Holli came to my pregnancy yoga classes in Dartford as she prepared for the birth of her second baby.
My first pregnancy was very straight forward with no cause for concern, but then at 36 weeks my waters broke. I went in to Darent Valley who advised I stay in, as I was pre-term. May contractions came on gradually throughout the day, and baby Nora was born at 10.30pm weighing 5lb11 – only 14 hours after my waters had gone. My plan for Nora’s birth was to be in the birth centre but because she was preterm it had to be the delivery suite, which I was gutted about. But it was absolutely fine – she arrived healthy which was the most important bit.
Nora was then 8 months old when we found out we were pregnant again – she must have known because she stopped breastfeeding without warning and over night, the week we conceived. This was a big shock to us all, especially as Nora was still so small. Once the shock wore off I got used to the idea of having two babies close in age.
My pregnancy with Felix was also uncomplicated. I was told I was at a higher risk of another preterm birth given the closeness in pregnancies and history of early labour. However as time went on, this seemed to be less of a concern for the midwives.
At 30 weeks I was on holiday in Center Parcs and I got a bit too confident riding my bike, when I felt a “pop” … I was petrified that my waters had gone early again, but this wasn’t the case. Instead, I had damaged my coccyx and I couldn’t walk, sit, bend, or lie down comfortably. Brilliant when you’re heavily pregnant and also have a 15 month old… who wasn’t walking yet!
Weekly osteopath appointments and pregnancy yoga (thank you Colleen!) helped and by 38 weeks my coccyx was much less painful and I could move again… as much as you can move at 38 weeks pregnant anyway!
At 39 weeks I started getting braxton hicks, which would normally come on around 7pm and then be gone within the hour. At 39+2, after putting Nora down to bed at 7pm, the contractions came on again but didnt go away, and intensified quickly. By 9pm I was having 2 every 10 minutes.
I called the birth centre at Darent Valley Hospital at 9pm and they said it was my choice whether I wanted to come in or not. The midwife on the phone made me aware that coming into hospital can slow the contractions down, but also to consider my previous quick birth, so it was down to how my body was feeling.
I called my mum to come over to look after my little girl, and we made it to Darent Valley Hospital by 22:15. We went straight to the birth centre where we had our own room, while they cleaned and prepped a room with a pool for me. I chose not to be examined to avoid slowing anything down, and went for a walk and did some stretches on the ball. The midwife said she would check back in in 2 hours. A mere 20 minutes had passed and I now couldn’t walk or talk through my contractions. I asked to be examined at 23:30 and I was 3cm dilated. Contractions continued to get more intense, and so I used the gas and air while keeping upright on the ball.
My waters broke at 00:18 and I had the immediate urge to push, and two contractions later, on all fours, baby boy was born.A total active labour time of 1 hour and 5 minutes – even quicker than before!
Thanks so much for your classes on a Monday, they gave me the perfect balance of birth prep and ‘me time’ throughout my pregnancy
