bisous
11-15-2013, 05:28 AM
Hi folks. I wanted to check in and tell a little of our story. First, right now we are all doing well. We've had a bit of a journey and here's what happened.
Monday, Nov. 4 I went in for a 4th c-section. This one was scheduled and went pretty much according to plan. My fourth child and first girl, Lucy Helen was born at 10:31 a.m. and seemed bright and healthy. The c-section took awhile but no longer than usual.
The first sign of anything amiss was in the recovery room where my section wouldn't stop bleeding. The nurses were required to put a special bandage on it to stop it from gushing. Also, while nursing DD, she turned a very deep blue! It was really scary but she quickly regained her color after being pulled from the breast and getting oxygen. She was subsequently inspected by the neonatal doctor and given a clean bill of health. We spent about 3 or 4 hours in the recovery room waiting for a room to be ready. During which time all seemed well again.
Right after moving into the recovery room, while swaddled and in the little "bassinet" DD turned blue again! This time in full view of both the L&D nurse and the PP nurse. They subsequently whisked her off to the NICU taking DH with them. They left me alone on my gurney in a dark room. It was really scary. Evidently she had another incident in the NICU in full view of the nurses and pediatrician there. I wasn't even able to go see her for 5 hours because the effects of the spinal had not fully worn off yet. :(
I finally got to see her and eventually worked up to nursing her 4 times a day, interspersed by 4 formula feedings by the NICU nurses. During that time, they ran about every test they could. They ran blood tests to rule out infection and metabolic disorders. They did an EKG to rule out heart problems. They did an ultrasound of her head to look for bleeding and trauma. Every test came back negative. They finally concluded that it was either a seizure or a "newborn reflex" of some sort that prevented her from being able to breathe. The watched and kept her for a full 5 days before they determined she was healthy enough to be released.
In the meantime, I was able to feed her every 3 hours. My milk came in thankfully and she has proved to be a really calm, mellow and easy baby. I was released from the hospital a day before she was but they let me stay in the PP ward anyway. I no longer had nurse visits but I had a private room and meals three times a day. It was really a blessing to be near her.
We finally made it home. But not for long. DD continues to be healthy but the day I went home, my c-section scar started bleeding bright red and rather profusely. I had to go into the ER as it was now the weekend. The ER doctor was only slightly concerned with my bleeding section of my scar. However, he was much more concerned with the OTHER half of the scar which had essentially not fused together. It turned out to be a huge blessing that I bled because I might not otherwise have come in!
So, now I have to go to a special "wound care" specialist every single day. When I first started on Monday (and this is the TMI part) there was a trough shaped gap on my left side between portions of skin that should have joined that was 7 cm long, 4 cm wide!! and nearly 4 cm deep. It is pretty freaky looking. I happily decided at that point to stop overdoing it and let my friends and family take care of me. Wound care is using a technique to grow the skin together and it actually seems to be working. The width has been reduced to almost nothing and the depth is almost half what it was. I'm watching new skin grow before my eyes. It is kind of crazy!
I still hurt and have to take it easy. Fortunately DD is a very easy baby, DH has stepped up marvelously, friends have been amazing and my spirits are still okay.
In a weird way I still feel fortunate and blessed even in my two scary episodes. I feel blessed that DD turned blue early, before we spent the long night alone together. My hospital has a 100% rooming in policy. So even though I was confined to my bed I would have been alone with DD in the dark, just a few hours later. I shudder to think I might have missed noticing her change colors! Also, had my scar not bled I don't know when I would have noticed the problem with my scar. The ER doc asked me about my next visit--it wasn't scheduled until my 6 wk PP appointment! The bleeding was a relatively small issue (a hole in my skin so not minor but not nearly as severe as my "trough") but it brought me to the people that could help. So even in my difficulties I feel the hand of God and feel the blessings of my friends and family and even the BBB.
It has been hard to get on here to type although easier to read on my phone. I did want to tell my story. I felt like you guys had been "with" me for this pregnancy and deserved an update. I'm grateful for the kindness and wisdom of the BBB!
