The Experience of a Lifetime

Let me attempt to document the journey I took to bring Gabriel from in-utero status to this outside world.

The estimated date of delivery was to be 26 February 2007. Derod and I had joked that this little fella would be a "true heir" if he was indeed born on that day, since both of us were born on the 26th day of November and December. Alas, our little one decided he should be early, and the signs of his arrival were present from 15 Feb. I've had Braxton Hicks (practise contractions) from the 37th week, but they were gaining in intensity and frequency as the date drew nearer. 15 Feb was also the day of our appointment with the gynae, who told us that it could be "anytime; it could be tonight or next week". So we went home and continued monitoring the contractions. On Friday, we went for prata at Jalan Kayu in the late afternoon, and watched Pirates of the Caribbean 2 till near midnight. Thereafter, I'd gone in to rest for the night while derod worked on his project. From 12am of 17 Feb, my contractions became regular and by 4am, I was experiencing one in five minutes, each lasting a minute long. Well, four hours of counting, not really gettting to sleep, I woke the sleeping derod and we prepared for the journey to the hospital. We got there and they whisked us to the delivery suite. Let's just say I needed a wheelchair by then. After being hooked up onto monitors and a few checks later, I was declared only 1cm dilated... the gynae came to check on me in the morning, and advised that I should go upstairs to the ward to rest, and when I needed pain relief (read: pain that is so bad that signals time for delivery), I would come back down to the delivery suite. He advised epidural, but it could only be administered with a basic requirement: one had to be at least 3cm dilated. So up we went.

Not too long later, in the mid afternoon, the cycle started again: one in five minutes, each lasting a minute long, this time, in greater intensity and almost unbearable pain. It's so irritating as the only thing I could do was to practise the breathing techniques we learnt at the antenatal class and I didnt even qualify for epidural?!?!? We went down to the delivery suite again, this time, with me breathing in the laughing gas. It was useless. Nothing happened for a long while and I was only 2cm then, so they sent us back up again.

My in laws came to visit and brought food but I couldnt swallow anything. The two grapes I ate, I threw up later in the evening. By 10pm, the contractions were well on their way (words cannot describe the pain), and I was so grouchy from the pain, I begged derod to let me go for C-section. Well, he didnt say much (as usual) but didnt budge as well. His only words were "are you sure you wont regret it?" to which I didnt care anymore. By this time, anything goes. We called the nurse in and I told her to call the gynae to come in to give me a C-section. The response: a doctor came in to check on my level of dilation, to which I refused to let her check anymore. For your information, one examination was mighty painful, and by then, I had endured four. Then they brought in a fiercer doctor who insisted that I should be checked before they take any action. I lost in this dramatic showdown, thinking at the back of my mind that it was for my own good anyway. Well, the good news is, I finally qualified for the epidural and they took me down to the delivery suite again. We flushed out whatever was necessary and soon, the anesthetist was here. He was really professional and soon, it was bliss.

By this time, it was past 12am ie CNY day. From the moment we entered the hospital till now, none of us had had much rest and with the epi in place, I was finally able to get some sleep. Poor derod was slumped onto the arm chair in the suite and the two of us just knocked out for some time. He had been the sweetest, most supportive husband throughout the last 24 hours.

At 4am, a doctor came in to burst my waterbag to hasten the process, and at 6am, they gave me some induction drugs via IV to lagi hasten the process. By 9am, I was dilating very well. (For your information, the doctors who examined me did tell me that I was contracting very well ie pain coming in very well, but I just wasnt dilating...) Then a nurse came in to say that it was going to be time to push and they are going to switch off my epidural.

??!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!??!?!?

I asked many questions and was obviously not keen to go through the whole pain thing again. And, so many of my friends who delivered with pain relief did not get theirs switched off!! She explained that this would help me to push better. Well, boh pian right? So I resigned myself to their hands.

Near 10am, I was attempting at pushing, and the nurse came to teach me how to do it. Practise, practise, practise, and when she thought I was well on the way, she went to call my gynae who rushed in just in time to scrub, dress, and literally deliver the baby. Actually, this is the most dramatic portion of the delivery, but in view that there are 1st-time preggies reading this (you know who you are), I'd better leave details out. Too much knowledge may not be good for you haha.

So, after a 35-hour long labour, at 11am on the 1st day of CNY, Tan Tee Guan Gabriel (Chen Zhiyuan) entered this world, much to God's grace. Had He not intervened, I'd have gone for an operation which would take lots of pain, ages to recover and would not be as safe for Gabriel.