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| Hubby and Baby, The Look-A-Likes! |
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| Mother and Daughter |
I thought the day would
never come. Well for the impatient
me, that’s how it felt like. For
the control freak me I have been doing what I can to achieve my ideal birth: 3
hours of labor, natural delivery (hopefully sans the epidural) on or before the
40th week. However as
they say, you can never can tell.
I had a doctor’s
appointment last December 7 and I was excited to know if Luna has engaged, and
my cervix effaced and dilated. 4
days short of the scan due date, none of those have happened yet. Then in the afternoon I had a show and
I thought, “this is it!” I rushed
off with my bags in tow and called hubby over to meet me at the hospital. With the show and all, I was not
getting any contractions. When
they checked at the hospital, I wasn’t even dilating. Seriously? I
felt I was “leaking” though and my doctor, K, prescribed some antibiotics.
I resigned myself to the
fact that we have to keep on waiting.
And tried to find meaning on why our daughter is taking her sweet time,
“bobbing her head” way up above my long cervix on our due week. Maybe she was waiting for her Nanalou
(our term of endearment for baby’s maternal grandmother) to arrive?
We went for another
check a day after my scan due date, two days after Nanalou arrived. Same old story. We were still close and not
engaged. Baby’s feeling a lot cozy
back there huh? And I am dying of
anticipation.
The day after, while
having breakfast, I noticed there was a stain on my shorts. It’s hard to tell if it was the bag of
waters breaking because I always imagined it was some kind of a rush – you know
like uncontrollable pee. But not
like exaggerated discharge. In any
case my Nanalou got quite worried and urged me to call the doctor. K immediately asked me to
go to the hospital immediately. I sensed the urgency in her voice.
With the conditions, she gave a heads up that if the all are
favorable, we’ll induce or to be open to a CS delivery and stop taking my
breakfast.
When we arrived, it was
confirmed that my membranes have ruptured. But still no full-on labor contractions, still a long cervix
and a bobbing head refusing to engage.
K said “with this, she is telling us something. She can’t be delivered vaginally. We can try to induce but it will just
be useless pain because you have unfavorable cervix. We have waited for a week.” Or something like that.
I have gone from “What
have I done?” to “What to do?” In
as much as I have befriended my dream birth for 9 long months, I can’t risk my
baby’s health (and mine) over some ideal. Alas, it must be done.
Then resignation to excitement.
Finally. Our baby Luna is
here.
Nanalou stayed with me
in the birthing center as they prepared me for delivery while hubby did all the
administrative and logistical arrangements: lunch for them, confinement details
and what not. I had another
show. Still sans the full-on labor
contractions. CS was really meant
to be.
I got wheeled in to the
OR (or the “Theater” as they call it here), met the anesthesiologist, C, who
was so wonderful. C explained the
options, side effects and how I’ll be during the procedure. We went for the usual spinal
anesthesia, did the needful, I felt the effects working and the “theater” then
became lively and booming as K came in.
She really is a ray of sunlight – greeting the operating team and myself
happily. They started the
procedure while C walked me through what was happening behind the
curtains. Really, she was with me
all the way, she did a fantastic job and even went beyond the call of
duty. I am thankful for her.
Then K asked for hubby
to be called in. THIS IS IT. In a matter of minutes, I heard our
baby cry and hubby telling me she is here. When I first saw her, it was a plethora of emotions so many
that I couldn’t even express it. I
wanted to cry but just couldn’t.
It was beyond anything I ever experienced in my life. They brought our baby to me and upon
seeing her, I saw my husband in her.
Such a splitting image of the father! So big too! And so beautiful. C remarked, “yeah, she’s huge, imagine if you were pushing her out.” Indeed,
it would have been a struggle, pushing her full 7.7 pound glory. Or maybe not because it wasn’t really
supposed to happen anyway.
And so here we are. Hubby, Nanalou and myself, with the
rest of my family and friends all over the world, truly over the moon with the
safe landing of our daughter, Luna Isabelle. We
are forever changed.
