Baby Aloe

Aloe

16/08/15
21:30
My labour begins in the evening although it is barely discernible at first. There is nothing I can even point out that is different in my body, save for the persistent wetness in my underwear that require numerous changes of clothing. For the past two days I've been like a water balloon with a slow leak - so slow that it doesn't register that my pregnancy is coming to an end. I have the sense that this day is different somehow.

My wife has called our midwives - the alliterate duo consisting of Sapphire and Sarah. The evening sun has descended in an orange glow when Sapphire and Sarah arrive at our house. Sapphire walks up the front stairs to the porch smelling of patchouli oil. Her long blonde hair and loose cotton clothes float behind her. Sarah fills the space behind her with her thick body and lumbering walk. Her tight curls are pulled back into a pony tail which threatens to break free.

Of the two, Sarah has the least experience. She is a student that Sapphire is training. Feeling the need to assert herself in front of her teacher, she is the most aggressive with her queries."Raquel, can you tell me what you're feeling?"

"I feel fine. But I have been noticing wet underwear for the past two days so I assume my water has broken" I reply.

"OK. So we will do a test to see if your water has indeed broken. We can tell using these little strips" Sarah tells me as she holds out her hand to reveal white strips of paper about four inches in length.

The diffident look on both of their faces convey the fact that they will not believe my water has broken until the strip of paper tells them so. Mine being a first time pregnancy, these women seem to have little confidence in my ability to determine what my body is going through. My concerns are only validated when the pH strip turns purple.

"Raquel, when did you first start noticing your water leaking?" Sapphire inquires.

"It's been this way for two days now. I didn't think it was anything other than the baby putting pressure on my bladder so I didn't call you until now." I feel the need to point out that I am not one to get that worried about myself.

"OK, let's have you lay on the couch here and we will check to see how dilated you are" Sapphire states.

Sapphire and Sarah busy themselves with spreading pads across the couch for me to lie on. The pads with the blue plastic backs and the white cotton front. I am quite familiar with them since I regularly use them for my arthritic cat who has trouble getting into the litter box. They needn't have brought any - I could have given them some myself I think as I prepare to lie down.Feeling swollen and heavy makes the task of getting my body to the middle of the couch quite arduous. Our couch is one of the pull-out kind that can be used for sleeping or simply having a large surface to lounge on. I sit down and lie on my back. I then use my legs to shift my weight which is awkward. I have never felt this large in my life.

On my back with my knees pointing toward the ceiling, Sarah appears before me in between my legs, modelling the blue plastic gloves she is stretching over her hands.

"Raquel, I am wearing these gloves so as to not give you any infection. Since your water has broken quite a while ago we need to be careful of these things" Sarah tells me. I feel like she may be quoting one of her school books in order to impress Sapphire of her knowledge.

"OK, so I am going to use my fingers to feel around and see how dilated you are" Sarah continues. I stare at the ceiling while she begins feeling for evidence of dilation. Suddenly her fingers move inside of me while she continues her search. I wince and jerk my hips away from her rough touch. Sarah has clearly never made love to a woman before.

"Sorry, I will try to be more gentle," she states as she notices my reaction to her lack of finesse. This is not the time that I want to be teaching anyone, but not having extra energy for a confrontation, I remain quiet and allow Sarah to finish her exam.