This entry was reposted from my old mommy blog.
A sharp pain in my belly jolted me awake. I looked at the clock: it was 3:52 am.
Could this be real labor pains? I thought.
I didn’t want to ring another false alarm.
It was, after all, April Fool’s Day.
I decided to wait it out. I got up from the bed and started walking around the room.
The pain persisted.
I took out my notebook and pen and started timing the contractions.
3:52… 3:55…. 3:57…. 3:59…. 4:02…. 4:06…. 4:10….
Each wave of pain came at less than 10 minute intervals.
At 5 am, I woke up Kernie, “Mahal, sunud-sunod na yung contractions ko…”
“Punta na tayong hospital?”
He quickly got up and loaded our bags into the car. But I was still hesitant to go. Should I wait til my water bag breaks? I didn’t want to go to the hospital and spend another whole day waiting.
At quarter to 6 am, I called my OB. I thought I’ll let her decide this one for me.
The moment she answered the phone, she said, “Game na? Diretso ka na sa labor room.”
I was admitted to the labor room at exactly 6 am. The doctors recognized me from my previous confinement, “Ayan, manganganak ka na.”
After months of waiting, I couldn’t believe this moment had finally arrived.
I was in a painful daze as the nurses prepared me for delivery. They gave me shots of some pain relieving drug but I was far from relieved.
For the next four hours, I was groaning in excruciating pain. For some reason, my body had a high tolerance for the pain relievers and it didn’t have any effect on me. My OB said they had already given me the maximum dosage allowable and they couldn’t give me anymore.
I tried with much effort to remember the relaxation and deep breathing exercises I learned from meditation and yoga. I endured each stab of pain thinking that every minute is drawing me closer to that moment when I can finally give birth.
Close to 11 am, my water bag finally burst. Everything happened so fast after that.
Within moments, I was transferred to another bed and wheeled into the delivery room.
I was fully aware as the nurses scrunched my body into a fetal like position and anesthesia was injected into my lower spine. I felt a wave of relief after that and prepared myself for another long pushing session.
Surprisingly though, immediately after my legs were strapped to the stirrups, I felt my baby slide out of me.
I heard a faint cry and I saw my baby coated in all that gooey fluid as my OB handed her over to the nurse.
It was 11:06 am.
I wanted to tell the nurse to bring my baby next to me but before I knew it, she was already transferred to another room.
For the next hour, I waited impatiently as I was being stitched up. I was surprised that it took much longer than the actual delivery. After the procedure, my OB walked over to my side and congratulated me for a job well done.
It was finally over.
We made it.
Thank God.
The nurses wheeled me to the recovery room where I finally gave in to exhaustion.
When I woke up, I was a bit alarmed to find that I couldn’t feel my legs. I tried to move them but only managed to wiggle my right foot.
Perhaps, sensing my fear, the nurse assured me that sensation in my legs would return in four hours then I would be transferred to my room. I asked her if I could see my baby by then and she said I’d have to wait ‘til the next day. Disappointed, I tried going back to sleep hoping that when I woke up, I would see my baby by my side.
At 4 pm, I was finally transferred to my room. There I found my Kernie, my parents and Kernie’s sisters waiting for me. It was comforting to see familiar faces at last.
Though I was still a bit groggy, I managed to recount much of what I remembered about my delivery experience. I was proud to say I did a pretty good job.
And since I was given clearance to take in solid food, Kernie asked me what I wanted to eat. Funny I was craving for chocolate twin popsies. My hubby couldn’t find one though so he bought a drumstick instead which was just as good for me.
Hours later, A arrived with a box of donuts while Ate Mahleen bought some cupcakes from Sonja’s. My sweet tooth was certainly having a field day.
Never mind if my belly still made me look like 5 months pregnant. After the feat I accomplished, I felt like these treats were my sweet reward.
Carli arrived shortly after A. I was really touched and thankful that they exerted effort to visit me on one of the most momentous days of my life.
I was still weak and bleeding but having my hubby, my family and my friends around me made me feel stronger.
Night came but sleep eluded me. I looked back at everything that happened the whole day.
It all seemed so surreal.
I knew one part of my life has ended and a new chapter has just begun.
