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Woke up at 6am on Friday morning and nothing happened at all overnight so was a little disappointed at the fact that I was going to be induced again. Had a 40 minute soak in my last Clary Sage bath (thank god - the stuff stunk!) and then woke up Jamie and Liam for a quick breakfast before it was time to leave.
We took Liam to Jamie's mums and he was really good about us leaving him, telling me that I was going to the hospital to collect Adam and Sam and he would wait at his Nona's and stay in her bed. I was a little tearful in the car about it being the last time he would be my little boy but held it together. It took about an hour to get to the hospital due to the weather and instead of arriving at 8.30am we got there at 8.55am.
Went straight to the day bed unit and had the normal antenatal check at 9.20am and BP/urine etc. was still looking good and was told that both babies were still head down . She told me that I would need to get monitored once a machine become available and I would then get an internal after the monitoring. She said I could be in for a long stretch as they could only give me 1mg of prostin gel as a maximum due to it being twins and that if the babies were not distressed I could be 'induced' several times over the weekend if it didn't work first time. I felt a little deflated at this point as I had needed 3 doses of 2mg with Liam to have any effect.
I got hooked up to the monitor at 11.10am and both babies behaved themselves so after 30 minutes of monitoring they were happy that both babies were moving a lot, had good heartrates and were ideal for inducing if required. Also showed lots of strong regular braxton hicks. She told me to empty my bladder in preparation for the internal and I tried to have positive thoughts about being 2-3cm already and being told I could get my waters broken straight away - but didn't think it would really happen.
Good news! My cervix was very low and she could easily feel I was dilated to 3cm. She went away to phone the labour ward to see whether I could go down and have my waters around the first twin broken. She came back at 12pm and said that the labour ward is very busy with 4 c-sections but as soon as a midwife become available I'd be sent downstairs - could be as soon as the next 5 minutes! However, the next 5 minutes turned into 1pm, 1.30pm, 2pm, 2.30pm! Jamie slept in the chair doing nodding dog impressions while I ate my lunch.
Finally, at 2.45pm they come and collect us to take us downstairs.
My waters were broken at 3.30pm and the fluid was clear. An electrode was fitted to Adam's scalp so that they could get accurate heartrate readings from both twins. Was left for an hour to see whether I made any progress before any further decisions were made. With every contraction fluid was gushing out of me and I must have got through at least 10 bed pads in the first hour! The decision was made to put me straight on the syntocin (sp.?) drip as it would be needed to keep contractions going for the second twin and they might as well get it in early. Was attached to the drip by 4.30pm and contractions were getting very close together but I didn't feel any pain with them at all.
By 6.30pm the midwife said that she had written in my notes "Back to back strong contractions but Lisa is obviously made of hard stuff - she's still smiling through them!". She said that she was amazed at my high pain threshold!
At 6.45pm I told her I could maybe feel slight heavy period pain sensations in my lower bump that definitely were getting stronger with each contraction and I asked to take start using the gas and air so that I could get used to it if and when the contractions really got severe. However, I actually felt better just focusing on my own breathing without using the entonox as it made me feel extremely light headed and drunk!!
The midwife changed over at 7.15pm and was attended by a student midwife who was going to be notching up the last birth she needed to qualify - but her first twin delivery so she told me I had the next 10 hours to deliver in if she was to add me to her list! I told her that I was going to deliver within the hour and that there was no way I was going to still be here in 10 hours!!
The student was asked to examine me and after feeling about decided that I was probably 4-5cm, totally thinned on the left side of my cervix but there was a lip on the right side. I felt really deflated then .. only 4-5cm!!!
The other midwife asked whether she could confirm the student's observations if I wasn't too sore - it didn't hurt and I really wanted her opinion too so told her to go ahead. She decided that I was more like 7-8cm but agreed about the lip of cervix - felt tonnes better at being almost 8cm!!
Asked whether I could stand up as my bum was going numb - wasn't sure as I was on constant monitoring but they let me stand on the floor and rock my hips by the monitor.
Well, within a few minutes of being stood up I really started feeling the contractions which were now only having about 45 seconds in between them. Felt a very strong sensation in my back passage - almost like I needed to expel a huge amount of air but kept trying to convince myself that it couldn't be the urge to push as I had been told literally 10 minutes ago that I was only 7-8cm. I told the midwife that I was getting these feelings and she told me to get back on the bed so she could have a look.
Well, as soon as I lay on my side my body started involuntary pushing - I shouted out "Oh God - I'm pushing" and heard the midwife say "Go ahead and do what your body is telling you to do, I see the head and you are fully dilated". At this point I was biting hard on the gas and air tube sucking for all my life, listening to garage music on the radio and suddenly blurted out "I feel like I'm at a rave .. not that I've been to a rave before" - the entonox was making me feel really high and the music from the radio was whistling in my ears .. it was all so surreal!!
I couldn't open my eyes at this point but could hear the student midwife say "I've only got one glove on ... the head's out already!" but Adam was coming out fast and slipped out with the next contraction. At 19.56 (half an hour after being told I was 7-8cm) I opened my eyes to be handed the most tiny baby I have ever seen in my life (Liam was 8lb 13oz and was huge!) and felt instant love for him .
I felt absolutely brilliant and so proud of myself for doing it just on gas and air ... and then realised I had to do it all over again!
An Obstetrician was called in to break the second twin's bag of waters and see whether he was still in a vertex position. The waters were burst and gushed all over the poor man's feet! He examined me and said 'oh oh, breech position'. I instantly just thought he would say I would need a c-section but he just told me to continue doing what my body was telling me to do and to push on the next contraction and see whether he would turn - with that Samuel's foot and leg appeared and was dangling between my legs!!!! A slight panic filled the room and all I can remember is the midwife and student midwife being told by the Obstetrician to get the stirrups as we were going to deliver the baby very quickly. He told me to push again with the next contraction and the body appeared - all that was left was the head. He checked the neck for the cord and then told me to push again with the next contraction - it felt like the hardest thing I had had to do all night just to deliver Samuel's head and knew I had torn when I did. He was born at 20.11 - a whole 15 minutes later!
He gave me Samuel who is the image of Liam and he looked even smaller than Adam did. I was then stitched up (2nd degree tear again!) while I held my two boys and they both attempted to breastfeed. They both latched on straight away and fed really well.
Adam was weighed in at 5lb 14oz and Samuel weighed in 2oz heavier at 6lb 0oz. The placenta was huge and weighed in just less than the boys at 5lb 2oz !!
Both boys are brilliant - sleeping all the time and waking every 5-6 hours for breastfeeds that last 20 minutes each. My milk came in yesterday only 36 hours after the birth ... they have been feeding that well!!