December 06, 2006

And then the stork visited


The calendar had shortened in 2005. But August seemed to stretch into a year.

12 August, 2005. The Due date. No signs of labour. So many well wishers kept calling. I begged Navy to take the calls, Both sets of Appa and Amma came over. Eager to see the new addition to the family. The first grand kid for my parents , the first born of the son for Navy's.

The gynaec said, "Let us wait 3 days and then do another scan. There is enough fluid but the head seems to be getting rather large" So the wait continued. Maybe the baby wanted to time herself with India's Independence Day. That would be nice, I thought.

16 August, still no sight of kiddo. Both Appas went back home . The Ammas stayed on.
Went for a scan. Found the fluid depleted. The head was getting bigger. And the scan doc said" The cord is around her neck" Once we walked out, I checked with Navy if I had heard right. It was going to be girl!

"What a waste of a good pelvis", said my gynaec. " You can wait another day but the baby is not descending. Also even if I induce labour, one cannot predict how the delivery would go, given the knot. I would suggest that you go for a cesarean. But the choice is yours." I knew Navy's answer. Nothing that would endanger the baby . We called our folks and scheduled it for the afternoon.

My gynaec asked" Would you want to do it at a particular time, to predecide the baby's star!!?' We said no, ASAP will do.

So much for lamaaz, debating about epidural and deciding I would take one if need be. Went home, packed a few belongings, informed a few friends, some said " Oh so sad, you seemed so normal- we thought you will have a normal delivery" I felt like saying " Hey it is a very common thing. Not some by pass surgery ." I heard some others say " Chennai docs, they always want a c section. " Oh please. What do they have to gain?

You know my theory- I think Anush was always her Appa's girl- they had plotted so that Navy would not have to stand in through the labour( he was petrified by the idea- he cannot stand the sight of blood) Later I learnt that in the US there is a glass screen through which even a C section could be viewed by the hubby. Maybe next time, if there is one!

We went to the hospital. Argued with the insurance guys since there was a sealing on the coverage, which I would exceed this being a C-section. Did the needful paperwork myself. Imagine doing that whilst in labour. After the preliminaries, I went into the Op theatre at around 4.30 pm. The gynaec had said it would take about an hour max. The drama was about to unfold.

Both moms and Navy were waiting out. Six o'clock and still no news. Had there been any complication? Any mishap? The anaesthetist popped out and called for Navy. He told Navy that the baby girl had been delivered at 6.15 pm and was fine. Navy asked" How is the mother ?" and he replied" Do not ask me. That you will have to ask her doctor."

Navy reported the baby part to both the new grandmas and left out the other part. But there was tension writ large on his face. Another patient there asked Navy " You are upset because it is a girl?" Navy promptly denied it but the guy gave a smug look. The nurse came out with the baby and could not stop exclaiming how Anush looked so clear skinned for a new born- possibly the C section had been responsible?

Still no news about me . Navy took the moms into confidence. Just then the gynaec stepped out and said that all was fine and showed the umbilical cord which which was in a double true knot . Maybe Anush had the makings of gymnast .

I lost my cool with the inefficient nurses, had no water till the next morning, had a bad back long after and have a line like an earthworm running across my stomach. I also got into the lethargy of not exercising the first three months ( taboo post a c-section). Yes I did not experience the labour pains (that I wanted to) , but my joy at seeing my baby safe and sound, was good enough.

So mad momma, that was my story and c-section or not, having a baby is among the loveliest moments ever & possibly overwhelming as well. About doing it a second time- well that requires another post.


19 comments:

my life.... said...

i am glad to hear that yr child was born safe and sound....i am very much sure that yr family is very happy by the birth of yr child :) may god bless yr child with long life

mommyof2 said...

nice birth story:-)And Anusha look so cute in that pic:-)

In US hubby can be with wife during delivery or c-section cuz he is considered the part of pregnancy procedure(doc told me about him being part;-)..LOL!!

I had both c-section too.. Actualy first time I had to cuz A skipped breathing for few seconds but during gudiya's time I asked for c-section:-)

Anonymous said...

Here in NZ too your partner or family member can be there with you for support - c'sec or normal.

That was nice birth story - Anush's skin does look soooo clear for a new born. My babies looked like that only after a few days after birth :-)

The Kid said...

regarding not giving you anything to drink...

If you are on saline, you should not have felt thirsty but ofcourse you would have lost a lot of fluids.

btw, If you are on anesthesia, you will not be given anything to eat/drink, because of the risk of vomiting/aspirating --- this could become fatal. They usually do not give anything after you wake up too, because if you had developed any complications they might have to operate again.

Me no doctor, and if there is some doctor here, please verify.

Anonymous said...

Wow! should have been a very tensed moment for Navy.

Anonymous said...

Very interesting and excellently written story. I could easily visualize each moment.

By Deepa and Supriya said...

Art,
Nice....u inspire me to write my own labor story!On hindsight I would have loved a c-section because in my case the labor was sooooo long that the epidural wore off by the time i started pushing....painful!!!
Ur girl looks precious!

Itchingtowrite said...

very well written- like a page turner novel/ thriller.
i too remmember being the guilty party- calling again & again. well, she was supposed to share my birth date...

Noodlehead said...

gee, your post has got me scared :( this is the one moment i'm dreading in my pregnancy - the labour! i've heard that a c-section is too much trouble and i'm also shit scared of the pain accompanying natural labour ("it's like shoving a watermelon through a hole the size of a lemon!") i'm SCARED!!! :(((

Artnavy said...

Kid- I know and u r right about not having the water bit. I think my sequence came out wrong. Pl ignore.

The nurses were inefficient.Period

I hate the feeling of being thirsty . Period. BTW, I drink about 6 lts of water a day.

Noodle- Pl do not be scared- what I am saying is a c section is no probelm at all.

Kalpana said...

A wonderful experience, right?

Rohini said...

Actually I think that doctors do have to gain from C-sections. They get paid more for a lot less work (in ternms of sheer hours). In my case, I feel that my doctor pushed me into a c-section - there was no problem other than the fact that I had gone a couple of days over my due date and she insisted on inducing labour and then things just went from there to me being on the operating table...

Artnavy said...

oh- that is sad rohini. did u confront her later?easier said than done

Rohini said...

It wasn't that easy. As it is, she was ready to induce labour the day my due date had passed. I held my ground for a couple of days and then she gave me one of those 'I am the doctor and I decide' kind of ultimatums... she held till the very end that this was the only way. Definitely not going back to her the second time around...

Something to Say said...

Art, once again beautifully written. Reminded me of my time as well.
Orchid - I share the same fate as you - epidural wore off byt he time it came to push. dratt! and that was the hardest part!
Noodlehead - just breathe in and out - dont worry honey - everything will be fine.

Anonymous said...

that was like reading a thriller.. with a happy ending ofcourse :)
oh.. is there a sequel?.. :p

The Kid said...

I am surprised that so many decisions are being made mainly based on due-date. So much depends on the accuracy of the due date. Are doctors in India still using the 150 year old Naegele's Rule to predict due-date ? and decide to operate based on that? wow!

the mad momma said...

Hey you,
That was a good post... will be linking it to mine. If you see the pic i have of the brat.. it is identical.. a clear baby wrapped in a green cloth. the reward we get for being chopped up! And so glad that we and the babies are healthy at the end of it all....

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