It's a BOY!
List Member ~ Bronwen
Due Date ~ July - 05 - 1999
Baby's Name ~ Andrew Peter
Birth Date ~ June - 17 - 1999
Weight ~ 7.04 lbs.
Height ~ 20 inches
~ Mommy's Comments ~
Well, after the shock of realising I was having the baby a lot sooner than expected (2 and a half weeks), I was quite excited about the whole thing (as well as being nervous, and a little scared!). Charles was in more of a panic than I was, especially when I told him that if my waters broke we would need to be at the hospital within 10 - 15 minutes. He finally made me phone the gynae for advice, and she phoned back to say that she would prefer it if we went into hospital for a controlled rupturing of my membranes.
Charles heaved a sigh of relief and I had a bath, and off we went. We arrived at around 16h30, and at 17h30 they ruptured my membranes. Before the rupturing occurred, the contractions were pretty much non existent. They started properly after the membranes were ruptured. I enjoyed watching the heartbeat and contractions on the foetal heart monitor, and it certainly made me more aware of when the contractions would happen. I was feeling very strong at that time, and was about 6cms dilated. Charles and I were able to follow South Africa's sad loss to Australia in the Cricket World Cup throughout my labour - it certainly took my mind off things.
My gynae popped in to see how things were going at around 19h30, and she was pleased with my progress. She had to go off and give another woman an epidural, and told me that I should feel the urge to start pushing at any time. Some of the contractions were quite painful, but I was able to count (loudly) through them . I also had a wonderful hot bath, that certainly relieved the pain.
Around 20h00 I walked through to the delivery room, as I was starting to want to push. I had a couple of really nasty contractions - I'm surprised that there weren't holes in the gown I was wearing, as I bit the gown really hard (sounds hilarious in hindsight). Then the pushing started. It was relatively easy in the beginning, but as Andrew was making his way into the world it was SORE !!! I can remember thinking (and saying out loud) that it was so sore, and that it had better hurry up and end. I was fortunate to only have to push for 15 minutes. It seemed like an eternity.
Finally Andrew came out with a rush. It was a wonderful feeling - of relief that the pain had gone, and of awe to see a beautiful baby that had been with me for 9 months. Unforturtunately, because he was in such a hurry, I did tear quite badly (2nd degree tear), but I didn't feel that part at all. He was put on my chest, and I was able to hold him for a while. Charles cut the cord, and I was encouraged to try and nurse him. I think he was quite exhausted, and wasn't really that interested in nursing. The nurses then gave him to Charles and they went and weighed him, gave him a vitamin K injection and did the Apgar tests on him. After that he was getting quite cold, so they took him through to the nursery and put him in the incubator. They cleaned me up, and then left Charles and I alone to rest and recover.
What an experience!! I was so pleased that I was able to go through the whole thing drug free, and totally feeling that I was in control (except maybe for a few times during pushing). It was a totally positive birthing experience, and my gynae and the sisters were wonderful. I had a lovely stay in hospital, and both Andrew and I are coping well at home. Michaela, our daughter has been a star through the whole thing, and is incredibly possessive of "her Andrew".
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