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After a C section with my first daughter (failed induction and failure to progress) I was booked in at EDD+10 for another C Section. This was going to take place on the Tuesday but at 6pm on Friday night my waters broke: just a little trickling and contractions quite quickly afterward. They were irregular and mild. Went to bed at at 9pm and tried to go to sleep but had to give up at 11pm and ran myself a bath. The bath didn't help at all and I woke DH at 11:30 to time the contractions. They seemed to be coming every 4-5 minutes but it was all pretty irregular. They only lasted about 30 seconds each but I felt I couldn't cope with them already. Possibly partly due to tiredness!
12:00 we went to the hospital where they first monitored me and decided the contractions were probably unproductive as they were irregular in strength but offered me pain releif as there was so little gap between them I didn't get a chance to recover properly. They then examined me and said I was 2-3cm so they could only give pethedine which I accepted. This took the edge of the pain and with gas and air to help too I was able to go until 4:30 before the pain got too much again. At this point I was given an epidural and the gas and air wasn't helping at all, more made me feel likeI couldn't breathe. They then examined me at 5 and were amazed to see I was 8cm so broke my forewaters.
At 5:50 I was examined again and was 10cm but her head was high up and there was meconium in the waters. By 6:15 I had some wish to push by now and the midwife had said I couldn't for an hour, that was the most painful part, the epidual hadn' t been sighted properly and I couldn't face the gas and air. I think I broke all DH 's fingers at that point! 25 minutes later I was desperate to push so she called in a consultant registrar who immediately said her head is right down, you can go for it. I think it took about 10 minutes (5 contractions) to push her out. I made the midwife laugh because she had just sent another midwife off to get the episiotomy set and reckoned I must have heard her and decided to get Bryony out quick! Giving birth was the most amazing experience and I wouldn't have missed it for the world. I only had a minor internal tear which took a few stitches.
I was sooo elated, I just couldn't believe I'd got my VBAC!