I wish I could say something epic for my absence, but I can't. I'm not very good at blogging. I am striving to be better.
I left you all hanging at 20 weeks.
I would have to write several blogs to adequately sum everything up, but I just don't have THAT much time.
So, I'll do the best I can. I'll copy and paste my birth story below, so you can read it if you desire, but here are the basics...
June 2013- July 2013
- Nothing much! just growing
- Mid July-- last days at work.
August 2013
- 08/04/2013: Gall Bladder Infection-- ICU stay due to low potassium
- 08/04/2013: Free from the Hospital at last!
September 2013
- Blood Pressure starts to elevate
- Decide to Induce on 09/09/2013
- Ultrasound confirms Baby A is Breech
- 09/09/2013: C-Section
Baby Stats:
Henry
Clark was born weighing 5lbs 10ozs and 18 inches long. His sister
Haley Kraft was born 2 minutes later weighing 5lbs 2ozs and was 17.5
inches long. Neither baby needed time in the nursery and was able to go
straight to mom and dad who were ecstatic.
Birth Story:
I went to bed early on Sunday night, hopeful to get some sleep. My
sleep had not been exactly “good” in the last few weeks. Kicks, hiccups
and hourly trips to the bathroom ensured I never actually experienced a
deep sleep. I was supposed to be at the hospital at 5am, 2 hours before
my surgery was scheduled. I woke up a bit earlier than I planned, but I
found stuff to content myself with. Soon, I was in the car and heading
to the hospital.
When I got there, they drew my blood for
the cord banking, hooked up my IV and inserted my catheter. I think I
may have been more nervous about the catheter than the spinal I knew I
would receive for the c-section. It wasn’t that bad actually. I didn’t
really feel it going in and once it was it only took a few minutes to
get used to the feeling. You really wanted to know about my catheter…
didn’t you??
Anyways… they called in the on-call radiology
guy and he performed a quick scan. Baby A was still breech; the section
was “for sure” now. I was a tiny bit disappointed, but realized I
somehow knew that this was going to be the outcome since the day prior.
The parents got to the hospital at 6am and we were told that my
c-section was actually going to be delayed until 7:30am. It wasn’t a
huge difference, but it seemed like forever away. To distract me, they
did tell me some awesome news. The OB department director had pulled
some strings and not only were BOTH parents going to be allowed into the
Operating Room, but I was going to be allowed one support person as
well. It was AWESOME, and something our hospital had never allowed
before. It was the perks of a unique situation.. and perhaps the fact
that the hospital all knows me as I worked there.
Finally
they come to take me over to the Operating Room. My Mom, and the parents
are told they will be brought over later. I will be given the spinal
and prepped before anyone else is allowed in the room. I felt a little
like a celebrity as I was wheeled down the hall, everyone was smiling
and saying hi to me. It was sort of hilarious. When we got to the OR,
the nurses taking me in suited up and the anesthesiologist and his
student came out to get all my consents for the spinal and tell me all
the risks. It was pretty basic. I do remember the anesthesiologist
commenting about how I couldn’t be the one about to deliver twins… I was
too small. That made me feel slightly less like the huge whale I’d
become.
I was wheeled into the room, and I got onto the OR
table. They started prepping me for the spinal right away. It took a
bit for them to get it in. The student was having a hard time finding
the right spot, and for some reason the local numbing shot they gave me
wasn’t working like it should have, every time they poked I could feel
it. Four “locals” later, I finally didn’t feel it and they were able to
get the spinal in. This may have taken longer than getting the babies
out… really… I should have looked at the time.
The entire
time this was happening it was a very good experience. The nurses
holding me up were calm and relaxing as they spoke to me and the rest of
the team in the room were joking. It definitely helped keep me at ease.
I took a few deep breaths, but managed to not have a panic attack or
start crying as I felt the spinal start to work. First my butt went a
little tingly, and then my legs… they felt “asleep”. I’m sure you know
that feeling…
So, they laid me down and placed my arms out
on either side. They started doing “tests” to see how the spinal was
working. The first sense you lose, as they told me, is temperature. So
they would run cold alcohol wiped up the side of me and I would tell
them when it became “cold”. They elevated my lower half to just a tiny
bit above my top half to help spread the spinal. Pretty soon, I guess I
wasn’t feeling it… because they let the parents and my mom in.
I
should go back for an second and explain that the entire OR staff
hadn’t been told about the 3-person exception, so while I was getting my
spinal I kept hearing people say they were NOT letting everyone in… it
worried me. Then I heard my doctor overrule everyone and tada… my mom
was sitting by me and I asked her if the parents were in the room as I
couldn’t see them. They heard me and spoke to me and said they were. I
could hear the anxiousness and excitement in their voice.
The
next thing I knew I heard my doctor say “we’re started” and less than
two minutes later I head “there’s a foot” and a strong little cry as
Baby Boy was pulled out of my stomach. They flashed him over the curtain
so I could look for just a second and then they took him away. Then I
heard them find another foot, but I didn’t hear anything after. I heard
the doctor mention something about Baby Girl’s face being lodged or
something… I asked my mom if she was okay and the doctor answered that
she had just got in a weird position so it was taking a second to pull
her out. I heard them say she was out, but no one showed me her, and I
heard no cry. I asked again if she was okay because I couldn’t hear
anything… good or bad. My doctor said she was fine and breathing but a
little stunned. Meanwhile, her brother hadn’t stopped screaming. Then I
heard a tiny squeal and my mom told me that was her. She was fine.
I
remember the dad coming over and giving me a big thumbs up as both
babies were cleared. He looked so happy. The babies were wheeled from
the OR and the parents followed, the mom stopped by and grabbed my hand,
she thanked me over and over. She told they were perfect and healthy
and I had done amazing. They followed after the babies and it was just
the team, my mom and I in the OR now. After the babies were out, and
they started getting me all back together, I started to feel sick to my
stomach, or at least I thought I did… I couldn’t really feel anything,
but I seemed to feel sick. They pushed some Zofran through my IV and
the feeling went away so I guess it worked.
As the doctor
was finishing my stitches I asked him if he could tell if I would have
any uterus related problems with the next pregnancy. Could I have a
vbac… etc? He said I had a perfect uterus, it was still thick and strong
and healthy and I could easily have several more pregnancies. That was
so awesome to hear. When he was done the moved me onto the regular
hospital bed and then wheeled me into recovery where I had to stay for
30 minutes.
With my son, my epidural wore off before I
actually delivered him, and I was up an hour later. So when they
anesthesiologist told me I wouldn’t have feeling for about four more
hours it was really odd to take in. I remember laying in recovery and
staring at my legs, willing them to move. It was the oddest feeling
ever. I felt very disconnected. I saw them moving my legs, but somewhere
in my head they weren’t MY legs, because it “felt” like my legs were
weighted down on the ground. After thirty minutes they wheeled me into
my post-partum room.
I felt AWESOME for the next few days.
I hardly needed pain medication, and I was on a natural high anyways
after I got to see the parents with their babies. My blood pressure
spiked the last day of the hospital so I was sent home with a blood
pressure prescription, but c-section wise I healed/am healing
wonderfully. I took mostly just Motrin to deal with the pain after. I
got down to my starting weight minus another 8lbs 1 week after delivery
and was able to wear my old jean size.
This has been such an amazing experience and I’m so glad I got to share it with you all xx
