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thedivinegoat_archiveYou know that you have a good reason for feeling shell-shocked, when you're visited by a seemingly endless stream of medical professionals, who all start along the lines of, "So you were all the excitement yesterday." They were definitely worth it, though.
As you all know, my waters went in the morning, (I actually heard them pop, but didn't twig what it was until I sat up 20 minutes later) and toddled off to the RUH. Got there and met the two extremely lovely midwives, who hooked me up to monitors and introduced me to a part of a midwifes tool kit I'd not met before - the big red torch that looks as though it should be taken caving. I think you can all work out what it is used for, but me and Doug couldn't stop laughing when we saw it.
My contractions were extremely irregular, twin one was head down and 4/5 engaged, twin two was up high, breech, and beating up my ribs. The midwives were discussing what to do with me, and in the meantime we were given the OK to go to the canteen to get some breakfast. Good old fashioned full english breakfast. With fried bread. Nowhere does fried bread anymore. (My friend commented that my breakfast choice indicated I was pretty certain I wasn't going to have an op, but it wasn't a concious choice, the twins were in a good position, labour was developing nicely, and I was confident of my bodies ability to do it - why would I need a c-section? My main thoughts on eating the breakfast was on how it was probably a silly move, given my propensentity for vomiting during labour). (Notice the exceedingly unsubtle forshadowing).
We got back to the delivery ward about elevenish, to be told I was being admitted to the maternity ward, as they were fairly certain things would start happening fairly shortly, and it would be safest having me on site. So up we go, and we spend the next hour exploring the rather boring surroundings. At this point I thought it was going to be a while before anything happened, as my contractions were still very irregular, not very strong and actually getting shorter. In fact I was fairly certain I was still in pre-labour.
Towards the end of the hour I started getting more and more uncomfortable, and found that I could lie down on the bed or stand up, but couldn't sit down. It was at the point I felt what could only be described as a percussive pain against my cervix, accompanied by a bulging. We paged the midwife, who's main concern was that the cord was poking though. So she got out her Big Red Torch of Caving and had a look. She reckoned I was about six centermetres dilated, and saw a head, some hair... and then a foot.
I suddenly found myself on my hands and knees, head down, bum up - midwive up on the bed behind me holding back whatever was trying to come through whilst the bed was pushed at a fast rate of knots down the corridor, into the lift and down into the delivery room. (A sheet had been thrown over me to preserve my modesty). Doug's comment was that he turned around to see me being wheeled up the corridor with a midwife using me as a glove puppet.
It's at this point it all starts going a little fuzzy, helped in part by the four minutes of entonox I was allowed, (one difference between an internal performed by a male medical professional and a female medical professional is that internals performed by men generally require entonox to get you through them).
I remebmber the registrar explaining that twin two had got her feet past twin one's head, and was already bringing them down, despite me only being six centemetres dilated, and that she would get stuck etc unless a c-section was performed. I remember thinking that I'd guessed a c-section was going to be necessary due to the manner in which I'd arrived in delivery and when he asked me whether I was OK with that I said "Whatever" thinking 'just get on with it'. To be fair he was trying to make sure I understood exactly why a c-section was necessary, especially as he knew how much I'd wanted a natural birth, but we'd always said that we wanted a natural birth providing everything was well.
So I was then wheeled into theatre, given a spinal block and at 12:05 twin two was born footling breech, and became twin one (just to be confusing). She was named Hannah and twin one was born two minutes later, cephalic (sp?) and became twin two. She, as you might have guessed was named Rebecca.
Hannah when she was born had a low temp, and after about twnety minutes of skin to skin, (when she latched on despite the midwives saying she wouldn't) it hadn't risen at all and so went into an incubator that Doug christened Robocot. Fortunately, I believe because she latched on and had a feed, her blood sugar never went low enough for them to insist on supplementing her with formula, which would have meant a visit to NICU, rather than her incubator being kept by my bed.
Rebecca was fine and fed steadily, with her naps very happliy co-inciding with Hannah coming out of her incubator for feeds. It was only when I got to the community maternity unit the next day I mastered tandem feeding.
Both the girls are scarily well behaved, with hardly any crying and it already feels like they've been here forever. I feel amazingly well, given that I had an emergency c-section, and, as I discovered on Monday going over my notes with a midwive, a heamorage - the extreme exhaustion is par for the course with newborns. And apart from two very brief attacks of the baby blues, I feel fine in myself. In fact, it's going so well I keep on waiting for the other shoe to drop.
But it's good to be back home.
ETA Hannah Jane was 5lb 14oz and Rebecca Ruth was 6lb 10oz. I made it to 39wk+3
As you all know, my waters went in the morning, (I actually heard them pop, but didn't twig what it was until I sat up 20 minutes later) and toddled off to the RUH. Got there and met the two extremely lovely midwives, who hooked me up to monitors and introduced me to a part of a midwifes tool kit I'd not met before - the big red torch that looks as though it should be taken caving. I think you can all work out what it is used for, but me and Doug couldn't stop laughing when we saw it.
