“Oh my God.. laddoo & barfi??!!!!” … I exclaimed! And for a second my doctor seemed clueless as she held our twins.
Okay, no, I am not talking about the Indian sweets that are to die for! This was the reference to my twins – boy & girl – who came in this beautiful world by 1 minute apart. And “laddoo” “barfi” are the nomenclatures that were used in my discussions (casual chit chats) with my parents in the last trimester of my pregnancy (you know the time when you really are so done with the whole pregnancy thing and just want the climax to happen! ).
So (for those who are unaware) in earlier times, these were the terms used when the elderly lady would come out of the labour room and announce to the eagerly waiting family about the newborn.
While I belong to an extremely broad minded and non sexist family, it was always a point of discussion, just for fun, as to what’s it going to be? In case of twins, there’s fun in working out the permutation combinations!
I remember that moment when both the babies were out – no mother can forget that moment of course! While the team of doctors were busy fixing up my ripped apart belly ( yes, it was c-Sec), my heart was overjoyed and I just wanted to see my husband and parents.
The surgery part took not over 15 minutes but it was the touch-up part that was a bit longer. My heartbeat was racing like crazy out of excitement. This was accompanied by the physical shrugs and tugs that I felt as doctors were still working on me.
After being taken out of the operation theatre, I was parked in the observation room for around 15 minutes. This seemed to be the longest wait for me. I could see nothing around except those machines and devices that were there to monitor my heartbeat, blood pressure etc. I tried hard to keep myself calm, didn’t want any complications to happen just because I was over excited. But the effect of anaesthesia is such that soon after I started shivering like crazy!
And then finally the moment came, when I was taken to the nursery to give another look at my babies..twin 1 was lying cozy just next to the glass window, while twin 2 was still under observation and placed in a secluded place .
How I missed having them inside me – the cozy , warm and safe tummy of their Mumma . I missed touching them, feeling their movements inside my tummy. But I was also proud of the fact that I gave birth to two lives, two individuals who would be with us all through. Perhaps this brief proud moment is lived by all moms!
I saw my husband coming towards me with moist eyes and a loving smile. He was relieved to see me fine. I didn’t want to cry that moment for some reason.. even out of joy. I remember wanting to just stand up and shout out loud ” thank you my dear God”!
My dad was his usual self – busy chanting “hanuman chalisa” and just gave a pat on my head – you know how dads are! My mom on the other hand was busy floating the news to our family & friends on phone.
I was super thrilled to be back in the room with my husband and parents around. It felt as if I had achieved something big and there were celebrations around! All this happened and my shivers were just getting worse. I wanted to talk to my mom but couldn’t utter a single word.
Then came a dictum from my husband – no one was allowed to come in my room and speak to me. For next 3 hours I was “ordered”to just sleep – can you beat that??!! “I” had become a mommy and it was “me” who would decide everything now! But I was not in a state to even argue at that point of time. So the anxious and enthusiastic new mommy aka me went in deep sleep with so many dreams and hopes still awake!
So dear “would be” mommys, as you enter the new phase of motherhood, please please please ensure :
- To be calm and at peace from inside. The moment blood pressure or any other such vital goes out of control, things might become critical for doctors to handle
- If possible, let the babies stay in hospital nursery for atleast 2 nights. Trust me, after wards life is going to be really challenging. So try and make use of hospital facilities as much as you can. It wil be better for the babies as well as they would be given complete attention by attendants/ nurses
- Once you are back in your room after the surgery, try and sleep for atleast 3-4 hours. While the shivers are resultant of effect of anaesthesia getting over, it would be the best to sleep and give your body & mind rest for a few hours. Easier said than done though; I understand excitement levels are really high & one feels like only being up and aware of what’s happening to the babies etc but think about your body first!
Go mommy!