Hopefully these will work.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Sunday, June 24, 2007
One week later
Sorry that it took so long to update. This week has been a blur.
It really was labor and I skipped over the contractions every 15 minutes and the part where you go to the hospital when your contractions are every 3 to 4 minutes apart for at least an hour. When we left for the hospital at about 2:00am the contractions were 2 minutes apart and lasting 45 to 50 seconds (so I got about a minute breather in between). Unfortunately, when the resident checked me I was 20% effaced, but not dilated at all. So, we hung out in the triage room on the fetal monitor for a couple of hours and I walked around a little and breathed through my contractions since the pain was only about a 2 to 3 out of 10. It did get up to a 4 by the time the resident checked me again at 5:30am, but breathing was working well.
Still no progress as far as dilation went at 5:30am. The resident called Dr. Byrne and she said that we could either go home or wait until she came in about 7:30 or 8:00am. We live very close to the hospital, but at that point it was easier to just stay. Thankfully, they moved us out of the triage room into a labor room with a better bed and a chair that pulled out so that we could try to sleep. My last day at work had been Saturday morning, so by this point I'd been up for about 22 hours and Tony wasn't far behind me since he'd installed the floor in the kitchen that day. I don't feel like I slept, but I must have for at leat half an hour. The contractions got up to a 4 to 5 on the pain scale. I could still breathe through them, if I knelt down on the bed with my head on my hands or I stood and leaned forward onto the bed. The anesthesiologist, Dr. Brzkowski (I'm certain I spelled it wrong) actually came in before Dr. Byrne, just to touch base on anesthetic techniques in case a c-section would be needed.
Dr. Byrne came in and checked me about 8:30am. 2 centimeters dilation (not a whole lot, but progress) and 80% effacement. We discussed options and risks, given the baby's size, and decided to wait and check me again in a few hours. If I was progressing, great. If not, then we would skip cervical softening and pitocin and just move to c-section. I was allowed to move around the room, an IV of lactated ringers was started and I was officially admitted to the hospital. The next few hours were actually OK. Breathing did the job. The contractions did get stronger, but sitting on a birthing ball helped a lot. The rocking chair and sitting/laying in bed did not. Walking was good, too. We listened to cds and played Blockus and waited for our parents to arrive. I didn't want to risk slowing anything down with an epidural. The monitors looked good except for three instances when the baby's heart rate dropped along with or right after a contraction. The nurse, Chris, told us they were also monitoring and not to worry just yet. At 12:30 Dr. Byrne came back. There had been no progress. We opted for the c-section rather than risking further distress or a shoulder dystocia with pitocin.
Grayson Christopher was delivered at 1:52pm on Father's Day, June 17. The cord was wrapped twice around his neck and he had meconium, but he was still able to let out some good yells and his APGAR scores were 7 and 9. Tony cut the cord and even peeked over the sheet once during surgery. Dr. Brzkowski used a spinal block with bupivicaine, fentanyl and morphine and it worked beautifully.
It really was labor and I skipped over the contractions every 15 minutes and the part where you go to the hospital when your contractions are every 3 to 4 minutes apart for at least an hour. When we left for the hospital at about 2:00am the contractions were 2 minutes apart and lasting 45 to 50 seconds (so I got about a minute breather in between). Unfortunately, when the resident checked me I was 20% effaced, but not dilated at all. So, we hung out in the triage room on the fetal monitor for a couple of hours and I walked around a little and breathed through my contractions since the pain was only about a 2 to 3 out of 10. It did get up to a 4 by the time the resident checked me again at 5:30am, but breathing was working well.
Still no progress as far as dilation went at 5:30am. The resident called Dr. Byrne and she said that we could either go home or wait until she came in about 7:30 or 8:00am. We live very close to the hospital, but at that point it was easier to just stay. Thankfully, they moved us out of the triage room into a labor room with a better bed and a chair that pulled out so that we could try to sleep. My last day at work had been Saturday morning, so by this point I'd been up for about 22 hours and Tony wasn't far behind me since he'd installed the floor in the kitchen that day. I don't feel like I slept, but I must have for at leat half an hour. The contractions got up to a 4 to 5 on the pain scale. I could still breathe through them, if I knelt down on the bed with my head on my hands or I stood and leaned forward onto the bed. The anesthesiologist, Dr. Brzkowski (I'm certain I spelled it wrong) actually came in before Dr. Byrne, just to touch base on anesthetic techniques in case a c-section would be needed.
Dr. Byrne came in and checked me about 8:30am. 2 centimeters dilation (not a whole lot, but progress) and 80% effacement. We discussed options and risks, given the baby's size, and decided to wait and check me again in a few hours. If I was progressing, great. If not, then we would skip cervical softening and pitocin and just move to c-section. I was allowed to move around the room, an IV of lactated ringers was started and I was officially admitted to the hospital. The next few hours were actually OK. Breathing did the job. The contractions did get stronger, but sitting on a birthing ball helped a lot. The rocking chair and sitting/laying in bed did not. Walking was good, too. We listened to cds and played Blockus and waited for our parents to arrive. I didn't want to risk slowing anything down with an epidural. The monitors looked good except for three instances when the baby's heart rate dropped along with or right after a contraction. The nurse, Chris, told us they were also monitoring and not to worry just yet. At 12:30 Dr. Byrne came back. There had been no progress. We opted for the c-section rather than risking further distress or a shoulder dystocia with pitocin.
