I woke up at 5:30am and my wife was propped up against the backrest holding her very pregnant stomach with a worried frown on her face. Being the eloquent and calm person that I am, I asked her, "what?.............WHAT???!!!" She told me she was feeling something similar to period cramps but that it was happening every five minutes or so.
Staying cool, I rushed her to the hospital at 7am to avoid the morning rush hour and we were promptly sent home by the nurses; she was only 1.5cm dilated and her 'contractions' were very light and likely to fade away. The nurse told us that at 1.5cm, Natalie might come tomorrow or in one week.
We felt rather foolish and so went for shopping and lunch at BSC where the wife could walk around comfortably and only needed to pause every five minutes for a few seconds while the 'cramp' passed. We then went home to wait for the cramps to fade away.
But it didn't.
The hours passed and the wife kept completely silent that her cramps were getting worse. We even managed to sit and have dinner but by that time we knew the labour had begun and wasn't going away. Those around us advised that since it's her first pregnancy, the baby was only likely to come the next day or even the day after. But after dinner, I decided I didn't want to take the risk and rushed her to the hospital for the second time that day (see, I told you I was calm).
It was only in the car that I realised how much pain my wife was in. She didn't say anything the whole car ride and merely held my hand. But trust me, I knew with bone crushing certainty that something was terribly wrong. I also knew that the shape of my left hand would never be the same again.
We checked in at 9pm and as I wheeled her to the delivery wards, she was very nicely telling the nurses to prepare the epidural, "NOW!!" The nurse checked and found that she was (surprise, surprise) between 7 and 8cm dilated, and said that she's surprised that my wife could still speak so much. Without missing a beat, she also mentioned that it was too late for an epidural as the baby would be coming in a few hours time.
The doctor came in with what looked like a big sharpened, wooden chopstick and proceeded to nonchalantly puncture the water bag. My wife couldn't see what was happening and I just smiled at her telling her the doc was just inspecting her - I hope she didn't see through me and realise I was ready to scream, "he just stabbed you with a weapon!"
The doc then left. He had another two deliveries going on at the same time, one of which was the natural delivery of twins. He said he would be back in awhile and asked the wife not to push until he came back.
After 15 minutes, my wife told me, "I can't stop pushing anymore. It's too hard. Get the doc." I rushed out and got the nurse and the nurse came in to check her and said she's not ready, and to not push. This proceeded to happen three times over the next five minutes, and I was completely clueless on what to do. Finally, I told the nurse rather forcefully that she can't stop pushing anymore and only then did she go in and start guiding her in the pushing on every contraction.
I think I'll skip the details about the pushing part but it was truly the most painful and horrifying thing I have seen a human go through ever. My wife made sounds which I have never heard in the most scary horror movies and had every vein bulging in her face, forehead, temples and neck until I thought they would explode. And I proceeded to become an army bootcamp general screaming, "PPPPUUUUUUSSSSSHHHH" over and over again - I didn't care if the entire floor could hear me, it was all I could do to support.
The 'pushing' part of the ordeal lasted over 45 minutes and the entire time the doctor wasn't even there; it was just the nurse. Until finally, she could see a 50cent coin size of the baby's head and she ran out to get the doctor. Less than five minutes after he came in, it was over. The baby came out in one push - from not even a part of her head showing, to everything including her hands and feet...and she started crying in that final push itself without being slapped on her bottom.
Two hours after we checked in, the most beautiful, precious baby girl greeted us.
Experiencing what happened that day has made my wife, my hero. No drugs. No epidural. Just a huge amount of courage, perseverance and strength. I can't believe that women around the world have been doing this since the beginning of humanity.
I honestly don't believe a man could take it.
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