Here is the story.
Last Monday I went to the hospital for a non-stress test to measure my uterine activity. I was at high risk for rupture because of my three previous c-sections, especially with the last one being a "classical" c-section. That means that my uterus was cut vertically the last time. I also have the complication of adhesions where my body likes to make a lot of velcro like scar tissue that adhears all of the organs in my lower abdomen together.
So I get to the hospital and check in like I have done in the past and just like I did the Thursday before. I sit in the waiting hallway for a nurse to take me back, measure the fluid around the baby by ultrasound and then hook me up to a machine that measures any uterine activity and the baby's heartbeat. The nurse finally comes for me and tells me that they are running behind so she is going to just hook me up to the machine without checking the fluid level. I am not comfortable with this because I want everything to be checked out but, I don't say anything. She hooks me gets me all hooked up and I wait. They have to keep me hooked up for at least 20 minutes and I am supposed to push a button every time I feel the baby move. So I sit there watching the clock because I need to leave the hospital by 1:30 to pick up my kids from school and the appointment was supposed to start at 12:15. Quite a bit of time goes by and I start to get antsy about getting the kids from school and the nurse hasn't come back to check on me. When she finally does she tells me that I am having quite a bit of uterine activity and asks me if I am feeling any of it. I haven't felt a thing, not even the slightest bit of tightening. She tells me that she needs to call my OBGYN to see what she wants her to do. So I continue to wait, hooked up to a machine and I need to use the bathroom. When the nurse comes back she tells me that my OBGYN wants me to take 800mg of Ibprofen and wait 30 minutes to see if things settle down. I have only about that amount of time before I need to leave the hospital to get the kids. I take the Ibprofen with her telling me that I shouldn't take Ibprofen when I am pregnant because it is bad for the baby, (thanks) but this one time it will be fine. It felt like peer pressure, only it was Doctor's orders. I should mention that while I was waiting for my OBGYN to call back I prayed because I still wanted the nurse to check the fluid level before I left the hospital. After she gave me the Ibprofen she said that she needed to check the fluid level so we went and did that. Then she checked to see if I was dialating at all. I highly doubted that I was. I have never gone into labor early and this baby wasn't supposed to be coming for another 4 weeks technically. I wasn't dialated but I was about 50% efaced. She hooked me back up to the machine and I continued to sit there. I started feeling a little bit anxious at this point because with Gavin I did an amnio at 37 weeks and his lungs were not mature. This time I was 36 weeks and 5 days pregnant. I knew that his lungs would not be ready.
After awhile the nurse came back in and I asked if things had settled down. She looked at me and asked if I was feeling any contractions I was surprised and disappointed and I told her that I really hadn't felt anything. Maybe a little bit of tightening twice but only a little bit and definately not painful. She told me that the contractions had become regular like pre-term labor. DANG-IT! All of the sudden my brain was on overload! I didn't bring my cell phone with everyone's phone numbers in it, I needed someone to pick up the kids from school, I needed to call Spencer and tell him to come to the hospital, I needed my mom to get on an airplane, and I needed to call my friend Allison who was watching Gavin. That was the first set of overload that went through my mind. Then I took a deep breath and used the hospital's phone to start making phone calls. First, I tried to call Spencer. I should mention here that about 2 weeks ago the higher ups from the company came down and told Spencer and the guys that he works with that the company was dissolving their jobs but they were welcome to apply for the new jobs that they were creating to replace the positions that were being dissolved, if that makes any sence. Anyway, it just so happens that when I tried calling Spencer he was in a meeting with the new manager that was telling him that they didn't want him for the position because he was to anal about quality. So Spencer didn't pick up. Then I called Allison watching Gavin and told her what was going on and asked her to call my friend Camille to see if she could pick up my kids from school and then I told her to remind Camille that I was supposed to be picking up another friends son so if some could make sure that he got to his home too. Then I tried to call Spencer again...and again, and again, and again. Finally he picked up and I told him that we were going to have the baby so I needed him to come to the hospital. He asked me if I could call him back in 15 minutes. Sure honey, I'll just sit here at the hospital and wait for 15 minutes and then call you back! Smile. The nurse came back with one of those stylish hospital gowns and a personal belongings bag. That is when I think the reality really hit me. That day I was going to have a baby, ready or not!
