Being a first time mum I didn’t really have a set birth plan, because I knew that it was unrealistic to have those expectations when you never know how your labour and birth will go... I really hoped for a natural birth though. Towards the end of pregnancy I talked with Levi (my husband) and said I wanted to use a TENS machine during early labour (0-4cm dilated) and then the only form of medical pain relief during active labour (4-10cm dilated) was gas and air. I’d also been listening to the Christian Hypnobirthing tracks since 30 weeks pregnant and planned to listen to them during my labour and birth.
I went into labour at around 5pm on the 16th of June (I’m pretty sure having hot Nando’s chicken is what put me into labour as I’d had it an hour before I went into labour) and at this point I was 4 days over my due date. Early labour lasted around 24-25 hours for me. After around 20 hours in early labour we decided to go to the hospital at around lunch time on the 17th of June. My contractions were 3 mins apart lasting at least a minute and had been like that since around 2-3am that day. The hospital was really busy that day and I didn’t end up getting examined until around 4pm, When they checked how dilated I was they said I was only 2cm. This was really disheartening and hard to hear as I was already so tired and had not slept in over 24 hours. The midwife told us that it would be best for me to go home and continue labouring there. They gave me a script for some painkillers and sent me on my way. I decided to pick up the painkillers from the chemist on the way home, just in case labour got too intense. I took one in the car to try and see if that would ease my contractions, so that when I got home I could possibly get some rest.
Once I got home though, I started to feel really unwell and felt like I needed to poop and vomit at the same time. I sat on the toilet and then my waters broke as I vomited. We then rang the hospital and they said that I could try staying at home a little longer and possibly jump in the shower or I could come in. I decided to jump in the shower and see if that would help ease the pain. It did not.
As soon as my waters broke my contractions started to become way more intense. Early labour was a breeze compared to this (I was still able to play Xbox, hold a conversation and relax while in early labour). When I jumped in the shower it didn’t help at all. I was feeling very overwhelmed and I rang my mum. She told me to get out the shower and go back to the hospital. I really didn’t want to get back in the car (contractions in the car are the worst) and I just wanted the pressure down below to go away. I cried to my mum that I wanted an epidural and that I just wanted the pain to go away
I was feeling out of control. I was very adamant that I did not want an epidural when Levi and I were talking about pain relief, but at this point I just wasn’t coping. My mum told Levi to put a dress on me and head to the hospital. We then jumped back in the car and headed back to the hospital. Levi also reassured me that I could do this and that my body was capable of birthing our baby.
At this point I put on my Christian Hypnobirthing tracks, and I just got in the zone and I no longer felt out of control. My mindset just switched and I felt totally at peace. When we arrived at the hospital, Levi parked out the front of reception and asked the receptionist for a wheelchair. There was no way I was up to walking to the labour ward.
When we got to the labour ward, I felt the urge to push. I immediately requested gas and air. They then checked me and I was 10cm dilated and that I was ready to push. I was pushing for around 2 hours before Zion was born. For some of the 2 hours I was on my back on the bed as I was so exhausted and couldn’t stand without feeling like my legs were going to give way. The midwives then suggested I lean over the head of the bed while on my knees. That way gravity would help speed things up. Those two hours seemed like a lifetime, but once he was born it was such a relief. All the pressure and pain disappeared. I was listening to the Christian Hypnobirthing tracks the whole time I was pushing and honestly I can’t even remember hearing them, it was like an out of body experience.
Once he was born, the first thing I asked was ‘Is it a boy or a girl?’ And Levi yells out ‘ITS A BOY’. My birth wasn’t over yet though, I still had to deliver the placenta. This happened about 15 minutes later via controlled cord traction (which is where the midwives put tension on the cord and help pull out the placenta once it has detached from the wall of the uterus).
After this had happened the midwives then had to examine me to see if I had torn, honestly this was probably more painful than giving birth as everything was very tender and swollen. I asked them to turn the gas and air all the way to max if they wanted to examine me. Thankfully I only had a second degree tear (tear through skin and muscle) which didn’t need stitches. In the end I had my dream birth experience, which I am so thankful to God for, as I know that lots of women don’t get that.
The Christian Hypnobirthing tracks honestly played a massive role in my labour and birth. I don’t think I would have had my dream labour and birth without them. I would 100% recommend them to any pregnant mums out there! I will certainly be using them with my pregnancies in the future.
By Myah Bailey