Just 5 months after giving birth to Elijah we were expecting baby number 4. This time we didn't find out the gender of our baby, partly because we thought it might be nice to have surprise and partly because baby had it's legs crossed when we had our scan so we couldn't find out. Well as it turned out, out of all our babies this one would have been good to find out about, as 4 weeks before my due date we moved.
During this pregnancy the hospital changed it's policies on gestational diabetes treatment, where they now had a specialist to deal solely with these patients. Anyhow I went along to the appoint with this special doctor. In the past when I had been given my diagnosis I would start testing and then it would take a few weeks to get every blood sugar under control, and with in the scores for diet and exercise to be my treatments. Which had been fine, and I had built a repore with diabetes clinic and they were fine to let me have those weeks. Well this new specialist took one brief look at my scores and said that I would have to go on insulin. Well I took a big deep breathe and then said. "That won't be happening". She was shocked!. During my research over the last three pregnancy I had come across many different medical books and reports that said that insulin in pregnancy increased the risks to the baby dying in the last 6 weeks of pregnancy, so I knew that I wanted to avoid this as much as I possible could. The doctors first response to my statement was "why not?" So I shared with her that had done my research and didn't want to take the risk if I could control it with diet and exercise like I had the last three times. Her next response was, "you can't believe everything you read on the internet", to which I replied that I got my of my information at the local university library catalogues. So she asked if the next time I could bring those in. Which I couldn't because I was no longer a student there, but I could photocopy the pages. Then she started on fact that my reaction was probably more to do with fear of the injection. "You know it doesn't hurt", My concerns for not doing it wasn't due to the fear of the injection, but she was wrong about it not hurting, my Father has been on insulin for years injecting three times a day. I had seen his stomach and all the bruises he has, and listened to him take sharp pained breaths at times while giving himself them. So I shared that with her. She then replied "Oh your just being silly!" So she wrote up the prescription for the insulin, and we didn't talk much for the rest of the time, she filled out a form to say I need to come back in to weeks.
Now I really am not good at standing up for myself, so when I actually do it takes all of me to do it. So when I left that room I pushed my pram with Elijah in it, and walked straight into the toilets where I sat for the next 20 mins crying. Every time I thought I had it together enough to leave I would start again, I thought to myself "How in the hell am I going to go to the reception and get another appointment when I can't even breath, they will take one look at me and know for sure I have been crying, I look a mess". SO I finally took a few big breaths, got Elijah and walked straight out pass reception with out stopping. And never went back.
I was so thankful when we decided to move interstate, in the last six weeks of my pregnancy. I had been keeping an eye on my blood sugars and they had come down, like I thought they would. However on an interesting note, when I finally got an appointment for the new hospital, only 2 weeks before my due date, I told them I had be diagnosed with GD, and gave them my scores for diagnosis to which they replied, "Oh, they aren't high enough to be GD". Oh I was so happy. Now with all the activity with moving furniture and packing up a how house, trying to decided which baby clothes I should take, because I didn't know what we were having, and organised Ben and all the children, packing suit cases and so on, I thought for sure I would go early. We booked the airplane for 35+6 days so I was just qualified to fly.
We were going to stay with my Parents until baby was born and see if the Gold Coast was somewhere we wanted to live. We had always wanted to leave Tasmania, and have an adventure, and the opportunity arose so we took it. So we arrived in QLD with 4 weeks to go. Well wouldn't you guess, this time I went 10 days over. Due to having a c-section with my first they didn't want me to go over that, and at the time I didn't know it was safe to go longer. So I went it to be induced on 40 weeks and 10 days. Also due to the c-section the only thing they could do was break my waters, if I hadn't opened enough for them to do that then I would need to have a c-section. So the doctor examined me, and then asked if I was having any contractions or pains, to which I replied No, I have had a few painless Braxton Hicks, but nothing that was labour like, she then shared with me that I was already 4cms. Oh wow! So she went ahead and broke my waters. They then transferred me to my room, to wait for labour to start.
