Labour Room Drama 232

Oh Wow!!!

Stella of life,

 I've finally decided to share my Labour Room Drama (LRD). This is for my first child. I will send for second (and last) later.

I went abroad alone to deliver. It was a good pregnancy, only within the first three months did I feel nauseous at odd hours. After that, I was pretty much okay throughout. The major discomfort was not being able to sleep well. My occasional swollen feet, swollen face , stretch marks on my tummy didn't really bother me. I was perfectly healthy.


Labour was a day past my due date. I had since started praying for God to bring out the child, so that I could rest and breathe well. That night, at about 1am, I started feeling sharp pains at my lower back. The pains woke me up. I changed my position severally but to no avail. I began to suspect labour. After about an hour, I rushed to my sister-in-law's room and woke her up shouting that I was in labour. She jumped up, organised herself and rushed to the car. I was already there waiting with my small delivery bag. She drove us to the emergency unit of the hospital.


The pain was coming at intervals of about 5 minutes, so I managed to rush to the nurses' area while she parked well. They immediately started attending to me. They gave me a sectioned area to lie and fixed all the gadgets to monitor the baby. I guess they wanted to confirm if it was labour. Sil had come by this time. When they confirmed, they gave me a delivery gown to change into and asked me to take off all my clothes. That was when I saw the bloody show.


Then they took me to a private ward where they asked if I wanted to hasten it, I said yes, thinking that it would take a few minutes. For where? They put the drip. The pain tripled. God! I couldn't believe my life. I was just praying in my heart 'God, please don't let me come and die in this oyibo land o, let me carry my child and go back'. I can't describe the pain. My lower back was on fire. My lower tummy region, pelvis, was on fire. My vayjay.

 In fact, everywhere and everything irritated me. I told the nurse I wanted to pee. She said OK and took me to the toilet. I couldn't. She said she knew I wouldn't be able to pee, she just wanted to allow me have my way and to confirm if it was pee or poo. The doctor came in and put hand in my vagina. Ah ah! See pain. They did this like 5 times or more. In fact, one time the doctor did it, the nurse came like 5 minutes later and did it again. I started shouting 'what is it, what is it?' Lol.

They gave me pain reliever. It made me drowsy. I started seeing double double and smiling as if I was high. But for where? The labour pains were too much to bear. Do you know I had to give my life to Christ again and ask for forgiveness of sins? Just in case I didn't come out alive?? It was that serious.

It was terrible. The last two hours were worst. I wanted to run mad. I stood up, sat, rested my back, tried walking, etc, no strength! Then I stayed on the bed again. Meanwhile, they had since broken the amniotic sac by themselves, as the labour was progressing. Blood was dripping. I was a mess.


One of the monitors started beeping. The nurse said I should turn, turn where? I couldn't . She grabbed me and turned me to my side with force. She said my baby's heart rate was dropping. The beeping started again. She turned me forcefully to the other side. Hay God! More pain. I was gnashing my teeth, breathing in and out as they taught me, saving my energy for later (as they said). Tear drops rolled down the sides of my eyes at intervals. I continued praying under my breath.

The nurse checked me. 9cm dilated. This was almost 12 hours after labour started. She ran out to call the doctor, meanwhile, I couldn't wait. I was already pushing. It's a relfex action. You can't really 'hold your push'. She was shouting , stop pushing. I couldn't. Doc came and scattered my legs and said OK push now. 3-4 pushes later and my son popped out.


You know how people say 'when I saw my baby, I was so happy, I forgot all the pain?' Please where are those people? Forgot what? I was CONFUSED! SHOCKED!! EMOTIONAL!!! EXHAUSTED!!!! 

I started shivering and crying uncontrollably. It was a free flow of contrasting emotions. Then they put him on my body and, then, the paediatrician and other nurses took him away and started cleaning him up, doing phototherapy, etc. The doctor with another nurse started stitching me up.

I had never felt anything like that in my whole life! 30 minutes later, I was asking myself what just happened and then, taking selfies for hubby. God!

My people that was the second journey (the first being the pregnancy). The third which is nursing, caring for and raising my baby was AN EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER!

For the first few days, and months, I kept asking myself 'so I have my own human being now?' More importantly, I was a zombie most of the time. Breast milk refused to flow. I Couldn't eat, I was depressed, etc. Please let me stop here.

Childbirth will change you forever. And you can't prepare enough. But you will LOVE your own with an undying love. My son is 2 now. Touch him and you've touched my eyes. I will fight for him with my blood. That's the extent of a mother's love.

PS: They gave me a lot of resources at the postnatal unit, which I found very useful. They were information on healthy child growth, caring for baby, use of internet, use of car seat, baby carrier and the likes, bathing the baby, depression helplines and community, support group, shelter info, websites for free stuff, websites for cheap stuff, jaundice, vitamin d, breastfeeding, care of the home, care of nursing mother, list of nearby pharmacies for over the counter meds (like pain reliefs and laxatives), emergency lines, orphanages (in case you feel motherhood isn't for you and you want to give up your child), a whole lot. Bless them. They don't do anything close to these in Nigeria!!! 

Naija, which way???

PPS: Financial considerations are not the only things to think of when planning childbirth and children. Think of emotional, mental, psychological, physical, career and spiritual factors as well.

Thank you Stella. More money to your account.

*I went through every emotion with you as i read!!!...