It's now 7am, it was around 7am when Dimitri finally made an appearance 11 years ago, 24hrs after my waters broke, a week after his due date (Dimitri takes after me maybe - better late than never).
I have to say, I'm not one of those women who found the whole labour/giving birth experience wonderful. It didn't help that I vomited on a midwife (never give me anesthetic by gas, I'm warning you) and the doctor was obnoxious. He said I wasn't pushing hard enough because I been given too much drugs....
After about 23hrs of contractions - starting, stopping, being restarted artificially, he said if the baby wasn't out in the next hour or so I would be having a c-section. Before this moment though, it was decided to be worth trying turning Dimitri's head so he was in a better position (crown of head first instead of forehead). He was turned, and there you go, one push and he was out! Not pushing hard enough my ass.
Dimitri was flopped on to my belly where he didn't move or cry, was taken away, and given back a few of minutes later with the unsettling comment "he didn't need oxygen, he started breathing by himself" (the umbilical cord had been round his neck). The Doctor, still busy doing stitches or whatever, handed to the midwife the instrument he had, minutes before been using to cut a rather sensitive area of my body, with the comment "take these to be sharpened, there blunt"....
Birth stories.
But that was just the beginning of the story, the best parts come later.
11 comments:
Happy Happy Birthday, Dimitri!
So I read this post around 7am our time here---I had just stepped onto a really crowded train and was still feeling the lingering effects of the flu. Dimitri's smile was really cheering! He looks older and quite handsome, especially in that last photo (with the striped shirt).
My labor/pregnancy story was not wonderful in the least. 21 1/2 hours, epidural, and they had to use a vacuum machine (it probably has a more elegant name but I can't recall it) to get Charlie out---he had a very large head. He was all right and then was whisked off to the Intensive Care as he had caught an infection while being born and his heartbeat kept going up and down during the labor. You are right, the best parts do come later.
Happy Birthday to Dimitri!!
Happy birthday to my favorite Dimitri!! He is getting more and more handsome every year. I love the sleepy look :)
Your birth story cracked me up. I didn't know you gave birth in Hungary ;)
Kristina - your labour sounds similar to mine, ventouse, that's how Dimitri was turned, did Charlie have the suction cup mark on his head? Same with the heartbeat too although once he finally arrived he was fine. I had wonder when I saw Charlies baby photo the other week about labour with Charlies large head and you being so petite!
Sometimes Dimitri looks really grown up, I love it:)
Claire - thank you:)
Erika - you want to slap the doctors in Hungary too? The sleepy look is very common around here, but he does look handsome doesn't he (I'm not biased of course)
I thought I'd commented earlier, but I don't see it! Happy Birthday, Dimitri and happy birth day to you --
Agreed - your boy is most handsome!
Sending congratulations to you on his birth and on his life! He is obviously enjoying his gift and no doubt had a good celebration day.
I, too, think that giving birth has been romanticized much more than deserved. Most women probably have stories like yours (and mine) that are less than the 'best part'.
Barbara
Hi Emma, Charlie didn't have a suction cup mark but he was born with a full head of dark hair! But. He did have a birth mark right in the center of his forehead and a black eye (I think his left---made him look like he was wearing eye shadow). -- I really should have had a C-section in retrospect. But no one (as in the, ah, doctors) thought that Charlie would be as big as he was. It turned out that he must have been curled up like a pretzel inside me!
Elizabeth - thank you! (done that so many times myself with comments, they just seem to disappear!?)
TherExtras -Thank you Barbara, he had a lovely day and does seem to like the gift.
You know, I went to all the pre-natal classes and there was a lot of stuff the midwife didn't mention:). It's amazing when your child arrives, but it really is just the beginning, there are many "best parts".
Post a Comment