On May 2nd 2008 Ruby Anne Weidenbach entered the world at 8:40pm weighing 6lbs 8ozs, 19 1/2 inches long. She came via C-Section due to slow labor and my Pre-eclampsia. I had Blood Pressure that was out of control and the only cure was to have her!
Here is a blog I previously wrote that I titled it as "A Baby Story":
Here is how it all went down...
Monday April 27th I went to my regular OB appt all to find out I gained 10 lbs in 2 weeks and had a blood pressure rate of 165/110. My Dr was concerned for the Pre-Eclampsia because I've have High Blood Pressure off & on during the pregnancy. Up until that point I only gained 16 lbs, so the 10 lbs had my Dr concerned. After he had finished with my Group B Strep test (which I did pass), I was sent to Labor & Delivery to be monitored overnight. My Blood Pressure went down and they sent me home Tuesday morning. I was now to be monitored with Dr visits in his office every few days, it was pointless to keep me in the hospital. After this visit I finally decided to pack my bag since the "I" word Induce was being thrown around loosely.
My next Dr appt was set for Thursday, May 1st. (My bag was now packed and waiting in the kitchen just in case I don't return from this appt) The nurse took me to the patient room and did the routine check-up, took my pee and checked the Blood Pressure. My Dr came in and didn't look excited. His exact words were "Do I have to take your Blood Pressure myself?!" He checked it himself and said for me to go back to Labor & Delivery he didn't even tell me what the Blood Pressure rate was this time. I get to L&D at 10:30am and got strapped down again. This time my BP wasn't going back down. At 2:30pm my Dr decided I was going to be induced (this was music to my ears) and my last meal would be at 3pm. I had my final supper and was given a cervix softener at 4pm. I was restricted to my bed for the next 2 hours. While watching Survivor, I could feel mild cramping and looked over to the monitor to see if these were contractions and they were! My Dr ordered for another softener to be placed at 10pm if nothing happened but we were making progress. At 2am I was given my fist of many bags of pitocin. Then I quickly asked for some relief medicine because I wasn't getting sleep and the BP cuff was keeping me awake from it going off every 30 mins. Whatever miracle drug she gave me worked, it was zonked for 4 hours, then she came back around 4am to give me a second dose. I was now a happy camper.
It's now 7am and my Dr is in my room in the flesh checking out our progress. He was amazed I had zipped to 80% effaced and 2cm dilated from being closed shut the night before. He went ahead and broke my water and ordered my epidural to be placed. He asked for my epidural early due to the medicine making blood pressure drop fast. He wanted it to be placed as a slow drip, if it went in too fast too late in labor, my BP & Ruby's BP could drop and cause stress on both of us. My laboring was now pain-free, my legs weren't numb, they had a tingle. Enough to take the pain away. Every 2 hours I as being checked for progress and it was now slowing down. From 2pm to 6pm I was stuck at 4cm and 80% effaced. Ruby's head was still high up and wasn't really ready for placement. My Dr suggested a C-Section but I really wasn't wanting to be cut open. He let me go for another 2 hours and if I made new progress I can continue on going natural. It's now 8pm and I had made no progress, it was time for my C-Section. I'm wheeled away and placed on the table and strapped down as if I was being crucified. When they placed the blue sheet up above my face, I had a freak out moment because it was falling onto my face and I could move it. I was getting very claustrophobic, I wanted to rip my arm out of the restraint and move it but I couldn't. I felt helpless. Kevin was finally brought into the room to sit next to me and I calmed down.
It felt like an eternity but they finally pushed down onto my stomach and out came Ruby at 8:40pm. 6 lbs 8 ozs and 19 1/2 inches long. They brought her around the corner of the blue sheet and placed her on the warmer table. I heard a few faint cries and asked Kevin the only thing that came to my mind. "Is it still a girl?!" I heard the whole room laugh then. As Ruby was lying under the heating lamp I could barely see her from being doped up on all the pain meds since I was feeling discomfort. All I remember was her lying there, arms and legs spread out as if she was sun tanning and not making a sound. I heard counting in the background and assumed they were counting fingers and toes and doing her Apgar test. Kevin later told me they were accounting for all the tools and rags used in the C-Section to make sure they have been removed from me before they stitched me up. I'm glad nothing has been left behind. Kevin was whisked away by the nurses to change and let the family know how it went. It now felt like another eternity being stitched up.
I felt a huge sigh of relief being rolled into my room. After Kevin fed her the first bottle I was finally able to hold her for the first time. I'll be damned if visitors held her before I could! The visitors came in 2 by 2 and it was now over. Ruby was given her first bath and passed her hearing test. She slept the whole night through. The nurses fed and changed her when they took her for testing.
She is now 8 days old and has had her moments. Today she threw up Exorcist style, 2 nights ago she was wide awake screaming for 1 1/2 hours, 12:30am to 2am. I made sure Kevin woke up at the end since I was getting tired, by turning the bedroom lights on all the way since he slept and snored through her crying. He then took her and they cuddled on the couch for 2 hours, both fast asleep. Other than that, she sleeps well during the day. We have been every where, everyday.
Our 2nd day home we had to take her for her Bilirubin test, we then went to Kevin's Mom's work, then to my Mom's work and had lunch. She slept through everything including her blood draw. Day 3 home, we had to repeat the Bilirubin test and she slept through that again. We had a office appt for life insurance which took and hour and she slept through that again along with another visit to my Mom's work for lunch. Day 4 I had to go back to my OB to have my staples removed and we visited my co-workers, she slept through that too. Day 5, Friday, we went shopping for her and garden supplies, then had lunch at Subway, which she also slept through. I'm happy she doesn't act the way she does at home, out in public. I guess we will see what tomorrow brings...
