Prologue: Labor Pains and False Alarms
Two weeks before my April 27 due date, I went on maternity leave. The first week I was on leave, I spent it sitting in front of my office laptop frantically finishing my team's performance feedback and practically still "working". It was like racing against time. I had to complete it before the deadline and at the same time before the baby comes out. I was talking to baby Yui and telling her to please come out after mommy's done with the AOs (Assess Outcomes). Being the good girl that she is, I was able to finish the AOs.
Besides that, daddy bunny and I also had another goal: that we can attend our friends' Moe and Jo Anne's wedding on April 18th. The night before the wedding, I was already having contractions but they were very mild and irregular. I attended the wedding having those contractions. I was really sure that I will give birth that weekend so on the way to the wedding, we loaded all the bags that we will bring to the hospital in case we have to rush to the hospital after or even during the ceremony. During the reception, I texted my OB and she informed me that those were just "false alarms". I then spent the rest of the weekend timing my contractions and just "feeling it".
Since I'm just a poor girl, I didn't attend any childbirth classes but instead I just read this free online childbirth class. Of course I was scared and anxious about the whole labor process that I made sure to arm myself with the knowledge and prepared myself mentally and physically. I also read different birth stories from different women in several forums and blogs. Expecting the worse, I was prepared.
Chapter 1: The Long Wait Is Over
Fast forward to Monday, April 20. Daddy bunny decided to just work from home since I was having irregular contractions the entire weekend. I was scheduled for a checkup with my OB on Wednesday but since daddy bunny was home, I texted the OB and asked if we can have the checkup that day instead. I'm really excited and wanted to know if I was dilated already. So off we went to QC and had an IE (internal exam) with the OB. But my cervix was still closed.
Although she said she can feel the baby's head and said that labor can be that night or the next morning. 
We went to SM Annex after that and had our lunch there. Since it was our first time to go there, we literally walked the entire mall and checked the stores (talagang gusto ko nang manganak! haha!).
That night I noticed that the contractions are becoming more intense (although they're still tolerable). I was able to sleep but woke up at around 3am since the contractions were of a higher level. I went downstairs and paced the living room for a few minutes, checking if the contractions will subside if I do. But it just kept going. So I went back to bed and timed my contractions. From 3am to 5am I was timing it and the interval was every 10 minutes with 2-minute duration each. I texted my OB around 5am since I don't want to wake her up earlier than that. I was anticipating her reply to say false alarm but instead she told me to go to the hospital so they can perform an IE to see if I was dilated. This is it!
My next dilemma was how to wake up daddy bunny and my mom. Hehe. I calmly woke them up and sabi ni mama ako lang daw ang nakita nyang nagla-labor na pangisi-ngisi lang. hehe! Melvin looked more tense than I am. He went down before me and when I got there he already put his pants on! So sabi ko: "hindi ka ba maliligo?" hehe! I told them that we better take a bath first and have breakfast. I was chillin'. hehe! Good thing that I ate cereals because as it turned out, that would be my last meal.
Chapter 2: It's Show Time!!!
When we got to the hospital, the resident OB performed the IE and I was still half-expecting them to tell me to go home and that I wasn't dilated yet. But lo and behold, I was already 4cm dilated!!! They then lured me into the Labor Room to which I innocently asked: "tuloy-tuloy na ho ba ito?" and the nurse simply said yes. "Uh-oh," I thought. "Hindi man lang ako nakapagpaalam kina daddy bunny and mama and I didn't bring my PSP with me. Pinaghandaan ko pa naman ito, naglagay na ako ng mga games and music!"
So there I was, lying in the Labor Room, alone and without any means of entertainment other than the voices of the interns gingerly chatting on the other side of the curtain. ampfs! It was around 7am when I started my labor in the LR. Then they immediately wired me to the fetal monitor so they could monitor my baby's heartbeat and my contractions. My OB told me that I might deliver the baby around 3pm. And I thought, "wow, that fast?" By 9am, I was 5cm dilated. My OB told me that I could get the epidural (local anesthesia) when I'm between 5-6 cm and that I shouldn't wait for the pain to be intolerable before I get the epi. However, at 5cm the pain wasn't that bad yet. I can still tolerate it and I was just singing through each contraction. The anesthesiologist (Dr. M.) came in and asked if I wanted the epi already but I said I can still tolerate it and that I'll wait a little longer (maybe around 11am). By 10am, I was at 6cm already and my water broke. After that, the contractions got stronger and by 10:30 I couldn't even say that I want the epidural. All I said to the OB was, "Doc, GAME" with a really pained look in my face.
