When I gave birth to my first born
I've never felt so overwhelmed - then I had her.
A play of mixed emotions from pregnancy to birth. Still, nothing tops the intensity while in labor! But it was all worth it.
I was admitted September 30, 2016, around 7PM - When I got admitted, I had no idea what I was getting myself into for the next few hours. I kept telling myself that "This'll pass, this'll pass" bearing every ounce of pain that just wouldn't stop AND increased in time.
When the time finally came, it was pain like I've never felt before and never in a million years would have imagined. I mean, no one ever really tells you how bad the pain is going to get or how bad it really is. It's always -
"You'll find out yourself".
Nothing can really make you fully prepared for it. And I've been through hell of pain back and forth - physically, mentally, and spiritually having spent more than half of my 23 years of existence doing the sports I do and by simply living - but I had to go through it. My baby was ready to show herself and I was more than eager to have her!
And so - on October 1, 2016, the next morning, at 6:01AM, BOOM! There she was! I felt as though I had just finished a race that lasted forever or got punched in my diaphragm and KO'd instantly. I can't even begin to describe how intense that was. But it was after that of which surprised me most - when I was brought back to the labor room to recover and when they brought in my baby girl to me, I felt no tire, no pain, like I hadn't just gone through all that. Seeing her uplifted my mood, my spirit, and just made me absolutely happy.
My Baby!
And after a few hours, they finally brought me down to meet my family - and without a sore feeling in my body, I came in with a big goofy smile on my face, like I hadn't just gone through labor and delivery, and on the same afternoon I had already taken a bath and started walking and moving around. I couldn't wait to see and hold my baby ('cause in the hospital I was admitted in, they keep all new borns in the ICU up 'till the 3rd day).
The happiness in me grew as I was feeling all the love and care by those who were well wishing me and were there for me.
It made me realize how blessed I was. The overwhelming support I received from my in-laws, the advice my sister (who's also a mom) provided while I was pregnant (with all my crazy pregnancy questions). The gestures people would give without hesitation from random people because I was pregnant made me believe that people CAN be nice and wonderful. Everything I went through prepped me for "my" big day.
But the learning/realization I took most from my experience was how much mother's go through to bring life to this world. It got me thinking - Oh, my gosh, my mom gave birth to 6 kids! I mean, Without a doubt, I already knew she was awesome but I saw her in an even more awesome light after going through child birth.
So if you haven't thanked your mom yet, DO IT! 'cause damn! our vagina's go through tearing and repairing!
But also, I'd really like to commend my husband for doing such a wonderful job at taking care of me and my baby while I was pregnant - ensuring that I'd be at my most comfortable self. The sleepless nights from then 'till now and all the sacrifices made will never go unnoticed. <3
Ladies, a caring and supportive partner will get you far in your pregnancy and will be x1000 enjoyable.
To cap it all off, all I can say is that you'll never know what your limit is unless you keep pushing through it. Praise God for the strength, endurance, and super fast recovery and most 'specially for the gift of life because I now have my beautiful baby girl!
It was like a race towards the finish line. I had my expectations at the beginning, went through hell in the middle, but ultimately came out strong.
And yes, I would go through it again!
This article was originally written on November 17, 2017.