Deceived by Non-Dilation!

I was a young, uninformed mom who never dreamed of having a c-section. With my first baby I was induced at 6 am on a Friday and laboured most of that day, the end of the day becoming hard back labour. I still was not dilating by 10 pm and since I did not want to labour all night with no sleep (I had not slept at all the night before and was extremely tired) I asked the nurse if I could take something for pain and to help me sleep. They gave me morphine and I slept through the night till 6 am the next morning when I was re-induced and my water broke almost immediately.

Then began HARD labour. I went through hard back labour, long contractions with NO breaks between (pretty much one huge contraction all day) and vomiting profusely. I begged for an epidural. It was wonderful for an hour or two after the epidural, but my body soon required a higher dose to not feel anything. That wore off fast too. I begged another epidural!  I was not dilating (although during my second birth we realised that I do actually dilate, but I swell at the same time so it doesn't appear I am dilated.)  This time, however, we thought I was not dilated at all.

I awoke at 6 am the second morning with a strong urge to push, but everyone kept telling me not to. By lunch time it was impossible for me not to push. I was exhausted from the pain and being so sick. They gave me another epidural, but even though they gave me twice the recommended dosage it didn't affect me. I could still feel everything and had no breaks.

By 3 o'clock it became apparent that since I was not dilated (when in fact now we know I probably had been the whole time!) and since I was in so much pain, they should called in the c-section doctor

The c-section was awful but I was blessed with my big bouncing 8 lb.10 ounce boy. I was so small and he was so big the doctors all thought he must be at least a nine pounder.  While they sewed me back up, I fell violently ill again. I was whisked down to recovery for an hour by myself, without my new precious baby or husband. I was stuck down in recovery for an hour with no one with me. I felt so excited to meet my Lil' Man, but so alone in a shadowy room all by myself. I missed the bathing and weighing of my son. I always said I wanted to be the first to hold my baby as soon as he was born, but by the time I got to really see my son after the c-section, my husband, mom, dad and the doctors and nurses had held him. Finally they wheeled me up to see him and we have been inseparable ever since.

We planned a VBAC for our second child and this time I knew enough to say No to inductions unless absolutely necessary. I was overdue again with this one and they scheduled a c-section again. Praise God, a few days before the planned c-section, I woke at 12 am and called my husband (who was working night shift) who came home right away. Labour started hard and fast. By 1 am we were in the hospital and already felt I had to push. By 5 am, even though I still wasn't dilated, the doctor said I could push--and soon I had my daughter in my arms. That's when we realised that I swell up so that we don't think I am dilated when I am. I got to hold my daughter instantly.

With God all things are possible!

GERI HICKS

Castlegar, British Columbia, Canada

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