Noah's Birth Story

My last birth story for Isla was split into Part 1, 2 and 3 - it had a lot to it!

Happily I can report that Noah arrived a lot quicker and with NO DRUGS (Well Entenox - but I don't count that as I think I mostly chewed on the plastic mouthpiece!)! Although I say he arrived quicker - he was 12 days overdue so he had to be encouraged to come out....

I was convinced that he would be early, even though boys are notoriously lazy! As the due date approached I had quite a few nice things planned in my diary and I was convinced he would arrive to scupper my plans of attending CyberMummy and other outings I had scheduled. That wasn't the case - I waddled around the conference with most people looking at me in disbelief that I could get around for the whole day without collapsing with tiredness (or going into labour). The due date came and went and I was doing pretty well at keeping up a cheery disposition, even though inside I was getting a bit cheesed off by my little mans non appearance! I'd go to bed every night wondering if tonight would be the night and every morning I would wake up disappointed. 

At 8 days over due I went in for a sweep, I was so apprehensive about it, having not had one before and for some reason I imagined it would be painful, as it turns out I didn't even feel it and the midwife said I was 2 centimetres dilated. The idea is that the sweep will bring on labour but if it didn't then I was booked for an induction 4 days later. I left the hospital feeling hopeful that tonight would be the night! It wasn't. 

So on 13th July I phoned the hospital at 7am to find out if there was a bed - I was expecting to be told to call back as they were full - but no, they were ready for me and I was to get there as soon as possible. I felt really excited and nervous! We had to get Isla ready to take to my Mother In Law and then we were on the way.

When we arrived we got taken to our room and met the midwife who would be with us until she clocked off at 3. She examined me and said I was 2 - 3 centimetres and that she would use a hook to break my waters. Waters duly broken at 12.10pm, I just relaxed and played about on my phone and chatted with the midwife and husband. By about 2.10pm I was feeling like things were hotting up - contractions had been coming but they were starting to get really close together and I felt like I needed some help as up till that point I'd been messing about with a TENS machine (second time around and I'm still not convinced by these machines!) and regulating my breathing as per my pregnancy yoga. I got on the gas and air and I felt a lot better.

After labour taking so long with Isla I just wasn't prepared for how quickly things were going to get going with Noah, I was convinced that I would be in for a long labour again and when things started upping the pace I got a bit freaked out and started saying that I couldn't do it on my own and needed an epidural. Basically in my head I knew that there would become a moment whereby I'd be too late and I'd have no choices left to make. I got scared and obviously this is what is called 'Transition' and when midwives realise that the baby isn't far off! The midwife humoured me and got the anaesthetist who went through the procedure for epidural with me at which point I let out a massive groan and made my first pushing attempt. Hmmmm, too late for an epidural then. The anaesthetist was sent packing and my fears at doing it on my own were to become a reality!

As I had drugs with Isla's birth I didn't really properly get the sensation. The feeling that your body is taking over and you have no control over what it is doing, that baby is coming out no matter what. I can't tell you how long I was pushing for but for most of it I didn't actually feel like I was there - I had my eyes closed for most of it and when I did open them everything felt a bit surreal. The midwife (the second one, as the first had clocked off) and my OH were brilliant but I got tired of hearing the same words of encouragement over and over and when you're told that the baby has just got to come round the bend, you just think, COME ROUND THE BLOODY BEND, HURRY UP AND COME OUT!!!

And then at 5.22pm he did. And he was the biggest baby I'd ever seen, his hands were like dinner plates, his feet like canoes and he was all purpley/ pink and I loved him so much! The arrival of Isla and Noah couldn't be more different. I realise now after having this wonderful birth that I was actually quite a mess when she arrived and I was like this for some weeks after. With Noah although he didn't come of his own accord the birth was in a way pleasurable, I think back on it fondly and that isn't something I can say about what I went through with Isla. I also remembered every minute detail of the labour I had with Isla whereas with this birth the memory is fading and the bits that are left aren't gruesome or too harrowing.

