Audrey's Delivery from E's Perspective

So I thought I'd share/document my perspective and a little more info on how things went for Audrey's birth yesterday. I was scheduled for a c-section at noon yesterday, so we arrived at the hospital at 10. They hooked me up to the monitors, and we quickly discovered that I was having pretty regular contractions. On Monday I had made zero progress towards labor, so it was decided that a repeat c-section was the way to go this time. Given the change in progress, we waited a little while to see how labor progressed. When the doctor arrived to check me we discussed our options and opted to go ahead with the c-section and finally meet our little girl.

At noon they wheeled me to the operating room where I was given my spinal block/epidural. Then Ross was allowed to join me in the room, and the surgery began. Audrey McKenzie Taylor was born at 12:31 PM, and baby and Dad were whisked away to the nursery while the doctor and nurses wrapped up the surgery.

Just after they wrapped everything up and my doctor headed out, I started feeling awful. I was very nauseous and sick feeling in general. I could tell my awesome nurse was concerned about something too by the way she was looking at another nurse that had assisted in the surgery. She very quickly called for my doctor to come back, and in the mean time I was given some medicine to help counter my low blood pressure. They decided to wheel me back to my room and monitor me for a little while. I was covered with a "bear hugger" to try to bring up my body temperature, and they checked and rechecked my blood pressure, temp, etc. while they also kept pushing on my belly. Ross was back in the room when I arrived, which was a huge comfort to me.

After about 20 minutes or so they decided they should open me back up just to be sure nothing was wrong. I was quickly wheeled back to the operating room and everything was re-prepped. It felt like I was in there for an eternity. At this point I didn't know what they had discovered, but I heard my doctor request another well known specialist doctor to come assist him, which was when I got a little nervous...I trust my doctor completely, so I wasn't worried until he sounded worried. That doctor didn't end up making it before they got everything taken care of and were able to explain what happened. Apparently an artery in my uterus had separated and ruptured in an unexpected area. My doctor was able to repair everything and remove the lost blood. They determined I'd lost 3 liters of blood during the course of the procedures and requested 2 liters of blood be transfused to me.

When I returned to the room they continued to work on bringing up my body temp and ensuring there was no more internal bleeding. I was shaking uncontrollably, which many people who've had babies know is part of the process of recovering. It wasn't until I finally got to hold Audrey that my body calmed down...that was a pretty neat feeling.

I have been recovering quickly and pretty well. I was allowed to eat solid foods late yesterday evening and was up and walking around this morning. My epidural is expected to come out tomorrow, and we are supposed to go home on Saturday.

Jackson came to visit yesterday and today, and he is SO sweet with Audrey. He gives her the most gentle hugs and kisses and seems genuinely excited about the baby. When I was pregnant and you asked Jackson where baby Audrey was, he would point to my belly and give it a kiss. Yesterday we asked him where baby Audrey was, and he walked over to her, pointed, and gave her a kiss...too sweet! Today Jackson held her for the first time, and this is what he did...

All of the grandparents have been here to meet Audrey and help take care of JD while we are at the hospital. Jackson is really enjoying the time with them.

First Night

We have made it through the first night. Mom and baby are both doing well. Audrey has nursed pretty well and E has been able to eat a bit and is looking forward to breakfast. I've updated the ticker at the top for Audrey on the main blog page now that we finally get to count up! I'll try to get some more pictures today.

First Picture

Here she is:

Elizabeth is recovering well and Audrey is doing great! She is currently with the pediatrician.

Doing fine

I just talked to the doctor and E is doing fine. She had some internally bleeding that they patched up and she should be out soon. Audrey's temp is up and hopefully we will be able to bring mom and baby together soon.

Back in the OR

E came out of the OR but was bleeding more than they would like so she has gone back in to get checked out. The doctor didn't seem too concerned and almost didn't go back but wanted to be on the safe side.

Audrey McKenzie Taylor

Born 3/10/10 at 12:31 pm. 8 lb 3 oz. 19.5 in long. Pictures coming soon. E hasn't come out of the OR yet.

OR

E has gone in...I'm waiting to join her. She was progressing a little@but not really in labor so she decided to go ahead with the c-section.

Hospital

We are at the hospital for Audrey's birth. E has been having a few contractions and the doctor will probably check her progress when he gets here but chances are we will be going into the operating room in about an hour for a c-section at about noon. They are getting her all prepped right now.

Status Update

Elizabeth just got out of the shower and is feeling quite well. They took out her epidural and IV early this morning and she's been up and about with very little pain. She's been eating well and is pretty much ready to get out of here. Jackson is also doing great! The pediatrician came by and declared him fit to go home so if the OB approves, we may head home today.

E with Jackson

Really! I promise that is Jackson balled up in those blankets. Well, at least you can see that E is now able to sit up. She has also done some walking today and should lose her epidural tonight. All in all, things are going quite well as we prepare to go home on Sunday.

While Elizabeth is great to look at, I guess I'll give you another Jackson pic as well.

Jackson is here!

Mom and baby are doing well. It was a very quick and successful c-section by Dr. Klein. It turns out that Jackson's umbilical cord was only about a foot long (compared to roughly 3 feet normally) so the c-section was absolutely the right decision. Jackson is being warmed up in the nursery right now and should be down for E to hold him pretty soon.

He is 7 lb 5 oz and 20 in. Pictures are coming as soon as possible.

Epidural

They went ahead and gave E an epidural. She is a lot more comfortable now, which is good but I think the main reason they did it is to be prepared for a c-section if necessary. They are trying everything to keep that from happening though. They think that he is turned sideways which is putting extra pressure on him and slowing things down. They are having E try various positions as well as giving her oxygen to try to keep his heart rate up. So far, things are looking pretty good since the last change.

It's pretty amazing how many monitors, tubes, etc they put on a perfectly healthy woman. We are now monitoring both heart rates, E's BP, and contractions. She also has a couple of IV drips, the epidural, and oxygen. Whatever it takes though!

By the way, I realized that the times on the previous two posts were wrong. I updated them to my best guess but they are still probably a little off...hopefully, this one will work right.

Fetal monitoring

Dr. LeBlanc put a fetal monitor in because Jackson's heart rate is dropping during contractions. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but they want to be able to accurately monitor the timing. They are also prepping E for an epidural because the pain is pretty severe and they want her to be ready for a c-section if necessary. She is 2 cm dilated and 90% effaced.

Saw the doctor

Dr. Klein stopped by and verified that E's water is broken, she is a "loose 1 cm" dilated, and about 80% effaced. He said there was a dramatic difference from yesterday so things are looking good!

Hospital

We're in! We didn't have any problem getting a room since E thinks her water is broken. They are getting her all set up right now. She is still only 1 cm dilated but they can't tell for sure if her water is broken (yet?).

Labor

Elizabeth is in labor! It started at about 2 am but has gotten intense quickly. It is now 5:30 am and her contractions are ~5 min apart and 1 min long. At about 5 til 5, she called the doctor to see if she should go in. About 5 min later she got a call from the hospital to see if she could wait until 8 to come in for induction because they don't have any beds available. We haven't heard back from the doctor yet but this is not very encouraging.