Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to this. Having a newborn and a three year old takes up quite a bit of my time, not to mention my brain function required for writing. So, here's a quick recap of how my little guy came into this world.
A few months into my pregnancy, my iron level started to drop. I had been treated for anemia in the past, so I wasn't really all that surprised. But even with eating more iron-rich foods and taking iron supplements, my iron level kept dropping. Eventually, my anemia got so bad that I was sent to L&D triage for IV iron infusions twice a week for two weeks. On the day of my last scheduled infusion (8/13), while I was getting my non-stress test and iron IV, my blood pressure was a bit high, so the nurse told my OB, and he ordered urine and blood tests to check for pre-eclampsia (since I had it last time). Well, my urine came back clean, but my blood showed that my potassium level was "critically low." It also showed that the iron infusions had done absolutely nothing to improve my iron levels.
So, I was admitted to the Antepartum unit so I could be given potassium in my IV. Let me tell you that if you've never had that done, the potassium burns like hell going into your veins. While I was getting that done, my OB ordered a 24-hour urine collection to test for pre-eclampsia since a single urine sample may not show that there really is protein being thrown out. The potassium didn't increase my levels like the docs wanted, so they had to keep giving me more and more of it (and I pigged out on bananas the whole time, too).
Eventually, my 24-hour urine results came back and showed that I did indeed have pre-eclampsia, though it was not nearly as severe as it had been when I was pregnant with Katie, so my doc decided that they would induce my labor when I reached 37 weeks on Tuesday, the 18th. My potassium level did eventually get back to normal, and my BP didn't go completely crazy, so everything looked like it would be smooth sailing when the time came.
We were all completely WRONG about that! Apparently, my body just did not want to cooperate with anything. Even though I delivered my last two babies within two hours of my water breaking, this time, my cervix just didn't want to cooperate at all. And my epidurals (that's right - plural because I had more than one) did absolutely nothing to relieve the excruciating pain I was in. I had never felt pain like that in my entire life, and I was literally begging for death. That is, when I wasn't passed out and not breathing - scary, I know.
Anyhow, the pain was so horrible that I was vomiting, or really mostly dry-heaving, from it with just about every contraction. When I finally got fully dilated, the nurses told me not to push because we had to wait for the OB to get there. (The one who was supposed to be delivering was stuck in a c-section, so they had to call another one from the office down the block.) But, once they got me turned onto my back so I could get into position to push, I started vomiting uncontrollably. And the force of my vomiting pushed my baby's head right on out. Since he was already half way out, I had to go ahead and push him the rest of the way out before the doc ever got there, and thankfully, it only took one actually push to do that.
As soon as he was out, the pain was almost 100% gone. I was amazed at the difference it made. I instantly felt human again. I was thoroughly exhausted and quite a bit in shock from the whole experience, but felt so much better than I had been feeling.
David Christopher was born, thus relieving my misery, at 1:39 pm on Tuesday, August 18th, and is perfect in every way.
Oh, and my iron level was back to normal before we left the hospital the next day, thus confirming my theory that the baby was actually sucking the life out of me.
And now, for your viewing pleasure, I give you the official hospital photos of my gorgeous baby boy.