And so, she called Dr. M and they started the procedure. The epidural didn't really took effect immediately so I was grunting during the contractions while Dr. M and my OB were just chatting by my side. I was like, "Doc bakit walang epek?!" Yun pala 30minutes pa mag-take effect! Kaya pala pinipilit nila ako to have it earlier. But good thing na rin that I didn't have it earlier because it helped speed up my labor. By 12noon, I was almost unconscious, I think I was 9cm dilated and all I could remember were little bits of conversation around me, such as:
Dr. M.: "ang ganda ng progress nya no?"
OB: "oo nga eh, at this rate before 2pm siguro tapos na"
Dr. M.: "mataas nga ang tolerance nya sa pain eh"
OB: "o ann, let's practice your pushing"
Since I had the epi, I couldn't feel anything so they had to coach me into properly pushing the baby out. We spent the minutes practicing and by 1pm, my OB told me that we're ready and they wheeled me towards the Delivery Room. IT'S SHOWTIME!!!!
Chapter 3: In the meantime...
While all this hoopla was happening in the LR, my ever reliable posse of daddy bunny and my mama were in the Waiting Room...waiting. Theirs were equally funny and stressful experience. Before me was a lady who delivered a baby and her relatives were also waiting outside. The SIL was talking to mama and they were just sharing stories. Then she pointed to the baby's father pacing in the WR. After awhile, she pointed to daddy bunny, "o tignan nyo po, sya naman ang naglalakad" hahaha! Sorry naman, pang-teleserye ang drama ng asawa ko. haha! In fairness, he said mga 3 times lang syang naglakad-lakad and then he sat na and opened ICHI the laptop. He was also updating our friends and relatives of the happenings through Facebook. Thank the internet gods for Facebook. There's no need for text messages and phone calls. But mama was also updating our other relatives in the province and she was busily texting everyone until her battery ran out. She was caught by the guard charging her phone and said na bawal daw yun. So she went up to our room since we were already checked-in, thinking that she'll just go back to the WR at around 2pm since my OB told them that between 2-3pm pa daw ako matatapos.
Chapter 4: It's A Girl!!!
Contrary to what I usually see in the movies and TV, there were only a few people in the Delivery Room when I was giving birth to Yui. My OB: Dr. Aileen, a resident OB, Dr. M, and a pedia (who's waiting for the baby so he can perform the APGAR test). I was half-awake during the entire process and in times that I'm actually conscious I would look around me and take in all that is happening so that I can remember all of them clearly. I was thinking, "kailangan ko maalala lahat para ma-blog ko ito. LOL!
In front of me was the wall clock so I was like pressured to push and finish it because I can see the clock ticking. By 1:30, they said na malapit na... I pushed and pushed, looked at the clock which says 1:30 and I thought "ayy, tapos na sila mag-lunch break sa office!" hahaha!
The anaesthesia was slowly losing its effect so Dr. M had to put on another dose but before it could take effect, I was able to feel the contractions which was good coz I was able to tell when to push and helped speed up the delivery. I actually felt the baby's head and shoulder come out (but without the pain, of course!). By 1:41pm, I heard the first "UWAAAAAAAAA" and baby Yui was born. 
Epilogue
As it turned out, mama wasn't able to finish charging her phone. She received a call from daddy bunny saying na TAPOS NA. She was surprised and so she immediately ran to meet our precious little baby girl... Yui.
Two weeks before my April 27 due date, I went on maternity leave. The first week I was on leave, I spent it sitting in front of my office laptop frantically finishing my team's performance feedback and practically still "working". It was like racing against time. I had to complete it before the deadline and at the same time before the baby comes out. I was talking to baby Yui and telling her to please come out after mommy's done with the AOs (Assess Outcomes). Being the good girl that she is, I was able to finish the AOs.
