The Story of Bambi's Birth and Thanksgiving

The first month has gone by with lot of sweet memories and a few anxious times. A lot of people made the difference and I must thank them for their support during the last month. We were expecting our baby by the second week of March and were advised by our doctor to visit the hospital on the 13th March 2009. Supriya was admitted in the evening and the anxious moments began. The doctors suggested that labour may last for 8 to 12 hours. We were not quite sure how the night would unfold. Supriya did not show any signs of labour till 11 pm. I sat on a steel chair looking at Supriya sleeping on the hospital bed, wondering how the night was going to unfold. I kept telling myself that God was in control and He would do things that are best for us.

Supriya woke up uneasily and nauseated. The hospital staff rushed in and supported her while she threw up everything that she had an hour ago. The NST instrument was place around her tummy and I could hear the heartbeat of the baby. The sound, however, would rise and fall, which I ascribed to baby movement in the womb. The doctor looked slightly perturbed. Supriya had passed out once and was not in control of her own self. The doctor called for me.

Supriya had a precipitating labour. The contractions were high that caused intense pain, which was why she fainted. The doctor suggested that the baby’s heartbeat slowed a lot when Supriya had contractions, which was not a good sign. The doctor also informed me that they were preparing for caesarian section. I was given a form to sign on. The staff was on the toes, some of them were rushed to the hospital in preparation of the surgery. The night was intense. I paced within the ward, eagerly waiting to hear about the next step. Supriya was still drowsy and unable to talk. Her mom and sister would have retired to bed and I was in two minds whether to give them a call.

Baby’s heartbeats improved. The doctor kept her eyes on the NST readings. After a while, she examined Supriya and told her staff to prepare for delivery. Past the midnight, she was shifted to the labour room. On her way to the labour room, Supriya could barely look at me. My eyes could tell her just that she would be fine. God was still in control.

I moved into the labour room. The doctor told me that it was likely that Supriya might have normal delivery. But they were prepared for the surgery should there be any need. It was then that Supriya began to limp back into her strength. The doctor, her assistants and the other staff were inspiring her to push the baby out. The calls of ‘push, push’ were working magic. I was in one of the corners looking at Supriya, who looked tired and exhausted, and beautiful nonetheless. I was not quite sure if she could sustain her efforts.

I had called up mom. She and my sister-in-law were on the way. I had expected the labour process to last till they could make it to the hospital. Supriya tried hard, stopping for a while now and then to sip some water. I murmured a few words in her ears, which, I was not quite sure, were of any help. The process went on and I was giving up on it. Efforts looked endless. The doctor kept stating that she could see the baby’s head, which I could not. It was then that Supriya gathered all her strength and pushed hard. Pootuk….that was the sound and the baby appeared.

It was head down, so I could not look at the face. Everyone sighed of relief. Supriya was relieved and looked calm. The doctor asked her if she wanted a boy or a girl. Supriya stated that it didn’t matter. The doctor posed the question again, possibly to keep her spirits high. Supriya wanted a baby girl.

The doctor pulled the baby out completely and placed her on Supriya’s crouched legs and announced that it was indeed a girl. Up went my hands. Yahoo! My Bambi was born. It was just forty minutes past one, early morning of 14th March 2009. Halleluiah!

(The rest of the night had some twists in the tale that I will write on the next post. People that I need to thank are numerous - my PwC colleagues including Omkar, Praveen, Dilip, Svetlana, Parv, Shirly, Ruby, Isha, Sachindra, Pukhraj, Dheeksha, Beulah, Kami and his wife Manasa, Divya; Supriya's colleagues at Satyam including Jyothi, Nithya, Anupama, Sujatha, Phulla Rao, Sriram; Keshawn; Karthik and his colleagues; Supriya's friends from Indian Airlines including Sally, Savin, Moushmi, Seema, Anil; and our Church family including Sister Stubbs, Pastor Valson, Pastor Younus, and Pastor Thomas and his wife Leena. Thanks also to Doctors and staff at Rainbow Hospital - Dr. Shruthi, Dr. Pranathi Reddy, Dr. Sridevi, Dr. Chinmayee, Sisters Dasthagiri, Beaula, Rachna, Amarawathi, Kranthi, and Sirisha. Thanking Mom and Didi will certainly be an understatement, and I would not attempt that. Above all, glory and thanks to God whose presence we could see all through.)