Baby Bun is here! The experience of giving birth via C-Section in Toronto
BABY BUN IS HERE!
And it’s a BOY!!
This is me right now:
Super healthy, just a little over 6 pounds, he’s a munchkin and everyone can’t believe how tiny he is (he’s pretty much the size of my childhood teddybear).
YAY!!!
WANT TO READ ABOUT HOW IT ALL HAPPENED?
If you are not interested in any of this, skip this post and come back another day, but I’ve had a lot of readers writing to me telling me they’ve appreciated reading a (real) account of what it’s like to give birth or be pregnant, and I figured I’d continue for people who are interested.
I also write about my first trimester, second trimester and third trimester in case you’re interested.
HE CAME A DAY EARLY.. OR DID HE?
When I say “a day early”, I wonder if I really mean “on time” because my original ultrasound said that he would be born on the day my waters broke, but then for some reason they changed my expected due date to be 2 days after that.
Anyway, he came just about the time he should have, and we can quibble that it was either 39 weeks and 5 days or 40 weeks exactly, but he decided to come out pretty much on time.
I WAS SCHEDULED FOR A C-SECTION IN 2 DAYS
I had my heart set on a normal delivery and cried a few times when I was told he was in breech (frank breech position, for anyone who cares).
My doctor told me it was very unlikely he would turn this late in the game, but my mom said that when I was inside her, I was the same way — I didn’t turn until the HOUR before she gave birth, and I was in breech as well.
At any rate, he scheduled me in for a C-Section 2 days after my expected due date and told me some women opt for elective C-sections because vaginal deliveries are horribly painful.
Kudos to anyone who did that, WITHOUT epidurals, because.. yeah.. I’ll explain later on in this post how painful it was.
Anyway, I came to peace with the idea that I would have a C-Section and tried not to worry about it (it is major abdominal surgery, which is why I did not want to do it.)
MY WATERS BROKE, AND THIS WAS NOT A TRICKLE, IT WAS A HUGE GUSH OF FLUID..
I was just about to lie down to sleep at night when I felt this huge gush of liquid. It was like friggin’ Niagara Falls. I couldn’t stop gushing, and I needed help to get up and run to the bathroom. Luckily, I had put down a garbage bag and a towel weeks in advance, so I didn’t ruin our futon.
I got to the bathroom, soaked through about 5 maternity pads in a matter of minutes before I just decided to *ahem* sit there and wait it out until the taxi arrived because I was really, REALLY losing a lot of the waters.
My mother called the taxi, everyone got ready, I grabbed my emergency bag to go and got into the cab with a garbage bag underneath me (what?! I wanted to make sure I didn’t soil the poor man’s seats).
All the way to the hospital, I kept leaking so much that I soaked my entire outfit, I think I even leaked into my boots (thank goodness they were the cheap $30 winter rubber boots I bought), and all I could think was: I’m glad it is only -10C /14F outside and not any colder. It was cool / cold, but not snowing, not freezing, no ice, and completely fine.
NO CONTRACTIONS AT ALL UNTIL I GOT TO THE HOSPITAL
I felt absolutely NO painful contractions or pain at all until I got to the hospital. What I did feel, was a little cramping here and there about 2 hours before my water broke, but nothing that made me want to scream like a stuck pig.
Actually, thinking back to the day, I was feeling contractions all day but didn’t know it.
I thought it was attributed to my pregnancy where he was kicking me and making me feel a bit of cramping or pain, but it turns out I was already in early stages of labour the whole day I just didn’t know it.
I even mentioned it to my mom about an hour before I went to sleep, saying:
Look, I think I’m having Braxton-Hicks contractions (false labour)!
I had an instinct or a feeling (my mom did too) that the baby could come at any time, but I thought:
Nah.. he’ll show up in 2 days when I have my scheduled C-Section.
When I got to the hospital, I was walking fine, gushing fluid allllll the way up to the maternity ward and it wasn’t until I reached the ward doors that I felt one really strong, medium-pain kind of contraction that made me stop and breathe hard.
Someone in the hallway told me with great alarm:
You should be in a wheelchair!
Me: Meh. I can walk, no pain yet. *gush gush, slosh*
The next one was about 15 – 20 minutes apart, as I was talking to the nurse to sign myself in.
I sat in the waiting room (no one expects any woman, even one that broke her waters right away to give birth within a few hours), and felt no pain except just gushing and gushing fluid.
I feel like I gushed at least 4 liters of fluid between the time my waters broke to the time I was put on the hospital bed to wait for active labour to start — I was soaking through everything like you wouldn’t believe and even the doctor was a bit surprised at how much fluid I was gushing, saying to me:
Wow, you really soaked through everything, even the back of your dress, I can see that..
I WAS INFORMED THAT I HAD PUPPPS
So that super itchy belly and stretch marks that appeared only in the last month of my pregnancy? It was not eczema or “normal”, but a specific pregnancy rash called PUPPPS or Pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy.
No one told me this before!! How can this be!?
Anyway, when I heard “PUPPPS”, I was thinking of little tiny baby dogs, and I said:
But.. I am not near any puppies… or giving birth to one O_o
The doctor informed me it was an acronym for a pregnancy rash that I had, which now that I google it, explains why my stomach was SO red, itchy and totally inflamed. I have serious stretch marks in front and I doubt they’ll go away…
My skin is also super tight, dry and it feels like it needs to be exfoliated, which I might do to help slough off those dead skin cells.
