Anastasia's birth story

No chance for my water birth.

Then came the bad news…the rooms with birthing pools were all being used. I couldn't believe it. After another 4 hours in a labour room stuck on my back as they monitored the baby, I was still only 4cm dilated. My midwife, Laura, read my birth plan carefully and asked a lot of questions. She was very respectful of my desire to avoid any intervention and stood by with a worried look on her face as I writhed in pain. With each contraction the baby was butting up against my pelvis with his chin up instead of tucked down to his chest, the only way the head can navigate its way through the U-turn of the pelvis. Around midnight, Laura suggested an epidural and I knew I had to have it. This could go on for hours and the pain was just too much to bear.

The anaesthetist came in and promised nirvana by 1am

At quarter past one when the contractions were just as painful as before, Laura went to get the anaesthetist to see what had gone wrong. He came back and explained that sometimes they miss the mark. Apparently, I was one of the unlucky ones. He said he'd return in just a few minutes and do the whole procedure over again. A few minutes went by, and then a few hours went by and no anaesthetist. I was out of mind and body in pain. Laura told us that the hospital had been so overcrowded that the labour ward was closed - they were turning women away and telling them to go to another local hospital to give birth.

Sometime after 4am the anaesthetist finally returned and re-did the epidural. This time I experienced some pain relief but I was still all-too-aware of the contractions.

Meanwhile I continued to dilate

By 5am I was at 10cms but the baby still hadn't engaged into the pelvis. Laura couldn't allow me to push because the head was still facing the wrong way and pushing too soon can damage the cervix. She didn't like the look of the baby's heartbeat and explained that he was basically fighting to get out but unable to do so, all the while banging his now swollen head against my bones.

An hour later, Laura said I could try to push, although the baby's position hadn't changed at all. She knew how strongly I felt about having this baby without intervention and she told me that sometimes the baby will turn during the pushing stage. So I summoned all of the strength in me and pushed. I roared and screeched but there was no movement whatsoever. The baby was stuck. And his heartbeat was looking increasingly worrying.