Devon Nimah Farr
21/02/2010
18.14pm (Dubai time)
5lb 15oz
So I have finally given birth to a gorgeous baby girl weighing a tiny 5lb and 15oz. Still cant believes she has been inside me for the past 40 weeks and 3 days?.
On Saturday the 20th of feb, James convinced me to go and watch the 20/20 cricket at the sports stadium behind our house. I spent the full 3 and a half hours being kicked, punched, scratched and judo chopped, thankfully not by James but the wriggly little thing inside me.
James was getting excited, I on the other hand was getting tired and uncomfortable. The same thing happened while I tried to sleep so I called the labour ward to ask what to do. The midwife advised eating sweeties and drinking juice, something I would of loved to do any other time but eating a whole bag of haribo snakes at 2pm in the morning wont make anyone feel good!
After a bath and another hour of being battered I reported back to the hospital and they told me to come in for monitoring, so at 4am Sunday morning we found ourselves racing down the main road in Dubai on the way to hospital.
After being wired up for over an hour, stressing about the babies heart beat and James joking about us having to stay in we were informed that the heartbeat wasn?t ?quite? right and that we were going to be induced after eating breakfast.
Have you ever eaten breakfast knowing that in a few hours you are going to be in so much pain, probably screaming your head off and worried you might poop yourself? No? Well let me tell you it really makes even thinking about eating difficult! James wasn?t worried; he ate for the both of us
An hour later I was back in the labour room, trying to have a poo before any one came in (hoping, by doing this I wont embarrass myself later!) James had gone home to walk the dog while I was being checked in and gowned up, then was the 2 hour long wait for the doctor to arrive?.
The doctor did another sweep and the proceeded to break my waters, which didn?t hurt one bit but felt like I had wet myself! Was surprised at the amount of blood loss though, next was the three attempts to get a canular in my hand?.ouch, ouch, ouch! In the end the nurse gave up, not before giving me three huge, and painful bruises. She called someone else who finally managed to find a vein and then I was attached to the drip.
The first few hours were ok, contractions were manageable without pain relief and James was on hand to make me laugh. The only off putting thing was the heart monitor, Devon?s heartbeat kept going too high 197 at one point and then dropping way too low (97) each time it went out of the safe zone everything would alarm?. this happened at least 5 times an hour, each time my own heartbeat went way too high and freaked me out.
They decided labour wasn?t progressing fast enough so my drip was turned up from 6mls to 30mls, which made my contractions so much harder and faster. The stress bought on a migraine, with a thumping head and horrendous contractions I gave in and asked for gas and air?. Fabulous stuff, until it makes you violently sick! James was great and managed to catch it all in a kidney dish just in time.
By now I was 6cm and crying in pain, the headache and the contractions were too much to deal with at the same time so they recommended me to have an epidural?. to be honest I would of taken anything at that time.
Epidural is good, don?t let anyone tell you otherwise. It wasn?t painful to have done, although the gas and air could of helped.
With a dizzy head and numb body I was put back into bed for what feels like only a few minutes, in realality it was a few hours.
The monitors were going frantic as were the nurses and doctors, James was trying to talk to me but I couldn?t understand. The copious amounts of drugs being pumped into me put paid to that.
I did understand when a piece of paper was presented to me asking if I would sign for an emergency c section, with a shaking hand I signed and within minutes found myself in the operating theatre with my midwife screaming at the doctors that they had to get this baby out now as she was in trouble, the worse thing ever was listening to the surgeon insist that we wait five minutes until I was numb enough and the midwife saying that they didn?t have 5 minutes.
Cupcake and 4ever don?t read the next bit?.
I did feel the cut and the hands inside me, was told at antenatal that your belly would feel like a washing machine, it didn?t and it hurt. I could feel one surgeon trying to push the baby back up the birth canal, another one forcing my tummy muscle to part and then finally my doctor trying to pull the baby out. It probably didn?t last long but I do remember screaming not to let the baby die?
The next thing was DH telling me we had a girl! Que me screaming again that she wasn?t crying and must be dead! That 10 seconds felt like a life time, please be aware that most babies take some time to cry (cupcake and 4ever) I?m glad James watched one born every minute because her warned me of this, although you hardly remember facts and figures at the time!
Devon was placed on my breast after DH had cut the cord; she fed straight away and hasn?t stopped since!
I was then stitched up and bought around in the recovery room, an hour later I was in my hospital room feeding Devon and marvelling at how far we had come. The journey was a long, hard, painful one but we got there.
As you all know I had 4 days in hospital and had dreadful side effects but with help of strong drugs, fab nurses and a fantastic husband we got through it all?By the way I think pethedine is a great drug! I?m wish I could buy some! It helped me get through the pain of the first night.
You really don?t worry about anything while giving birth, the poo issue dint even cross my mind and I know that I weed myself during the labour! Even being given a painkilling pessary in front of DH for the three days following surgery didn?t faze me; I just looked at the baby and knew everything was ok?
There is more, endless injections, heart monitors and countless number of tablets and catheter bags but I wont bore you all with that!