babyblog

My lovely new boy (long)

Before I forget the finer details I thought I'd write about the last few days.

Thursday 22nd July.

After maybe an hour of sleep we got up at 4.15am. Took a shower, couldn't stop shaking with nerves, felt dreadful. Told G 'I'm not ready', not ready for the baby to be born yet... happy with him in my tummy. Arrived at the hospital at 5.30 and went up to Labour and Delivery where we were greeted and taken into a room to 'prep'. They put me on a monitor for 20 mins to check all was well and noted that I was having regular contractions... the nurse said this baby would be coming out soon one way or another! They then attached an IV (ouch) which stung and shaved me a little (yuk). Took some blood to check my INR and PTT to make sure the Fragmin wasn't still screwing around with things in my system, and checked my BP, Temperature, etc. IV made me want to wee non stop (lots of fluids going in). Kept having to trek to the bathroom towing the IV thing with me and trying not to show the world my bum in my hospital gown. All very clinical. All very terrifying.

Finally it was time to go through to the OR (half an hour later than planned, apparently the OB's were having a meeting). G had to stay behind and wait while they did the Spinal and got me ready, which was the scariest part. I wanted him with me. They got me into the OR... I tried not to look around too much. They put me on my side and the anaesthetist, who was a very friendly and reassuring Chinese lady, was very conversational and started the Spinal. I had been so terrified of the pain and discomfort of this especially after the experience I had when having D, and amazingly it was nothing like it. She numbed the area, which I barely felt, and I didn't feel the needle for the spinal *at all*.

My legs started to feel warm and strange. They rolled me onto my back and inserted a catheter (lovely) which I didn't feel. Everything started to feel heavy and numb, really peculiar. I started to feel dizzy and spaced out.... they put something in my IV to bring me back to normal and gave me an oxygen mask. It took a while, I felt very odd for a bit. Then they put the curtain up infront of my stomach and G was brought in, finally. I cried with relief when I saw him. He sat down beside me and held my hand, by which point the OB had already started getting our little boy out.

No more than 5 minutes later we heard a sucking of liquid which we knew meant they'd got into the amniotic fluid, and then heard a lovely wailing sound and saw for the first time this gorgeous little boy as they held him to show us. Both of us burst into tears of joy, there's no describing the emotion at all, I'm not even going to try. They took him over to the check-up area where the pediatrician and a couple of nurses were, and G went too. I could see from where I lay. They said he looked lovey and healthy and around late 7's early 8 lb's in weight.....but then they said they wanted him to cry which he wasn't doing and lots of tests and things started to be done. I felt totally useless and removed from it and was very upset not knowing what was going on. G kept running back to me and saying it was fine, don't worry, just needed to get him to cry. After what seemed like an eternity they said they were going to take him to the NICU to observe and of course I was so upset and worried and sent G with him as I didn't want him to be alone. Before he went they put him to my face to kiss.

I don't remember too much of being taken to the recovery room but I do remember arriving there without a baby and just feeling so very very sad and scared. I lay there alone for maybe 10 mins or so terrified I wouldn't be able to know my baby or bond with him because I wasn't with him, and scared for him. Then G came back to update me that he was OK, still needing a bit of observing, doing the same little grunting noises which D did when he was born which meant he had a little fluid on the lungs which is apparently common with c/s babies, and they wanted him to stop doing it and when he did he could be with us. G called my dad to tell him the news and then I spoke to Dad and I was so upset, we asked Dad to come and be with me as G was with the baby. G went and took a few photo's and brought the camera back to show me.

Finally my room was ready and they wheeled me to the NICU in the bed to see the baby. I looked at him and said 'Hello Baby' and at the sound of my voice he opened his eyes for the first time. Couldn't stop crying. (it's hard to write this, am very emotional). Then they took me to my room.

The hospital has some shared rooms and some private. We'd requested private but it depends what s available. Typically, nothing private was immediately available so they wheeled me into a shared room where a couple were, with their baby (thankfully with a curtain drawn around them). Arriving alone without a baby or husband with me was awful, I coudln't stop crying. Dad, Sally and Dylan arrived and I had to stop crying because of D. Gave D his 'present from the baby' which was a digital camera of his own which he's absolutely thrilled with! G came back and took Dad to the NICU to see the baby. Then he took Sal, then D (who had been a bit nervous and shy then finally agreed to go). When he and D came back they announced the baby would be brought over to me to feed and if he did well he could stay. And in he came... cannot describe the relief / happiness at being with him. Not going to try. Anyway, he fed well, and he was allowed to stay :) :) :) :)

We had a few checkups and things, he was given a sponge bath by the nurse, they were checking blood sugars and various other things due to the GD, I guess they were checking me too, all a bit of a blur, and then they moved us finally to a private room which was a huge relief. Dad, Sis and D went off as D was 'bored' (love him) and G and I stayed and relaxed and got to know our little boy. I had alot of 'afterpains' due to an Oxytocin drip they had me on -- apparently this was necessary due to my increased risk of bleeding from the Fragmin. I basically felt like I was in labour for the next 18 hours, very painful. They gave me Morphine shots which did nothing, then changed to Demerol which was slightly better although mostly just made me very woozy and spaced out every 3 hours. The haematologist came to see me and decided to give me Fragmin at 8pm, and then a huge dose the following day which is what I'll remain on for the next 6 wks. The others came back again later and hung out for a while and we were all just extremely relieved to have got through this and totally in awe of the little boy whose name we could not decide upon!

