So having gone through IVF to conceive Autumn we figured our due date was pretty spot on...and when my water broke just 3 hours and 40 minutes after her due date had passed, that assumption proved to be quite true! It was 3:40 AM Sunday, June 6th...I have gotten up to go to the bathroom and before I got back in bed felt a small rush of fluid run down my leg. I returned to the bathroom to find some blood dripping in to the toilet. It was not a lot of blood, but between that and the small fluid trickle I figured something was happening. I immediately woke up Jacob and we paced around the bedroom deciding what to do. My OB had stressed time and time again, four things that immediately send you to the hospital (1) blood, (2) a gush of fluid, (3) pain in the belly that won't go away, and (4) baby stops moving. Since I had two of these, albeit in small amounts, I was a little unsure of what to do. I called my sister (she is a nurse so is lucky enough to get all my medical questions...and my 4 AM phone calls *grin*). She said to put a pad on and see how it looks in a half an hour. As soon as I hung up the phone though I had another small gush and more blood. So the decision was made...time to go to the hospital! My eyes filled up with tears with the excitement and anticipation of finally meeting our little miracle!
When we got to the hospital they took us to the assessment room to determine if we would be admitted or not. It took about an hour and lots of paper work (their computers were down so so much for pre-registering), but they did finally determine that my water had in fact been broken and I was dilated a whopping finger tip...yep, not even a centimeter! We were admitted and taken to the room where we would spend the next 5+ days! It was really happening...so exciting!!
Over the next few hours the got me started on IV and pitocin. Since my water had broken they want to ensure you deliver within 24 hours to decrease the risk of infection. Since I wasn't having contractions on my own yet, they were hoping the pitocin would speed things along. The contractions started coming and I was feeling pretty good...at about 1 PM I felt sure that we were making progress as the contractions got stronger and stronger, so asked that they check me again. You can imagine my disappointment to find out after several hours of laboring now that I was still only a finger tip dilated! You have got to be kidding! The nurse at this point said she would talk to the doctor and see what she thought, but that there is a chance she would recommend a c-section soon because I was not progressing quickly and time was slowly trickling away. And I have to back up here...so one thing I forgot to mention...I know I told you in a previous post that my doctor was going to be out of town this week...well when I mentioned that his back-up doctor would be the one working with us they informed us that he doesn't start as his back-up until Monday!! WHAT!?! That might have been good information to know...not that there is anything we can do at this point...so we are on to what we lovingly named our "3rd string doctor"...which probably wasn't a fair name as Dr. McDaniel turned out to be a very nice doctor and she safely delivered our little one so I can not say one bad thing about her. I am very confident though that the experience would have been much easier had it been my doctor we were working with.
As the hours continued to tick on, the contractions got stronger. They put an internal monitor on me to ensure they were in fact strong enough...and needing to be above 50 on the "contraction scale" we quickly learned they were, as most of mine were in the 60's and 70's...an occasional one even creeping up in to the 80's! So we were about maxed out on the pitocin level...my contractions were painful...and I still wasn't progressing! At about 6 PM they checked again and I had finally reached a 1!! By 8 I was at a 3...things were starting to look up a little. I got an epidural at this point...which dulled the pain on the right side of my body. It was enough to take the edge off and I got small amounts of sleep. I should mention, Autumn was doing amazing through all of this. Her heart rate stayed very steady the entire time...our little fighter was doing great! Dr. McDaniel decided to give me an antibiotic...continue upping the pitocin (passed the top level allowed) and see what happens! The night dragged on...with occassional checks...I was creeping along again...maybe a 4, maybe a 5...the nurse was fudging a bit I think to make it seem better than it was. Finally around 4:30 AM, they came to give me a second epidural to try and get my left side numb. At 5 they checked me one last time. I might be a 5 at this point, but that is stretching it a little. So the decision is made...it is going to be a c-section...at 6 AM!
As they begin prepping me, my blood pressure dropped quite a bit...I felt quite sick...that last dose of medicine was too much. They also discover my blood platelette levels are low...nothing to worry about, but something they need to be aware of for the surgery. They wheel me to the OR and I start panicking. I don't feel well, I'm scared, and I just want Autumn to arrive safely in to the world! I tell the nurse I'm going to throw up...so here I am, moments from meeting my daughter and I'm throwing up into a pan on the side of my bed. Geez!! They bring Jacob in and begin going to work. A c-section is the strangest feeling in the world...I don't feel pain, but it kinda feels like someone is punching around inside my stomach. It's a lot of tugging and pulling...and it's weird! I keep asking if they're almost done...until finally I hear her...the sweetest cry in the world!! Autumn is here!!! I want to laugh and cry and everything all at once! It is such an overwhelming feeling. I can see her off in the distance as they begin weighing her and checking her out. And she's perfect!! The inform us that she weighs a whopping 9 pounds 9 ounces and is 21.5 inches long! Wow, no wonder she wouldn't come out...haha! At this point I just want to be off this table and to hold my little girl! But they are working on putting me back together. I tell the anestesiologist that I don't feel well...that my feet hurt...weird I know, but they did. He tells me he's going to give me a quick 10 minute nap and when I wake up, I'll feel much better...and I did!! And as I did, they handed me Autumn and wheeled us both back to our room! How perfect!!
We spent the next 5 days in the hospital. They monitored my platelettes and iron levels (I became anemic during this whole thing) until they returned to normal. And finally on Friday, June 11th we got to go home!!
Autumn is so wonderful. She already has been smiling and giggling at us (ok, not at us, but as she falls asleep...it is the cutest thing ever)! We feel so blessed to finally have our little miracle in our arms and can't wait to see all the amazing things God has in store for the three of us!
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