My Birthing Story: Niña Corpuz

Niña Corpuz
Broadcast journalist, ABS-CBN
Wife to Vince Rodriguez and mom to Stella, 1 year 8 months
3 months pregnant with their second child at the time of the interview  

SP: Tell us your birthing story.
Niña: My birthing story is very memorable. Three weeks before I was due to give birth, I had severe stomach pain and we didn’t know what it was. At first we thought I was having contractions so we went straight to the hospital, although it felt like gas. When we got there, even the doctors didn’t know what it was – it could be gastritis, contractions, anything. I was screaming in pain, and they couldn’t give me pain killers because I was pregnant. The pain wouldn’t go away so they thought maybe it’s something else.

They had a few tests done – blood tests, ultrasound -- but nothing showed. My OB said it could be appendicitis but they weren’t 100% sure. It was difficult for the doctors to diagnose it because I was due to give birth in three weeks via Caesarean Section (because my baby was in breech position). My doctor said they can’t leave it to chance, that they need to open me up kasi nga baka appendicitis na. So they brought me to the operating room, and that’s when the pain started to focus on just one area. It turned out, appendicitis nga, but my pregnancy masked all the symptoms. When they got the appendix, it was about to rupture already.

After the operation, I went home, but it was still very painful so I had to go back to the hospital after a few hours. Yun pala, the gangrenous appendix had infected the wound, so they had to open the wound again  – without anaesthesia -- because the doctor who attended to me was not my doctor and didn’t want to risk giving me medications, seeing that I was pregnant. The pain was unbearable, I was screaming! And I was eight months pregnant! They couldn’t stitch me up just yet because they needed to treat the infection first. They couldn’t give me the stronger pain killers either, so I had to endure that for three weeks, until I gave birth. I was in the hospital for almost a month. To top it all, the baby would kick the wound from inside. Imagine the pain! There are no words. You scream and nothing comes out of your mouth.

Three weeks later, I gave birth to my daughter Maria Stella Rodriguez on May 1, 2012. Next thing I remember we were in the room with the baby, and I couldn’t believe that there was this new person, but you just know that you love her with all your heart and soul. Everything was worth it, all the pain that I went through. I think God allowed all that pain to tell me that I am stronger than I think I am. (Note: Niña also tells us she survived an episode of food poisoning and high fever due to a viral infection while pregnant.)    

But even after they had closed my CS wound, my appendectomy wound was still left unstitched to let the infection heal naturally. Ako pa naman, I have a very low tolerance for pain, I was so scared of giving birth because of the pain. My prayer was for God to not let me feel any pain when I give birth, and true enough, I didn’t  -- with what I went through, balewala yung pain ng CS compared to the appendectomy.

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SP: How did you manage two major surgery wounds, a newborn, and breastfeeding, all at the same time?
Niña: Being a mother makes you a superhuman, I realized. I had to give my baby the best care possible [regardless of my condition]. Breastfeeding was so painful at first, and I almost gave up, but I was determined to do it. With the help of my family and friends, I pushed through with the breastfeeding and I’m proud to say that she was breastfed purely until she was 1 year old. And she weaned herself away, too. She’s very independent.

SP: I noticed that Stella likes vegetables. How did you train her to be so?
Niña: When I was pregnant, I read a lot of books. One thing I picked up was that if you really start them young [with healthy food] they’ll get used to it. I’m Ilocano, and we love vegetables. When Stella was 6 months old, a doctor recommended that I give her mashed steamed ampalaya. He said she won’t even know if it tastes good or not, since her palate is clean. She ate it and liked it. From there, we moved on to other vegetables like broccoli, asparagus, cauliflower, and carrots. Gradually, we gave it texture as she grew.

Sometimes we add a bit of rice and ulam, too, because they also say that you have to give your baby whatever you have on the table. But I make her eat her vegetables first, then the rice with ulam or soup. She also likes bananas and apples, and sometimes we give her yogurt, too. In parties, she’ll eat spaghetti naman, but I noticed that she doesn’t crave for it like other kids do.

When she’s with her grandparents on weekends, we indulge the lolas and lolos and Stella can eat whatever they give her, but when she’s home she has no choice but to eat whatever we prepared for her. Since the “tastier” food is not available at home, kakainin nya what’s on the table because she’s hungry.


SP: What food did you crave for when you were infanticipating?
Niña: With Stella, I was throwing up all the time so I can’t remember craving for food. Instead of morning sickness, I had all-day and all-night sickness. It went on up to my 7th month, so instead of gaining weight, I lost a lot of weight. I couldn’t even take my vitamins because it made me want to throw up. When I gave birth, I was iron-deficient.


SP: What are the challenges you encountered as a new mom?
Niña: As a reporter I have a very hectic schedule, and I can’t spend as much time with my daughter because I work. So sometimes I bring her to the office, or kasama sya when they pick me up. In fact, to breastfeed her, the yayas would bring her to the office. When I come back to the studio from the field, at around 3 pm, Stella would be in the office na to breastfeed. Or, if I have some free time in between work, I go home so I could breastfeed and pump milk. I don’t know how I did it, it was crazy. But it helped me lose whatever pregnancy weight I gained.

My husband and I also did not expect that a newborn baby would wake up every two hours for the first 3 or 4 months, so we were like zombies, and that was hard because I was breastfeeding also. It’s difficult to function the following day when you didn’t get enough sleep the previous night. I’ve never been so tired and exhausted in my life! It really was a lot of sacrifice but the rewards are great.

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SP: What are your learnings from your experiences?
Niña: When I got pregnant, it wasn’t planned. We were actually delaying it because I was scared of giving birth. I got pregnant four years after I got married, but I had a miscarriage, which was one of the lowest points in my life. And again, I think God was teaching me a lesson, because sometimes, when you lose it, that’s when you want it. One year later, I got pregnant again (with Stella) and my attitude was so much different na.


SP: Any tips for new moms, given all that you went through?
Niña: You have to prepare your body for pregnancy. I don’t exercise much, but I’m a pretty healthy eater to begin with, and I don’t drink sodas.

I learned that you must expect the unexpected. I read so many books and tried to absorb as much information as I could when I was pregnant, but once the baby’s there, a mother’s instincts will take over. You’ll just know what to do, for some reason.

There are no hard and fast rules. You know what’s best for your child. You’ll learn as you go along – from your parents, your husband, even from your child.

Click 'View slideshow' to see what's inside Stella's baby bag!

Photos by Stanley Ong. Hair and makeup by Nizel Reduta, 0916-3185625