lunedì, settembre 05, 2005

:: O & G ::

observed and kinda assisted in my first delivery today! woohooo!

for once, i'm actually worried about the falling birth-rate in sg.... after taking away the pts who have complicated pregnancies, those EPS (extra private patients)... and all those who get warded in the labour ward for premmies (like 34 weekers...) we're left with a handul of potential births in a day... such a small supply, when there are EIGHT students rostered there, and each have to be involved in at least 4 deliveries...

not that it helps a lot that a significant proportion of the staff in that hosp seems to be perpetually perimenopausal, in PMS, or simply anal rententive. bah!

labour can be defined by the following words:
1. wait
2. wait
3. wait some more...
active labour starts when the cervix is dilated to 3cm, and the baby theoretically starts coming out at 10cm. it takes 1 hr to dilate 1 cm => go do the math (keep in mind not everyone follows the textbook, though in sg, i'd expect us to go by the book)

it's all a waiting game.
finally, in ard an hour, that's the time taken for the precious bundle of ugly joy to come out through the monstrously dilated cervix (hell, i was so impressed by the fact that my whole hand could go into the cervix! whoa... and i got to feel the baby's head and stuff like that... coool!)

it's a whole lot of PAIN, so women listen:
i mean, really LISTEN! pay attention now!
use epidural! or u'll be screaming yr lungs out during delivery AND you'll be screeching in pain each time the needle pokes yr very tender split open vagina walls when the HO starts to sew up the episiotomy (it's this cut they make to widen the exit so tt the baby can come out more easily)

there's this myth that an epidural's going to cause you chronic low back pain. it's not true la...
1. half or more than half of the women get back pain during pregnancy cuz of the extra load they carry around their tummy anyway
2. and if u'd been carrying this 3kg load for 9mths, and now it's suddenly gone, sure will kena back pain rite?
3. pregnancy causes all yr ligaments to become lose, so some pple will get back pain, but it should go away in 6mths
4. incorrect positioning while breast-feeding also leads to back pain.
and think about it, if you're screaming your lungs out and being so stressed out, your own body's not going to take the delivery well... and your baby's going to be affected as a result of that too!

so... YR BACK OR YR BABY? hahaha...

the ugliest part of labour:
1. the ugly coning of the baby's head
2. the odd urine + blood smell when the membranes are ruptured ie. waterbag broke. sometimes the mothers defecate too... gross and smelly of cuz!
3. the clotting of that entire pool of blood after the cut is made... they make this cut from the vagina exit to the skin... damn deep! i wanna cut next time! they dun use painkiller leh... but the midwife does it while the contractions come!

the most miraculous part of labour:
1. the baby's head coming out! omg....
2. the baby's umbilical cord, it's such a nice translucent pretty colour... and feels good too! i hope i get to clamp, cut and take the cord blood next time round.

the cutest part of the baby:
1. the feet... oooh so tiny.... haha... got to take the hypocount from there... and it keeps wriggling ard, so hard to put on the plaster!
2. the cry.

the funniest part of the delivery:
well, me being very excited, was describing in full detail the baby's descent through the birth canal to the father... urging him to see how the head is just 1 cm from popping out... and all the hair and everything can be seen... and then... the dad said: mabok la...
and after a hurried glance at the gaping bloody hole, retreated into the safety of the midwife's shadow...

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