Aiden's Start

vannahsr03 - 04:15pm May 7, 2012 EST

I found out i was pregnant when i was 9 weeks. I was scared and happy and all of the other emotions that comes along with pregnancy. In January of 2011, I went in for an ultrasound and the doctor told me the amniotic fluid was low. By Feb, it was back to normal. I went in on Tuesday March 22, 2011 for another ultrasound. I had noticed during the weekend that the swelling in my legs and feet were not decreasing with the soaking and propping my feet up but I knew I would be seeing my doctor that Wednesday so I would discuss it with her then. The tech that did my ultrasound was checking different areas of the baby that she had never done before and with me being a nurse I knew something was wrong. I asked her what she was doing because she had never done this before and when she told me she was checking to see the blood flow of the cord because the baby wasn't measuring like he should. I started to panic a little because I wasnt sure what was going to happen. And after the ultrasound she asked me to have a seat back in the lobby because she wanted to contact my doctor and let her know her findings and that way if she wanted me to go to the hospital i wouldnt go all the way home to turn around and go all the way back. By the time I made it to the lobby I was scared to death and crying and called my mom and told her what was going on. In a little less than 2 minutes my world was turned upside down. She came and asked what hospital I was going to and the instructions were to go straight there and someone would have to go pack me a bag later.
I got to the hospital and was so scared and nervous that I couldn't answer the simple questions they asked such as: what is your mom's name? how far along are you? what is your address? things like that. The nurses quickly came in and started an iv with fluids and turned me on my left side and told me to lay with my back flat. it was the most uncomfortable position for a pregnant person to be in. I tried to lay exactly how i was told and they hooked the fetal monitor up to me and told me my doctor was already on her way. By the time my doctor showed up I was a nervous wreck. She sat on my bed and told me that I was 29 weeks pregnant and she had good news and bad news. the bad news being I was not going home any time soon and the not so good news was we were going to have a baby. The thought of him being 11 weeks early was scary. She told me I had preeclampsia and that thursday morning I would be scheduled for my c-section and we would have the baby. I cried, she cried, the whole room cried with me. I never thought that I would be having a premature baby. no one in my family had ever delivered early and so i didn't know what to expect. She talked to me a little while longer and scheduled for a Specialist to see me the following day so that he could give her some insight as to what would be the best approach. I was scheduled a meeting with the NICU team so that I could ask any questions and that my doctor would be back that same afternoon to talk some more. We all cried the remainder of the day. I was surrounded by loved ones but no one knew what to say. I met with the specialist and by that wednesday night my doctor came in and said well the good news is we are not going to deliver tomorrow morning but if there becomes a problem where the baby gets in trouble or you do then we are taking him. then she dropped the bomb shell. that she was going out of town on vacation and i would have a new doctor come friday. she apologized but i knew it wasnt her fault. She told me our main goal was to let him stay inside as long as we could. Come thursday I sent everyone home because I knew there wasnt going to be much to do besides just sit there. Me and my best friend and aiden's dad just sat around and talked and slept and hung out because i couldn't go anywhere. i was the only patient on the floor so they moved me to a bigger room and told me that i was in my new home. come friday night i started having a bunch of tooth aches and i knew something was wrong. I couldnt get comfortable and everyone was trying to sleep but I finally admitted to everyone that i had a feeling we were having the baby the next day. I finally got relief at about 6 am Saturday, March 26. I fell asleep and at 730 an ultrasound tech came in and said the doctor had rewritten orders and that i was scheduled for ultrasounds every day instead of every other day. I went back to sleep afterwards. At 930 the nurse came in turning on lights and I was getting aggravated so I asked what are you doing. she told me they had to draw blood just in case. Just in case what? i asked. You deliver today. I was unsure of what was going on. Then the anesthesiologist came in and wanted to sign papers just in case. that was when i knew something was going on. I have been a nurse long enough to know that you dont sign those papers just in case. So I called my parents and told them they needed to hurry up and get there. My best friend text and called everyone and told them what was going on. I was scared but i was so exhausted I didnt know what was going on. The doctor came in about an hour later and told me that we were going to deliver because my blood pressure was spiking and his heart rate was dropping and if she was scared that it was going to drop and not come back up. so i get prepped for surgery and go into the OR. I had no idea that in the next 20 minutes I was going to get all of the answers to what was going on. I was given my epidural and laid on the table, strapped down, and i dont remember a whole lot of it but I do remember one thing. The doctor pulled aiden out and said there is a knot in the cord. I became alert enough and asked for her to repeat what she just said. so the next thing i heard was one sound that we were hoping to hear. I got to hear my little man cry for the first time. I was given the steroids to promote lung development for him while i was just playing the waiting game. after they wiped him up and intubated him, I got to see him for the first time and I got to kiss him. I don't know how to describe that in words. i had to wait my hour in recovery before they could wheel me on the stretcher to the NICU so i could see him. on my way out of the doors I saw a huge group of people that were there just to see our miracle baby. I was wheeled and transferred to my new bed. After I got feeling back in my legs and could walk I asked the nurse could I please go see him. She said yes as long as you come and get back in bed and try to get some sleep. I would have made a deal with the devil just to be able to go and spend time with my little one. by the time i got back there he was already off of the ventilator and on oxygen. he was showing them he had a fight to live. I didn't want to leave his side but they had to do a bunch of other stuff to him. I went back to my room happy and excited bc he was already off of the vent. Since my blood pressure was so high I had to be put on Magnesium drip. It is liquid fire. I was burning up and the air was as low as it could go and everyone else was freezing. I had to have the drip for 24 hours and could not wait for it to be done.
Aiden came into this world at 2 pounds 1.7 ounces and 13 3/4 inches long. He assessed at 27 weeks old. He had 5 blood transfusions before he ever came home. His heart was giving him trouble and so they called in the cardiologist. he ran several tests and watched him closely. I prayed every day and was scared i was going to get a phone call saying that he didn't make it through the night. He spent a total of 91 days in NICU. He got extremely sick the weekend before my birthday and we almost did lose him. That is something that I will never forget. Standing in front of him watching him struggling to breathe. He would just stop and i would rub his sternum trying to get him to catch it again. The doctors talked to me about using the c-pap machine to see if that would help and if it didnt he would be put back on the vent. All i could do was pray. Please don't let him leave me. It was the scariest thing ever. I saw holidays come and go and I would go in and talk to him and sing. The funny thing about this is, the first time they introduced kangaroo care to me which is skin to skin contact i was so scared. I didn't want the nurse to leave my side in the event something happened. I have taken care of babies all of my life with cousins and friends and any other person i knew having babies. but holding my 2 pound baby boy scared me as a first time parent. by the time he was discharged from NICU I was putting his feeding tubes back down and taking him in and out of the isolettes, and wrapping him up and doing everything that needed to be done. I wanted to be the best mom ever and show everyone that they wouldn't have to worry about him once he could come home. I saw him go through surgery for bilateral inguinal hernia repair and come out fighting. he had the fight of a grown man. he has had a couple of set backs but he is now 21 pounds and 13 months old. I could not be happier to say that I am a proud parent of an NICU graduate.