A real mum shares her experience of the quick delivery (28 minutes!) of her second child, with no pain relief.
Birth Summary
*Christie Mullins, 31, gave birth to her second child, Aimee. Her labour for her first daughter, Olivia, 4, was four hours.
*Length of labour: 20-30 minutes.
*Pain relief: None – there wasn’t time!
*Scariest moment: When Marc delivered Aimee – we were wondering what we’d do if she wasn’t breathing properly.
*Funniest moment: When I was in the bath in hospital and it was all over, Marc and I couldn’t stop laughing in disbelief!
*Advice for mums-to-be: Trust your body.
“It was my due date and I was completely fed up with being pregnant, but as I lay in bed that night, I felt a sort of twang. A few seconds later I was in no doubt – I went to the toilet and could hear my broken waters glugging down the loo. Within minutes, I had my first contraction. And then another a minute later…
“I was just constantly on and off the toilet, on all fours, rocking, huffing and puffing. But nothing seemed to relieve the pain and discomfort. I thought, ‘If this is only the beginning, what sort of pain am I going to be in at the end?’ My contractions were getting stronger, longer and quicker. I phoned the hospital and they told me to come in. So I struggled into the car with my partner Marc and Olivia.
“I explained to Olivia that mummy was going to make some funny noises but not to worry. As the car pulled off the drive, I put my feeton the dashboard and pushed back into my seat to brace myself for another contraction. We’d only driven 200 yards down the road when I felt as though I needed to poo. Then I remembered that the need to push is often mistaken for needing the toilet… I told Marc the baby was coming. So he pulled over into a nearby farm and ran around to my side of the car, as I lay across the two front seats.
“Then Marc pulled my trousers down to discover a head! I told him that on the next contraction the baby would come out. And she did! Marc caught Aimee in his hands. Olivia donated her blanket to wrap her up in, and we drove to hospital. When we arrived, the doors were locked, so the security guards had to get the midwives.
“They cut the cord in the car park and took Aimee upstairs. I followed behind – naked in a wheelchair – but I didn’t care. Aimee was very cold so she was taken to special care for a few hours until she was warm enough.
“Marc and I were in shock – my waters broke at 1am and I had given birth by 1.28am! We feel so lucky that it happened the way it did, as Marc got to deliver Aimee and Olivia was there too, turning it into a real family affair.”
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