Ben had brought us some sandwiches for dinner as it was getting late but this time. So I ate a few sandwiches and light labour had start, I keep feeling the need to go to the toilet and more the waters came out. And with in half and hour of having my waters broken Full labour started, so they took me back down stairs to the delivery rooms. The Doctor was surprised to see me so soon, and did another check I was now 6 cms. Well one that my body has done now every time I go into labour is clear itself out. We those sandwiches were the first to go. I vomited in delivery room sink, I couldn't make it to the toilet, the nurse was not impressed at all, thankfully the doctor was there during it, and knew I wasn't my fault. Next came the bowel and thankfully I did make it to the toilet for that one. ;0)
They got me into their birthing gowns, and go me all hooked up to the monitor on the bed, gave me the gas, and labour was progressing well. With in 4 hours of having my waters broken I was ready to push. This time however I had learnt my lesson when it came to pushing. The nurses were telling me to push, PUSSSSHHHH PUSSSSHHHH. Well I completely ignored them, and only pushed when my body told me to do it, they were getting a little mad a me. Also I must mention that when I am in labour I find it really hard to talk, so I couldn't explain to them that I didn't have a contraction to push with. They keep trying to take the Gas off me thinking it was what was stopping me, but actually I wasn't even breathing in the gas, if they bothered to listen to the machine, I was just using it to blow out of. With in about 4 pushes our baby was born. With out any stitches! Yay! the first time I had a baby with out any stitches at all.
It took a little while after baby was out that we finally checked the gender. Oh a dear little girl. Although not so little weighting in a 9 pounds. Ben was surprised at how quickly she had come out, for him it was the easiest labour I had at that point. Our lovely little girl feed with in ten minutes of birth from both sides.
Due to it getting late, and Ben not being able to drive, my dad was picking him up and wanted to go to bed and take his sleeping tablets, and not being able to stay with me overnight, Ben had to leave soon after she was born. Which was a little disappointing for me, because baby (with no name at this point) wouldn't stop crying and I was bleeding a far bit. I remember telling the nurse that I need to go to the toilet, and getting up and going, leaving a trail of blood behind me, and then sitting down knowing I didn't actually need to go but blood was pooling inside and cause my uterus to hurt, and hearing the gush of blood come out. I sat there for a while because I was a bit on the light headed sided. I then showered and got back into bed, that was made fresh for me. I was totally spend, and cause really move much. After Ben left the nurses pretty much left as well, and they has moved baby over to the corner of the room, I remember being in the bed and her crying lots and I couldn't pick her up, I was not feeling very well, and exhausted, finally a nurse came in to help me. As soon as she was close to me she settled.
Soon after they wheeled us both up stairs back to our room to try and get a good nights sleep. As soon as I was left alone, I pulled her into bed and both sleep well for a good three hours. She feed well, but like all my other births I didn't seem to have enough milk, as my milk tends to come in a day or two late. So the nurse gave me a bottle to give her one good feed and allow my body to start producing milk. Which was enough and we never needed it after that.
Now name this baby was quiet different for us, as with all the others we had known what we were having pretty much had a name picked out pretty much before they were here. This time we didn't have a clue and she remained baby Mathewson for 4 days. Ben and I went back and forth a few times on names, I like Isabelle, Hope, Lily. As we had already has a Faith Ben didn't want us to have a Hope as well. He though Lily was two common, as there were heaps of Lily's at the time. He think about Isabelle, and we can very close to have one, I started to call her that to try it on, well he came back and asked what I thought about Lillian, I didn't really like it as it reminded me of someone I didn't like much, (you know how names are like that). However I said I do like Lillianne, He agreed, so that is how we got Lillianne HOPE. He wouldn't let me have it as a first name but he did say yes to it as middle name.
This delivery was the best I had at that point, and the recovery was so quick. I couldn't believe it the next day the next I wake up with only a few sore muscles. And I looked forward to a few more like this.
