When she called today to tell me her symptoms (that sounded to me like early warnings of transition) I encouraged her to go in and be checked because she has a very high threshold for pain tolerance and it was entirely possible for her to be having contractions and not be feeling them. As it is her first and there is no history - how was she to have any idea of how her labour was to proceed - fast and furious, fast and almost painless (my aunt always described her two labours as bad mentrusal cramps that last a couple of hours.... feel free to hate her! :-) or will her labour be slow and incredibly painful? My first labour lasted almost 36 hours - if I remember correctly and I vomited my way through it until they gave me a shot of gravol. This was eventually followed by a shot of demerol and I went from panicked shrieks of "I'm going to throw up! I am going to throw up!!!" to a chilled "Uh... I think.. I might throw up... now - could I have the bowl please... "
I am, for the most part, always polite through out my labour. Must be my Canadian upbringing - we are a very polite people. Just joking. I am not sure why I do not lose it like I hear so many woman complain of themselves. But ask my poor husband who is never allowed to leave the room for more than a nano second once I hit about 5 centimeters, but to whom I am still very civil and polite with. With the first baby, we did the whole lamaze course thing but when push came to shove (excuse the pun) he not only was not allowed to leave the room, but he had to sit on the stool and it had to be placed near my head. Nor was he allowed to touch me. I could not bear being touched except for a cool cloth on my forehead. Still he was not allowed to sit on the compfy recliner - it had to be the stool - by my head - where I could easily see him.
Hey - I said I was polite - not reasonable.
So anyone who happens to read this... today August 25th 2008 .... say a prayer for my daughter, and her little daughter in waiting, for a safe labour and delivery. Say a prayer for husband and Daddy, John, too. Labours are tough on Dads too - and he is especially compassionate and cannot stand to see Jenny suffer.
Prayer to Saint Gerard
Prayer for a Safe DeliveryO great Saint Gerard, beloved servant of Jesus Christ, perfect imitator of your meek and humble Savior, and devoted child of Mother of God, enkindle within my heart one spark of that heavenly fire of charity which glowed in your heart and made you an angel of love. O glorious Saint Gerard, because when falsely accused of crime, you did bear, like your Divine Master, without murmur or complaint, the calumnies of wicked men, you have been raised up by God as the patron and protector of expectant mothers. Preserve me from danger and from the excessive pains accompanying childbirth, and shield the child which I now carry, that it may see the light of day and receive the purifying and life-giving waters of baptism through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
2 comments:
We will defiantly keep Jenny's family in our prayers. I understand the high threshold for pain thing. My labors with my first two were like cramps also( with the first I had an appointment and was sent to the hospital and the second my water broke or I would have never known I was in labor ) until they both got stuck at the same point.Then pushing a baby who wasn't going to be able to go any farther for two hours before sighs of distress ( Mine first then the babies) caused us to be rushed into O.R. for Emergency C sections were excruciating.
My last was the most embarrassing of all though. Being my fourth delivery, you would think I would know a thing or two. Since I was only thirty four weeks along I had not yet gotten into the any day now mode even though the others were each more than three weeks early. On this day I got up and cooked lunch before my husband had to leave to work afternoon shift. It was a hot sticky August day and I just felt kind of sluggish to begin with and as I was standing over the stove, I got one zinger of a gas pain. as I cooked I started to wonder what I had eaten to cause such gas that kept persisting. At dinner I held my stomach a couple times until my husband asked if I was Ok. I told him yes but after dinner I would call the doctor to see if I could take a Gas X tablet. He nodded but watched me as he ate. About half an hour later he stood up from the table, looked me in the eye and informed me that my " gas" pains were now less than five minutes apart and that we better go to the hospital. I knew I wasn't in labor but he called off work, called my parents to come and get the other two and insisted that I go get checked. I figured that they would give me a Gas X and send me home. Once to the hospital I even told the nurse that I was not in labor but just gassy, so she sent me to the family waiting room for forty five minutes until a room was cleaned for me. I sat there, the gas pains stopped and even convinced my husband that it was not time when they said they would do an ultra sound and monitor me for an hour before we left. Well the monitor went on and the nurse gasped.My doctor was called but the Ob resident came in to check things. Your fully dilated he told me. He wanted to take me right to O.R. but I insisted on waiting for my doctor, who was there within ten minutes and met me in the O. R.
Please don't hate me lol. I may have had light labor pains but I would have traded them for a natural birth any day !
Sorry I got carried away commenting more than you posted. :-) I will go pray now. Let us know !
*gulps*
I cant say I'm looking forward to the prospect of labour....
although having said that, at the present moment, due to this as-yet unresolved placenta praevia I only have a 50% chance of experiencing it anyway...
xxx
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