Giving Birth at St. Mary's Hospital, Manchester, England

Destination: St. Mary's Hospital, Manchester, England.

16 October 2010

This time I would share about my experience giving birth at St. Mary's Hospital, Manchester, England. Not about travelling but still about a place, the services and some of the food ;)

On the evening of 16 October 2010 I felt the contraction and it became more frequent every 10 minutes starting 11.14pm. It is hard to explain how I felt about the contraction. It was something like your tummy getting hardening + strong period pain + feel like going to bowel. Having all that pain, I knew that I would be in labour very soon. At the same time I told my hubby, that my last best food before my confinement days was the Ikan Bakar :) because I just ate the delicious Ikan Bakar with Air Asam at one of our Malaysian friends' open house!

Around 1.30am (Sunday, 17 October 2010), I heard a 'pop' sound from inside my tummy. I was so worried and then suddenly a light red pinkish liquid came out and filling up my panty liner. So hubby called the Triage Department. They advised to take 2 parasitamols and wait until another 1 hour or until the next pad is full, but I just refused to take any parasitamols. I just bared the pain.

The contraction keep on coming at

1.52am

1.56am

2.00am

2.05am

2.10am

2.15am

2.19am

2.30am

2.33am

2.37am

2.42am

while hubby was preparing some sandwiches to be brought to the hospital. I jotted down all the time of the contraction as we learned from the antenatal classes, that would helped you knowing the right time to go to the hospital. I would say that the antenatal classes were very useful despite provided free, they helped prepare you with all the knowledges for labour, birth, and parenthood too.

Around 3.00am we arrived at the hospital (St. Mary's Hospital, Manchester). We got the wrong door and went to the wrong level. Ohhh... terrible! At the Triange department, I have to wait at the waiting room after giving some urine sample, while hubby went to park the car. By that time the contraction was every 4-5 minutes.

Then I entered the 1st room where the nurse did the basic check-up. Checking my blood pressure etc. Then I was told to go to the 3rd room. The midwife came to check and said it was 4cm dilated. I didn't like it, very uncomfortable! Uuuhhh...! Almost felt like fainting. I was asking for pain relieve as I felt like couldn't bare the pain anymore, but the midwife said it was too early for epidural. Actually my birth plan was hoping for natural birth with no pain relieve... Hehehe... but you'd never know how bad the contraction could be... Huhuhu~

Then around 4.30am the midwife brought me to the delivery suite room. I used the gas, a mixture of oxygen and nitrous oxide trying to reduce the pain but it was getting stronger, while I was getting tired and thirsty.  So I asked for another pain relieve and they gave the diamorphine injection on the hip. That made me felt quite sleepy. Hubby was tired and he slept beside my bed while holding my hand.

Around 6am or 7am (I couldn't remember), I felt like pushing automatically, so I told the midwife about that but she said it still early. Anyhow I felt so bad pushing out and asking for more jabs. So she checked and when lifted over the blanket covering my legs,  there were lots of blood. That was according to my hubby. Once checked I was already 9cm dilated and she said it was time, but too late for epidural. I felt a bit frustrated but what to do, I just had to bare the pain. I kept on recite the 'Dua' I memorized to help ease the pain.
.

Later on midwife name Samantha came to help for the delivery. She was very nice. I just followed her instruction. She also hold my hand and said nice words to encourage the my labour. She told me to push when the contraction strike, then she told me to take deep breath and repeat it. If I am not mistaken, I had been pushing for 6 times until our little angle came out :) By the time she told me the baby's head was out, I was a bit panic because I didn't hear my baby crying. I asked "why she is not crying?" The the midwife said, "wait until the whole body come out then she will cry". Hahaha... poor me didn't know that. Right after our baby came out, the midwife pun her on my chest for skin to skin contact :) MasyaAllah that was the greatest moment in my life :) Hubby said my face was priceless! We were both in tears, so happy and grateful that our new journey has began.

Hubby is cutting our baby's cord.

So our little angle were born on 17 October 2010 at 8.02am with 2.36kg as a girl! :) She was categorized as tiny baby because her weight was below than 2.5kg. Then the midwife wipe some blood off and put her back on me. Later on hubby did the azan & iqamat :) I started to feed my baby at 9.30am with the helped from Samantha, while hubby enjoyed the breakfast provided.

Then the midwife inject the vitamin K for the baby and she just cried a bit. According to the midwife, as her weight was below 2.5kg, they wanted to do the sugar test anyhow the result was fine :) Thanks to my breast milk :) Alhamdulillah breastfeeding was not that hard and I enjoy it! All in all I guess my delivery was easy to be compared to others. Mine was quick and thank goodness it was a normal delivery with a little epysotomy. 

Above is the picture of our first sweet heart with her first clothes. Samantha, the midwife helped to put on the clothes. 

Above is the toilet inside the labour suite. Very clean and comfortable. The midwife was asking me to take hot shower here before going to ward as this toilet is much bigger and comfortable. Anyhow, I refused to take shower right after birth, I would like to wait until couple of hours. Samantha, the midwife was very helpful, she hold my hand to go to toilet as I told her that I was not confident to walk.

After having lunch, we have to move to the ward number 21.

Below are some of my meals at the hospital. Glad that they also provide Halal meals for Muslims.