My Birth Story

I was born on March 4, 1982 in Mexico City, after a ridiculously long labour. My poor mama! She had begun to have contractions a couple days earlier and was excited that I was finally going to arrive. Finally my parents went to the hospital and were told to go for a nice long walk. So they walked around a nearby park for a few hours. The contractions did intensify after the exercise so they headed back to the hospital. The labour progressed, slowly. After 30+ hours of labour my mama finally got the urge to push. She pushed and pushed. And pushed some more. I would descend slightly and be sucked back in. After an eternity of no progression, they whisked my mama off of to the operating room and I was born via c-section around 5 o'clock in the evening. As it turns out I had the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck, twice. This was apparently the reason I was not descending properly into the birth canal.

Ecstatic but exhausted that I had finally arrived, my parents hesitantly agreed to have me be taken to the baby nursery. This was the custom in those days and in this hospital. However, my mama tells me that she so regrets not insisting I stay in the room with her. Even though she had explicitly instructed her nurses that she was breastfeeding, the nurses did not bring me to her when I cried, instead they began to feed me a bottle. Naturally, when mama tried to feed me I was full and had no interest. Mama began to suspect something and again insisted that I be brought to her as soon as I woke up. But I refused to latch and the lack of support and encouragement around breastfeeding from the hospital staff resulted in mama becoming exhausted and frustrated and being told I would not breastfeed. She persisted and even when home she kept trying and trying. But I had to eat. And not having someone to help her out, someone with a wealth of information about breastfeeding, she finally resorted to give me the bottle I so wanted. It broke her heart! I probably had nipple confusion, as my parents tell me I would only ever take a bottle with a nipple that was the same as the first one ever given to me. So they had to always buy those exact same nipples.

But in spite of this heartbreaking hiccup, I filled their lives with joy! They had tried and wanted me for so long and now I was finally in their arms!

How my parents came to my name is tied around ballet...apparently while still pregnant my papa took my mama to see the Russian ballet perform. She loved it. In particular she loved one dance. I was named after the name of that dance, with a few modifications. Maybe that's why I love to dance so much? My middle name was chosen by my papa, with my mama's approval of course. He chose this name because it was one he'd always liked. I love the fact that my parents chose to break away from traditions and named me something unique and totally based on what they liked.

During my life I have taken different lessons from my birth story. When I was little I didn't think too much of it, I just enjoyed hearing it. But now that I have more life experience and have been through the birth of two children myself, I have a whole new appreciation for what my mama (and papa) went through...especially with the c-section and breastfeeding ordeals.

Our history truly is full of life lessons and I hope that this chronicle I am preparing of my life will one day benefit my kiddos too.

* Every Thursday for the following 12 weeks I will be writing about my story from Birth to High School. Please visit Mommy's Piggy Tales to read more stories and to find out how you can participate! *