Post Surgery Update
I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get to a computer to type this all out. I will try to break it down day by day so I don't forget anything.
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Around 8AM Jonathon, my Mother-In-Law, and Jonathon's Granny, and I reported to Cincinnati Children's Hospital for the surgery. We were informed that the person who was scheduled to have their surgery in the morning was still going to have it, so I wouldn't be heading back to the OR until around noon. The Fetal Care Center went ahead and admitted me, and gave me a room to wait in. I was put on an IV, and prepped as much as I could be ready when the OR was open. Around 11:30 one of the nurses told me I wouldn't be going down before 1PM because the first surgery was taking longer than expected. However, around 12:30 the nurses came up and said they were ready to take me downstairs.
Once downstairs, Jonathon's Mom and Granny were asked to wait in the OR waiting room, while Jonathon could come back with me until they actually moved me into the OR. Around 1PM I was wheeled into the OR where they gave me an Epidural and then put me under General Anesthesia. The surgery went well. Baby girl was carrying so low that the incision is only from my belly button and about 4-6 inches below that. Normally the incision goes from 1-2 inches above the belly button and down. I remember waking up and seeing Jonathon and the nurses walking with me back to the area I was in before the surgery. I was asked about my pain levels, which weren't much. The nurses thought that was pretty crazy since I'd already started having contractions. Luckily they were able to stop them and stabilize me before I was transported to an area hospital for recovery. The first night was pretty crazy. They put me on Magnesium Sulfate to keep me from contracting, as well as continuing medications in the epidural. The Pediatric Surgeon came to check on me right before bed. He told the nurses to go ahead and start turning down the Magnesium since it was causing me to get so dizzy. I was also started on an oral medication to keep from having contractions as well.
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Thursday was probably the worst day of my life. It started around 6am when I was rushed to be moved from the High Risk room I was in to a Labor and Delivery room. A woman was having triplets and the only room to accommodate her was the room I was in. The magnesium sulfate was still making me dizzy and nauseous. The nurses were worried because I had to look at them with one eye closed, because the room kept spinning. The Doctors agreed to continue to turn down the magnesium drip some more since I wasn't contracting. I was on a strict ice chip only diet, which was really hard because the magnesium kept my mouth dry. I tried facetiming with Savannah and my Sister In Law that night but it was very hard. I also was having a hard time breathing deeply and felt like I couldn't catch my breath. The one good thing about the magnesium though was that it made me sleepy so I had no problems trying to fall asleep when everything was just too much to handle.
Friday, September 20, 2013
Friday I was taken off the magnesium, IV fluids, and epidural medications completely. Although they still kept the IV and Epidural catheter in just in case. As soon as the epidural began to wear off I went ahead and asked for the pain medications. I was also started on a clear liquid diet. I don't think I've ever been so excited to have chicken broth for breakfast! Sometime in the afternoon my oxygen monitor wouldn't stop going off. The nurse told me that I needed to take deep breaths to get my oxygen level back up or she was going to have to put me on oxygen. I kept trying but could never get a deep breath in my lungs. When it wasn't helping, she put me on oxygen and called the Doctor. When the doctor arrived she gave me an examination and determined I had fluid on my lungs. She was concerned something might be wrong, because normally the fluid on the lungs develops (if it's going to) while a patient is on magnesium, not after they have been take off of it. So she ordered an EKG, x-ray, and did a pelvic exam to make sure I wasn't going into labor. Luckily all of the results came back normal. I was also given a dose of medication to get the fluid out of my lungs. Friday evening we'd received a call from the Ronald McDonald House with news that they would have a room available for us on Saturday.
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Saturday morning I was greeted bright and early with REAL FOOD!! I was never so excited to eat a meal in my entire life! I didn't realize how hard it would be to eat after having no real food since Tuesday night. I felt like everything was getting stuck at the base of my sternum and no matter how much I chewed up the food I couldn't get it to go down without it being painful. So needless to say I wasn't eating very much that day. The nurse came in early in the afternoon and took out both of my catheters and unhooked my IV from the machine. She wrapped the IV nubs in wash clothes and plastic so I could take a shower. It was probably the best shower I've ever had in my life. Including the one I had right after Savannah was born. Saturday we got out first hospital visitors as well. Jonathon's Best Friend and his Wife came to visit. We had a great time sitting around and talking.
