So the baby still hasn't turned and we have three weeks to go before d-day. Nikala is very keen to have the baby naturally, but with a breech baby the NHS rarely let you so it would be a c-section, the prospect of which is understandably scaring Nikala a little. The doctors have suggested to Nikala that we go and have an ECV - endo cephalic version - (thats an external, manual manipulation of the baby to try and get it to turn into position to you and I), but apparently even then there is only a 50% chance of it working.
Today was the day and we were both pretty nervous as we had learned that it can be pretty "uncomfortable", which if the internet is to be believed means bloody painful! Arriving at the hospital we are shown to a labour room. Apparently they are really busy and so we cant go to the maternity ward. Fortunately the labour room is quite comfortable and hopefully we wouldn't be here long anyway. Fortune however, was not smiling upon us and after several hours waiting patiently we began to get irritable. Apparently there had been a few emergency c-sections and so all the doctors were busy. We also learned that there were only two doctors trained in the procedure and that neither of them were working that day. Brilliant planning by the NHS to schedule us in when there was no-one to actually do it. So our 10am appointment was meaningless
Eventually the doctor arrived, sometime about 4 or 5 hours later, having come in on her day off. She blurred into the room, advised us it was unlikely to work. Then pushed and pulled the baby to no effect, other than to cause extreme pain and discomfort to Nikala, before finally saying: "nope, your baby is in breach, with its foot down and the cord wrapped around its leg. It wont work you will have to have a c-section. Oh and you are having mini contractions so you will need to stay in overnight to ensure both you and the baby are OK and labour isn't going to set in". With that, she was gone. It was all done in 30 minutes.
A midwife then strapped a heart monitor for the baby to Nikala and the room was filled with the steady thump thump of a tiny heartbeat. We were told that there might be a possibility Nikala could go home if there was no more sign of any contractions. I should probably point out that Nikala could feel nothing, no sign of any contractions at all, but the midwives kept telling us they were happening. This was at about 15:00 and from then on we were left alone. No one came to see us, no one explained what would happen next, no one advised us of what to expect if we did indeed have to have a c-section. It was pretty scary stuff. Were we about to be parents?
At 18:00ish, we tried to get the attention of the midwives to ask for an update, but guess what. There had been a shift change and so we had to explain tot hem why we were even there. This did not fill us with confidence and still feeling nothing Nikala was keen to get home where she would feel much more comfortable. I totally agreed, especially given the fact that it appeared as though no one knew what to do with us anyway. But every time we brought it up we were told that we had to stay until a doctor could review the results. Then we learned that they had lost Nikala's notes, the notes that had everything about the pregnancy so far. Great stuff. A fourth then a fifth midwife came in (both having to be hunted down by myself) and after we had explained the situation to them again, told us the same thing again, we had to wait for a doctor to confirm everything was ok.
I was now pretty confident that Nikala and the baby were ok, she still hadn't felt a thing and the baby's heart had been constant, I even managed to get a recording on my phone. We were both bored out of our minds. I couldnt help myself and started to poke about the cupboards in the room. Played with rubber gloves blowing them into balloons and flicking them about the room. finding and playing with syringes (no, no no, not with needles!) and squirting water out the window. There was a giant rubber ball in the toilet which amused me for about an hour and a swivel chair I made myself sickeningly dizzy on. But we couldn't take it any more and finally Nikala got up and declared she was signing herself out of the hospital. Well wouldn't you believe it, a doctor was suddenly available and they found her notes!
Today was the day and we were both pretty nervous as we had learned that it can be pretty "uncomfortable", which if the internet is to be believed means bloody painful! Arriving at the hospital we are shown to a labour room. Apparently they are really busy and so we cant go to the maternity ward. Fortunately the labour room is quite comfortable and hopefully we wouldn't be here long anyway. Fortune however, was not smiling upon us and after several hours waiting patiently we began to get irritable. Apparently there had been a few emergency c-sections and so all the doctors were busy. We also learned that there were only two doctors trained in the procedure and that neither of them were working that day. Brilliant planning by the NHS to schedule us in when there was no-one to actually do it. So our 10am appointment was meaningless
Eventually the doctor arrived, sometime about 4 or 5 hours later, having come in on her day off. She blurred into the room, advised us it was unlikely to work. Then pushed and pulled the baby to no effect, other than to cause extreme pain and discomfort to Nikala, before finally saying: "nope, your baby is in breach, with its foot down and the cord wrapped around its leg. It wont work you will have to have a c-section. Oh and you are having mini contractions so you will need to stay in overnight to ensure both you and the baby are OK and labour isn't going to set in". With that, she was gone. It was all done in 30 minutes.
A midwife then strapped a heart monitor for the baby to Nikala and the room was filled with the steady thump thump of a tiny heartbeat. We were told that there might be a possibility Nikala could go home if there was no more sign of any contractions. I should probably point out that Nikala could feel nothing, no sign of any contractions at all, but the midwives kept telling us they were happening. This was at about 15:00 and from then on we were left alone. No one came to see us, no one explained what would happen next, no one advised us of what to expect if we did indeed have to have a c-section. It was pretty scary stuff. Were we about to be parents?
At 18:00ish, we tried to get the attention of the midwives to ask for an update, but guess what. There had been a shift change and so we had to explain tot hem why we were even there. This did not fill us with confidence and still feeling nothing Nikala was keen to get home where she would feel much more comfortable. I totally agreed, especially given the fact that it appeared as though no one knew what to do with us anyway. But every time we brought it up we were told that we had to stay until a doctor could review the results. Then we learned that they had lost Nikala's notes, the notes that had everything about the pregnancy so far. Great stuff. A fourth then a fifth midwife came in (both having to be hunted down by myself) and after we had explained the situation to them again, told us the same thing again, we had to wait for a doctor to confirm everything was ok.
I was now pretty confident that Nikala and the baby were ok, she still hadn't felt a thing and the baby's heart had been constant, I even managed to get a recording on my phone. We were both bored out of our minds. I couldnt help myself and started to poke about the cupboards in the room. Played with rubber gloves blowing them into balloons and flicking them about the room. finding and playing with syringes (no, no no, not with needles!) and squirting water out the window. There was a giant rubber ball in the toilet which amused me for about an hour and a swivel chair I made myself sickeningly dizzy on. But we couldn't take it any more and finally Nikala got up and declared she was signing herself out of the hospital. Well wouldn't you believe it, a doctor was suddenly available and they found her notes!
The doctor finally agreed to let us go as the contractions had stopped. And that was it, they sent us on our way. What? Wait a minute? What now? Are you just sending us away with a casual "oh by the way you need to have a c-section at some point, byee"? Thats a bit shit isnt it. What do we do? What are the next steps? What happens now? When will it happen? What actually happens during a c-section? Are you fucking nuts! Its not like we have had one of these before you know. We were livid and not just a little scared.
After our little outburst we were given a little bit of info to placate us and told that someone would be in touch to book in an appointment. But all in all we left the hospital after having been there fore the whole day and half the night, feeling more than a little despondent, frightened and bewildered.
Now we just need to wait for the date. Gulp.
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