Vomiting During Labor!
No one said birth was easy! We speak to self-employed Lau Jia Yi, 22, about her bumpy pregnancy experience.
If I had to describe my pregnancy, I would say that it was like being stuck in a nine month long nightmare. While most pregnant mums usually start experiencing pregnancy symptoms towards the end of their first trimester, mine started from day one. In the first month itself, I started suffering from terrible bouts of morning sickness. I was vomiting so much, that I had to perpetually lug a dustbin with me all around the house. It was extremely agonizing to throw up after every meal without fail.
It wasn’t just food that I couldn’t keep down, even water made me throw up till my gut hurt. I was so terribly dehydrated that my Gynea had to place me on a drip. Besides that, I also found it extremely difficult to sleep and my nose was extra sensitive. Even though I used to be a former smoker, the smell of cigarettes would make me want to throw up as well! Due to the fragility of my condition, I had to take three months leave from work.
After my first trimester, the nausea disappeared but another issue raised its head. I turned into a HUGE eater! I started having cravings for all sort of unhealthy junk like ice-creams, cakes and fast food. The more calories the food had, the more I desired it! By the end of the nine months I put on a whooping 28kg! I was so heavy that I could not even walk properly. It was also difficult to breathe and I nearly fainted twice while I was at work. I am so thankful that my mother was with me both times!
No Pain, No Gain!
Due to the size of my baby, my Gynea advised me to have an induction. He was afraid that if I waited for another two weeks, I would have to undergo a caesarean. When at the hospital, I was wheeled to the delivery room, where they strapped me to monitors, put me on a drip and broke my water bag.
After a short while, a nurse examined me and reported that my cervix had dilated to 2cm. Initially I could not feel any contractions, but after around an hour, the contractions started to increase in intensity. By then I was in so much of pain that I could not even look at my husband. He began to panic seeing me wincing away in pain.
To try alleviating the pain, the nurses made me puff “laughing gas”. After inhaling it, I felt giddy and nauseous. Initially I had plans to have a drug-free labour, but when I found out that I was very many hours from gibing birth, I immediately asked an epidural.
About half an hour later, the anesthetist arrived and gave me the epidural. The thing worked like a charm! After ten minutes, the pain was gone! I finally calmed down and was able to nap. In the evening, the doctor came in to check on my dilation. You can imagine our surprise when he told us that our baby’s head was already at the entrance of my cervix preparing for delivery.
The Doctor instructed me to get ready to push, but my body refused to cooperate. Because of the epidural, I could hardly feel my legs, so I just couldn’t push! Also because of the “laughing gas”, I kept on vomiting when I was pushing, so the doctor had to keep stopping to let me vomit. I tried my hardest to push as I was so scared that I might have to go for a c-section. My husband was standing beside my bed holding on my hand to give me the support that I needed.
Miracle of Life
At 5.26pm, September 4 2007, I finally heard the cry of my precious baby. My darling son, Delson, was placed on top of me while the nurse suctioned his mouth and nose and the Doctor cut the umbilical cord. It was the most beautiful feeling to finally look at his big almond eyes, chubby cheeks and full head of hair. No one said that birthing was easy, but the prize you get at the end of it, makes it worth the while!