Here is a blog I previously wrote that I titled it as "A Baby Story":
Here is how it all went down...
Monday April 27th I went to my regular OB appt all to find out I gained 10 lbs in 2 weeks and had a blood pressure rate of 165/110. My Dr was concerned for the Pre-Eclampsia because I've have High Blood Pressure off & on during the pregnancy. Up until that point I only gained 16 lbs, so the 10 lbs had my Dr concerned. After he had finished with my Group B Strep test (which I did pass), I was sent to Labor & Delivery to be monitored overnight. My Blood Pressure went down and they sent me home Tuesday morning. I was now to be monitored with Dr visits in his office every few days, it was pointless to keep me in the hospital. After this visit I finally decided to pack my bag since the "I" word Induce was being thrown around loosely.
My next Dr appt was set for Thursday, May 1st. (My bag was now packed and waiting in the kitchen just in case I don't return from this appt) The nurse took me to the patient room and did the routine check-up, took my pee and checked the Blood Pressure. My Dr came in and didn't look excited. His exact words were "Do I have to take your Blood Pressure myself?!" He checked it himself and said for me to go back to Labor & Delivery he didn't even tell me what the Blood Pressure rate was this time. I get to L&D at 10:30am and got strapped down again. This time my BP wasn't going back down. At 2:30pm my Dr decided I was going to be induced (this was music to my ears) and my last meal would be at 3pm. I had my final supper and was given a cervix softener at 4pm. I was restricted to my bed for the next 2 hours. While watching Survivor, I could feel mild cramping and looked over to the monitor to see if these were contractions and they were! My Dr ordered for another softener to be placed at 10pm if nothing happened but we were making progress. At 2am I was given my fist of many bags of pitocin. Then I quickly asked for some relief medicine because I wasn't getting sleep and the BP cuff was keeping me awake from it going off every 30 mins. Whatever miracle drug she gave me worked, it was zonked for 4 hours, then she came back around 4am to give me a second dose. I was now a happy camper.
It's now 7am and my Dr is in my room in the flesh checking out our progress. He was amazed I had zipped to 80% effaced and 2cm dilated from being closed shut the night before. He went ahead and broke my water and ordered my epidural to be placed. He asked for my epidural early due to the medicine making blood pressure drop fast. He wanted it to be placed as a slow drip, if it went in too fast too late in labor, my BP & Ruby's BP could drop and cause stress on both of us. My laboring was now pain-free, my legs weren't numb, they had a tingle. Enough to take the pain away. Every 2 hours I as being checked for progress and it was now slowing down. From 2pm to 6pm I was stuck at 4cm and 80% effaced. Ruby's head was still high up and wasn't really ready for placement. My Dr suggested a C-Section but I really wasn't wanting to be cut open. He let me go for another 2 hours and if I made new progress I can continue on going natural. It's now 8pm and I had made no progress, it was time for my C-Section. I'm wheeled away and placed on the table and strapped down as if I was being crucified. When they placed the blue sheet up above my face, I had a freak out moment because it was falling onto my face and I could move it. I was getting very claustrophobic, I wanted to rip my arm out of the restraint and move it but I couldn't. I felt helpless. Kevin was finally brought into the room to sit next to me and I calmed down.
It felt like an eternity but they finally pushed down onto my stomach and out came Ruby at 8:40pm. 6 lbs 8 ozs and 19 1/2 inches long. They brought her around the corner of the blue sheet and placed her on the warmer table. I heard a few faint cries and asked Kevin the only thing that came to my mind. "Is it still a girl?!" I heard the whole room laugh then. As Ruby was lying under the heating lamp I could barely see her from being doped up on all the pain meds since I was feeling discomfort. All I remember was her lying there, arms and legs spread out as if she was sun tanning and not making a sound. I heard counting in the background and assumed they were counting fingers and toes and doing her Apgar test. Kevin later told me they were accounting for all the tools and rags used in the C-Section to make sure they have been removed from me before they stitched me up. I'm glad nothing has been left behind. Kevin was whisked away by the nurses to change and let the family know how it went. It now felt like another eternity being stitched up.
I felt a huge sigh of relief being rolled into my room. After Kevin fed her the first bottle I was finally able to hold her for the first time. I'll be damned if visitors held her before I could! The visitors came in 2 by 2 and it was now over. Ruby was given her first bath and passed her hearing test. She slept the whole night through. The nurses fed and changed her when they took her for testing.
She is now 8 days old and has had her moments. Today she threw up Exorcist style, 2 nights ago she was wide awake screaming for 1 1/2 hours, 12:30am to 2am. I made sure Kevin woke up at the end since I was getting tired, by turning the bedroom lights on all the way since he slept and snored through her crying. He then took her and they cuddled on the couch for 2 hours, both fast asleep. Other than that, she sleeps well during the day. We have been every where, everyday.
Our 2nd day home we had to take her for her Bilirubin test, we then went to Kevin's Mom's work, then to my Mom's work and had lunch. She slept through everything including her blood draw. Day 3 home, we had to repeat the Bilirubin test and she slept through that again. We had a office appt for life insurance which took and hour and she slept through that again along with another visit to my Mom's work for lunch. Day 4 I had to go back to my OB to have my staples removed and we visited my co-workers, she slept through that too. Day 5, Friday, we went shopping for her and garden supplies, then had lunch at Subway, which she also slept through. I'm happy she doesn't act the way she does at home, out in public. I guess we will see what tomorrow brings...
No comments:
Post a Comment