How Baby Muhamad Came To This World....

I felt a sharp stabbing pain on my lower abdomen that radiated to my back that jolted me out of my sleep. Immediately I wondered "Is this it?" I laid awake staring at the ceiling trying to recall if there is anything I haven't put in my e-bag. 10 mins later, the same pain appeared again. I woke The Don up and told him excitedly .. "we're gonna see Baby Muhamad soon"

THAT was how I envision how my labour will start but it didn't happen that way at all......

I was due for my weekly checkup on Friday 1st Dec. We did the routine checks the VE (yikes!!) and the scanning. Everything seemed as per normal at first then suddenly Dr Yang said that my amniotic fluid was low - dangerously low. She said there could be two possibilities - one, my water bag had leaked without me realising it or two, the baby had consumed the water. Either way, hardly any water could be seen in the scan and the doc brought rise the possibility that the baby had passed out meconium into the womb and this could be potentionally hazardous to him. She said I will have to be induced to deliver that very same day.

It took a few mins for her words to register. I was shell-shocked and very very afraid. No I wasn't afraid of the pain (well ok, a little) but I was afraid of being induced. I have heard and read of numerous birth experiences of women being induced to deliver but since the medication couldn't cause dilation the women had to be go through a c-sect eventually. That was my greatest fear! I was so hell-bent on delivering naturally without any medical intervention but apparently this was not to be.

I was very reluctant to be induced and kept asking what are the alternatives for me. I suggested we came back the next day to check the amniotic fluid level again. Dr Yang, being the cautious doctor she is, repeatedly cautioned me against waiting too long to make a decision since the baby could already be in danger. I was still reluctant and asked for a CTG first to see if the baby was in distress. The doc made it very obvious I was being very unwise. She asked me pointedly if I thought it was worth it to wait another day and suffer the risks after carrying the baby for 9 months. I couldn't answer her. While her nurses got the CTG machine ready, she asked me to seriously reconsider and cautioned that if I still refused her recommendation, she will make me sign a AMA (against medical advice) notice.

By then I was crying buckets. I seriously didn't want to jeorpadise the baby's health. But I also didn't want to go through an operation. The Don hugged me tight and asked me to think things through carefully. He asked me to have faith and realise that things have been pre-ordained. If the baby was meant to be delivered via a c-sect, there is nothing we can do to prevent it anyway. So its best to just listen to the expert and leave the rest to Allah S.W.T. Realising the futileness of my resistance, I agreed to go ahead and arrangements were made to admit me into the labour ward immediately. Meanwhile I called Umi, my MIL and sms-ed my legion of girl friends to update them.

I was quite surprised by the opulence of the labour ward in Gleneagles Hospital. There was an Osim massage chair in the room, (for the husbands. how unfair!!!) vending machines, various magazines, cable tv etc. But nothing surprised me more than the level of service we were shown. As soon as I was shown to the Delivery Suite No 3, one by one the nurses came to introduce themselves and explain in detail the procedures. Even the Assistant Director of Nursing came and extended a warm welcome. I was strapped to the CTG machine and the nurse explained what the graph meant. Then Dr Yang came to break my water bag and to put in the drip of syntocin to induce the contractions. Time Check: 1.30pm. She said she would expect me to deliver earliest by 6am the next day. I was a bag of nerves but since I didn't feel any pain (yet)I busied myself reading the magazines and sms-ing non-stop to Joyah, Nyonya, M and Esah. Truly I am lucky to have them as friends. Their constant company and encouragement during those difficult moments will be something I hold close to my heart forever. I was forbidded to consume anything other than water but I was starving like mad since all I had since morning was a lousy slice of bread. The Don smuggled in butter croissants from Delifrance downstairs and I had snatches of his seafood sandwich downed with air zam zam and air selusoh prepared by my grandmother. By 4pm, my mother was already waiting anxiously outside the labour ward despite both The Don and me telling her that it will be a long wait. She was joined later by The Don's parents and sister.

The pain didn't kick in until much later. By 5pm, the pain was akin to a low level menstrual cramps. Dr Yang came to check on me. I was already dilated to 5cm. She said my fears were totally unfounded. My body seemed to react very well to the syntocin and we can expect to see our son by 2-3 am. She offered pethidine to me and cautioned me to ask for the epi (if I needed it) before I reach 7cm dilation. I refused both. I had acquainted myself with all the side effects of the available pain relief and was grittily determined not to take any of them. By 7 pm, the pain was quite horrendous but still manageable and I was @ 7cm.

Just when I thought "hey labour's not as painful as I thought" the pain came on full throttle. I had this great urge to start pushing and told the nurse. The nurse explained that I should not push yet since the baby has not engaged and pushing will just exhaust the little energy I have left. My mouth recited the doa from Surah Al-Anbiya ayat 87 non-stop as my grandmother thought me. There were moments when the pain clouded my mind completely and I mouthed everything from doa makan to doa tidur to doa buka puasa. The Don then held my hand and recited the doa so that I just followed. That was much needed comic relief in the midst of all that gut-wrenching pain. Till this day The Don sometimes teases me about reciting the doa buka puasa.
7pm onwards was the worst part of the labour. The nurses repeatedly suggested I take the ethonox gas to help me relax and conserve some of my energy. I declined but they set it up anyway. I took one puff and found it completely useless although the nurses said I didn't breathe in properly. The Don took over and took a few puffs and he said he was on cloud nine!!! Despite the excrutiating pain, I couldn't help but laugh.

Anyway by 10, I was @ 10cm, Dr Yang came promptly and with 4 pushes, out came Muhamad Mubarak at 10.53pm weighing 3.475kg, the Don's and I first born and our pride and joy, Insya'Allah. Despite the doctor's fears, Muhamad Mubarak was 100% healthy and had not passed meconium as suspected. He just wanted a headstart of 14 days into this world.

His Abah recited the Azan and Qamat into his ears so that the sweet words of Allah are the first words he will hear and also did the tahnik with the kurma we had prepared. As I still needed to be kept for observation, he was wheeled out onto the delivery suite lobby into the anxious hands of his maternal grandmother, both his paternal grandfather and grandmother and his paternal aunt who had been waiting for hours outside for his arrival.

With no pain relief whatsoever, I went through labour au naturel the way I think it was meant to be felt. It was a hell of an experience but when my son was placed on my chest as soon as he was born, I felt like I was in heaven.