I was very determined to give him a name but nobody could make a firm 'yes I like that best' decision (including me) so the discussions went on endlessly into the night between G & I (who stayed and slept in a recliner). The little one breastfed really well and often but they kept checking his sugars and at 3am they said he was much too low and made us give him a little formula much to my disgust. Still, it was for the best for his health and doesnt seem to have had any adverse effect.

Friday 23rd July

Requested a change from the Demerol shots as they were just making me totally spaced out, and was given Tylenol 3 pills instead which were much more effective. Once the IV stopped around 8am I felt a lot better anyway, not so much pain at all. Even managed to get up & have a shower. They took my staples out -- they were like regular staples, very weird! G and I had a good night with Harry (as we'd now decided his name was to be!) and he fed and slept well. We had a lazy morning snoozing between feeds too. In the afternoon Mark, Linda & Katie visited and it was great to see them although I think I was a little out of it still due to the medication! They brought us some gifts and seemed to like the little guy :) Dad Sis & D arrived again later on after a day trip to keep D entertained and they were pleased to see I was so much more mobile and better, and that Harry was doing well!

Saturday 24th July

The not crying much thing with Harry has so far continued...he's very relaxed and calm! He's also hard work to keep awake to feed, he'll start off well then after a couple of minutes get very drowsy and try to go to sleep so we've been having to constantly nudge him, jog him, strip him off, burp him, etc, to keep him going. It's hard work to get him to feed for more than 10 mins each side. Saturday they announced we could go home at lunch time (hurrah!) so we made arrangements for D S & D to bring car seats, etc down. Just before they arrived the nurse weighed Harry and said he'd lost a little too much weight - 9.3% of his bodyweight and she was concerned and wanted us to agree to supplement him. I said that I was very unhappy about this, that he was only 2 and a half days old, that my milk wasn't quite in yet and it was only to be expected, and that he was feeding well if we kept at him and would rather give him a chance to gain weight once my milk was in. She said she was supposed to make us stay in the hospital and insist we supplemented but I said no, I really was not happy with that, so she finally agreed we could go home on the proviso that we fed him every 2 hrs and brought him back on Sunday for weight check. And that she could put some formula in our bag. Agreed. Goodbye!

Bringing him home was lovely - D D & S had arranged for a Stork to be placed on the lawn announcing his birth (Canadian thing!) which was a nice suprise, and we brought his bassinet downstairs and all just gazed lovingly at him for the rest of the day basically! Went to bed early and kept up the feeding schedule with my milk coming in fully by the end of the night and my boobs growing to fill a gigantic H cup bra, yikes!

Sunday 26th July

Felt a bit crap in myself due to a narcotic rebound headache... too much demerol / codeine, but hurt too much to do anything but take *MORE* T3's. Went down to the Hospital which was the absolute last thing I felt like doing to get Harry weighed and yay, he gained weight! So now we're off the list for concern, and I'm *so* glad I insisted they could not make us supplement. Came home feeling dreadful and went to bed for 20 mins, but then Steve & Dee visited so got up again. Lovely to see them....... managed to sit and chat for a while but then felt like I was going to pass out so had to go back to bed. Stayed there for a couple of hours with H beside me for feeds then got up for dinner and felt a little better. We took H outside the front to meet a couple of the neighbours for 5 mins last night and got another little gift of clothes which was sweet! Came in and went to bed early.

G and I lay in bed checking all the photo's D had taken with his new camera last night and were reduced to tears of laughter by the 'week in the life of a 5 yr old' we were witnessing. He's so talented as a photographer, he's always been really interested in taking photo's but we didn't realise he has a huge talent for it. The subjects, composition, artistic quality of those he's taken are phenomenal - I'll have to post some. He's taken some lovely ones of his brother too.

Monday 26th July

H fed well last night, albeit more frequently but less lengthily at each feed than before. A little growth spurt, I think. I bought a Medela 'Pump In Style' breastpump to help with engorgement initially but to pump some supplementary feeds into now, especially for any occasion I am not home and G needs to be able to feed him! Dad took H outside in his arms for a few minutes this morning and he was wide awake and watching the world around him.. the most wakeful he's been to date. Lots of feeds again today too! Dad and Sis have now popped to the supermarket to stock up on food for us after they leave tomorrow. I honestly don't know what I would have done without them this week, they have been phenomenal. Especially Sal who has been tireless and wonderful with D! But their being here has enabled G & I to have this baby without worrying about whether D was OK, to concentrate on the baby and getting to know him, to sleep and feed when we need to and to enjoy this time getting to know Harry. Honestly without them this whole thing would have been a completely different experience and so much harder. I am forever indebted to them.

I've written so much I really don't know if I've covered even half of what we've been going through emotionally or physically over the last few days. But the overwhelming thing is that we have a little baby boy who is gorgeous, happy, contented and completely delicious! The pregnancy wasn't too hard and the actual cs birth wasn't either. I've been a bit tense about a PE, but I'm on huge shots of Fragmin now so hopefully the risk is minimal The first few hours when Harry was in the NICU were awful, but thankfully he's OK and was soon with us. Now we're enjoying him and speaking of doing so, I must go and be with him :)

I'll post some pics up when I have a minute :)

Posted by katie at July 26, 2004 04:18 PM