We stayed in for 2 nights - my fault this time as I couldn't wee (just like last time!) - Noah slept beautifully the first night (I didn't, courtesy of the new mum across the ward from me who could snore the walls down!) and the second night he decided he didn't like sleep and I spent a lot of the night feeding him, while listening to another new mum who thought it was acceptable to be on her mobile at all hours of the night chatting to relatives in Pakistan (grrr bloody mobiles!).

We got out of the hospital and began life as a family of 4. We're all doing well and it definitely feels easier this time round, even though we have 2 kids. It is more tiring as there is no let up at all but there isn't so much of the fear that we had last time of not knowing what we're doing and we're also able to read him so much better than we could Isla - we know when he's tired or when he's got wind or when we're just annoying him with attention.

Life is truly very good!

If you fancy reading some more birth stories then get yourself over to Actually Mummy blog to see a wide spectrum of birth stories!

Authentic Review of The Birthing Shirt!

When I was given the chance to try out the Bamboo Jersey Birthing Shirt made by The Birthing Shirt Company I was really pleased as I'd not found something to wear in hospital that would make me feel comfortable before, during and after the birth. I wanted something that would give me good coverage but that would also be good for when our little man arrived and I could give him immediate skin to skin and let him feed.

When I had Isla I was wearing my OH's Ramones t-shirt! Sounds quite funky, but in reality it was a stupid thing to wear as I had the IV in my hand, so I couldn't get it off and to have skin contact with her I had to pull the whole thing up. It didn't do much for my modesty either!

So as soon as it arrived I packed it in my hospital bag and when the day arrived for my induction, and I'd got comfortable in my room I got changed into the Birthing Shirt. When my OH first clapped eyes on it he questioned why was it in such a dark colour, shouldn't it look a bit prettier than it did? Er, no, I don't think a pretty pink shirt will look nice once it's got all kinds of labour and birth nasties all over it, the colour is perfect to disguise all of that!

I can only say positive things about it!

Firstly, it really does allow you to move during the whole labour process. It isn't restrictive at all, allows you to get into whatever positions you find comfortable to give birth. It's roomy and comfortable and has two slits up each side which makes it easy to move your legs around and pull it up and down as necessary when having examinations and also when the baby is about to arrive.

The front buttons right down to your midriff meaning you can have skin to skin immediately your baby is born without any struggle. This is also perfect when you're wearing it to breast feed baby. I'm making good use of it now I'm home, as it is the most suitable thing I have to wear in bed as I can give Noah a feed in a jiffy .

The fabric keeps you cool, which is great for during labour as it's a hot and sweaty process!! It is made from Bamboo grass, and is much softer than cotton (like cashmere). Bamboo grass also needs less pesticides to grow so it is far more eco friendly too.

All in all, I really am so pleased that I was given the chance to try the birthing shirt. I know some people may ask is it really necessary but once you've got one and you use it during labour you'll see what a great design it is and how fit for purpose it is. It is also brilliant for breast feeding.

The Birthing Shirt is available directly from The Birthing Shirt Company  website , retailing at £35.99 and there is free delivery until 31st August and also from the NCT online shop

I was given a birthing shirt in order to write this review.

Pregnancy Yoga

I Love Wednesday's, I spend the day with my darling daughter and then at 6.30pm I hand over the reigns to my OH and get my yoga gear on! Since I was 22 weeks pregnant I've been doing a weekly Pregnancy Yoga class and I absolutely love it! I skip (like a Hippo) out the door, jump in the car and really can't wait to take off the weeks troubles, stresses and forget my pregnancy related aches and pains!

The session is 75 minutes and it is PURE me time, and also special time for me to think about my baby boy and channel my energies into him for a change. The thing with 2nd pregnancies is that the baby growing inside you doesn't get nearly as much thought as the first one did. There is no poring over Pregnancy books, no mooning over baby products you want to buy as you have most of it already and no lazing around watching the Discovery Health Channel all weekend for birth programmes (I did a lot of that last time!). My attentions are usually spent on the Toddler, work, looking after the house and my new love of blogging.

