Chrissy's Labour
At approximately 3pm when Chrissy's waters broke, it suddenly hit me I was going to be a father! It was a very frightening but exciting thought. I felt very scared for Chrissy and the baby, it was a life or death situation. Luckily, the midwife was still sitting in her car from her visit a few minutes before. We waited for an ambulance to come and on arrival at the hospital, it was clear that Chrissy was really starting to feel some pain! But I was very glad to see one of our midwives there, which took a lot of pressure off me! Chrissy went to the delivery suite where her contractions continued to get stronger - they seemed to last forever! I was concerned for my son's safety as near the end of the labour his heart rate dropped and there was also meconium liquor present (the baby had pooed inside). I was very glad to hear Chrissy had decided to accept some pain relief, as my neck, forearms, hands and fingers were very sore from where she had been squeezing and pulling at me! My eardrums were affected too...
When the fetal blood monitoring began, I was not happy about it, but I knew it was for the safety of my son and my fiance. The first sight of Liam's head was a very exciting moment for me and Chrissy's mum. As for seeing Liam actually coming out, I didn't see much, as I was in an upright position with Chrissy while she was giving birth. She had her arms round my neck, hugging me very very tightly! But I was very impressed with how Chrissy coped during pregnancy and labour.
The first time I saw Liam lying on the bed a second afterwards is a feeling which I cannot write on paper, it is an emotion which is indescribable. I held him against my bare chest, I could not believe this was my son! I loved him from the very second I saw him looking at me.
On the way home, I phoned everyone and told them we had a little boy and called him Liam: I've never been so happy in my life! I was also very grateful to all our midwives: Maria, Suzie, Cindy, Mia and Shona, for all their help and support.