If you're at all worried about labor and delivery being unbearably painful, you're definitely not alone, because all pregnant women fear the pain at least a little bit. But always remember that no matter how bad you think things are when you're in the midst of labor — somebody always has it worse.
Like the mom who was forced to give birth with a broken leg. Thirty-two-year-old Emma Ramsay slipped on the ice and fell, and after being rushed to the hospital, doctors determined she broke her ankle on both sides and would need surgery to have a pin put in.
And here's the kicker — since she was due to give birth in a week, she'd already been in the hospital the night before she fell due to what she thought was labor. It wasn't, and before she left, a nurse told her, "Watch you don't break a leg when you leave — it's icy out there."
OMG. What are the odds?
Fast forward to Emma being back in the ER with a broken leg. Before she could have the surgery, she was examined by a doctor — who determined she was dilated 5 centimeters, which meant instead of being put under to have her leg repaired, she was rushed to the labor and delivery ward. She had no choice but to give birth to her baby all while dealing with a broken leg.
And while she did have a temporary cast on to try and and hold the leg in place, she admits the pain was terrible. She said, "I'd get a contraction and take gas and air — but then I'd be hit by the pain in my leg."
Holy crow. Can you even imagine?
And if her labor ordeal wasn't bad enough, poor Emma wound up having an emergency C-section. Then just two days later, she had a plate and pins and screws put into her leg, ankle, and foot.
Damn. Talk about a stroke of seriously bad luck! I'm really not sure I would've been able to handle something like that during my labor and delivery.
I tried to be a big girl. I really did. And even though I had a 24-hour labor, I held it together pretty well — until it was time for me to get my epidural. I sat up for the anesthesiologist, felt warm liquid coming out of my nether regions, and proceeded to burst into tears because I thought I was peeing on myself.
And then one of the nurses yelled at me for crying, so I cried even harder. She informed me that I hadn't wet myself, it was simply amniotic fluid leaking out. And then I got the epidural and everything was fine.
That's the jist of my labor and delivery horror story, but I honestly don't think I can call it that anymore after hearing how Emma suffered through giving birth with a broken leg. Her story takes the cake for sure.
Have you ever heard of someone having to give birth with an injury?
Image via soccerkrys/Flickr