I also lost a lot of nerve sensation in the middle of my belly due to the skin stretching out so far that blood couldn’t reach that area and it turned completely white and feels numb to the touch.
Even today after the baby is out, I still can’t really feel 100% of my front stomach, the sensation is slightly numb.
IT WAS A SUPER FAST LABOUR
An hour later, I started feeling the pain.
My god it was horrible.
I don’t care what anyone tells you about forgetting the pain and it being a beautiful, wondrous, magical experience to be in active labour because IT WAS NOT.
I wish we laid eggs instead and sat on them for 9 months!!
I told my mom this as I was labouring and even though I was in some serious pain and squeezing the hell out of the bed (I didn’t want to break her bones), she burst out laughing but tried to keep it in because it was a serious moment as I was about to give birth to a grandchild.
Anyway, I felt like a thousand knives were jabbing my abdomen all at once for at least 20 times, and you tense up / feel totally intense pain beyond anything you have experienced for a good 20 seconds.
No endorphins in the world could have saved me from feeling this pain and I am sure my body was pumping it out like crazy in response.
My mother also said in an attempt to try and comfort me:
At least you aren’t in Africa where you have to walk for 3 days while in labour to give birth!!!
You are in a clean, modern hospital, and there are people to take care of you.
It’s not that bad.
It could be much worse!
Yeah.. not really any help when you’re feeling like you want to die instead of live with this pain, but I saw her point.
My mother was a fast labourer and I was no exception.
Within an hour and a half reaching the hospital, answering questions and getting set up on the hospital bed, my contractions increased to 5 minutes apart, changing from 15 – 30 minutes just an hour and a half ago.
My baby turned into a footling breech (the worst where one leg sticks out rather than both legs tucked in), and a C-Section became mandatory because otherwise I was told by a nurse later that she saw a woman who vaginally gave birth to a footling breech and it was the worst tearing she had ever seen in her nursing career.
She was uhh…torn, literally TORN from front to back.. *cough* *cough*
There would be no chance that any doctor would let me deliver a footling breech baby normally or try, because it is too dangerous and the umbilical cord might come out before the baby, and once it’s exposed to oxygen it tells the baby’s lungs to start working and he might literally drown in my womb. It also slows down the supply of oxygen and blood to the baby as the cord gets squeezed out first before the baby’s head.
At least, this is what I recall from watching National Geographic: In the Womb.
Anyway, my point is that it scared my doctors so much that I was progressing so quickly (but still only dilated 3 cm), that they quickly put me in to an emergency C-section about 2 hours ahead of time.
I WAS NOT DRUGGED UP UNTIL A MINUTE BEFORE I GAVE BIRTH
Keep in mind that I am STILL not drugged at all because I had progressed so fast that they didn’t expect to have to drug me until about an hour later or so. By the time they were about to wheel me into the operating room (OR), the anesthesiologist came in to talk to me about the risks of drugging me (I would have signed away my soul at that point to get my hands on some sweet sweet painkillers), and she was told she couldn’t talk to me because I had to get to the OR like.. NOW.
She too, was surprised but came along and talked to me while I was being wheeled to the room, fighting massive, painful contractions. They ask you about your pain on a scale of 1-10, and all I could say was:
But what is 10 really? It’s so subjective.
I mean, I am feeling like what I have is a 6 or a 7 but maybe it’s a 10 because how can it get worse than this!?
Is this a 10?
Can I take more pain than this? I am not sure!
1 to 10 doesn’t cut it as a scale, how about ELEVENTY-BILLION!?
Literally. I was literally saying this, trying to gauge my pain accurately while screaming and moaning like a cow.
The pain for me, was beyond anything imaginable, my entire body was tense, cramping 1000x worse than I had ever felt in my life, and each time I had a contraction I wished I was dead instead, it felt like something was ripping/stabbing my womb or uterus apart for 10 seconds (that’s how long the intense cramping lasted for me), then I had sudden relief when the contractions stopped for about 4 minutes before it all started up all over again.
I wasn’t sure I’d be able to make it through another half hour of contractions every 5 minutes, let alone every HOUR..
The risk at this point for me that I was in SO MUCH PAIN they may not be able to administer an epidural to help me deal with the pain, and I was fearing I’d have to give birth with a C-section without any painkillers at all (OH MY GOD).
I was put onto a table, and asked to arch my back as much as possible so they could try and get that epidural into my spine ASAP. They did not expect me to progress so fast even though my doctor had specifically written: FAST LABOUR!!! on my sheet.
It felt like a nasty bee sting as they tried to poke and poke and poke at my spine to get in between the spaces, but she kept hitting bone because I wasn’t arching my back enough while dealing with the feeling of a massive knife slicing through my abdomen for 20 seconds.
They were begging me to arch my back even more to get the needle in there but I was having some seriously painful contractions and couldn’t relax enough to bend, not to mention that my bump was in the way of this bending I was supposed to be doing.
Overall, that was the absolute WORST part of the entire active labour, trying to stay and keep still so they don’t paralyze me permanently with the epidural needle, and trying to arch my back with a bump in front, contracting and making me scream like a stuck pig.
After they finally gave me the epidural, the sweet, sweet, cold sensation of the drug coursed through my body and I could finally relax. The nurse looked at me and realized I was straining so hard against the reflexes of my body to tense up while I was getting the epidural, that I was completely drenched in sweat in front from the sheer exertion to fight against my body to stay still.
