Here's Where The Story Ends

* * * BIRTH STORY COMING UP * * *

That means don't read on if you don't want the gory details that women like to know!

So little Lightning didn't live up to his namesake Speedy McQueen, but was instead his father's son taking a decidedly laid back attitude to entering this world.  Not only was he eight days late in getting round to coming but he took an eternity on the journey, and even then only arrived by what felt like my own sheer will power and not of his own making.

Contractions probably started on Friday afternoon, but the kids playing in the paddling pool, breaking the back door, cooking tea and the general aches, pains and Braxton Hicks of late pregnancy kinda distracted me from what was happening.  By 7pm contractions were coming pretty regularly every ten minutes and we thought it best that Aunty Fona and Jelo forwent their Big Sky Drive-In.  By 11pm they were every five minutes apart and I thought for once, for once, I may well end up with a straight forward and relatively quick labour.  It was not to be.

It's funny though how things change with subsequent children though. Midwives generally advise you to have a bath and try and get to bed and rest as much as possible in early labour, which is about as useful advice as "...take two paracetamol"!  Instead we finally converted our iCandy back into a pram, a load of washing went on and was dried, and the stuff needing ironed was ironed and put away. With baby number three you do anything that means an easier life to come home to!

Anyway, at 11pm I decided to take a shower to ease the pain a bit (baths here are only about a foot deep and not particularly useful) and I'm not sure if that was the mistake, or what was, but everything pretty much stopped.  After the shower I decided to settle down to watch some tele and twenty minutes later since I still hadn't had a contraction I decided to just head to bed and try and get that 'rest'.  I did start again as soon as I lay down but they were very irregular and only between ten and twenty minutes apart, which was as frustrating as they were painful.  This went on for the rest of the night and although they didn't come any closer they were incredibly incredibly sore, to the point where I just needed to do something.  By 6am I was fed up with the irregularity and the pain was unbearable so up the Don got and to the birth centre we trotted, as fast as we could caper.

Shanna the midwife was there and already had the big deep bath running (hooray!) but since the contractions were still so irregular and the first time Lightning's heartbeat was monitored it was quite slow, we had to hang around out the tub so we could hear him a bit more.  I was already 6/7cm dilated so was thankful that was something and after some 'natural induction' methods were employed, including using the breast pump and some "'erbs" (I'm assuming that was just American for herbs! - which tasted some what like tequila), the contractions came more frequently, though no more regularly, and the pain got even worse.  Finally around 9am I think I managed to get in the bath and had a bit of relief.

For the next three hours though I was pretty much fully dilated but never had that need to push.  It was just horrific, and I was knackered, and although I had every desire in the world to get the little blighter out of there, by that point you're so disengaged by the pain that you can't really do much but simply cope.  And that urge to push is incredibly strong - I remember being really shocked by it with Toots, the Don even more so since I was sitting in the bath in our house at the time! - and I was really surprised that without it I could pretty much do nothing.  Eventually I got out the bath and asked if I could try to push him out even though I didn't have the urge since I was just so fed up and just wanted it over, but that proved harder than I thought.  You really can't describe how 'apart' from everything you feel and how your brain and body just don't seem to be able to work together.  Three different positions I tried and just couldn't do a thing.  Eventually, somehow, after sobbing a great deal that I just wanted it over and him out (you can't keep a lot of dignity in labour!) I managed to push, and the blinkin' boy came out still in his sac.  Which is why I never had that need to push: my waters didn't break so his head had never fully descended or pushed on my cervix to give that feeling. But out he eventually came at 11.54am, still snug in his watery world.  Peculiar to see, and boy, hard work.

I'm telling you, I may have relatively easy pregnancies, - I certainly don't have much reason to complain, my body copes remarkably well (save for a little SPD), but man it's reluctant to give up its children.  Toots was four days late, Tiger six, and Lightening eight, and the process with both Toots and Tiger took over forty eight hours.  When pregnant with the second everyone was like "...oooh remember, second children come quicker!"  With the third there are even more comments...  Not in my case, lazy bissums.

For the first time ever though I didn't tear (WHAT A DIFFERENCE!) and we got to give Lightning a lovely cuddle while everything was tidied up around about us.  At 1pm the Don went out to get us all takeaway lunch and was back in time for the football at 1.45 (just as well they had Fox Soccer Channel!).  The birth centre is like a house really, so I gave birth in one of the 'bedrooms', then they also have a large family/living room with TV and sofas and toys for kids for when you go for your appointments, and it's all very nice.  So while the Don and son enjoyed (?) the football, I got a lovely hot shower and then we came home.  And it felt so natural to leave - I mean why would you stay? - and it seems funny now that in most cases you would then have gone up to a ward or started you 'hospital stay' after that.

Anyway, Toots and Tiger were thrilled with the arrival of their wee brother (which Toots had asked for the day before: "I already have a sister". Can't fault the logic I suppose!), and it was nice to come home and share their joy.  The first 36 hours were incredibly easy with Lightning making barely a squeak, but of course we all know that doesn't last!


And if you didn't want to know all that - you were warned.