The Most Shocking Part of Labor
When I was pregnant, it was one of the most magical times of my life. Growing this baby inside me, knowing I was creating a life, it’s remarkable. As women, we have this incredible capability to do some amazing things with our bodies.
The part I tried to keep at bay until necessary to think about, was going into labor. It is by far the least glamourous yet the most exciting part. Because it means it is time to meet this new human. But as the person going through the experience, as beautiful as it is, it’s terrifying. All the what if’s, the fear of pain, the lack of control over what is happening to you and for how long. It is a lot to overthink and analyze and sometimes better to not think about until it is time.
I worked with a midwife team throughout my pregnancy which was an awesome experience because it gave me someone to ask all of my wild questions to. I am a planner at heart. And while you cannot fully plan every detail of your labor and delivery experience (as much as I tried!) you can do a ton of research and ask a whole lot of questions to help you feel more prepared and informed.
I used apps for tracking my pregnancy and the growth of my baby. I read books about each stage of pregnancy and what to expect during labor and delivery. I did research to know what a contraction felt like, when to head to the hospital, what to do when the baby was born. How to breast feed. How many feeds and diaper changes to expect. What my baby’s poop would look like and why. I felt I was fairly prepared.
After all that research and studying and preparing myself both mentally and physically for the day labor began, there was one thing no one ever warned me about. After all the preparation, all the discussions, all the reading, there was one thing that was never mentioned. One thing that blew my mind! Why this is never talked about, I will never understand. Every pregnant woman should be aware of this one thing, as I found it to be very important to know once I was experiencing it.
That one thing, is when your water breaks, it doesn’t stop! It is not like the movies where you see the lady’s water break with one big gush and then labor carries on with contractions and pushing and poof, a baby! No no my friends! It is a much more wet situation than I was prepared for.
I did not get the chance to go into labor naturally as my son was a week overdue and getting pretty big inside my belly, so I was induced. I was in labor for 15 hours after my induction before my OB broke my water for me. Then things really picked up and got real!
Initially, yes, there was this big gush of fluid. And even though I was fully aware and prepared for this to happen as the doctor explained what he was doing and even said “there we go” as he broke it, I still gasped in shock as the flowing sensation was a lot! The part that still rocks my world was that, that sensation, keeps happening until the baby is born! Pardon me?!
After your water breaks, or in my case, is broken for you, this gushing feeling that you keep peeing yourself, keeps happening. Over and over again. You are constantly leaking every time you try to get up, move around, walk a little. You are trickling out this fluid until it is all over.
To be clear, this is the amniotic fluid coming out, escaping your body, not pee. This is what the baby has been floating in inside your belly for all these months leading up to this moment. It is completely natural, as unnatural as it feels. This is another reason that the hospitals supply you with these massive oversized diaper-style pads. It is not for fashion, it is for all your leaking.
To be clear, this information is available online, which I only discovered after all was said and done and I did some serious digging. But because this was never openly discussed, I never thought to look into. But anytime I mention this to anyone who has had a baby before, they are always like “Oh yeah, that happens.” So consider this your warning!
It is not painful, the leaking part, more of an inconvenience, if anything. And maybe because there is so much more happening during labor and delivery, this is the least of our worries. I just wish I had been told before hand, again, because I like to be informed ahead of time. That is just my nature.
Having a baby is an incredibly beautiful thing. Naturally, C-section, surrogate, whatever method is happening for you, there is not enough research in the world you can do to prepare you for that moment as every situation, every labor, is different from the next. Just have to go with the flow.
Melanie xoxox