Grayson Christopher was delivered at 1:52pm on Father's Day, June 17. The cord was wrapped twice around his neck and he had meconium, but he was still able to let out some good yells and his APGAR scores were 7 and 9. Tony cut the cord and even peeked over the sheet once during surgery. Dr. Brzkowski used a spinal block with bupivicaine, fentanyl and morphine and it worked beautifully.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Having a Baby
This may be a false alarm, but I certainly can't sleep through the action going on in my belly every minute or two. Not excruciating yet, but probably time to go soon.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
How Big Am I?
We've not been good about posting pictures on this blog, but I think that perhaps today's adventure will illustrate well.
This is not a safe or responsible activity and I promise not to repeat it.
On the way home from the mall today, I set my Orange Julius cup on my belly while at a stoplight. It sat there quite nicely with no support from my hands. It remained there, quite stable, while I drove for a little bit and then pulled to a complete stop at a stop sign. At this point, adulthood reasserted itself and the drink went back into the cupholder. Please don't try this at home (but isn't it just a little bit cool that my belly is actually a functional table?).
This is not a safe or responsible activity and I promise not to repeat it.
On the way home from the mall today, I set my Orange Julius cup on my belly while at a stoplight. It sat there quite nicely with no support from my hands. It remained there, quite stable, while I drove for a little bit and then pulled to a complete stop at a stop sign. At this point, adulthood reasserted itself and the drink went back into the cupholder. Please don't try this at home (but isn't it just a little bit cool that my belly is actually a functional table?).
Saturday, June 09, 2007
Nine months isn't enough
Sorry to have been a bit neglectful, things are moving fast around here!
The Illinois shower was wonderful! We enjoyed relaxing with Mom and Dad and spending time with family and friends that we don't get to see very often. With all the onsies that were made, little Pois will be well turned out for the summer! It was a good last road trip. We had a really nice shower through my office last weekend. The food was great, Pois got more wonderful gifts and the weather almost cooperated such that we could swim.
The kitchen is kicking into high gear, too. The insulation is installed, the drywall is mudded (though I won't bore anyone with grumbles about the unreliable drywaller) and Tony and Sandi are hoping to get everything ready to paint this weekend. I'm trying to hide from the dust at the other end of the house.
Pois is doing great. Quite literally. At the the ultrasound with the maternal-fetal health specialist yesterday the weight estimate was 9 pounds 5 ounces. She says that there is about a 10-15% margin of error which puts the baby between 8.5 and 10.25 pounds. So, we probably won't be waiting another two weeks for the due date. I'm meeting with Dr. Cavallo, the obstetrician, on Wednesday and we're going to figure out the plan, then. There's not much concern for the baby, but there is some concern for getting the baby out of me. He's had some concerns from the beginning based on the bone structure of my pelvic canal. My guess is that we'll have a ceasarian scheduled for late next week or early the following one. Tony and I are both working on giving up the image of labor, just in case. It's actually hard to do. I had looked forward to going through the process and learning what my process would be. Tony would be a great coach. There's still a chance, but whatever is going to be the safest for Pois will be the best. I just have to wait until Wednesday to find out.
The Illinois shower was wonderful! We enjoyed relaxing with Mom and Dad and spending time with family and friends that we don't get to see very often. With all the onsies that were made, little Pois will be well turned out for the summer! It was a good last road trip. We had a really nice shower through my office last weekend. The food was great, Pois got more wonderful gifts and the weather almost cooperated such that we could swim.
The kitchen is kicking into high gear, too. The insulation is installed, the drywall is mudded (though I won't bore anyone with grumbles about the unreliable drywaller) and Tony and Sandi are hoping to get everything ready to paint this weekend. I'm trying to hide from the dust at the other end of the house.
Pois is doing great. Quite literally. At the the ultrasound with the maternal-fetal health specialist yesterday the weight estimate was 9 pounds 5 ounces. She says that there is about a 10-15% margin of error which puts the baby between 8.5 and 10.25 pounds. So, we probably won't be waiting another two weeks for the due date. I'm meeting with Dr. Cavallo, the obstetrician, on Wednesday and we're going to figure out the plan, then. There's not much concern for the baby, but there is some concern for getting the baby out of me. He's had some concerns from the beginning based on the bone structure of my pelvic canal. My guess is that we'll have a ceasarian scheduled for late next week or early the following one. Tony and I are both working on giving up the image of labor, just in case. It's actually hard to do. I had looked forward to going through the process and learning what my process would be. Tony would be a great coach. There's still a chance, but whatever is going to be the safest for Pois will be the best. I just have to wait until Wednesday to find out.
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