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Sunday, Jonathon's Parents brought his Granny up to stay with me for awhile. Apparently there was a baby boom over the weekend and Labor and Delivery needed all of their rooms so I was moved to the Special Care OB area on the same floor. The room was a semi-private room, but there was no one else in the room at the time.
Monday, September 23, 2013
Monday was pretty uneventful. I got a roommate in my room, but was told they would be moving me to a private room. I thought this was pretty pointless since I would be discharged the next day, but I didn't argue. We felt really awkward being in the room with the other family because we knew they wanted to discuss whatever was going on with their babies, but felt like they couldn't because all we had separating us was a curtain. Eventually Jonathon took his Granny back to RMH and he headed back to Indiana. Around dinner time I was moved into a private room. Looking back I was really grateful for this because the Broncos were playing the Raiders on Monday Night Football and anyone who knows me knows I can't sit quietly and watch a Bronco game. It's bad enough that I've had to break myself from physically jumping up and down.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Tuesday morning I found out I would be released from the hospital. I was so excited! The Resident Doctor wrote my prescriptions out and left them with the Nurse who was processing my discharge. Thankfully Jonathon's Best Friends Wife was able to come pick me up and bring me to the RMH. Once there, I was able to get settled with Jonathon's Granny.
So far since I've been at the RMH everything has gone well. The first night I was here I tried walking from our room to the dining area and realized that was a mistake. Luckily RMH has wheelchairs on hand and Granny was able to bring one to our room for me to use until the one I'd arranged to have brought to me arrived.
Last Friday I called the High Risk OB here in Cincinnati to make my first appointment. I was told that his practice was no longer taking my insurance. Originally they were going to try to set up my appointments through the Children's Hospital so he could still see me. Instead I was switched to the other practice who works with Fetal Care patients. I was a little uneasy about going to this practice because one of the Doctors was the one who tried talking us out of the surgery when we had our Phase 2 consultation. After talking with another patient who had the surgery and went to his practice, I was put a little more at ease. He's a nice Doctor but he has a way of making you feel like an idiot when you tell him any issues you're having. I will be going to see him and his associates for the remainder of the pregnancy, so I hope everything goes well. Luckily the hospital I will now be delivering at is a lot closer to RMH than Good Samaritan was.
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Around 8AM Jonathon, my Mother-In-Law, and Jonathon's Granny, and I reported to Cincinnati Children's Hospital for the surgery. We were informed that the person who was scheduled to have their surgery in the morning was still going to have it, so I wouldn't be heading back to the OR until around noon. The Fetal Care Center went ahead and admitted me, and gave me a room to wait in. I was put on an IV, and prepped as much as I could be ready when the OR was open. Around 11:30 one of the nurses told me I wouldn't be going down before 1PM because the first surgery was taking longer than expected. However, around 12:30 the nurses came up and said they were ready to take me downstairs.
Once downstairs, Jonathon's Mom and Granny were asked to wait in the OR waiting room, while Jonathon could come back with me until they actually moved me into the OR. Around 1PM I was wheeled into the OR where they gave me an Epidural and then put me under General Anesthesia. The surgery went well. Baby girl was carrying so low that the incision is only from my belly button and about 4-6 inches below that. Normally the incision goes from 1-2 inches above the belly button and down. I remember waking up and seeing Jonathon and the nurses walking with me back to the area I was in before the surgery. I was asked about my pain levels, which weren't much. The nurses thought that was pretty crazy since I'd already started having contractions. Luckily they were able to stop them and stabilize me before I was transported to an area hospital for recovery. The first night was pretty crazy. They put me on Magnesium Sulfate to keep me from contracting, as well as continuing medications in the epidural. The Pediatric Surgeon came to check on me right before bed. He told the nurses to go ahead and start turning down the Magnesium since it was causing me to get so dizzy. I was also started on an oral medication to keep from having contractions as well.
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Thursday was probably the worst day of my life. It started around 6am when I was rushed to be moved from the High Risk room I was in to a Labor and Delivery room. A woman was having triplets and the only room to accommodate her was the room I was in. The magnesium sulfate was still making me dizzy and nauseous. The nurses were worried because I had to look at them with one eye closed, because the room kept spinning. The Doctors agreed to continue to turn down the magnesium drip some more since I wasn't contracting. I was on a strict ice chip only diet, which was really hard because the magnesium kept my mouth dry. I tried facetiming with Savannah and my Sister In Law that night but it was very hard. I also was having a hard time breathing deeply and felt like I couldn't catch my breath. The one good thing about the magnesium though was that it made me sleepy so I had no problems trying to fall asleep when everything was just too much to handle.