Besides that, daddy bunny and I also had another goal: that we can attend our friends' Moe and Jo Anne's wedding on April 18th. The night before the wedding, I was already having contractions but they were very mild and irregular. I attended the wedding having those contractions. I was really sure that I will give birth that weekend so on the way to the wedding, we loaded all the bags that we will bring to the hospital in case we have to rush to the hospital after or even during the ceremony. During the reception, I texted my OB and she informed me that those were just "false alarms". I then spent the rest of the weekend timing my contractions and just "feeling it".
Since I'm just a poor girl, I didn't attend any childbirth classes but instead I just read this free online childbirth class. Of course I was scared and anxious about the whole labor process that I made sure to arm myself with the knowledge and prepared myself mentally and physically. I also read different birth stories from different women in several forums and blogs. Expecting the worse, I was prepared.
Chapter 1: The Long Wait Is Over
Fast forward to Monday, April 20. Daddy bunny decided to just work from home since I was having irregular contractions the entire weekend. I was scheduled for a checkup with my OB on Wednesday but since daddy bunny was home, I texted the OB and asked if we can have the checkup that day instead. I'm really excited and wanted to know if I was dilated already. So off we went to QC and had an IE (internal exam) with the OB. But my cervix was still closed.
Although she said she can feel the baby's head and said that labor can be that night or the next morning. We went to SM Annex after that and had our lunch there. Since it was our first time to go there, we literally walked the entire mall and checked the stores (talagang gusto ko nang manganak! haha!).
That night I noticed that the contractions are becoming more intense (although they're still tolerable). I was able to sleep but woke up at around 3am since the contractions were of a higher level. I went downstairs and paced the living room for a few minutes, checking if the contractions will subside if I do. But it just kept going. So I went back to bed and timed my contractions. From 3am to 5am I was timing it and the interval was every 10 minutes with 2-minute duration each. I texted my OB around 5am since I don't want to wake her up earlier than that. I was anticipating her reply to say false alarm but instead she told me to go to the hospital so they can perform an IE to see if I was dilated. This is it!
My next dilemma was how to wake up daddy bunny and my mom. Hehe. I calmly woke them up and sabi ni mama ako lang daw ang nakita nyang nagla-labor na pangisi-ngisi lang. hehe! Melvin looked more tense than I am. He went down before me and when I got there he already put his pants on! So sabi ko: "hindi ka ba maliligo?" hehe! I told them that we better take a bath first and have breakfast. I was chillin'. hehe! Good thing that I ate cereals because as it turned out, that would be my last meal.
Chapter 2: It's Show Time!!!
When we got to the hospital, the resident OB performed the IE and I was still half-expecting them to tell me to go home and that I wasn't dilated yet. But lo and behold, I was already 4cm dilated!!! They then lured me into the Labor Room to which I innocently asked: "tuloy-tuloy na ho ba ito?" and the nurse simply said yes. "Uh-oh," I thought. "Hindi man lang ako nakapagpaalam kina daddy bunny and mama and I didn't bring my PSP with me. Pinaghandaan ko pa naman ito, naglagay na ako ng mga games and music!"
So there I was, lying in the Labor Room, alone and without any means of entertainment other than the voices of the interns gingerly chatting on the other side of the curtain. ampfs! It was around 7am when I started my labor in the LR. Then they immediately wired me to the fetal monitor so they could monitor my baby's heartbeat and my contractions. My OB told me that I might deliver the baby around 3pm. And I thought, "wow, that fast?" By 9am, I was 5cm dilated. My OB told me that I could get the epidural (local anesthesia) when I'm between 5-6 cm and that I shouldn't wait for the pain to be intolerable before I get the epi. However, at 5cm the pain wasn't that bad yet. I can still tolerate it and I was just singing through each contraction. The anesthesiologist (Dr. M.) came in and asked if I wanted the epi already but I said I can still tolerate it and that I'll wait a little longer (maybe around 11am). By 10am, I was at 6cm already and my water broke. After that, the contractions got stronger and by 10:30 I couldn't even say that I want the epidural. All I said to the OB was, "Doc, GAME" with a really pained look in my face.