I think they gave me the hard stuff because about 10 seconds after they got the drug to flow directly into my spine, my entire bottom half went numb like my lower half had fallen asleep and I was on pins and needles, you know like when your foot goes to sleep?
AFTER THE DRUGS, IT WAS ALL GOOD FOR ME
After I was drugged in my lower half, I felt a cold sensation of the drug working, and I finally relaxed. I felt so good and pain-free, I didn’t care what happened next and I wanted to live again.
They put up a little blue tent to hide the cutting of my belly (I didn’t want to watch anyway), and I only felt pressure and them massaging my stomach to basically manually push the baby out with their hands to take him out of the incision they made just below my belly (above my bikini hair line, it is about 4 – 6 cm in length).
NO PAIN. I just felt a pressure but there was no pain.
It went on for about half an hour, and the only pain I felt was that stupid blood pressure thing strapped to my arm. They put it on so tight that it broke blood vessels and left nasty NASTY bruises for 2 weeks afterwards, and it scared even the nurses when they checked on me later on — they kept asking me if I had scratched myself HARD or something.
That was the only pain I felt after the sweet sweet sensation of pain-numbing drugs kicked in.
Once the baby was out, I could hear him scream and wail, and they all told me he was a healthy baby boy. They also told me there were NO problems with my uterus or my baby as far as they could see, the baby was in breech just because he wanted to be in breech, and he happened to turn into a footling breech because.. he wanted to come out with a foot first.
A lot of breech births pose problems because the baby might have a defect or something that prevented him from turning around, but he had none of those problems, thank goodness.
I was wheeled into a private recovery room and I didn’t get to hold or to touch him until he was cleaned up and presented to me. This is common for C-section deliveries but not for vaginal ones.
With normal deliveries they plop the bloody, mucus-y baby right onto your chest immediately after delivery.
For the next hour or two, I was asked to try and wiggle my toes and move my legs, which made me think of the scene in Kill Bill where Uma Thurman is in the back, trying to force her big toe to wiggle.
HOW BABY BUN IS DOING NOW
He was born very tiny so his blood sugar was very low and I couldn’t produce enough colostrum to feed him, and he wouldn’t latch to suck, which is now the reason why I am chained to a breast pump, pumping every 2 hours to feed him because I cannot do it directly.
Anyway, he was put on formula for the next 3 days and now I am feeding him exclusively with breast milk (as much as I can), and boosting my milk production by eating oats, drinking soups, drinking fenugreek tea.. you name it, I am doing it because I am desperate and determined to feed him without formula.
He just won’t latch, I don’t want to fight with him and I am doing my best while trying not to feel like a failure.
HOW I AM DOING NOW POST C-SECTION
Having gone through active labour for about an hour and a half without any drugs (up to 2 hours), I am going to opt for an elective C-section the next time around. I cannot imagine giving birth normally because it was so painful and so incredibly horrible that having experienced both sides of this coin with Baby Bun, I am going to ask for surgery.
At least, I will know when he is coming out and what to expect.
The stitches look kind of freaky when you first see them, and I can see the edges of the scar peeking out above my bikini line. It’s kind of strange.
PAIN ON A SCALE OF ONE TO TEN: 1-3 FOR ME
The pain after a C-section was not that bad.
There were about 3-4 spots or times when I felt some serious throbbing, dull aching pain on the left or right side of my scar, and I begged for morphine those times. Otherwise, I was fine.
I discharged 3 days later and received a list of medication to take (painkillers and the like) but I didn’t fill the prescriptions and didn’t feel much pain except for cramping and twinges here and there, but nothing I couldn’t handle.
I also took it easy for the first 2 weeks (very important) and refused to carry anything heavier than even 6 pounds. I went slowly up and down the stairs, and so on.
What was painful for me, was sitting for long periods of time and then trying to get up (you feel a serious, painful stretch or cramp), and the first few days are the absolute worst when you are trying to get up and walk as much as possible to heal. You also have to avoid putting pressure on your stomach where the scar is, and you can’t really sleep on your side (back is the best, which was fine for me).
I had to take extra care not to use my abs when I got up, and used my legs squatting or my hands and elbows as much as possible to push myself up.
I also try not to lift anything or carry anything, keeping in mind that I have to be careful to not tear my stitches open. I know a woman who had a C-Section and had her belly button torn open, so they had to surgically reconstruct it for her (she doesn’t have one any more).
There are a lot of complications with a C-Section I am just lucky I did not have any so far.
IT HURTS TO COUGH, SNEEZE OR DO ANYTHING YOU NORMALLY TAKE FOR GRANTED
When I cough or sneeze, it isn’t satisfying. I can’t do it the way I normally do because it strains my abdominal muscles and hurts my scar.
I tried holding a pillow over the scar and then coughing but the pain scared me from making a serious cough or a sneeze (keep in mind, I went off all painkillers the day I was discharged..)
GOING TO THE BATHROOM AFTER THE CATHETER WAS TOUGH
You also can’t really go to the bathroom afterwards because of the catheter. I REALLY wanted to go to the bathroom (felt the urge) but when I sat down, nothing came out. It took me about 24 hours after trying, to go to the bathroom.
Once I was able to go to the bathroom, even just a little (literally 6 drops), I kept drinking more and more water to force my bladder to remember how to work again.
