Hi Ladies, I finally feel up to joining you. Congratulations to everyone over here already.
Anyway heres our birth story:
As posted on the Antenatal thread, on Monday 12th September, the 34 week scan showed I had grade 4 placenta previa and the consultant wanted to admit me right there and then! I tried to persuade him to let me go in a week later instead but he wasn't happy, saying it was a serious condition and if we'd ever seen how badly a woman can bleed we wouldn't wait to go in. I thought he was being a bit OTT but we eventually compromised on me going in the next day instead and we spent the rest of the day and most of Tuesday running between mothercare and babies r us like lunatics buying all the stuff we needed but a few hours earlier thought we still has 6 weeks to get!
I spent the next few days in hospital feeling a complete fraud and feeling guilty for taking up a hospital bed. However on Monday 19th I had a small bleed (although to me it looked worse - you know what bloods like, a tiny amount loks like gallons!!) and had all the midwives saying, Now you know why you are here, I bet you aren't feeling guilty anymore. The consultant came to see me and we set the c-section date for the 10th, but also said if i had another small bleed they would do it straight away rather than wait till i had a major one.
So on Monday 3rd I started my final week countdown "Hurrah this is my last Monday" etc etc. and began to think I would probably make it to the 10th without further problems.
On Tuesday 4th afternoon my parents were visiting, they had arrived late and were being a bit naughty staying past visiting hours. Thank goodness they did. I had just put my shoes on to walk down to the car-park with them and say goodbye when i felt a bit of a gush and was just thinking uh-oh when i felt another bigger one and legged it to the loo. I was fortunate enough to have a private room with its own loo. My mum said later she'd never seen me move so fast. There was blood everywhere - I could feel it running out, I shouted to mum to get a midwife quick and then everything started happening. I now understood why the consultant had been so concerned and that he hadn't been OTT at all. And looking back if it had happened a couple of minutes later I could've been wandering round the hospital corridors/carpark!!
They got me back in bed, checked baby's heartbeat was ok and wheeled me down to thearte to start setting up the epidural/spinal etc. I was lying in theatre paniking already with what felt like hundreds of people around me doing their thing, even though I was fully consious I felt like I was in a daze and only half aware of what was going on. Then i heard the surgeon or someone say. "We haven't got time we're going straight to a General" (anesthetic). (I later found out this was because ds was showing signs of distress.) Cue even more internal panic from me, sucking on the oxygen mask like an oxygen junkie in need of a fix. I was scared witless now as over the last few weeks I'd had bouts of fear about bleeding to death under a GA in the op and leaving dh and new baby behind alone. The anethetist said "You'll be asleep in a couple of seconds" and the next thing I knew I was waking up and there was hubby sitting next to me holding the little fella!. Unfortunately he didn't get to hospital before the birth but at least my parents were there! From the bleed to him being born was only aprox 15-20 minutes. I also lost 3 pints (aprox 1500mls) of blood during the op (so my bleeding fears hadn't been completely unfounded) and only just managed to avoid having a transfusion.
But he is worth all of it, and I'd do it all again if I knew for sure we'd both come out of it as well as we have. i know i'm biased but he is the cutest thing ever and seems so content.
Sorry it's a bit long, thats the condensed version!
Anyway, hope you are all managing to get enough sleep etc. Everyone keeps saying get some sleep when he sleeps but when he is asleep all i want to do is look a him
Pigiesmum