And so, she called Dr. M and they started the procedure. The epidural didn't really took effect immediately so I was grunting during the contractions while Dr. M and my OB were just chatting by my side. I was like, "Doc bakit walang epek?!" Yun pala 30minutes pa mag-take effect! Kaya pala pinipilit nila ako to have it earlier. But good thing na rin that I didn't have it earlier because it helped speed up my labor. By 12noon, I was almost unconscious, I think I was 9cm dilated and all I could remember were little bits of conversation around me, such as:
Dr. M.: "ang ganda ng progress nya no?"
OB: "oo nga eh, at this rate before 2pm siguro tapos na"
Dr. M.: "mataas nga ang tolerance nya sa pain eh"
OB: "o ann, let's practice your pushing"
Since I had the epi, I couldn't feel anything so they had to coach me into properly pushing the baby out. We spent the minutes practicing and by 1pm, my OB told me that we're ready and they wheeled me towards the Delivery Room. IT'S SHOWTIME!!!!
Chapter 3: In the meantime...
While all this hoopla was happening in the LR, my ever reliable posse of daddy bunny and my mama were in the Waiting Room...waiting. Theirs were equally funny and stressful experience. Before me was a lady who delivered a baby and her relatives were also waiting outside. The SIL was talking to mama and they were just sharing stories. Then she pointed to the baby's father pacing in the WR. After awhile, she pointed to daddy bunny, "o tignan nyo po, sya naman ang naglalakad" hahaha! Sorry naman, pang-teleserye ang drama ng asawa ko. haha! In fairness, he said mga 3 times lang syang naglakad-lakad and then he sat na and opened ICHI the laptop. He was also updating our friends and relatives of the happenings through Facebook. Thank the internet gods for Facebook. There's no need for text messages and phone calls.
But mama was also updating our other relatives in the province and she was busily texting everyone until her battery ran out. She was caught by the guard charging her phone and said na bawal daw yun. So she went up to our room since we were already checked-in, thinking that she'll just go back to the WR at around 2pm since my OB told them that between 2-3pm pa daw ako matatapos.Chapter 4: It's A Girl!!!
Contrary to what I usually see in the movies and TV, there were only a few people in the Delivery Room when I was giving birth to Yui. My OB: Dr. Aileen, a resident OB, Dr. M, and a pedia (who's waiting for the baby so he can perform the APGAR test). I was half-awake during the entire process and in times that I'm actually conscious I would look around me and take in all that is happening so that I can remember all of them clearly. I was thinking, "kailangan ko maalala lahat para ma-blog ko ito. LOL!
In front of me was the wall clock so I was like pressured to push and finish it because I can see the clock ticking. By 1:30, they said na malapit na... I pushed and pushed, looked at the clock which says 1:30 and I thought "ayy, tapos na sila mag-lunch break sa office!" hahaha!
The anaesthesia was slowly losing its effect so Dr. M had to put on another dose but before it could take effect, I was able to feel the contractions which was good coz I was able to tell when to push and helped speed up the delivery. I actually felt the baby's head and shoulder come out (but without the pain, of course!
). By 1:41pm, I heard the first "UWAAAAAAAAA" and baby Yui was born. Epilogue
As it turned out, mama wasn't able to finish charging her phone. She received a call from daddy bunny saying na TAPOS NA. She was surprised and so she immediately ran to meet our precious little baby girl... Yui.
Once we were there, this time with daddy bunny na, we set up our things and then cleaned the house (ang purpose lang pala ni AC sa amin ay maging cleaning ladies haha). Mama was supposed to arrive around dinner time. 
I was just precribed antibiotics which I had to take for 7 days and Duvadilan for 3 days (because apparently, I was having pre-labor contractions again 
Doon lang kami sumakay sa mga commoners section kasi ayoko doon sa first car (feeling ko mas grabe yung mga babaeng sumasakay doon. grabe magtulakan). Nung papunta na nga kami ng GMA-Kamuning, 2 manong pa yung nagpaupo sa akin. hehehe! How sweet! 2 Thumbs up kayo mga manong! 