Can anyone help answer my questions?

[Lj8893]

Hi all,

I had my dd just over 2 weeks ago.

It was a traumatic labour and birth and I'm struggling to come to terms with it still, and have some questions about my labour and weather my care given was good enough.

I had a bloody show at 10am, contractions started very quickly afterwards and I went into hospital with contractions every 3 minutes at about 3.30pm.
I was examined and told I was 2cm dilated and could either go home or go to a side room on the postnatal ward to wait it out. I decided to stay.
My contractions very quickly got much worse and more frequent and I was desperate for some pain relief but kept being told I wasent ready for it even though no one actually examined me further.
At about 4.30pm I was screaming for an epidural so my partner got a midwife who said she would examine me but doubted I would be ready yet, but when she examined me she discovered I was 9cm, and too late for any relief and I had to be wheeled to labour ward, with about 6 midwifes and doctors. I was pushing in the lift!!
My dd was born at 5.35pm with the cord around her neck 3 times. She recovered and was given to me for skin to skin. We were left in the room alone (me, dd, dp, and my mum). About 45 minutes later a student midwife came in to weigh her and discovered she was floppy, unresponsive and struggling to breathe. She was rushed to special care. Thankfully she recovered well and is a lovely bonny baby now.

My questions are this.....

Is it really possible to go from 2cm to 9cm in an hour or was I examined incorrectly?

Should I have been more closely monitored, in the time I was in labour I only saw the midwife twice (once when I arrived, and once when I was screaming for epidural)?

And should they have left us alone so soon after my dd being born in a traumatic way?

What makes me panic is that if I hadnt have screamed for an epidural then I wouldn't have been examined and would have been left to give birth without a midwife and not on the labour ward which means my dd wouldn't have stood a chance of survival.

She's my first (and most likely now will be my only) child so I have no idea what's normal in a labour and in labour care, was I given inadequate care?

I haven't advice but it doesn't sound like good care.

for you. Not sure if there's really anything that can be done now, but I hope you can put it behind you somehow.

That sounds awful. I'm sure someone more knowledgeable will be along. I went from not dialated to 10 CM in 2ish hours but I was induced.

I suggest you request a postnatal debrief or review by your consultant. They will review you notes and the care you were given and put a plan in place should you want another baby. I think you'll find this good psychologically too.

Awe congratulations.

I think you should definitely chat to someone about how you feel about the birth.

You could maybe have a chat with your midwife?

I requested my notes. I found it really helpful to read over what happen as my memory of the whole situation wasn't too good.

If you have specific questions you could request to speak to the hospital staff too. Write down all of your questions and take them with you.

I had my 6 week check with the consultant who delivered my baby so both my husband and myself could ask specific questions and because he was there and could tell us exactly why certain decisions were made etc.

I think asking for a review would be worth it if your worried about it.
DS1, I went from 5cm to baby in 3 hrs.
DS2 went from first contraction to baby in 2.5 hrs.
I labour fast!
So, while not textbook, I would imagine you could progress that fast, but it isn't typical.

Is it really possible to go from 2cm to 9cm in an hour or was I examined incorrectly?

Yes this is possible, you'll never know if they got it wrong the first time or not, but dilatation can happen quickly although it's not the 'norm' and probably explains why that hour was so painful for you.

Should I have been more closely monitored, in the time I was in labour I only saw the idwife twice (once when I arrived, and once when I was screaming for epidural)?

At 2cm dilated I'm guessing they didn't consider you to be in active labour which is why they didn't stay with you & monitor more closely. Sounds like you took them by surprise, they probably thought it would be hours before you were even actively in labour. These things don't always go by the book, your speedy labour is definitely unusual, especially for a first time.

And should they have left us alone so soon after my dd being born in a traumatic way?

Not sure about this, they must have felt your baby was fine immediately after the birth and couldn't have been concerned.

You have every right to request a discussion with the consultant / midwife in charge so they can go through all your questions thoroughlyand fully debrief you. You should definitely do this otherwise you'll be thinking about it for ages.

Thanks all. I will request a debrief with someone definitely, if only just to get my head around the whole experience!

Yes definitely ask for a debrief.

Please though, do not let this experience put you off of childbirth. So many first births end in horror stories. My first birth story is not too different from yours but it has never been repeated and I am expecting number 5.

It is still very raw for you at the moment. Like Bambamb said it does sound like you took them by surprise. Also providing they felt baby and you were OK after birth, it would not have been unusual to leave you a)to be alone and take in your experience and b) because they then have to go and do a mountain of paperwork and computer imputing on your birth and this tends to be written up during this time.

I agree about getting your notes, then going through them with someone. If you don't want someone from the hospital you could pay an independent midwife to review them with you, or you could contact AIMS who would help for free www.aims.org.uk

There is a free downloadable booklet from AIMS where you can get information on getting your notes, and if you want to, to make a complaint (but you don't need to want to complain to get your notes) [http://www.aims.org.uk/pubs.htm#complaints]]

One thing that some people like is that the benefit of home birth is that you have a midwife with you throughout labour and who stays with you after birth, too, so you're not sharing midwives within a busy ward. I know that at the moment you need to spend the time working through what happened, but it may be a consideration for you in the future.

I hear your worry about what would have happened if your DD had been born on the ward, and you could talk that through with whoever you choose to, as well.

You might wish to discuss at some point what options would be best for a future birth, as you may birth quickly next time, should there be one. Again, homebirth is often a great option here as you don't have the risk of the baby arriving in the car.

Your experience sounds really traumatic. Do take care of yourself and do what needs to be done to help you understand what happened. x

DS1...6cm to delivery...20mins
DD2...6cm to delivery...15mins (born in lift)
DS3...4 mins 2nd stage with MW pushing him back!!
It took me a while to 'get over' all my kids births in fact it still rears its ugly head now... but talking does help. Find someone..GP, MW or even good friend. Good luck.

I went from 4cm to pushing in an hour though I question whether I was examined properly too.
It sounds wrong that you were left alone so much but I think it's normal to be left. I didn't have a midwife with me the while time. Dh had to go get one when I got to transition and started asking for more pain relief. A birth debrief is probably a good idea. I'm sorry I don't have any better advice.