Samuel's Birth, AKA My Hospital Vacation

*** Edited to add picture.

In the operating room.

Joel and I left the house at 5:45 AM on October 21. I'm convinced no one should ever be out of their bed at that ridiculous hour! We drove to the hospital and were glad we'd been there before. In the last 2 years they started building a new wing and now parking is all crazy. We were glad we sort of knew where we were going!

Shortly after 6 AM we checked into the surgery section. Filled out some paper work. And waited. I hadn't eaten since about 10 PM so I started to get hungry. Finally the nurse called me back to begin preparing me for the c-section.

Peed in a cup. Put on a johnny and ugly socks. Then she asked me all the same questions I had just filled out on the papers. Annoying. I laid on a gurney and she used a Doppler thing to find the baby's heartbeat. Over 5 minutes passed with no heartbeat found (don't worry, Sam was moving all over the place so we could see that he was fine!) so she gave up on technology and used an old fashioned stethoscope. She found him right away with that. Then came the ultimate indignity - being shaved. I'll spare you the details but it's the part I hate the most about the surgery prep.

Once I was ready they brought Joel back and had him change into scrubs that were a bit to big for him. My doctor arrived and reviewed the surgery with me after asking me all the same questions as the nurse. Double annoying!

Anesthesiology came in and asked me all the same questions the nurse had asked. Does no one read the chart or computer?! He inserted an iv in my arm and hooked up fluids. Not to much after that they wheeled me to the operating room.

I entered the OR right at 7:30 AM - right on schedule. One of the things I hate about the OR is that there are so many people who tell you their names and talk to you but they all have scrubs on and some have the masks on so it's just a confusing jumble of people. Once in the OR I got really cold and the shivers started. Hate that. It happens every time. This time I realized it started when the iv went in so I think that might be the cause since I tend to be warm natured and very rarely shiver with teeth chattering. It's not fun to feel your body shaking and be unable to stop it. They did put warm blankets on me, which was nice.

Then they inserted the spinal. Once that was done everything happened quickly. Catheter put in (after 9 months of peeing every 5 minutes I always like the catheter!), draped put up so I can't see them cut me, belly sterilized, test to make sure I don't feel anything, and then the doctor started.

It's a strange feeling to be laid out on a gurney and feel the pressure of people working on you but not be able to move or feel their touch. I hate that. Definitely the stuff nightmares are made of.

Joel came in and sat near my head. At 8:05 AM Samuel entered the world. There's is nothing as wonderful as the sound of that first cry! The pediatrician and nurses worked to clean him up and suction his lungs (normal for a section) where I could see them. I could never watch with the others. In the process of cleaning him up Samuel "christened" the nurse. Everyone laughed.

Once cleaned up and swaddled, Joel got to hold Samuel. That's one of the worst parts of a c-section - I'm the last person who gets to hold my baby. Joel always holds the baby up so I can kiss him (or her) and stroke his face with my fingers (for those who've never had a spinal it's similar to an epidural in that I still have feeling in my arms and extreme upper chest).

After taking a few pictures, Joel and Sam were taken to the recovery room while the doctor finished sewing me up. Dr. D's husband assisted her in the surgery (he's in the same practice). It was interesting to listen to them talking. He's older than her and I got the definite impression he's more experienced though she was the one in charge. Meanwhile, I got super sleepy. I think it was drug induced. And my eyes started bouncing. It's the only way I can describe it. I couldn't focus at all. It felt like they were rolling around in my head.

Finally, I was stitched up and glued (yippee! no staples!) and moved to recovery. I told the nurse about my eyes and they kept encouraging me to close them. That's hard to do when you want to look at your new baby. Eventually, the nurse sat me up and I held Sam. At at long last the feeling returned to my legs. In order to leave recovery you have to be able to move your legs and lift your bottom off the bed.

Shortly after noon they moved me up to a patient room where I settled in for my "vacation." Once were were settled Joel went out to the car for our bags and his lunch. You know your experienced when dad packs a sandwich lunch to eat after the baby's born. = )

Joel drove home (only 15 minutes away), ate supper with the kids and my mom and brought them all back to the hospital to meet Samuel. Excited does not begin to describe their reaction to him, even now 11 days later. Then he took them home and came back to the hospital to spend the night with me.

At some point I was allowed apple juice, water and ginger ale but kept throwing up. I'm always nauseous when they move me after the surgery but this was the first time it continued through the night. I finally asked the nurse for a piece of toast. I really felt that the vomiting was because I only had acid and fluid in my stomach. Sure enough. Once slice of toast later and I was cured.

That pretty much sums up our first day in the hospital. The rest were just cycles of sleep, feeding Sam, eating and endless HGTV. Oh the ideas I have for my house now!!! = )

I'll end this very rambling post. Please excuse the typos. I'm too lazy tonight to edit. I know this post is a bit sub par on quality writing but I hope you'll excuse it due to my lack of sleep and the topic.