There are about 7-8 of us in our class and we're all due within a 3 month period of each other. We start off by talking about our week/ sharing how we're feeling physically (most say knackered!) and mentally. Our teacher is brilliant, so down to earth and her use of affirmations is really empowering. We practice along to music and it's real mixture of uplifting and relaxing sounds. We start by warming up, and 'shaking' off our day, we're always encouraged to take our eye gaze up, this is a really positive thing to do. All the movements are gentle and Jayne says we should always work to 80% of our usual effort, which is good to keep in mind to stop from causing any injury.

I won't try and describe any of the sequences we do as I know I won't be able to do them justice but some of the moves we do feel like we're 'taking off our day' and letting go of everything. We also do perineum squeezes to help with our pelvic floors - I'm useless at remembering to do these so at least I know I'm doing them once a week! I'm sure I'm setting myself up for trouble in years to come - I'll be looking for Tena Lady to sponsor me for Cybermummy 2012! 

After the various moves we do, we practice focussing on breath work, we do this seated on a chair and last week it was so relaxing that I nearly fell sideways off the chair - luckily all the other ladies had their eyes closed and only Jayne saw! The breathing work we do is designed to help us cope with the contractions and also to maximise oxygen intake for me and Baby boy. The out breath should be longer than the in breath and we often use the word Relax, separated into 2 syllables with 're' being shorter than 'laaaax'.

Right at the end comes my favourite bit - deep relaxation, where we lay down, get comfy and warm and focus on relaxing each and every bit of our bodies. Jayne uses visualisation and I love it when she mentions our babies all curled up inside us, safe and protected and smiling! I'm usually nearly asleep by the end of that and wishing I didn't have to get up and drive home but I don't really fancy spending the night in the Quaker Hall really... So I rouse myself and do some final exercises, one of which is where we're encouraged to think of a word and send that out as a vibration into our week ahead, quite often I think of being calmer and other times I think of energy (seriously lacking that now!).

I love the classes for how they make me feel on the night and for the following days and I really hope that I can remember the techniques I've learnt when it comes to B-day, and not go into panic mode! Hopefully being prepared and using the breathing and visualisation I've learnt will give me confidence in my body and what it can do on its own. If you've read my first birth story you'll know that it wasn't a smooth ride and I'm hoping my yoga will be part of the toolbox that will allow me to cope better second time round.


My pregnancy yoga class is taught by Jayne Micallef, details of her classes can be found here:
Jayne Micallef Yoga

This is not a sponsored post - I've written this as it is something that I think has been truly beneficial to me during my pregnancy, I have not been offered anything in exchange for my views.

Still At the hospital and Jaundice...Part 3 of my birth story

Following on from Part 1 and Part 2 of my birth story..

So Isla was taken off to be weighed and I was being expertly stitched up! I was in a daze, on reflection now I know that I didn't have that rush of love that I see going through the faces of most of the women on 'One Born Every Minute' - I think I just felt like that was my ordeal over and apart from the guy between my legs sorting out my under carriage, everyone else was surrounding the baby, including OH obviously and I was just left with my legs akimbo! I was so tired after no sleep for nearly 3 days and all I could think of was myself!

Isla (she wasn't Isla just yet - she was nearly Iris) was doing a bit of grunting apparently and there was talk of her being taken away for a bit for oxygen, anyway, this calmed down and we were eventually taken down to our own room. I'd been cleaned up (sort of) and had my tea and toast. I still had a catheter in and this was really horrible having the bag in the bed with me. I don't remember a lot of the day apart from my mum, dad, sister, her partner and my MIL coming to visit. I looked like sh1t and I felt like I'd been knocked down by a bus. I was on the same pain killers as the Caesarean ladies because I think it was felt that I'd been through just as much as them! I had my Catheter removed and so could move about a bit more freely which was nice.