Monday, Nov. 4 I went in for a 4th c-section. This one was scheduled and went pretty much according to plan. My fourth child and first girl, Lucy Helen was born at 10:31 a.m. and seemed bright and healthy. The c-section took awhile but no longer than usual.
The first sign of anything amiss was in the recovery room where my section wouldn't stop bleeding. The nurses were required to put a special bandage on it to stop it from gushing. Also, while nursing DD, she turned a very deep blue! It was really scary but she quickly regained her color after being pulled from the breast and getting oxygen. She was subsequently inspected by the neonatal doctor and given a clean bill of health. We spent about 3 or 4 hours in the recovery room waiting for a room to be ready. During which time all seemed well again.
Right after moving into the recovery room, while swaddled and in the little "bassinet" DD turned blue again! This time in full view of both the L&D nurse and the PP nurse. They subsequently whisked her off to the NICU taking DH with them. They left me alone on my gurney in a dark room. It was really scary. Evidently she had another incident in the NICU in full view of the nurses and pediatrician there. I wasn't even able to go see her for 5 hours because the effects of the spinal had not fully worn off yet. :(
I finally got to see her and eventually worked up to nursing her 4 times a day, interspersed by 4 formula feedings by the NICU nurses. During that time, they ran about every test they could. They ran blood tests to rule out infection and metabolic disorders. They did an EKG to rule out heart problems. They did an ultrasound of her head to look for bleeding and trauma. Every test came back negative. They finally concluded that it was either a seizure or a "newborn reflex" of some sort that prevented her from being able to breathe. The watched and kept her for a full 5 days before they determined she was healthy enough to be released.
In the meantime, I was able to feed her every 3 hours. My milk came in thankfully and she has proved to be a really calm, mellow and easy baby. I was released from the hospital a day before she was but they let me stay in the PP ward anyway. I no longer had nurse visits but I had a private room and meals three times a day. It was really a blessing to be near her.
We finally made it home. But not for long. DD continues to be healthy but the day I went home, my c-section scar started bleeding bright red and rather profusely. I had to go into the ER as it was now the weekend. The ER doctor was only slightly concerned with my bleeding section of my scar. However, he was much more concerned with the OTHER half of the scar which had essentially not fused together. It turned out to be a huge blessing that I bled because I might not otherwise have come in!
So, now I have to go to a special "wound care" specialist every single day. When I first started on Monday (and this is the TMI part) there was a trough shaped gap on my left side between portions of skin that should have joined that was 7 cm long, 4 cm wide!! and nearly 4 cm deep. It is pretty freaky looking. I happily decided at that point to stop overdoing it and let my friends and family take care of me. Wound care is using a technique to grow the skin together and it actually seems to be working. The width has been reduced to almost nothing and the depth is almost half what it was. I'm watching new skin grow before my eyes. It is kind of crazy!
I still hurt and have to take it easy. Fortunately DD is a very easy baby, DH has stepped up marvelously, friends have been amazing and my spirits are still okay.
In a weird way I still feel fortunate and blessed even in my two scary episodes. I feel blessed that DD turned blue early, before we spent the long night alone together. My hospital has a 100% rooming in policy. So even though I was confined to my bed I would have been alone with DD in the dark, just a few hours later. I shudder to think I might have missed noticing her change colors! Also, had my scar not bled I don't know when I would have noticed the problem with my scar. The ER doc asked me about my next visit--it wasn't scheduled until my 6 wk PP appointment! The bleeding was a relatively small issue (a hole in my skin so not minor but not nearly as severe as my "trough") but it brought me to the people that could help. So even in my difficulties I feel the hand of God and feel the blessings of my friends and family and even the BBB.
It has been hard to get on here to type although easier to read on my phone. I did want to tell my story. I felt like you guys had been "with" me for this pregnancy and deserved an update. I'm grateful for the kindness and wisdom of the BBB!