All the nurses were so pleased when I could finally pee, pass gas and they all eagerly anticipated my bowel movement (although that did not happen for at least 4 days).
Basically, they were thrilled that my body could get back to normal and they didn’t accidentally slice any important organs or guts inside.
SLIGHT TWINGES OF PAIN HERE AND THERE
During the first two weeks, I felt slight twinges of pain and I can see my belly going down in size as my uterus contracts.
I’m mourning the loss of my beautiful-skinned belly because of the PUPPPS situation and stretch marks going across it, but this is the price you pay to get a cute Baby Bun.
Once in a while when I sit too long, I feel pain. This was more prevalent in the first few days after the C-section, and it got better by about Day 5, even without painkillers.
YOU BLEED A LOT TO GET RID OF THE LOCHIA AFTER GIVING BIRTH
I know they tell you that you bleed, but no one tells you how much you’re bleeding after you give birth. You’re basically having a serious period where (for me) it stinks to high hell.
It is not an infection (I have no fever, it isn’t bleeding excessively), it just smells HORRIBLE to me. I don’t even want to know what it would smell if I was infected down there because it can’t get worse than this.
“Clean and fresh smelling like new blood”?
No. Not clean and fresh to me.
It’s old blood from inside your uterus and when you breastfeed, your uterus contracts and gets rid of lochia (the name for this post-birth menstrual “period” that lasts for weeks and stinks).
Anyway, when you see fresh (bright red) blood it means you need to rest. I saw this a few times and had to lie down / sleep more because I knew I was bleeding more because I wasn’t resting enough.
NEARING THE END OF WEEK TWO IT GETS BETTER
The first week is horrific after a C-section (and a normal delivery too, I’d assume).. but by the second week, I was able to get up and down (my legs have strengthened from all the squats), and while I had slight back pain from trying not to use my abs to get up and down or to lift Baby Bun, that has disappeared from resting more and sleeping on my back (when I can, that is).
I felt no real pain near the end of week two after my C-section (sans painkillers, I didn’t even buy any Tylenol to take) and the only pain I feel right now is sleep deprivation from taking care of a newborn for the first time, and to try and figure out how to do it.
I feel my arms getting stronger from carrying and lifting him and while I avoid putting any pressure or anything on my scar / belly, I don’t feel as I did the first few days after surgery.
WOULD I DO A C-SECTION AGAIN?
Yes. I am not scared of it as I was before.
The first week is horrible, but so is every other birth, and quite honestly, having gone through a bit of the original way to deliver, I am not certain I want to see it through.
The only caveat is you NEED someone to help you around the house for 3 weeks, lifting the baby for you, or making food for you and so on. You simply can’t give birth via C-section and go home to take care of a child all alone.
I will probably consider a regular birth later on just because I haven’t done one, but I am not excited about being sliced open if need be or all the other things that come with it, although the recovery is much better and faster with a regular birth.
ANY QUESTIONS? I MAY HAVE LEFT SOMETHING OUT!
108 Comments
-
-
save. spend. splurge.
I did stretches, I learned breathing techniques and I was told to LISTEN. When they say STOP pushing,…
STOP. Otherwise you can tear more. But with a C section I had only the pain before the sweet sweet painkillers.
-
-
Anna Jane
Love your story! I had a pretty similar situation and was also terrified that something was wrong with my lil’ boy because he was breech. He was tiny (just under 6 lbs) but perfectly healthy. Little booger gave me a scare! Glad you’re healing up ok…I’m going through the exact same thing and think I’m doing too much too soon one week after surgery…
-
save. spend. splurge.
Mine was just over 6lbs! 🙂
He was breech and I too, was worried something was wrong. Turns out it was probably just that there was a lot of amniotic fluid and that’s why he couldn’t turn.
DO NOT do too much after surgery. Please, I beg of you to take it easy. YOu do not want to pop your stitches or go back to the OR. My SIL didn’t take it easy and ended up in a worse situation with her womb tearing apart…
-
-
Eva @ Girl Counting Pennies
Congratulation on your baby!!! I hope both of you are doing great!! I read through this entire post but some bits were so scary I had to skip them and move to the next sentence! I kept thinking to myself there was no way I would want to go through with this, but I do want to have a baby one day. Not sure if this ever happens for me as I am 30 yrs old and single, but we’ll see 😉 Anyway, after reading your story I would want a C-section! Congrats again!!! You must be over the moon happy!! xo
-
save. spend. splurge.
Well that’s to be expected. Some parts WERE scary and painful. And to think I wanted 4 children.. now I just kind of want 2, 3 maximum!
-
-
Ati Aziz
Congratulations mochimac! I hope both you and baby are well. 🙂
-
-
Helen - myliladventures
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Congrats 🙂
You’ve tastefully and truthfully shared your birth story in the manner of which all birth stories should be and none of this ‘Oh, its all worth it in the end when you’re holding your baby’ BS I keep finding out there on the internet.
My time isn’t that far away and I’m now appreciating reading REAL birth stories, none of this fluffy kittens, butterflies, unicorns and rainbows BS everyone keeps trying to stuff down your throat.
-
save. spend. splurge.
Thank you.
And yes, while I do love my baby and I think he’s adorable.. I am not sugarcoating that it was painful beyond belief and I never ever wanted to experience it again. I’ll have to REALLY think twice about having a second one.. or a least beg for an epidural ASAP.