Once it got to 8pm, it was time for the OH to go home and then I was scared. He was under strict instructions to get his arse back up to the hospital the minute the doors opened in the morning! I got through the night, must have slept a bit. However I couldn't go to the toilet, it was like having cystitis, knowing i needed to go, only doing a trickle, trying to force it but it wouldn't happen. This went on all day until at night it was agreed I needed the catheter again - a whole litre came out straight away!!





The morning of Day 3 and I had the catheter removed and thankfully I could wee! Now I felt like I was sorted out I could focus my attentions better on my baby but this was the day that it was raised that Isla looked jaundiced. She had been gradually developing this lovely deep St Tropez tan and so on this day steps were taken to wipe out the jaundice. This involved her being under fluorescent lights, naked with a blindfold. This wouldn't seem very kind to me and I guess to a newborn baby this is the scariest thing ever. Isla certainly made her feelings known about it and screamed the place down. I could only take her out to feed her and clean her up (she was without a nappy) she was just lying on a pad that would absorb the wee but the meconium poo was another matter! She'd do a poo and then her legs would kick it everywhere, her feet would mix it around and make it into some kind of weird black artwork! That night was hideous, she screamed solid from about 1am to 4am. I was calling OH on and off and waking him up. I was crying to the midwives (who were all too busy for this!). Everything felt so bloody awful in the middle of the night.

The morning of Day 4 and Isla was tested to see if her jaundice levels had come down and they hadn't, so a second light was introduced. I was so upset as the day before they'd seemed so sure that 24 hours of this treatment would produce the desired results but they hadn't. I also knew this would mean another night of hell. My mum came to visit me that day, and as my Dad was still pretty poorly from his Cancer she couldn't really come for long and I really missed having her support. I was feeling really low and the breastfeeding wasn't going very well and one of the things with jaundice is that it's really important to get the fluids in the baby as this helps a lot. But my boobs were letting me down, where was the milk!? It got to 8pm and I had a mini breakdown as I knew that they would be sending my OH home and I'd have another night of a distressed baby on my own. They were very sweet and said that he could stay but wouldn't be able to leave the room - well that wasn't going to work at all, so I pulled myself together and let him go home. It was decided that Isla would need to take on some formula until I could get my milk flowing. I felt really disappointed in myself about this, but knew it was for the best and I'd keep trying to feed her.

Day 5 and Isla was tested again and things were going in the right direction, jaundice levels were coming down and also my milk came in! It was still not a great day though and I was so fed up of being in the hospital. I wasn't mentally prepared for more than 2 nights in hospital with my baby (the possibility of this had never come up in my NCT classes). I wanted to be home, receiving all our baby's visitors, showing her off and also sleeping in my own bed. I was hopeful that we could go home that night but it wasn't to be. I realise now looking back that I didn't leave that ward for the whole 6 days I was there, I'd become institutionalised! I didn't even choose my own food until the last day I was there. I'd send the OH out to choose for me, it was all a bit weird. She came out from under the lights at midnight which was great as it meant she could wear a nappy, wear clothes, not be blindfolded, the lights didn't keep me awake and the room wasn't 500 degrees (it was July and the windows had to be closed while she was under the lights!).

Day 6, was all looking promising for going home. She was still tanned looking but her blood showed the levels were dropping. However it takes the hospital ages to discharge and we didn't leave until 6.30pm, and that was under the proviso that we had to come back at 9.30am the next day to have Isla tested again. They tried to persuade me to stay but at that point I was  gathering our things, I had to GET OUT!! Isla was strapped into her car seat and I was running hobbling as fast as I could out the doors to the car. I was so happy and I couldn't wait to get back to our house and begin family life. We got home and we put Isla in the moses basket, I ran around doing some chores (nutter!), I enjoyed my surroundings. She slept well that night, we set our alarm to wake us up in the night to feed her as we were so paranoid about the jaundice and ensuring that the test in the morning would be OK.

Day 7 - Returned to the hospital and got the official go ahead to go home and enjoy our baby - she was on the mend and family life started here!

