Hannah's Birth Story

WARNING: The following account is a true story with explicit and gory descriptions of the birth process of a baby girl. Please refrain from further reading/viewing if you have any one of the following conditions: weak heart, weak knees, blood phobia, hyperventilation, anxiety disorder or a predisposition to fainting. Parental guidance advised for young children. Caution advised for expecting mothers.


Alright, now that I have cleared myself of responsibility from the consequences of posting this sort of article, I shall proceed with Hannah’s story…

When Did It All Start?

The precise date is difficult to pinpoint, but let’s put it at 27th July, Thursday evening. Having resigned myself to an eventual induced labour, I had made plans for the weekend and asked Chris to book his leave for when our baby was expected to arrive (by induction). I even went online to check the latest movie offerings at nearby cinemas, thinking this would help me pass time.

My contractions had been increasing over the last week, but having had 3 previous hospital admissions, with one of false labour, I was determined to “get it right” if I ever did go to the hospital again. So, on Thursday evening, when I noticed spotting for the first time, I silently rejoiced. A quick call was made to a friend who happened to be the Gynaecology Registrar on-call that night and I was reassured that I could wait a little longer for the contractions to get more regular.

A Test of Patience

That night, the contractions were 10-20 minutes apart, but no closer. By 4 am the pain was too disturbing for sleep to be possible, so Chris had to be woken up to prepare me a midnight snack. Yet, by sunrise, the pain was back to my familiar Braxton-Hicks. All that was left was a sleepy mummy and daddy-to-be, but I was glad I had waited and not gone to the hospital.

The same occurred for the subsequent two nights – strong, regular contractions at night which petered out by sunrise. Worried that I may be too complacent, I performed my own fetal heart monitoring using my stethoscope and a stopwatch all three nights. Satisfied that Hannah’s heart was beating strongly through the contractions, I continued to wait.

Enough was enough after enduring 3 sleepless nights. After watching “A Beautiful Mind” at 4am on Sunday morning, we decided to give church a miss and check myself into the hospital for a proper assessment. Contractions were still 15 minutes apart, but the pain was bearable. Was this the real thing?