Thursday, May 16, 2013

She's here!

As I wrote my previous blog post on Monday night, I had absolutely NO clue I'd be having a baby the next day. I was anticipating another long drawn out process with no conclusive results. But Tuesday morning when I woke up with twice the headache, my feet still fairly swollen (which now that they are returning back to size, I realize they weren't just kind of swollen, the were REALLY swollen), swollen bags under my eyes and a swollen face in general, I decided to check my blood pressure even though it had been normal all weekend.
My feet Sunday Night
Here I am very swollen and very uncomfortable!
Not Tuesday..178/89. On Monday, I was given orders for the 24 hour urine collection, but I wasn't told what to do if my blood pressure went up a lot higher. I figured if I felt that bad, it must not feel to good for baby girl either so I called the on call doctor before offices opened and he sent me straight to the hospital.

Now, at this point, I figured they would just monitor me and see if it goes down. So when we got to the hospital at 6:30, they drew some bloodwork which can also explain some tendencies in pre-eclampsia such as a low platelet count or high liver enzymes. Then, fortunately it was Dr. Anderson's turn at the hospital.

My blood work didn't look all that bad, but all the nurses that came in and out were really shocked at how swollen I was - especially for it being in the morning. The nurse said not to count on anything, but it was likely we would have a baby sooner rather than later. Which was just vague enough to keep us curious and somewhat prepared for the thought.

At that point, I knew I was probably going to end up having that dread
ed c-section. I was completely closed and not effaced the day before and had no contractions.

Dr. Anderson came in and explained, "yes would could wait and see what the 24 urine sample says, but you're 36 weeks and the likelihood of this getting any better until we deliver you is slim to none." Then he checked my cervix, and commented on my crooked pelvis (that was a new one for me!) and said that as much as he knew I wanted to have a vaginal birth being induced with no help from the get-go was going to be a hard, likely more than 24 hour labor that might result in a c-section anyway. So, given my history with him and how much I trust him - I agreed to have a c-section around 10:00 am Tuesday morning. I still wasn't clear on timeline so I asked when he thought that would be and his answer was also a shock. "Well I have another surgery right after this then I'll be free to do it around noon."

NOON? As in 12:00pm, as in two HOURS from now, I'm going to have a baby????? You can imagine that this kind of scenario just doesn't run through my mind after I've had so many scares with this pregnancy. We stayed as calm and cool as we could, but on this inside, I have to admit I was a mixture of excited, nervous and terrified. Excited to bring baby home, nervous about delivering her techincally one week preterm, and terrified of being awake during that whole surgery!

Getting the shot in my back was not hard. It contained both a numbing medicine and a delayed release morphine for when the numbness wore off. It's a bizarre feeling to have a c-section. I felt like they were pulling and pushing from my belly button, but the incision is actually very much lower than that. But that's all you feel.

She came out healthy and well!
Being assessed in the nursery.

Proud Papa!


Soon enough I heard the sweetest sounding strong blood curdling scream when Sarah Grace Friedrich made her arrival at 12:23 pm. She weight 5lbs and 10 oz and was 18 inches long (NO WONDER I felt kicks so high!) Beforehand, we were warned she might have to go to the NICU, but with that healthy set of lungs and a 9/10 on both APGAR scores, she headed straight to the newborn nursery with Stephen while my c-section was being completed. And becasue she got to skip the NICU, they brought her to me in recovery and allowed me to start breastfeeding her right away.

This moment was so surreal!
I was anticipating the breastfeeding process to be so much more difficult, but the truth is, Sarah came out like she already knew what she was doing! Sure we have had a few rough moments when she's tired because this was all so stressful to her too, but for the most part, she has done fantastic. I find that I have more patience with it than I thought I would too...because I get to just stare at her and coax her into doing what's best for her. What more could you want as a mom?
Visiting me in recovery! My sweet, sweet baby girl!

Now we're stuck in the hospital because of me and not Sarah - which I would have rathered if it had to be that way. The recovery of the c-section, which I feared just as much as the actual procedure, has not been so pretty, but it's not unbearable, especially when you have such a cute little girl's eyes to look into all day. The worst part was actually related to the magnesium drug they gave me to prevent the pre-eclampsia from turning into eclampsia and giving me seizures. That drug makes your head, hurt and the world foggy. I can't really remember what we did right after surgery, and I had to have that drip in an IV for 24 hours until the risk was significantly reduced or my blood pressure came down. (It's still a tad on the high side for me, but not too bad)

The pain, although uncomfortable is dull and not sharp.I only feel it mostly when I move. But after getting a shower and actually getting to use the bathroom I am realizing that movement actually helps it feel better in the long run. Having said that, I can tell I am very weak on my feet. I don't know if it's blood loss, or having a baby or major surgery or a combination but I required some help getting to and from the bathroom and shower. (Plus I still have this draining pump hanging out my abdomen...)

There was talk I may possible go home today, but I don't feel strong enough or in control of my pain enough to do so and there's really no hurry.

In the meantime, Sarah and I have spent lots of time together bonding skin to skin and breastfeeding, singing and playing...it's a dream come true really. Stephen had a funeral he had to lead at 4:00 today so I got to spend most of the day with her by myself...not that I'm hogging her or anything. ;-) But when he finally got back to the hospital I decided it was time to feed her, so I held her a little longer. Other than that she's been with him all night. She nuzzles in his neck when he holds her. She lays her sweet little head on his chest and lets out the sweetest sighs. Stephen turns into a melted pile of wax and already Sarah has him wrapped around her very tiny pinky finger! The two of them are adorable.
Dad's a total goner for his little girl!

That's my sweet Sarah Grace!

I can't stand how beautiful she is!


1 comment:

  1. She is so beautiful! Congratulations to you both! I am so excited for you!

    Debbie Lineberger

    ReplyDelete