The Birth Story

Ok ...I know... this is way too late . Baby is 7 weeks now and I am just blogging about his birth.

Oh well...blame it on the sleepless nights. and always-busy-with-don't-know-what days.

Anyway I want to pen this down so that I would not forget how my first cutiepie (first because we hope to have more...hahaha) entered the world.

I had an Elective Cesarean. Elective Cesarean means it is a planned surgical procedure versus the Emergency Cesarean which some mothers have to go through when facing complications while attempting vaginal birth.

I have always hoped for a normal delivery but baby was in breech position for the longest time, all the way till I reached my 36 weeks. By that time, I was already having mild contractions and had gone on the CTG monitor to monitor the frequency of my contractions.

Dr Su, my gynae at NUH, did not want me to go into labour while my baby was still in breech position. First, they do not recommend vaginal birth for such conditions as there is a high risk of infant deaths . Second, she did not want me to end up going for Emergency C-sect as that carries 4 times higher risk than a planned one. For a planned one, a mum will be given medication and all to prepare for the major surgery.

It wasn't a difficult decision. 16 February (a Monday) was the chosen date.

So I had to take my medication on Saturday and Sunday and had to fast from 6am on Monday itself. My slot was at 3pm so by 1 pm , we were at Ward 2A at NUH to register. I was praying so hard that I would get the Coral Deluxe Suite as I have set my heart on it for the longest time . We got it but that will go in another post.

I changed into the hospital gown and waited for them to wheel me into the operation theatre at 2:30pm. Unfortunately, there was some delay ...I was getting a little frustrated by 3:15pm because hey, I couldn't wait to meet my man!

Finally they wheeled me in at about 3:45pm. I was feeling extremely nervous by then and kept reciting my prayers and visioning my little boy , in order to keep myself calm.

If you had watched Xiaxue's birth video, she was still pretty calm and collected. I wasn't... as my contractions were coming on stronger than ever!Perhaps if I had gone through normal delivery, 16 Feb would still have been his birthday.

In the theatre -  Contrary to the stories about epidural and its long , painful needle, I felt nothing when it was injected into my back. That is because they gave me an injection prior to that to numb the area so I really felt no pain.

They then proceeded to place an ice-pack at various parts of my lower body to see if I could feel the cold. When everything was in order, they called the husband in .

I honestly did not feel anything when they were ..well...cutting me up. I have read that one will feel some uncomfortable tugging and pulling but I honestly felt nothing. WIthin minutes, the husband was saying," They are pulling out his legs now...... ok , I see the buttocks now. Soon soon!"

A few seconds later, husby announced that his head was out ....I was waiting for his cries and I heard them very soon after. He was sooooooo loud!!!!!!

Immediately. husby left me on my own (oh wow...) to go see his precious son. When he was reciting the adzhan into baby's ears, little one was all calm and quiet.

The nurse placed him on my chest for some skin-to-skin contact and all I could feel then was heaps of love for our little miracle. He was so cute, so small , so adorable. At that moment, nothing else mattered in the world....all I wanted to do was to continue having him on my chest and holding his tiny fingers. That was definitely one of the best feelings I have ever had!

Everything was over in about 35 minutes. Hehe.... that is one perk of a c-section, I suppose. The cons come during the recovery period (oh boy! Don't get me started on that!)

They had to separate us after a few minutes of embrace as I had to be sent to the recovery unit. I stayed quite long there because my oxygen level was on the low side and they had to ensure it stabilised before sending me to the ward where my whole family and baby were waiting .

And that ...is my birth story :)  :)   :)