My contractions were extremely irregular, twin one was head down and 4/5 engaged, twin two was up high, breech, and beating up my ribs. The midwives were discussing what to do with me, and in the meantime we were given the OK to go to the canteen to get some breakfast. Good old fashioned full english breakfast. With fried bread. Nowhere does fried bread anymore. (My friend commented that my breakfast choice indicated I was pretty certain I wasn't going to have an op, but it wasn't a concious choice, the twins were in a good position, labour was developing nicely, and I was confident of my bodies ability to do it - why would I need a c-section? My main thoughts on eating the breakfast was on how it was probably a silly move, given my propensentity for vomiting during labour). (Notice the exceedingly unsubtle forshadowing).
We got back to the delivery ward about elevenish, to be told I was being admitted to the maternity ward, as they were fairly certain things would start happening fairly shortly, and it would be safest having me on site. So up we go, and we spend the next hour exploring the rather boring surroundings. At this point I thought it was going to be a while before anything happened, as my contractions were still very irregular, not very strong and actually getting shorter. In fact I was fairly certain I was still in pre-labour.
Towards the end of the hour I started getting more and more uncomfortable, and found that I could lie down on the bed or stand up, but couldn't sit down. It was at the point I felt what could only be described as a percussive pain against my cervix, accompanied by a bulging. We paged the midwife, who's main concern was that the cord was poking though. So she got out her Big Red Torch of Caving and had a look. She reckoned I was about six centermetres dilated, and saw a head, some hair... and then a foot.
I suddenly found myself on my hands and knees, head down, bum up - midwive up on the bed behind me holding back whatever was trying to come through whilst the bed was pushed at a fast rate of knots down the corridor, into the lift and down into the delivery room. (A sheet had been thrown over me to preserve my modesty). Doug's comment was that he turned around to see me being wheeled up the corridor with a midwife using me as a glove puppet.
It's at this point it all starts going a little fuzzy, helped in part by the four minutes of entonox I was allowed, (one difference between an internal performed by a male medical professional and a female medical professional is that internals performed by men generally require entonox to get you through them).
I remebmber the registrar explaining that twin two had got her feet past twin one's head, and was already bringing them down, despite me only being six centemetres dilated, and that she would get stuck etc unless a c-section was performed. I remember thinking that I'd guessed a c-section was going to be necessary due to the manner in which I'd arrived in delivery and when he asked me whether I was OK with that I said "Whatever" thinking 'just get on with it'. To be fair he was trying to make sure I understood exactly why a c-section was necessary, especially as he knew how much I'd wanted a natural birth, but we'd always said that we wanted a natural birth providing everything was well.
So I was then wheeled into theatre, given a spinal block and at 12:05 twin two was born footling breech, and became twin one (just to be confusing). She was named Hannah and twin one was born two minutes later, cephalic (sp?) and became twin two. She, as you might have guessed was named Rebecca.
Hannah when she was born had a low temp, and after about twnety minutes of skin to skin, (when she latched on despite the midwives saying she wouldn't) it hadn't risen at all and so went into an incubator that Doug christened Robocot. Fortunately, I believe because she latched on and had a feed, her blood sugar never went low enough for them to insist on supplementing her with formula, which would have meant a visit to NICU, rather than her incubator being kept by my bed.
Rebecca was fine and fed steadily, with her naps very happliy co-inciding with Hannah coming out of her incubator for feeds. It was only when I got to the community maternity unit the next day I mastered tandem feeding.
Both the girls are scarily well behaved, with hardly any crying and it already feels like they've been here forever. I feel amazingly well, given that I had an emergency c-section, and, as I discovered on Monday going over my notes with a midwive, a heamorage - the extreme exhaustion is par for the course with newborns. And apart from two very brief attacks of the baby blues, I feel fine in myself. In fact, it's going so well I keep on waiting for the other shoe to drop.
But it's good to be back home.
ETA Hannah Jane was 5lb 14oz and Rebecca Ruth was 6lb 10oz. I made it to 39wk+3
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no subject
Date: 2006-05-14 10:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-14 11:41 am (UTC)I'm so glad it's going well for you. I hope *your* recovery is going well... c-sections are horrid to recoup from. That's possibly the only silver lining about Meagan and Morgan being in the NICU.
Congrats!
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Date: 2006-05-14 12:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-14 12:36 pm (UTC)::hugs::
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Date: 2006-05-14 01:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-14 02:02 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-14 03:41 pm (UTC)Congratulations!
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Date: 2006-05-14 03:56 pm (UTC)This is US Mother's Day, so I'm feeling rather baby hungry in any case (mine are just 18 and 20 in two weeks) but now I want to be there and have a cuddle!
Julia, nobody around me has tiny babies right now, darn it.
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Date: 2006-05-14 04:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-14 05:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-14 05:44 pm (UTC)Mum sends her love as well, and also would like your address, as she has a few things to send you. ;)
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Date: 2006-05-14 06:21 pm (UTC)Thanks so much for the narrative, too. Can we call Hannah "Footie"? Or "Boss Lady"? ;)
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Date: 2006-05-14 08:29 pm (UTC)I'm sorry that it was necessary for a cesarean section, and I'm so glad you're making a great recovery! Happy Mother's day!
no subject
Date: 2006-05-15 01:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-17 07:56 am (UTC)Congratulations on... well... everything. :)
no subject
Date: 2006-05-17 01:30 pm (UTC)happy hugs to all :) You legends, you !