I realise that this post mostly deals with my feelings and it doesn't really go into how much I loved my baby - of course I did but I think the long labour prior to her birth and then the 6 days in hospital really challenged me mentally as it all hadn't gone as well as I'd hoped it would during pregnancy. I'd had such a smooth pregnancy that it hit me like a sledgehammer when I had Isla. I don't do well in situations that are out of my control and it just wasn't the dreamy ending that I'd hoped for when thinking about welcoming our new life into the world.

At the Hospital - Part 2 of My Birth Story

Following on from Part 1 of My Birth Story :

I started on the Entenox around 9pm as soon as we got to the hospital and I was so relieved that I could try something else to help with the pain, nothing could help with how tired I was from no sleep for about 48 hours but at least I knew I was in the home straight. The OH was as tired as me and kept nodding off in the chair - never for long though as I made sure of that!

The hospital felt quite quiet and the lights in the room were nice and dim. I was also lucky because I had a midwife that I'd met through attending the diabetic clinic in the preceding weeks, and the familiarity was nice. I was all belted up and connected to the monitor which unfortunately makes you even more aware of the contractions as the digital monitor shows the numbers rising as the contraction builds. Not good. I couldn't stop my eyes from looking at it and I'm sure that every time I saw them going up my eyes would grow as big as saucers. 

After a couple of hours of gas and air I couldn't take anymore pain, and was offered Pethidine. I'd said in my birth plan that I didn't want that but it seemed to be the only thing being offered at the time as I think I wasn't being convincing enough about how much pain I was in (obviously doing the British Stiff Upper Lip thing!). One thing to remember if you haven't been through this before is that nothing will happen very quickly, when you ask for drugs, count on them taking at least 45 minutes before arriving in your room, then remember they don't work instantly! I found this all the more frustrating. It was at least 45 minutes before I got the Pethidine and then it takes up to 20 minutes to work. So you end up persevering for a lot longer than you want to with gas and air.

I can safely say I HATED PETHIDINE! For me it just made me feel off my head and out of control and not a feeling that I wanted to associate with having my baby. It works by altering the perception of pain, so it won't take pain away, but in between contractions it will take you off to a far away place, but then Boom! once another contraction comes, i was very much in the room again! It is meant to reduce the amount of pain you feel by inhibiting pain signals from the brain. When my OH describes how I was on it, with my eyes looking all weird, I really don't like to hear about it, makes me think I resembled the cast of Trainspotting!

So after a couple of hours of that, again I couldn't take anymore and asked for an epidural, but this time knowing that it would take ages (even longer for this as I'd have to wait for an anaesthetist) and I was looking at the clock and manically working out how long in my head before I thought I would be pain free. I think I was about 6 centimetres by this point. Finally he arrived and I got the epidural. It was described as a mobile epidural - but that didn't mean I could get up and move around, I was still restricted to the bed - no conga-ing for me! It just meant that I would still be able to feel when to push which was actually good. I had to be very still while they put it in my back (before having a baby, I was more scared about having this than actual childbirth!). I felt lots better after having it but it didn't work properly down one side, so I had to have a top up. I think before the night was out I had a further 2 top ups.

By 8am, I was told I was 10 centimetres and that I could get on with the pushing! I pushed, and pushed and pushed. All manner of nasties came out while I pushed - I'm not going to describe this, use your imagination.... I kept pushing and pushing and I was told over and over how well I was doing and how I was nearly there. Hmmm, then where was my baby? By 10am, 2 hours later, I still didn't have a baby and I was still being told how nearly there I was, and that they could see her head and I kept pushing. I was so tired. It was decided that I needed assistance and we waited for the Dr to come and tell us the next course of action. Obviously, all the while I'm still having to push even though it's not producing the desired result.

The chosen method of delivery was Ventouse and to say this was uncomfortable would be an understatement. Imagine, you've got a really big handbag and you're looking around for something right in the bottom of it with your hands, just scrabbling around, well that's what it felt like when the Dr was attaching the ventouse to the baby's head - I remember literally trying to edge my way up the bed away from his reach. Along with ventouse delivery comes a nice episiotomy. I'm obviously still pushing but now it feels like there's a tug of war going on down below. 3 hours and 15 minutes after I first started pushing Isla was born. The midwife I saw at my recent booking appointment was shocked at this timing and has put on my notes to keep a closer eye on my progress for the second birth.