-
Helen - myliladventures
Well let me give you a quick lil update:
5 days after I posted this comment, my son was born via emergency C-section. Early. YIKES! Let me just say – the 30 sec pain from the epidural is totally worth it for the relief! (I was only offered the epidural after 7 hrs of being induced and told I’d only experience ‘mild cramps’ like a period – BWAHAHAHA – joke was on me. I was in full contraction mode within 5 mins and it only got worse from there. All I kept wondering was ‘Who gets period cramps this bad?!’)
Anyhow – mom’s at home recovering, baby’s in the NICU for another couple of weeks and dad’s trying to help as best he can. We’re taking it day by day.
-
-
-
debT debS
Congratulations! My daughter gave birth to my first grandson last year. She had trouble with the latch and resorted to the nipple shield and was eventually able to get him off it after a few weeks or month. I hope things are going better for you both now!
-
-
debT debS
@save. spend. splurge.: Try the nipple shield. I was worried at first that it would decrease her milk supply but it did get her to not have to pump all the time, which in itself can be quite exhausting. I think it might have eventually done that but then with the help of a lactation consultant, she was eventually able to get off the shield and has been fine. Lots of fluids and rest. Use the free services of lactation consultant in your city, or pay one to come into your home or both. Well worth it, IMO. All the best to you and your little bun!
-
save. spend. splurge.
I will definitely go to a lactation consultant tomorrow. This is exhausting me..
-
-
-
-
anna
First off, a huge congrats on your new son!!! I’m sure he is adorable, and I’m glad that he is healthy (and punctual!). Second – oh my goodness, your story had me cringing the whole time with all the pain that you felt – it was graphic, but good to hear about what to really expect, so thank you! I’m glad to hear that you are feeling better after week 2! A big congrats again, so happy for you. 🙂
-
save. spend. splurge.
Punctual like Mommy. 🙂
HAH! Graphic yes, but true… at least it prepares others for what might happen.
-
-
dojo
So sorry to hear about the experience, you really got the worst part of the ‘normal’ labor and also a c-section. Happy to see you’re recovering and the kiddo looks AMAZING 🙂
In my case Nadia came 5 days earlier, but, fortunately labor didn’t start. I was at my doctor’s office for a checkup and she noticed the baby is kinda ready, so we decided to not have it on the 11th (February), but on the 6th. It was the 5th, when I saw the doctor. She was scared labor would start in the meantime, but I guess the baby was a tad lazy 😀
In my case the entire thing was really nice, since I wasn’t in any pain. My recovery was indeed very fast, I noticed how shocked some doctors were to see me moving so fast and climbing the stairs so soon. I do have a good tolerance to pain, can’t say it didn’t hurt, but I manage it better than others.
Anyway .. I’m happy to have chosen this way and would clearly do it again 🙂
Wish your little on a happy and long life. May you enjoy motherhood and all this amazing moments with the little angel 😉
-
LAL
Don’t forget to update costs. The pain is easily forgotten and honestly the second was super easy compared to the first. If my second wasn’t so easy I wouldn’t be contemplating a third.
I’ve found though grocery prices are ridiculous now.
-
Elle
Congratulations to you and your family. I’m very happy to hear you’re doing well.
-
-
LAL
Congratulations! Woo-hoo great job.
First kid 5 weeks early and I had an epidural and I turned it off and did it natural. Horrible tearing third degree because of my daughter was breech until three days before but then turned and I was supposed to go in for my 36 week visit to discuss c section. She got stuck and ended being vacuumed out. I couldn’t do it. It was horrible we both had fevers and I had pre-eclampsia. So bad birth story. And the tearing well let’s say I was unable to sit without a donut for 6 months. It was terrible. Oh and the Dr gave my lidocaine twice to stitch me up. It ran out before she could finish. Um horrible that’s how long it took to sew me up.
Then second time? 4 weeks early and that was with progesterone shots. So I guess I’m just like that. Anyway made it to the hospital with 20 minutes to spare. In labor totally 6 hours instead of 22 like to first time and zero drugs. Not bad. Minor tearing. This time kiddo wasn’t breech or stuck. It really wasn’t bad.
So everyone has a story. Now if only my kids wouldn’t come at frigging 2 am because with cleaning up you don’t go to bed until 6 am.
-
save. spend. splurge.
HAH!
Yeah everyone has a different birth story, and mine was kind of expected but not… Right now dealing with a newborn and sleep deprivation I am questioning my decision to have at least 2 kids 😐
-
-
Cindy
Congratulations on the baby!!!! The experience sounds a bit scary. I’m glad you came out alive lol.
-
-
Pauline
Congrats again! And thanks for the extensive details, it is rare women are willing to share so much, I don’t know why, most of my friends are like “well, it hurts but it’s ok” when clearly it hurts a lot! Hope you are all doing well now.
-
save. spend. splurge.
@Pauline: Thanks Pauline.
Yes, everything is going fine now.. it was really tough the first week but things improved pretty quickly.
I think women should share actual details more readily rather than letting other women just figure it out on their own. These are all things that surprised me a bit!
-
-
Liz
Congratulations! Happy to hear that all went well despite some unexpected bumps. My sister had a regular birth, but she was in labour for so long that they had to break her water manually and induce her contractions. Without those interferences, she would have been in the hospital for DAYS trying to give birth. The body is a very strange thing. My nephew never learned to latch so my sister used a nipple shield for two months, then pumped exclusively for another two months, and now they’ve switched to formula. Nephew is healthy and everyone is well. Can’t ask for more than that. Good luck to you and I hope your baby bun is a deep sleeper. 🙂
-
save. spend. splurge.
