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13 Nov 2022
Our positive unplanned caesarean birth!
I had a very straightforward pregnancy; I had no real morning sickness, no cravings and very few aches and pains. I was told constantly what a neat little bump I had and was luckily enough to be able to continue long walks, yoga and ballet pretty much right up until the end. I worked until I was 38 1/2 weeks and had a plan in place for the final few weeks of my pregnancy as to how I would increase oxytocin and encourage my labour along. I did daily birth preparation yoga, listened to my mp3s, went out walking, baked cakes, had long baths, drank raspberry leaf tea, ate dates and pineapple, bounced on my birth ball and even tried massage of pressure points. I was, therefore disappointed, when my due date came and went. I knew it was only an estimate but as time went on I started to get impatient.
At a day past my due date I saw my midwife. I prepared myself for the possible conversation about induction but hadn’t prepared myself for how forcefully this would be thrust upon me. I was completely bombarded with information and if I hadn’t have been well informed, thanks to Anna’s course, I think I would have been signed straight up for an induction within the week without much understanding of what was involved. Luckily Anna’s course had given me the tools to ask the right questions and I was able to confidently decline an induction for 40+6 as I knew the hospitals policy was actually 41+5. I did however agree to a series of sweeps to encourage things along and was pleased when I was told that the midwife could see a good improvement between the first and second sweep.
I’d started getting tightening's too by this point and thought I was on my way. Unfortunately at my third sweep at 41+1 the midwife said no more real progress had been made so we decided to start thinking about induction. It was at this point that I really started to struggle. I started to feel completely disheartened, like all my prep had been for nothing and my body was failing at getting things going. All along I had wanted a natural water birth at the birth centre with limited interference or pain relief so I was really upset at the idea of being induced especially if it meant being admitted to a ward. Anna really came into her own at this point. She provided daily support and directed us towards reliable information about our options. She shared positive birth stories around induction and also informed us that an elective caesarean birth could be an option as I had started to associate synthetic hormones with a lot of negative emotions relating to loss of control. We used our BRAIN and mapped out the different ways things could go and the options we would have at each point, at this point I started to feel a bit more positive about the whole thing and we booked ourselves in for an induction on Sunday (41+5).
To keep my mind off the induction and help keep my oxytocin up, we went out to the cinema on the Friday night. During the film I started getting occasional surges and by the early hours of Saturday morning they were enough to keep me awake. I got up and sat in our nursery. I didn’t want to get my hopes up but I was fairly sure things had started though my surges were only lasting 30 seconds and only coming every 20 or so minutes. At some point I went to the bathroom and had an odd sensation, I wasn’t 100% sure but I thought maybe my waters had started to go but as I was going to the loo in the dark I wasn’t sure so didn’t think much more of it.
During the day on Saturday we tried to increase my oxytocin by going out for breakfast, having a long walk and watching a film curled up on the sofa. By Saturday night my surges had increased in intensity and length but we’re still only coming every 10-15mins. We called the Midwife who told us to still attend our induction appointment in the morning if things hadn’t progressed. Unfortunately on Sunday morning we were still in the same boat so at 9am we headed to the hospital. We hoped they’d examine me, tell me I was in labour and perhaps let me continue unaided.
When we arrived, a midwife sat with us to discuss induction. She informed me I’d probably be given a pessary and admitted to the ward for 24hrs after that my waters would be broken and then onto the synthetic hormones. I explained that we would be making each decision as it presented itself and that I knew I had the right to stop at any point. I also voiced my worries about the hormone and said I knew I could opt for a caesarean should I wish. The midwife was less than happy. She tried to state that by coming in for an induction we were signing up to the whole process and didn’t understand what decision there were to be made. She said she didn’t think I was in labour from talking with me and ended up making me cry. Nick was great and reminded me of all the work we’d done and once I’d calmed down we agreed to have some monitoring before making any further decisions.
We were attached to the heart rate monitor. Things seemed to be going fine when suddenly they couldn’t locate baby’s heart rate, it then came back just as suddenly but it dipped and then increased. They rearranged the machine several times but couldn’t get a consistent picture of what was going on. The midwife then decided to do a physical examination. She felt my tummy and confirmed baby was very low, she then attempted an internal. In her words it was the weirdest internal she’d ever done, she couldn't locate baby’s head at all. At this point she decided to get the doctor for a second opinion and I was transferred to a private room.
The doctor was very reassuring. She did a quick scan and confirmed baby was in the correct position. Baby’s heart was still unsettled and it was at this point I was brought anti sickness medication. We were a bit confused about what was going on. A new midwife informed us that with baby’s heart rate already unstable an induction was now extremely unlikely as breaking my waters or introducing a synthetic hormone could cause further distress. She was therefore offering me anti sickness meds in case a caesarean birth was required. The doctor then continued by carrying out her own internal examination. She was just explaining about the possible caesarean when she stopped and said ‘but that might not be needed as it seems you’re already 5cm dilated so we may just let you labour’. I barely had time to react as a few seconds later she then said ‘hold on I can’t feel baby’s waters’. She asked if I thought they’d broken and I explained about the odd experience on the toilet the previous morning but I didn’t know. She confirmed it must have been and that seeing as that was over 24hrs ago baby was now at risk of infection. Coupled with the unstable heart rate, a Caesarean birth was recommended. I was told I was Category 2 which is one down from an emergency. She said category 2s need to happen within 90 minutes but she wanted mine done now! Me and Nick got a few moments to discuss and process what was happening and both decided we should go with the medical advice as our baby was at potentially risk. It actually felt quite nice to have a plan and I felt a lot more in control than I had done earlier in the morning. The doctors and anesthetist all came in and I signed the forms. We’d gone from discussing induction at 9am to being prepped for an unplanned caesarean birth at 12.
Thanks to Anna’s support and education, we entered the caesarean well informed and relaxed. We knew exactly what was going to happen and how to still make our birth a positive experience. I asked to take my scented hanky with me and they played my relaxing birth playlist. Nick sat right by me the whole time, we used our breathing and birth affirmations to stay relaxed and within 15 or so mins our gorgeous little boy was born. Charles (Charlie) Martin entered the world screaming his head off. It transpired that as well as being without waters he’d also passed his first poo in the womb so we were especially pleased that we’d agreed to the caesarean. Despite these factors, and the heart rate concerns, Charlie was given a clean bill of health. We were both monitored closely for the first 12 hrs but after 48hrs we were allowed to go home.
Although my birth was nowhere close to what I had planned or hoped for, I can honestly say it was a really positive experience. I’m proud that I got to 5cm using only breathing, I’m proud I had the confidence to make informed decisions and I’m proud of how I coped in what could have been a stressful situation. Without Anna’s course and the Hypnobirthing tools we learnt, our birth story could have been a whole lot different. Thank you Anna for everything!
Laura and Nick - Hollywood, Worcestershire