After I got all changed the nurse walked me to the labor and delivery unit to be preped for surgery. At the first free minute I grabed the phone from the room and called Spencer again. He told me that he was in a meeting with the new manager and that is why he didn't answer the phone. I asked him if he got the position and he told me not to worry about that and that he was walking torwards his car so he was on his way. The labor and delivery nurse began preping me for surgery pretty quickly and then I realized that this was going pretty fast. I wondered if I had missed some reason for all of the urgency. I didn't think that this was an emergency situation. I asked the nurse if we were going to wait until my husband got to the hospital before they did the c-section. She asked how much longer he was going to be. Not exactly the answer I was looking for.....
Since I wasn't planning on having a baby that day and Spencer came straight from work we didn't have a real camera, so welcome baby number four, you are already getting jipped, your first pictures are from a cell phone.
After the surgery, the nurses wheeled me to a room in the Labor and Delivery unit for recovery. I had to be under observation for 1 hour after surgery to make sure my body handled everything alright. The baby came with us. When you have a pre-term baby there needs to be a neo-natalogist in the delivery room. The neo-natalogist that was in the delivery room with us gave the baby the go ahead to stay with us. But the recovery nurses noticed that his grunting had gotten worse and they hooked him up to the pulse ox meter machine and his oxigenation wasn't great so they called the neo-natalogist back and they ended up taking him to the NICU. I was so worried about him and I was able to relax a little bit knowing that he would get the care that he needed there. Spencer wheeled my to the NICU and I was there peaking over the edge of the bassenet and seeing my baby really well for the first time and he had an IV in his forhead and an oxygen tube and he was hooked up to all of these different monitors at and his dear sweet nurse asked if I had gotten to hold him to which I told her that I hadn't. She said,"Well then, momma needs to hold her baby." And I did. I later learned that I wouldn't be able to hold him whenever I went down to the NICU, it would depend on how he was doing and the nurse on shift. So needless to say, this was a special moment for me.
Day 2 NICU
His condition didn't get better it got worse so he needed special treatment for his lungs.
Blower CPAP (This puts constant pressure into his lungs for best oxygenation)
Oral Gastral tube for feedings which he isn't tolerating well so he also has an IV which is in his forhead. Typical placement for infants.
Chest x-ray shows possable pneumothorax which is fluid between the chest cavity and lung. Solution if it becomes a pneumothorax is to drain with suringe through chest cavity.
Day 3 NICU
Nasal Canula CPAP (I guess that he complained about the blower CPAP all night so he got switched to the nasal canula with tiny tubes up his nose)
IV moved to right hand
OG tube which is causing stomach irritation
Another chest x-ray continues to show possible pneumothorax but lung sounds are better.
Poor thing the CPAP makes his little face all swollen.
Day 4 NICU
No more CPAP! High flow oxygen nasal canula
IV and OG tube (He is tolerating his feedings a lot better)
Day 5 NICU
High flow oxygen
IV is out!
Gavage feedings (He gets his calories through the OG tube, not by bottle or nursing)
Day 6 NICU
Low Flow oxygen 75%
Day 7 NICU
We got to take Garet to the Family room for the first time this day!
We had to take all of the tubes and wires with us though.
He was on low flow oxygen at 25%
We started being able to feed him with a bottle but anything that he didn't take from the bottle still had to be given to him with gavage feedings.
Day 8 NICU
Still weaning off on the oxygen. We spend a lot of time trying to get him to take a bottle! The nurses have explained to us that he doesn't know that sucking makes his tummy happy. It is purely a neurological thing and it will just take time. But I walk by other babies in the NICU a lot younger than our little guy and they take their bottles just fine. Frusterating!
Day 9 NICU
He got off of the oxygen and is now on room air!
He still has all of his wires to monitor how his body is handling breathing room air but we will take it! We start trying to get him to latch for nutrition then give him a bottle.
Day 10 NICU
We are still working on the whole sucking to eat thing. Once he learns that then all we are waiting for is for him to gain weight by feeding.
Day 11 NICU
When Spencer and I arrived at the hospital this morning we were informed that Garet stopped breathing last night. They call this incident a spell, something that premies do. Now we have to wait for 72 hours before we can take him home.
Day 12 NICU
He is doing well. We are just playing the waiting game. He is latching and eating well......with a lot of falling asleep.
Day 13
Yea! We get to take him home! We have a great welcoming party with the garage decorated again! Welcome home little guy!
Can you tell that we are all so excited to have him home finally! Makenzi gave him a tour of the house so he knows where he lives now!
