Of milk that is. Not gin.
Ok, sometimes gin. Anyway...
Yes, two weeks ago baby H arrived on the scene in the early hours of the morning. A little smaller than we expected (although not small by any means; anyone who describes 7lb 9 as small has clearly never had to push something that size out of their foo). I had started the induction process 3 days earlier and had been on the drip for almost 11 hours by the time he finally decided to make a dramatic appearance.
I will spare you the details. The chances are that if you are reading this you or your partner have been through labour and so don't need reminding, or you will be going through it soon and will find out for yourself.
Anyway, he is here. He is safe, and healthy and my husband and I are happy (if perpetually tired).
So what happened before/after the birth? Instead of a confusing chronology, and as I am an avid fan a list, I will set things out by subject.
Before Delivery:
What was the plan?
As I was in hospital for nearly 4 days before H finally showed his face, there was plenty of time to come up with a plan. However, even if I had only been there for a few hours before delivery I am confident the plan would have been the same.
I have to say at this point that all of the staff at the hospital were wonderful, with a special mention to all of the midwives who dealt with me for the three days before labour started. I only had one sense of humor failure and it was pretty spectacular, but they were always kind, generous, funny and a credit to the NHS.
All the midwives knew the plan and handed over the following shift fully so everyone knew what was going on. The plan was that on delivery there would be two midwives in the room, which is normal, and two pediatricians to check the baby over when he arrived. The best laid plans however....
When H did decide to make an appearance it was very, VERY, quick. So the pediatricians weren't there but thankfully weren't needed.
Did you have pain relief?
Yes. I am neither mental nor a masochist!
After Delivery:
Was the cleft diagnosis correct?
Yes. H has a left side unilateral cleft lip, palate and gum. The cleft palate goes front to back on the left side as well as some missing at the back on the right.
Did the baby have to go to Special Care Baby Unit?
About an hour after delivery (or was it 10 minutes? or 3 hours? To be honest I wasn't in my right mind, it may have been weeks!) my husband took H to the SCBU. This wasn't done immediately so there was plenty of time official introductions. The SCBU staff put a small tube into his stomach to check for acidity levels, although this was more to do with the fact that there had been increased amniotic fluid than the cleft. Then the SCBU staff showed my husband how to feed him with the special squeezy bottles that Jo from BCH had given them, and that we had miraculously not lost AND remembered to pack! Star on the star chart for us.
H and husband then returned some time later and the three of us were transferred to postnatal ward.
The midwives had been able to arrange a side room for us in the postnatal ward which was an incredible help not only in my recovery, but in bonding time with H as well. I'm not sure what the rule is about side rooms across the NHS but I would definitely recommend asking.
How is he Feeding?
Well, actually. He likes his food but that is no suprise to anyone who has met his dad and brother - both gannets. At is 18days old H is regularly taking 90-120ml. He is taking on wind and we to spend a lot of time encouraging burping but he seems to be coping quite well. Sometimes we don't get it all and the wind 'goes south' and gets trapped in his lower stomach and which point we know about it!!!!
BCH Cleft Team visits.
Jo visited us in hospital on the day that H was born and again 2 days after we came home. She was very happy with how H was getting on. We have been assigned a Consultant and our first appointment with BCH is at the end of next month. At that point we will get our date for the lip operation.
So, that's where we are now. I think I've covered the basics.
Apologies for the rambling, nonsensical nature of the above. There is a reason sleep depravation is covered by the Geneva Convention.
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