Non-Birth Story

I’m embarrassed to be sitting at home typing on my computer. But I have some explaining to do… apparently! This morning we awoke earlier than our summer usual and got the kids fed and dressed and shipped off to my friend’s house for the day. Then Mr. Man and I headed to the hospital for the next four hours.

After filling out all the paperwork and answering a kajillion questions (I don’t know why I did that whole “pre-registration packet” – can you imagine if I’d truly been in labor?)… I finally was hooked up to my IV. The nasty nurse used her teeth to pull off the cap and her spit sprayed on my upper arm. I don’t know if it was that or the fact that she dug that thing around in my arm searching aimlessly for a vein, but I suddenly got quite nauseous and felt like I was going to pass out. I informed the nasty nurse of my state and she told me to roll onto my side, assuming I was reacting to watching the needle. I have no problems with needles… but I felt terrible, and she kept talking about how the IV may or may not work and I should watch my arm carefully for a big bubble to swell up and any redness or pain in which case she would have to re-do it. Then she started telling some story about taking her cat to the vet and how his IV or needle made him swell up “this big” and yada yada yada. I think I was mostly hungry and her digging around made me react a bit wimpily!

I waited another hour after the IV questioning why I wasn’t yet hooked up to pitocin. I was told they had to wait for my doctor to come since I’d previously had a c-section and it was required for him to be in the hospital or his office (which is close enough) so I could be closely monitored. I told them I didn’t think he was aware of this since he had told me they would start me on pitocin right away and he would come by to check on me and perhaps break my waters at noon. They called him, and I waited.

Trust me the wait was longer than my telling of it…

Soon a lab technician came to take my blood. Or at least try. I must be having vein issues all over my body or something. She tried in my arm once, my hand twice and then my doctor showed up as she was calling her supervisor and thankfully he decided to help her out. Of course he got it on the first try, and commented that if he ever decides to stop delivering babies he may start drawing blood!

After she left, he checked me and then sat down with a serious expression saying that there had been a change in plans.

Apparently he called another OB/GYN this morning to discuss my case and found that another hospital (one for high-risk pregnancies) had just started a new regulation where they no longer perform VBAC inductions under any circumstance, and he was going to be following that regulation also. The risk for uterine rupture is too great and my guess is that there has been a recent incident and the lawyer fees and insurance went up significantly. My Doctor said he felt terrible not having this information yesterday, and actually admitted that he had forgotten that I’d had a c-section for my first birth. (I was actually induced with my second too!) We talked for a while and he told me I had two options. 1) I could have a c-section within the hour, or 2) I could go home and hope to go into labor on my own before I hit 42 weeks and HAVE to have a c-section. Mr. Man and I talked for a while alone and decided we would go home. Mostly because I hadn’t come in expecting to have a c-section, and knowing how my postpartum depression was after Big J and THAT unexpected c-section, we decided that even if that’s the route we end up having to take, I needed to get into that mindset… and we’d need some family support to help with the kids too! My doctor was a bit surprised by our decision – I mean I had the IV in and everything and was expecting to HAVE a baby! I guess I’m getting so used to my timeline being messed up, that it wasn’t as traumatic as expected. Disappointing to no end, and a bit alarming that I may have another c-section (which I HATED!), but survivable. I need to go in every two days for a sonogram and non-stress test to make sure my placenta and baby are with me in my attempt to wait this out, and I only hope that I can have a safe delivery and healthy baby at the end of next week. I mean, you can’t be pregnant forever can you?!

So trick or treat, I’m not sure which… but we spent the 100 degree afternoon weather at the pool , I devoured most of the rest of the chocolaty mud pie from my birthday and my sweet friend took me out for Mexican tonight… not a bad ending to a sort of miserable morning! I’m keeping on my bracelet so that the blood that was drawn (and is still good for the next 72 hours) may not have to be sucked out of me again if I happen to go in soon. My arms and hand are all bruised up from incompetent nurses, and I’m still 35 pounds overweight… but life goes on and I got 11 comments from yesterday’s post; so it must also be good!