Taking an important examination is nervewracking enough, but what if you add the most dreaded labor pain to it? An extraordinary woman from Manila, Stefanelle Atienzar Sibuyan aces them both at the same time!
Sibuyan was taking her Physician’s Licensure Examination (PLE) at the Mary Chiles Colleges in Sampaloc, Manila last March 11 when she felt labor pains. She was already 1 to 2 centimeters dilated and 60 percent effaced a week before the board exam.
But the strong woman continued attending reviews and read her materials at home while lying down.
Before the start of the last two days of the board exams, Sibuyan experienced spotting and her water bag broke, but she didn’t tell anyone—including her partner.
On Monday, her contractions were between 15 to 30 minutes apart but she managed to finish her first exam in an hour. Sibuyan tried resting while constantly checking and stays alert on her baby’s movement and heart tones.
“It wasn’t easy to act normal smiling at my proctors that time, because they don’t know I was already in labor. Knowing that my due date falls on March and PLE falls on the 1st and 2nd week. I never doubted myself that I can still push thru with this,” Sibuyan told ABS-CBN News on Wednesday.
She gave birth to an adorable baby boy.
“I just read all the test questions once and answer it right away. Maybe it’s divine intervention. I just think of finishing the exams ahead of time so I could rest a little bit at breaks.”
Finally, Sibuyan finished her last exam in 20 minutes while experiencing contractions every 3 minutes. She submitted everything and went down to where her partner was waiting for her.
Luckily, there is a hospital near the exam hall so they rushed to the delivery room and she delivered her baby boy there.
Three days after giving birth, Sibuyan learned that she passed her exams! However, her baby had to be readmitted to the hospital due to neonatal sepsis but recovered not long after.
Sibuyan and her small family.
After posting her dangerously adventurous experience on Facebook, Sibuyan’s post has now gone viral.
You can read more on her experience in her Facebook post:
Hi! I'm 1️⃣ week old today. Exactly one week from the time I was born right after mommy's Physician's Licensure…
Posted by Eunice Stefanelle Atianzar Sibuyan on Monday, March 18, 2019
Congratulations on becoming a licensed physician and a mother!
Credit: ABS-CBN News