@Liz: Thank you very much
So far my baby is not a deep sleeper during the night — but he is a champion sleeper during the DAY! 🙂
-
-
Kandice @ The Simple Year
Yay! He’s beautiful and perfect! I had both kids without drugs but super blessed with lightning fast labors. Not sure if I could have done it for 6 hours or whatever. And the bleeding afterwards is nasty. Nothing makes you feel sexier than mesh panties and a pad bigger than your entire torso. And don’t even get me started on the fear and anxiety preceding a trip to the bathroom for #2. Oy. Fear not – my boy had trouble latching and eventually figured it out. Enjoy your baby bun. Breathe in that delectable new baby smell. And take naps whenever you can.
-
save. spend. splurge.
I will and I am doing exactly that — sleeping when I can.
Thank you 🙂 I’m not crazy!!! Post-pregnancy bleeding is something I did not expect to be so bad.
-
-
Renée (@nickelbynickel)
I just want to say congrats! To be honest I skipped over the c-section details and stuff because for now I like to pretend babies are delivered by storks. I’ll cross that hurdle when I get there. :p
-
save. spend. splurge.
I can understand that. I was just like you until I got pregnant unexpectedly 🙂 Then you just have to suck it up..
-
-
Laurie @thefrugalfarmer
Huge congrats to you!!!!! Yes, you described it perfectly, especially about the pain scale being eleventy billion. 🙂 So glad you two are doing well. Can’t wait to see more pics and see the cute little guy!!
-
-
One More Knight
Yikes, I don’t think you left anything out! Congratulations, hope you’re continuing to be well.
-
-
suzie ku
Congratulations! And thank you for sharing your story!
-
-
maz
Oh, Congratulations. Such a precious moment. It always amazes me how different birth stories are. Unfortunately, the pain is always there, no matter how we give birth.
Don’t fret about your baby not latching on, for some babies it’s just not natural. My third baby would not latch on but I tried for about 6 to 8 weeks to put him on the breast. I would give him the bottle and stop half-way ( so he wasn’t starving & more eager to try )to breastfeed him. It never really worked for us because he would just suck for comfort rather than food but it’s worth a try. The most important thing is that your baby is thriving & healthy, how you feed him doesn’t matter.
Well, enjoy motherhood & take care.-
save. spend. splurge.
@maz: Yes I am feeding him via pumping milk like a crazy woman. I hope I can continue this for 6 months without going crazy.
-
-
Maria
Congratulations on the baby! Thank you for sharing your story 🙂
-
-
Gen Y
I really enjoyed reading this post, thanks for sharing! I’ve got such great respect for mother everywhere, I honestly cannot imagine generations of women all went through this pain.
-
save. spend. splurge.
Or some that gave birth and went back to work in the fields right after? SUPER WOMEN.
-
-
femmefrugality
CONGRATUFREAKINGLATIONS! I feel like people need to hear more honest accounts like this before deciding to have kids. I was in no way prepared for lochia. My first recovery went horribly….was in so much pain and my doctors wouldn’t give me meds. And bled for the whole six weeks. I’m glad he’s healthy and that you’re starting to feel a little better! (Don’t feel bad about the latching. Every kid and mom is different. Some of mine have taken to it and some haven’t…and I’ve gotten emotionally invested in each success or failure…it’s not worth the guilt. Do the best you can do, but if in the end only formula works don’t let outside pressures make you feel like any less of an amazing mom!)
-
save. spend. splurge.
I really needed to hear that re: latching and feeding. Thank you.
As for the lochia, the books did not prepare me for that. I expected some bleeding but not what I saw in the first week.. and the stench.. oh god, the stench.
-
-
SarahN
Congrats again – I didn’t mean to get in before you posted about it – I just saw you comment somewhere else, and couldn’t contain my excitement for you!
Is that really a photo of your baby? I thought it might be a stock image?
I’m NOT looking forward to all that gushing! I am also deluding myself that the pain won’t be ‘that bad’ as to not discourage myself – I really want to have kids, ‘naturally’ (ie vaginally) and breast feed too. So whilst I appreciate your honesty, I don’t want to scare myself out of it!!
I hope you started to recover soon – sleep enough, if that’s ever possible with newborns!
-
save. spend. splurge.
Hahahah! No problem 🙂 I couldn’t contain it myself.
No, it’s a stock image, it’s not my baby 🙂 I’ll email you.
The truth of the matter is that childbirth is painful and not easy, but if you want children you will go through it and it’ll be over in 2 days, versus the grand scheme of having a child for life… y’know?
-
SarahN
@save. spend. splurge.: Totally! What’s a few days pain for a lifetime of cuddles, and I love yous (and fights about everything and anything!)
-
-
-
-
-
-
eemusings
Hmmm. I wonder if I can request to NOT see my baby until it’s cleaned up, vaginal birth or not (gag) LOL I have said the same thing you do about laying eggs many times. If only…
So sounds like the fast labour had a downside (the anaesthesia drama). But it all worked out 🙂 Excellent point about rating pain. I mean, surely you don’t know your limits until you hit them…
I had to laugh at what you said about puppies. But the rash sounds AWFUL. May it clear up soon. Happy families, and speedy healing!
-
save. spend. splurge.