I had a quick hold of my baby girl and then she was taken off to be weighed etc and I was stitched up.....Final part here

Labouring At Home – Part 1 of My Birth Story

I’m a week away from the 3^rd Trimester and I’m really starting to think about labour and birth second time around. What with 'One Born Every Minute' being on TV at the moment and also a lot of my friends having had or on their way to having second babies it’s making me re-live the first experience in my head in a big way.

I’ve spoken about my first labour and birth experience before but never actually written about it. It’s really hard to make sense of it so long after the event and as is meant to happen my brain has chosen to make things seem easier than they actually were! So here goes....

It’s the early hours of Tuesday 14^th July, and I start to get period style cramps, obviously I can’t keep this information to myself, I have to tell the OH who’s snoring next to me. I try to go back to sleep and do this on and off till about 6.30am when I get up as I cannot see how you can sleep being continually squeezed on the inside. They’re only about every 45 minutes or so but it can take me that long to relax and nod back off again, so I’m up and about. By late morning we’re on our way to the Maternal Assessment Unit (MAU) at the hospital because I think I’ve had a show (mucus plug has left the building!) and as its the first time I’m one of these women who needs to know what’s going on rather than staying at home, baking, relaxing and bouncing up and down on my birth ball.

We get to MAU and they hook me up to the monitor, big belt round my belly and yes I’m having contractions and scarily I can see the machine and every time the numbers on the display go up I think ‘uh, oh’. The midwife very hopefully says to us, ooh won’t be long now and sends us home as contractions are too far apart. Tuesday goes by with me and the other half at home watching films, me contracting intermittently and bouncing on my birthing ball, TENS machine hooked up to my back. The only relief I can say that the TENS gave was the distraction of playing around with the buttons/ turning the dial and swearing at it that it didn’t do more for the discomfort! I tried to sleep Tuesday night but it wasn’t happening, contractions about every half hour, needless to say I wasn’t very good at keeping my sleeplessness to myself....

Wednesday we had another day of films and box sets, think I managed to walk around the block but I was just so tired. We called the hospital but because contractions were not regular enough – sometimes every ten minutes, sometimes every 25 minutes, advice was to take some paracetamol or a nice warm bath. This only slowed them right down to about 40 minutes again at which point I’d get all upset and be in tears. We were regimentally writing down every contraction and timing them as well and it felt like it was going on forever! Wednesday night passed by and again I had little or no sleep, just couldn’t achieve it when I was doubled up in agony at least every 20 minutes!

Thursday, a new day. Contractions all day, another phone call to the hospital, more advice to have a warm bath and paracetamol – absolutely exhausted, as was OH. We were verging on delirium and I was starting to feel like I was under house arrest!! By the evening there was now some blood appearing and I decided that was enough to warrant me needing to get to the delivery suite, contractions were nearly always between 7 and 10 minutes and I made another tearful call to the hospital to say I just could not cope at home anymore with just the TENS machine, breathing and all the other things we were doing to alleviate the pain (it was more than discomfort by then!) and that I was now bleeding. So thankfully they finally said come in.

The drive to hospital while writhing around in the passenger seat wasn’t great and we weren’t exactly alert after having little sleep since Tuesday. On arrival at the hospital I was put in my own room and examined and joy of all joys I was told that I was 3 centimetres and I could stay. Just being there made me feel better and getting started on the Gas and Air felt like a step in the right direction! Unfortunately due to the blood loss I’d mentioned it meant that I had to be hooked up to the monitors and was immobile on the bed. This wasn’t how I’d wanted to give birth but I think on reflection considering how tired I was by then, not having slept for at least 48 hours at that point I don’t think I could have done the whole natural birth without drugs route.

And so I’ll leave part one there, part two is here