Towards a Natural Birth

So i finally attended the Natural Birth Talk with the husband yesterday morning. I went ahead with Birth Maia by Kak Fadillah Yusope. It was really by chance, cos i PM-ed her on FB, asking if she might be opening a class soon and she said yes! Anyway, i got to know her from the FB Group The Gentle Birthing Ummi Support Group. You guys can join that group if you wish to read up on other local muslim mummies attempt on Natural Birth.

So we started the day early yesterday and head over to Yishun for the class. Class was supposed to start at 10.00am but the other couples came late so we only started at about 10.30am. It was a small group, only 4 couples in the group so it was definitely an intimate session. I enjoyed the session and was quite worried Rusly might not enjoy the class but he was quite participative in the class and enjoyed the sharing session.

We basically covered on how to achieve natural birth. The cons of episiotomy, induction, epidural and c-sections. Our rights as a birthing mother, what to do when we are having contractions / when our waterbag burst etc. One of burning question – when is the right time to go to the hospital because as much as i can, i would prefer to go through my initial labour pains at home instead of at the hospital. Thankfully, Kak Fadillah kept saying NUH is very pro-natural birth and mentioned how she and her clients have worked numerous times with Dr Citra and she is a pro-natural doctor who will try hard to adhere to your birth plans and not just throw it out of the window. So yes, i’m slightly relieved at that because i feel it’s useless to do up a Birth Plan if your gynae is gonna dismiss it and just go ahead with the template birth procedure.

Sidetrack a bit, during my last appointment with Dr Citra, she mentioned she usually let her patients wait till 42 weeks if they can and i was pleased to hear that because honestly i don’t think many hospitals do that. Usually, they’ll try to induce you at 40 weeks and get the baby out asap. However, she mentioned because i have GD, if my sugar levels rise too high closer to labour or if they think baby is getting way too big, she might have to induce me latest by 41 weeks if baby show no signs of making an appearance. But i did tell her we’ll play it by ear cos i really do not wish to be induced / have a failed induction which might result in a C-sect. But we shall see!

As of now, my birth plan consists of;

– Natural Birth with no unnecessary medical interventions eg Induction unless Labour has not started at 41 weeks.
– Epidural to be made available only if i request for it.
– I prefer not to have episiotomy.
– Able to walk around & move freely at the hospital and not be strapped constantly on the bed.
– Able to eat & drink.
– Delayed cord clamping within 5-10 minutes after birth
– Give birth in upright position. (via Birth Stool / Squatting position and i was told Dr Citra is ok with that)
– No other males present in the room
– Quiet & Peaceful environment. I don’t want to hear nurses shouting at me to push macam National Day Parade because it’ll just make me tensed.

I think as of now, it’s achieveable, except the part for no C-sect because i wouldn’t really know the dangers me & the baby will have to go through during labour until the day itself so yes, while i’m not inclined to have C-Sect, i’m not against it if that is the only way for me to get the baby out.

While i rejoice over other mummies positive birth stories, i also have to be realistic with mine because we all manage pain differently and we can all plan everything to a T but ultimately, i leave everything to Allah SWT. I also hope Rusly remembers what he learn from this session because he have the potential to be a good support system for me. Currently, he’s very encouraging and accommodating and i’m glad to share this journey with him. I’ll probably print out a cheat sheet for him soon and paste it on the fridge so he’ll know what to do when the time comes.

If you ask me, it was definitely worth sacrificing our sunday morning for this session. I’ve learnt so much and also know of the options i have with regards to birth. There is no right or wrong timing to attend these classes. Two other mummies in the class is in their 5th month. The other one is in her 3rd month. So naturally they were excited to hear i’m already in my 8th month.

Kak Fadillah initially thought i was in my 5th month pregnancy too and was shocked when i told her i’m in my 8th month. In her words, “You hide your pregnancy well, macam teenager.” Hahaha. Now, if only i look like one as well. Lol