Friday, September 20, 2013
Friday I was taken off the magnesium, IV fluids, and epidural medications completely. Although they still kept the IV and Epidural catheter in just in case. As soon as the epidural began to wear off I went ahead and asked for the pain medications. I was also started on a clear liquid diet. I don't think I've ever been so excited to have chicken broth for breakfast! Sometime in the afternoon my oxygen monitor wouldn't stop going off. The nurse told me that I needed to take deep breaths to get my oxygen level back up or she was going to have to put me on oxygen. I kept trying but could never get a deep breath in my lungs. When it wasn't helping, she put me on oxygen and called the Doctor. When the doctor arrived she gave me an examination and determined I had fluid on my lungs. She was concerned something might be wrong, because normally the fluid on the lungs develops (if it's going to) while a patient is on magnesium, not after they have been take off of it. So she ordered an EKG, x-ray, and did a pelvic exam to make sure I wasn't going into labor. Luckily all of the results came back normal. I was also given a dose of medication to get the fluid out of my lungs. Friday evening we'd received a call from the Ronald McDonald House with news that they would have a room available for us on Saturday.
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Saturday morning I was greeted bright and early with REAL FOOD!! I was never so excited to eat a meal in my entire life! I didn't realize how hard it would be to eat after having no real food since Tuesday night. I felt like everything was getting stuck at the base of my sternum and no matter how much I chewed up the food I couldn't get it to go down without it being painful. So needless to say I wasn't eating very much that day. The nurse came in early in the afternoon and took out both of my catheters and unhooked my IV from the machine. She wrapped the IV nubs in wash clothes and plastic so I could take a shower. It was probably the best shower I've ever had in my life. Including the one I had right after Savannah was born. Saturday we got out first hospital visitors as well. Jonathon's Best Friend and his Wife came to visit. We had a great time sitting around and talking.
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Sunday, Jonathon's Parents brought his Granny up to stay with me for awhile. Apparently there was a baby boom over the weekend and Labor and Delivery needed all of their rooms so I was moved to the Special Care OB area on the same floor. The room was a semi-private room, but there was no one else in the room at the time.
Monday, September 23, 2013
Monday was pretty uneventful. I got a roommate in my room, but was told they would be moving me to a private room. I thought this was pretty pointless since I would be discharged the next day, but I didn't argue. We felt really awkward being in the room with the other family because we knew they wanted to discuss whatever was going on with their babies, but felt like they couldn't because all we had separating us was a curtain. Eventually Jonathon took his Granny back to RMH and he headed back to Indiana. Around dinner time I was moved into a private room. Looking back I was really grateful for this because the Broncos were playing the Raiders on Monday Night Football and anyone who knows me knows I can't sit quietly and watch a Bronco game. It's bad enough that I've had to break myself from physically jumping up and down.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Tuesday morning I found out I would be released from the hospital. I was so excited! The Resident Doctor wrote my prescriptions out and left them with the Nurse who was processing my discharge. Thankfully Jonathon's Best Friends Wife was able to come pick me up and bring me to the RMH. Once there, I was able to get settled with Jonathon's Granny.
So far since I've been at the RMH everything has gone well. The first night I was here I tried walking from our room to the dining area and realized that was a mistake. Luckily RMH has wheelchairs on hand and Granny was able to bring one to our room for me to use until the one I'd arranged to have brought to me arrived.
Last Friday I called the High Risk OB here in Cincinnati to make my first appointment. I was told that his practice was no longer taking my insurance. Originally they were going to try to set up my appointments through the Children's Hospital so he could still see me. Instead I was switched to the other practice who works with Fetal Care patients. I was a little uneasy about going to this practice because one of the Doctors was the one who tried talking us out of the surgery when we had our Phase 2 consultation. After talking with another patient who had the surgery and went to his practice, I was put a little more at ease. He's a nice Doctor but he has a way of making you feel like an idiot when you tell him any issues you're having. I will be going to see him and his associates for the remainder of the pregnancy, so I hope everything goes well. Luckily the hospital I will now be delivering at is a lot closer to RMH than Good Samaritan was.
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