Gigi: First Birth, NHS Hospital Birth, Precipitous 3 Hour Labour, Pethidine, Ventouse Delivery, Gender Disappointment, Delayed Bonding

Gigi's labour moved so fast her body started pushing before anyone realised what was happening. Then the pethidine kicked in, and she was left alone in the room, unable to call out for help.Gigi is a mum of two from London, and this is the story of her first birth, her son Rupert. After an early miscarriage, her second pregnancy came quickly, though the nine months that followed were not easy. She had planned to ease gently into labour with hypnobirthing, but when it arrived the night before her booked induction, everything happened much faster than she expected. Contractions came every two to three minutes almost from the start, so close together that Gigi ended up labouring through half the tube journey to hospital. Once she arrived, pethidin took the pain away completely, but it also left her drifting in and out of consciousness, alone in a hospital room while her body began pushing on its own. What followed was a sudden dash to the labour ward, an episiotomy, an assisted ventouse delivery, and a newborn son she did not fall in love with straight away. In this episode we talk about:Labouring so fast she rode the London Underground through established contractionsWhat pethidin really felt like, and being left alone in a hospital room once it took holdAn emergency when the baby's heart rate could not be picked up properlyAn assisted delivery with an episiotomy and a Kiwi ventouseNot feeling an instant bond with her baby, and being honest about gender disappointment afterwardsThis episode is for anyone who felt like their birth, or those first days with their baby, did not go the way they expected.The stories shared on British Birthing Stories are real, personal experiences from real women. I am not a medical professional and this podcast is not a substitute for medical advice. Every pregnancy and birth is different, and I always encourage you to speak to your midwife or doctor about your own individual care.  British Birthing Stories shares real, unfiltered stories of childbirth in the UK, from pregnancy and labour to postpartum recovery.These stories reflect personal experiences and should not be taken as or replace medical advice. Always seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional.Follow us on social: Instagram · TikTok · YouTubeWant to come on the podcast? Get in touch and share your story here Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.