@eemusings: I think you could request it but it’s something about skin-to-skin that’s the rage these days in hospitals.
Fast labour had a major downside because I ate a bit and drank water JUST before my waters broke. If I had not done that, they would have C-Sectioned me ASAP. *sigh*
-
-
Lila
Congrats on baby bun! You sound like a good person from what I know of you on the blog so it seems like you would make a good mom. I wish you the very best with your little one. 😉
P.S. I never want to give birth C-section or “natural.” Sounds like hell. Have you thought about hiring a surrogate for next time?
-
save. spend. splurge.
@Lila: HAH!!! Hiring a surrogate. Gosh.. no. It’d be too stressful to try and get her to eat properly and rest, etc.
-
-
Catherine
Huge congrats! I had a c/sec too and agree, really not that bad. I was scheduled for friday went monday for my final TV/US (I was monitored weekly bc she was 1) frank breeck too the entire pregnancy 2) my placenta didn’t form properly-4lobes but one umbilical cord and 3) concerned about kid herself) anyway when I went in for my final one they said I must have had a slow leak bc my fluids were too low to sustain for another 4 days so out she came. Also I was extremely numb from the spinal for about 6 hours (zero movement) and was told next time given how short I am I need “a little less than the standard dose”.
post op the worst, like you said coughing and sneezing but the ultimate for me was sitting in a car while being a passenger. you don’t realize how many muscles you use driving over bumps etc! and I had post op “bathroom issues” for like 3 months. effing sucked.
Good luck with breastfeeding! It was advised for me to not do this (from lactation consultant) but at about 10 days I finally went and bought a nipple shield (I can email you the exact one if interested) bc she also couldnt latch great and i was in excruciating pain/bleeding.. She was able to latch onto fine and we weened off it around 10 weeks. I breastfed for 13 months (self weened).
It’s an amazing experience! Good luck!!
-
save. spend. splurge.
@Catherine: OH YES!! Please email me the exact nipple shield that your baby used. If I can get him to breastfeed instead of pumping I’d be ever so grateful…
I’ll email you.
-
-
Sherri
Awwww!!!! This is great! Congratulations! He’s adorable!!! Thanks for sharing all the details… (I’m 46, no babies by choice, but enjoy hearing your stories…) Take care. All my best to you & the new baby & your family!
-
-
Jordann
Amazing birth story account, although I must admit that it made me a little nauseous and I had to read it in two sittings. Definitely still have no interest in putting myself through that experience.
Baby Bun is so cute, and I’m glad you came through everything relatively ok. 🙂
-
-
Kathy
Congratulations. So happy all went well. Treasure that little boy.
-
-
Morgaine
Congrats! Glad to hear you and the baby are healthy and doing well. Thank you for this very frank and honest account! I hate when people sugar coat things, I’d rather know the truth 🙂
-
save. spend. splurge.
Ditto. My mom told me it was the worst pain she had ever experienced in her life, so I was prepared.
-
-
maria@moneyprinciple
Congratulations and enjoy motherhood. It is a wonderful experience and can be great.
-
-
Alicia @ Financial Diffraction
Yeah, I got an email (accidentally perhaps?), and I was so confused because I didn’t realize you were that close to giving birth. Your scheduled posts really came into play 🙂
He’s so handsome. And now I never want to have babies (!) but I appreciate your honesty 🙂
-
save. spend. splurge.
It’s the only way to stay sane!
He is a very good looking baby. I hope this lasts as he gets older and cuter… because all this work I am doing to feed him (pumping) is not easy.
-
-
Michelle
WOW!! I felt like baby bun was coming later this spring. A huge congratulations. Am excited to hear about your adventures in mommyhood. Take care of yourself!
-
-
Tim
Ahh, that is wonderful that it went good for you. Enjoy your baby boy and take care of yourself.
Tim
-
-
oilandgarlic
Thank god I’ve already given birth before reading your post, or I would never go through it now! You did a great job of conveying the pain, maybe too good of a job. Congratulations on your baby bun..
-
save. spend. splurge.
Well at least it’s accurate!! 🙂 Anyway if you want kids that’s kind of the only way to have them. NO egg-laying option here…
-
-
Cassie
I suppose I should have clued in that if you were writing your 3rd trimester post that meant the 3rd trimester was actually over and my well wishes were belated *facepalm*
Either way, I’m glad to hear your baby bun is healthy and you’re recovering well 🙂
-
-
-
-
Grace
Congratulations!!!!! Thank you so much for sharing your birth story! I’m in nursing school and I am learning about maternity, so it’s nice to hear the birth story from the mother’s perspective.
-
-
jane savers @ solving the money puzzle
How wonderful for you. A brand new family today.
I skipped over a lot of the c-section details and I am sure you will forget all about it yourself very soon.
-
-
tomatoketchup
Congratulations! Many warm wishes for you and the little one.
-
-
MelD
That was a fascinating account! Thanks.
I do hope others aren’t put off by it, though ;o It really isn’t that way for everyone, whether normal or C-section!!
