From pregnancy to birth
I never did quite understand what being a mother means. They say you only understand what it is to be a mother when you have finally become one.
My twin boys are now turning 3 years old this March. Time indeed flies too fast. I remember the time when I was pregnant with them and only discovered that I had twins when I was 5 months pregnant. I was not even due for an ultrasound yet but my ob-gyne was quite worried why my stomach was too huge. She even went as far as telling me to stop drinking Anmum, my drink of choice back then (apart from Calamansi juice!). Seeing both of them on the screen and feeling them move were emotional experiences for me. Seeing their hands on the contours of my tummy was even more emotional and amazing. That's when I understood how amazing it is to be a mother.
Knowing I had twins made my pregnancy actually more difficult. I was on bed rest from 6 months onwards, and prohibited from walking around that much in order to ensure that I at least reach 34 weeks, viable enough without the aid of incubators for twins to be born in this world. I was given medicines to stop premature contractions, on top of the various medicines which I had to take. So I stayed at home, watched television and cross stitched! I watched National Geographic every morning, Wowowee for lunch, slept the entire afternoon, watched any show when I woke up and waited for my husband to arrive. And during these periods, I would constantly cross stitch. I guess I have to thank my elementary teacher back then for teaching me how to do it. In the end, I managed to finish 2 large pieces. I actually started with my third piece but was not able to finish it as I was admitted for premature contractions on my 33rd week of pregnancy.
On that particular morning, I woke with back pains- back pains which I ignored because I thought they were just the normal back pains which a pregnant woman experiences. In the afternoon, I called my ob-gyne. I felt something was wrong because the back pains would not disappear and would keep on repeating. She advised me to proceed to the emergency room of the hospital where I would actually give birth. I called my husband and asked him to meet me there. Well, when I reached the ER, I was delivered to the Delivery Room. They timed my contractions as happening every 2 minutes. I was actually about to give birth. My ob-gyne prescribed additional medicines to stop the contractions. The twins were not yet ready to be born. It was still very early. That was a Monday. So I stayed in the Delivery Room. They actually sent me to my room but had to pull me out and bring me back to the Delivery Room because they had difficulty monitoring my contractions. On Thursday, after an ultrasound, my twins were finally declared ready to be born into this world. Thus, on Friday, at 7:30am, I was wheeled into the operating room to finally have my CS delivery.
Seeing both of them for the first time was a mind-boggling experience. I felt relieved that finally, they were both out of my tummy (they were both very heavy!). I was excited to see their faces (kanino kaya nagmana?). But there was also a feeling of hesitation, would I be able to take care of them? And I did. I took care of them without the assistance of a yaya for 1 whole month. That was a feat for me. What saddens me was the fact that I wasn't able to breastfeed them after the 1 month period. I would have wanted to continually breastfeed them.
And now they're almost three. They're not babies anymore, they're toddlers who are now going to school in June. But deep within me, they will always be my babies.
My twin boys are now turning 3 years old this March. Time indeed flies too fast. I remember the time when I was pregnant with them and only discovered that I had twins when I was 5 months pregnant. I was not even due for an ultrasound yet but my ob-gyne was quite worried why my stomach was too huge. She even went as far as telling me to stop drinking Anmum, my drink of choice back then (apart from Calamansi juice!). Seeing both of them on the screen and feeling them move were emotional experiences for me. Seeing their hands on the contours of my tummy was even more emotional and amazing. That's when I understood how amazing it is to be a mother.
Knowing I had twins made my pregnancy actually more difficult. I was on bed rest from 6 months onwards, and prohibited from walking around that much in order to ensure that I at least reach 34 weeks, viable enough without the aid of incubators for twins to be born in this world. I was given medicines to stop premature contractions, on top of the various medicines which I had to take. So I stayed at home, watched television and cross stitched! I watched National Geographic every morning, Wowowee for lunch, slept the entire afternoon, watched any show when I woke up and waited for my husband to arrive. And during these periods, I would constantly cross stitch. I guess I have to thank my elementary teacher back then for teaching me how to do it. In the end, I managed to finish 2 large pieces. I actually started with my third piece but was not able to finish it as I was admitted for premature contractions on my 33rd week of pregnancy.
On that particular morning, I woke with back pains- back pains which I ignored because I thought they were just the normal back pains which a pregnant woman experiences. In the afternoon, I called my ob-gyne. I felt something was wrong because the back pains would not disappear and would keep on repeating. She advised me to proceed to the emergency room of the hospital where I would actually give birth. I called my husband and asked him to meet me there. Well, when I reached the ER, I was delivered to the Delivery Room. They timed my contractions as happening every 2 minutes. I was actually about to give birth. My ob-gyne prescribed additional medicines to stop the contractions. The twins were not yet ready to be born. It was still very early. That was a Monday. So I stayed in the Delivery Room. They actually sent me to my room but had to pull me out and bring me back to the Delivery Room because they had difficulty monitoring my contractions. On Thursday, after an ultrasound, my twins were finally declared ready to be born into this world. Thus, on Friday, at 7:30am, I was wheeled into the operating room to finally have my CS delivery.
Seeing both of them for the first time was a mind-boggling experience. I felt relieved that finally, they were both out of my tummy (they were both very heavy!). I was excited to see their faces (kanino kaya nagmana?). But there was also a feeling of hesitation, would I be able to take care of them? And I did. I took care of them without the assistance of a yaya for 1 whole month. That was a feat for me. What saddens me was the fact that I wasn't able to breastfeed them after the 1 month period. I would have wanted to continually breastfeed them.
And now they're almost three. They're not babies anymore, they're toddlers who are now going to school in June. But deep within me, they will always be my babies.
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