looking up) so his head wasn't pressing on my cervix properly and, after opening up to 9 cm, it started to swell from his head being in the wrong position and labour stalled. So I needed the Pitocin drip to get the contractions going again, and since I'd already been in labour for 15 hours and hadn't slept for 27 (labour started at 8pm), they suggested an epidural so I'd still have some energy left for the pushing. I agreed and was looking forward to relaxing for a while, but unfortunately it only "took" on one side & I still had excruciating back labour on the other side! Apparently this is quite common with epidurals so if you're planning on getting one keep in mind that you may still experience some pain!
Anyway, after 10 hours of the Pitocin my cervix had dilated fully & I was allowed to push...pushed for 2 hours and baby's heartrate started going funny and they told me I'd probably need a c-section. At this stage the consultant OB came in and took over. He said the baby was still posterior and that he'd try to turn him using the vacuum but that if it didn't work I'd be sent down for an emergency c-section right away. Thankfully the vacuum (and some serious pushing from me) worked and Conall came out - head still at an awkward angle but he made it! I had to have quite a large episiotomy which was not fun but the stitches are healing well.
The breastfeeding is going well so far - it was tough at the start getting the latch right & then right before my milk came in, but it is so much easier now & I'm glad I persevered - i would hate to be getting up at night to warm up bottles etc., so handy to just pop out the boob!
Best bits of advice I got were to get the nurses to check your latch almost every time you feed while you're in the hospital, to use lanolin on the nipples after every feed for the first few weeks, and, if it hurts but the latch looks ok, wait a minute - for me it's always a bit sore the first minute but it magically disappears & feels fine after that.
Congrats to all the new BFPs!!
tasket