Having a water birth is pretty nice (relatively!) – not only less pain and less tearing, but the baby (and you!!) comes out clean LOL The warmth of the bath also made the birth quicker, for me anyhow. The first two births were “normal” – though the first one I always say was “on my head”, one of those narrow beds with stirrups, it was like giving birth uphill and I had a (large) midwife pressing hard on my stomach to push the baby down, duh. And an unsympathetic male dr, an elderly Greek guy, who told me to shut up when I winced… That was a Ventouse birth and I lost rather a lot of blood and had to have transfusions. But after a couple of days I was fine; in those days (30 yrs ago this week!) I had to stay in hospital for a week. The second birth was pretty quick and I was able to move around more, though I did also have to have an episiotomy (none on my third, water, birth!). I went home next morning. I think I was pretty lucky though, as none of my labours were more than about 5 hrs, the last only 2.5 hrs, and remember, my babies were all large (3.8-4.5 kg).
I did have some pain from the uterus contracting after all three births and it can be worse from the 2nd birth onwards, and this was during the first week, otherwise I was painfree once the birth was over (and in case people don’t realise, after the baby is out you have one or more contractions to deliver the placenta!).
Always amused at the wheelchair thing – I have never seen a wheelchair used for a pregnant woman in Switzerland!!
Also, recovery time varies. After my 3rd was born on a Friday night, my husband went back to work on Monday and I was at home caring for and cooking for my other two kids and I was fine, just sat down to feed a lot with baby. Fortunately the other two were 11 and 5, so not toddlers.My eldest daughter came home within a couple of hours of giving birth, took the baby out for a walk in the sunshine (July) and had a teaparty with us all (October), happily plopped on the sofa with small son and baby daughter… she recovered very quickly indeed!
At the end of the day, you can’t really know what it’s going to be like until you’ve done it for yourself, everyone is different – my mother and grandmother both had 24 hr labours and I had such short births, while my cousin never even made it to the hospital because her 2nd arrived so fast, she just about made it to the bed… Hope this is encouragement for those who hear horror stories – expect the worst and the likelihood is you will be pleasantly surprised LOL!!
-
save. spend. splurge.
I expected the worst and ended up somewhere in the middle 🙂
Your birth stories are pretty interesting too. I find it rather rude that the Greek doctor told you to shut up when you winced.. I’d love to see him go through childbirth and have someone tell him to shut up!
I think it is much harder to have children that are closer in age.. I can’t imagine trying to control a one-year old or a toddler while handling a newborn. I suppose that is why you are not fertile if you are still breastfeeding a baby, because nature has already prepared for the fact that you can’t do it!!
-
-
Michelle
Congrats! So happy for you that everything went well and you have a healthy baby boy 🙂
I laughed and laughed about the garbage bag! You’re in labour with water running like a tap out of you and you’re worried about a garbage bag for the taxi seat, too funny 🙂 -
-
CorianneM
Yay, congratulations! 🙂 Hope you’re recovering well.
And thank you for giving such an honest account about the whole experience. It was very interesting to read! Btw, I did catch something about fully tearing front to back while I was zapping through all the channels on tv and I was horrified and sitting there in front of the tv with my mouth open, unable to switch to another channel…
-
save. spend. splurge.
Thank you!
You actually SAW it?
I did not. I do not want to. I can only imagine it and that is enough.
-
CorianneM
@save. spend. splurge.: OMG, no, thank god I did not see it. But they gave a VERY VERY DETAILED GRAPHIC description that I did not really need to hear or imagine.
-
save. spend. splurge.
*shudder*.. I don’t need to hear it.. All I need to know is that she “tore from front to back” and that’s enough for me.
-
-
-
-
laura
Congratulations, I’m so pleased for you both! Yay! Here’s to a quick recovery…….and you’re right, nothing about labour is magical! 🙂
-
save. spend. splurge.
Thank you very much. I think what irks me the most is when women gloss over how much pain they were in and don’t tell the truth.
Anyway, if you want kids, this is the way to have them, so even though I was really scared about giving birth, I had no choice so I ended up accepting it, if that makes sense 🙂
-
-
Charles@gettingarichlife.com
Congratulations on the baby.
-
-
Michelle
Congrats! I think you have made me terrified of giving birth though. 🙂 I’m glad someone is telling it how it is and not sugarcoating the whole thing. I don’t know how moms do it.
-
save. spend. splurge.
I literally wished I was dead when my contractions became worse and worse and I wasn’t drugged. They say it’s akin to feeling like your body is on fire (as a pain threshold/indicator) but mine is more like feeling you were being stabbed with a thousand knives… in the abdomen.
-
-
-
-
Erin @ Red Debted Stepchild
I’m so happy for you, but I spent this whole article covering my mouth and wincing. Women who give birth any way are so freaking strong, I feel like I’m never going to be able to withstand that kinda pain. I hope you continue to get better and you’re enjoying your time with the little man 🙂
I officially bow down to moms and future moms everywhere. OUCH!
-
save. spend. splurge.
There’s only one way humans give birth and this is unfortunately, it and you gotta do it. I wish we laid eggs (I told my mom this as I was labouring and even though I was in some serious pain, she burst out laughing)…
-
-
-
save. spend. splurge.
Thank you! I am healing quite nicely I think.. I should do a follow-up post in a month or two. 🙂
-
Post a comment
You may also like
Do you shop when you’re stressed?
Triggers for shopping therapy..
Ask Sherry: Helping an elderly aunt in the U.S.
How to get help for the elderly...
Organizational Tape Hack: Never lose that beginning line of tape in a roll again
You know how it’s really annoying sometimes to find that starting line in the tape so that you
sylvie
Congrats on the baby! What kind of preparation did you do for labour, out of curiosity? I’ve heard that squatting can help, though obviously not with a C-section.