Monday, January 12, 2009

Birth Story

It has taken so long to get this out here. I want to remember in a few years so I figure I better get it done before too much more time passes.

I started out wanting to have a VBAC. It was all in order as long as my body would cooperate. Those chances were slightly squashed when I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes in my 28th week. Diabetic mothers typically have larger babies therefore making delivery harder.

Then came our big move to MO. I found a Doctor who was willing to still give VBAC a chance as long as everything still fell into place. Around 37 weeks we did an US and he had Sophia weighing in at 8lbs. He said at this point he would still attend a VBAC, but highly suggested against it. He said the risk of complication was so high it was not worth it. My diabetes was out of control and I was on maximum doses of glyburide at this point.


We agreed to a C-section, so my Doctor scheduled it for December 15th at 1:30pm. This was 3 days before my due date so 39 weeks 4 days. I was so hoping I would go into labor on my own and still get the chance to feel what it was like. That did not happen :)



On December 15th, 2008 I was wheeled into the OR and given my spinal. I was so miserable for about 20min after that feeling sick, my blood pressure kept falling and I was having to receive meds through my IV to bring it back up. I was dry heaving, feeling completely numb like I couldn't breathe. Then at 2:10 pm you were born and made every bit of it worth it for me. You were 9lbs 13oz and had a head of red hair.

In the recovery room I still had not gotten to hold you yet cause you were having trouble breathing. The NICU team came in and took you away to check you out. Isabella and Abigail came up just long enough to see them wheeling you out of the room in a hurry. Once in the NICU they found you were not breathing well enough on your own and wanted to make sure there was no infection. The did a CBC and found your blood count levels to be very high so they started IV antibiotics. Then they found a heart murmur and needed to do an US of your heart. Then your blood sugars dropped to 7 and they needed to give you sugar water and formula. I still had not seen you and it was our second day in the hospital. The NICU doctors were keeping us informed every step of the way, but it was still the hardest thing I have done not being able to see you for 2 days. I was not able to walk yet and my bed could not fit in the room. The Doctors decided to do a spinal tap to rule out meningitis. Finally I was able to get in a wheelchair and come to you.

While I was in your room, I started having vision loss in the left eye. I got back to my room and told the nurse and then a whole slew of people started rushing in. The neurologist, a vision specialist, an on call OB/GYN. They ordered a CT scan, an MRI, US of my corroted artery, US of my heart, blood work. The determined by their best guesses that I had a stroke of the eye caused by a blood clot that was traveling and it dissipated in my eye causing the temporary blindness.

The next day on December 18th my incision came open and the Doctor tried taping it. The tape did not hold and he had to stick some tweezers inside the incision to open it back up to try to get more skin. He then decided it needed to heal as an open wound. Poor Nick had to irrigate it every day and pack it with gauze. I can only imagine how nasty that was. Nick took pictures of it each day to see how it was healing.

We finally got to go home on Friday December 20th and it was wonderful. My mom was still here with the girls and she would get one more day to visit with Sophia before she had to go back home to FL. I only got to see my mom for a short time and it was so hard seeing her leave.

I got sick a few days after my mom left and had to go back to the hospital for IV fluids. My Aunt drove down to help us out and be with the girls while Nick took care of me. I really did not feel like I was going to survive. On December 25th, Christmas day I woke up with the worse throbbing pain in my neck and head. It was beating with my heart and the most pain I have ever been in. After Nick cooked Christmas dinner and I had endured a day of this pain, I had Nick drop me off at the ER and he went home with the girls. The doctor gave me lots of pain meds and said I was having a really bad migraine (which I have never experienced) and said it was normal after a baby to start having migraines. Nick came back and got me and it has yet to return again.

Sophia's blood sugars have been good, the heart murmur has diminished, and her CBC is normal. She still has a blocked tear duct, but of all the things that could have happened with my baby girl that day this is the least to be concerned about.