My first child arrived after a long, hard labour that left me traumatised. Six years later, however, the desire for another baby emerged. Although the thought of delivery made me shudder, we were ecstatic to discover that Mav would become a big brother around Christmas.
My pregnancy seemed to fly by and I enjoyed every moment until about 28 weeks, when I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. At 36 weeks, test results showed I was severely anaemic, so I was admitted to hospital for an iron infusion. While there, more tests indicated pre-eclampsia. I had severe swelling, extreme weight gain, protein in my urine and a low haemoglobin count.
Despite my exhaustion, I felt well otherwise, so my obstetrician was happy to monitor the baby and me closely and, ideally, allow me to go into labour naturally. My birth plan was ready and included affirmations to get me through the contractions. In hindsight, this was hilarious. My goal was to have a positive experience and a healthy baby. And I hoped our bub’s birthday wouldn’t be on the biggest holiday of the year!
On Christmas Eve, the day before my due date, I saw my obstetrician, who couldn’t hide his reaction to my latest test results. My blood pressure was through the roof, I had a critical amount of protein in my urine and the baby had to come out pronto! I was sent via ambulance to a larger hospital an hour away, to be induced that evening. My birth plan was shelved, but I made the choice to accept this and not let fear take over.
My husband raced around with his daughter Taylah, 15, (from a previous relationship) and Mav. He grabbed our hospital bags and organised for my mum to look after the kids and play Santa.
At 10pm, I was induced via prostaglandin gel and sent back to my room to rest and wait. I had just shut my eyes when I was bowled over by a huge contraction. Labour had begun! Hard, fast contractions followed, and I paced around the room, focusing on my breathing.
After about 20 minutes I felt the urge to push. The midwife took us to the birthing suite but explained that my baby was probably a fair while off, as I hadn’t been contracting long, and the internal examination performed earlier had shown the baby’s head wasn’t even engaged. I was advised to consider pain relief if I was already in considerable pain. My response was to scream for an epidural, so in preparation for that I had another examination. The midwife checked me and said, “Uh, your baby is on the way. Er, now.” I was fully dilated and ready to go.
With no time for pain relief, I became determined to make my baby’s birthday Christmas Eve. Kaine was an incredible support and so encouraging. As midnight drew closer, I knuckled down and decided it was time to get serious. With the support of Kaine and my amazing midwife and obstetrician, Kensie Eve Ernst was born at 11.50pm, weighing 3.43kg. All up, my labour was less than two hours.
Waking to the news that they had a little sister was a beautiful Christmas present for Taylah and Mav. They couldn’t care less about eating sandwiches in a hospital room on Christmas Day. My recovery was a breeze, although I did require stitches due to a second-degree tear, the only downside of such a quick labour.
Kensie is now almost a year old and a little ray of sunshine in our family. Motherhood the second time around is so special, and Taylah and Mav love having a little sister. We feel complete and couldn’t be happier with our Christmas Eve baby.
Did you have a Christmas baby? Tell us more!
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