I have finally decided to devote the time to giving you all an update. I have been home a whole week now, so I figured it was overdue...or at least due.
So, how did Finnley finally come to join our family? Well, here is a brief recap:all of my tocolytics (anti-contraction meds) were stopped on the Wednesday that I hit 36 weeks
contractions started picking up, but nothing had happened
by Friday morning (two days later), they were becoming stronger and more frequent, but they would back off a bit here and there
by Friday afternoon, the contractions were so strong that I couldn't sit in bed or in a chair...I needed to stand up and rock back and forth and breathe through them
the nurse, who noted that "the doctor will probably not be very anxious to check you" DID agree to hook me up the monitors. Gee...thanks for your compassion.
thank god for a shift change and new nurse! Contractions were hitting the "top of the page" and flatlining across the top. Nice nurse was given orders to have an IV started and to give me up to two doses of brethine.
IV does nothing. Never does. Second shot of brethine finally tames the contractions, but that only lasts until 4am. Nurse thinks baby will be coming soon.
another shift change, and the contractions are ridiculous at this point. Painful. Horrible. Ridiculous. Doc decides to come check me after talking to the nurse.
DILATED TO 5 CM!!! Doc says, "we are having a baby today!" What a relief because the contractions were going to kill me soon.
call the husband. he is going to jump in the shower and come straight over. Arrives to find the nurses directing him to immediately change into his scrubs and follow us over the OR.
spinal is put in...ahhhh, sweet relief from the contractions. Now the nerves kick in as I realize that I am going to be sliced wide open on the other side of the big blue curtain.
lovely joins me in the OR...and at 8:39am Finnley Piper is born. All within an hour and a half of me calling lovely at home. Wow!!! She is 19 inches long and weighs in at 6lbs. 1oz. Not bad, early girl!
wheeled to recovery and baby is taken to the nursery. I have an extended stay in recovery due to high blood pressure issues...WTF??? The previous 2.5 weeks in the hospital I was monitored for low blood pressure, and now it is high?
all tests are normal. given meds to control the BP. finally taken to my room and get to see my daughter.
quickly realize that having a C-section really means you had major abdominal surgery. Really? Try to refuse the Percocet due to its "binding effects", but soon have to give in and take it. Doc says, "there are always a handful of you that try not to take the pain meds. you need the pain meds." Got it doc! You are right, and you win!
blood pressure issues continue. Nurse panics when it hits 199/100. Hmmm...is that high? Now it is a problem exacerbated by a self-fufilling prophecy. You tell me it is high. I am anxious because it is high. I get more anxious every time I hear the BP cart being wheeled toward my room. Problem probably worse than it really is.
regardless, I am put back on Procardia. Doc thinks that taking me off both tocolytics cold-turkey caused a rebound effect and was now causing the opposite problem. Fun! This buys me an extra day in the hospital. Ok. When you feel like dying after surgery, the hospital isn't a bad place to be.
3 weeks after being sent to the hospital, I am finally discharged along with my "impatient to join the world" little girl. The family is whole again and is going home to start a new chapter in their lives.That is how it happened, without adding too many details that no one would care about. So, now that we are home...how goes it, you ask???parenting is better than anyone could ever describe
parenting is more challenging than anyone could ever describe
breastfeeding is hard work. painful, bleeding, cracked nipples in the early days / weeks...wow...not fun. engorged boobs that you swear belong on a slutty porn star and not your body...wow...also not fun. not being able to share the feeding demands of a newborn with anyone else, including during the middle of the night...wow...not fun. benefits that the baby is getting from all of my tortures...priceless. let's hope it is working, and she is putting on weight as she should. We will find out on Friday.
sleep deprivation can cause frustration. and sleepiness. mostly sleepiness.
as of this morning, I am down 14 pounds after having my little peanut. 3 more pounds to hit my post-IVF / beginning of first trimester weight. 7 pounds to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I can live with that.
the dog is still trying to figure out what a "Finnley" is, but he is a lover regardless. Finn has been showered in countless amounts of sloppy pooch kisses. Batman also thinks her diapers smell fascinating. Oh, and he gets scared or shocked every time that he hears her release an explosive poop. It is a funny scene to witness.
lovely makes the most wonderful daddy in the whole world. I already knew he was an amazing man and an outstanding husband...but it is so touching to see him with his daughter. One cannot describe the amount of love that is shared when the two of them are together. Worth every second of every minute that I have endured to get to this point. I love my family.Coming up?I have a post partum OB checkup tomorrow for my blood pressure issues. We will see if I can start to be weaned off the BP meds or not.
orthodontist is actually making a house call tomorrow to change my power bands. should be the last "appointment" prior to the braces coming off.
weight check for Ms. Finn on Friday morning
hip ultrasound for Ms. Finn on Septmber 1st. All breech presentation babies must have this u/s done to check for any dislocation or or damage to the hip joints. Docs think she is fine, but we need to know for sure.
6 week postpartum checkup for me at the OB's officeThat is the long and short of it. Updates will continue and will be more frequent (hopefully) as I recover even more. Can't wait until I feel like "me" again. Or the new version of me...you know, the one with the huge boobs.
