So, we have been blessed with an absolute gorgeous baby girl who was born on 30th April 2017 and the first few days of motherhood have been a challenge but we have been lucky! She cries when she wants a feed and when she wants her nappies changing. Obviously, she wants a cuddle every now and then as well. Throughout the night, she is getting better already and does let her mummy and daddy sleep even though I know this may not last long but while I am in recovery, I can’t complain at all.

My labour was not pleasant. I was induced due to limited movement from Maisie. On the Thursday night (40 weeks plus 2 days) I was monitored for a few hours and sent home. However, the next day I was called in to be induced and begin the process. The first step was a pessary, and it worked pretty well. My contractions became strong and I was getting ready to go into labour. However, I was meant to have a top up with the gel at 10:30am the next morning, and that would have been the perfect boost but the ward was full upstairs and no one could attend to me until 2:30 in the afternoon so my contractions had slowed down and I had to start again. Oxytocin is the most important hormone to encourage birth, but having screaming women around me, making me cry and scared to give birth really didn’t help.

We had already had one night of no sleep, and the second night was no better. The gel brought on the contractions again, very quick but I wasn’t dilated so I couldn’t have any strong pain relief. Only co drexamol, ibuprofen and paracetamol. I couldn’t lie down or sit down. Matt had to pick me up every 30 seconds while I was crying my eyes out, and him reminding me to breath. In the end, they gave me pethidine which I didn’t want, but I couldn’t handle the pain. Once I had that, it didn’t even scratch the surface of the pain I was in. I had more tablets for pain relief and in the end, Matt had to pick me up and take me to the bathroom, however we didn’t make it in time and I threw up all down the corridor. In the end, they took me upstairs to give me an epidural which made me through up again. I finally was relieved of pain and managed to sleep but it dropped Maisie’s heart rate and then sped up too quickly. I wasn’t dilated enough and they said I was still about 16-17 hours away from giving birth and it wouldn’t have been healthy for Maisie so I was sent in for an emergency C section.  If Matt wasn’t there beside me and helping me throughout the whole thing, I wouldn’t have had the strength I don’t think. I thank him everyday for our little one and for being with me.

Wanting an all natural birth unfortunately did not happen for me. We were discharged from the hospital 2 days later, as I really wanted to go home and I think Matt needed a bed again. I have 6 weeks to recover, and now Matt has had to return to Cyprus I am now experiencing a bit of motherhood on my own.

My wonderful parents are helping me out a lot while I am in recovery as I struggle to get up and I can’t carry her for very long but I will get there. Matt was my rock throughout the whole thing, and is a great daddy to Maisie already.

Maisie has passed all her tests so far, and is an angel to us. Even though the labour was hard, I wouldn’t change a thing. It’s true when people say, when your child comes into the world, you will forget the pain of childbirth. I still have pain but it disappears when I look into her little eyes