Hannah Lynn
November 21, 2013
Tuesday night around 8 p.m. I started getting really bad lower back pain. Which I associate with back labor so I didn't really think much of it. But, it lasted ALL night long. I felt like I was being punched in the back over and over and just never got comfortable. Earlier that evening, Adam had told me a joke and I laughed so hard I thought I had peed my pants (this is important) but just figured it was me peeing my pants -- because you know that's normal when your pregnant.
Tuesday went on as usual. However by Tuesday night I was starting to feel sick. That headache-just-want-to-sleep feeling that you are coming down with something. By the time I woke up Wednesday morning I just felt crummy. I laid on the couch most of the morning trying to feel better but I knew I was coming down with something.
Around late morning/early afternoon my HR had called to discuss FLMA and some other issues going on. I got really upset on the phone. When I'm mad and upset in general, I will cry. So of course, I was crying. But being pregnant, it made it ten times worse. I was just so upset and mad with them. Then I was really starting to feel sick. I had a horrible headache and felt like I was getting a fever. The phone conversation ended and I just felt down right miserable. I tried laying down for a bit and then got up to go to my regular appointment at 3:45. I weighed in at 179 and my blood pressure was SUPER high. Which was not surprising because I had just had a horrible phone conversation and was feeling sick. Not only was my BP high but my pulse was very high and when they checked on Hannah, her heart rate was in the 180s! My doctor was concerned and said she could tell, just by checking me that I was on the verge of a fever. By the end of my appointment, my heart rate had gone down a little and so had Hannah's -- but she was worried. I was ordered to take Tylenol PM that night and sleep, hopefully to fight the fever that I was getting.
I ran over to Kroger and bought my Tylenol and headed home. I could really tell I was not feeling well by dinner that night. I really didn't have much of an appetite (which I really had not for the past few days). I took my medicine around 6 p.m. and ate dinner. I ended up falling asleep around 9 p.m. or so and Adam woke me up to head up stairs around 10ish.
Around 11 I woke up and I felt like I had to pee, however, before I could even make it to the toilet -- it had dribbled out in my panties. I tried to go on the toilet, but only a little bit came out. I headed back to bed.
I was back up at midnight and the same thing happened. I could also tell I was starting to run a fever.
Around 1 a.m. or so I woke up and I was shaking uncontrollably and my teeth were chattering. I was SO cold. My teeth were chattering so bad that Adam woke up concerned. I told him I thought I was really starting to run a fever or fight one off.
Around 2 a.m. or so (I lost track of time at this point) I woke up burning up. I took my temperature and it was 101.5. At this point, I was worried. I checked to make sure Hannah was moving and I couldn't feel her. Once I thought back, I hadn't really felt her move since dinner at 6 or 7 p.m. I went downstairs and paced, drinking orange juice and water, laying on the couch and just waiting to feel her. nothing.
I was also burning up and I read on my Tylenol PM that I couldn't take anymore Tylenol once I had taken my two tablets so I wasn't sure what to do.
I decided to call the on-call doctor.
They called back right away (he sounded like he had been asleep!) and explained my fever and asked if I could take anything. He said I could and asked how the babies movement was. I told him, I hadn't really felt her move and I was getting concerned. He said it was up to me if I wanted to come in or not, but to do whatever I felt I needed to do.
I decided to wait until 3 a.m. and see if Hannah would move. Nothing. I debated going in because I know how much each hospital visit is (from the first time with Leah) and decided at this point, if I wasn't feeling her move I needed to go. I just had a feeling I needed to go in.
At 3 a.m. I woke Adam up and told him I was going to the hospital and to stay home with Leah. I would call him if he needed to come up. I wish I would have taken a shower or really gotten my bags -- but I figured they would just give me Tylenol and send me home.
As I was changing clothes, I ended up peeing my panties again.
Around 3 a.m. I loaded myself into the van and drove to the hospital. Luckily for us, it's only about a 5 minute drive down the road.
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As I pulled up to the hospital I kept talking to Hannah and asking her to move. She wasn't. I parked and started walking up to the entrance, which was closed, I ended up having to go around to the ER (talk about a walk!). But the Hospital isn't huge so parking is all very close by.
I walked in and told the ER I would be 37 weeks on Friday and was running a fever of 101.5. First they looked at me like I was crazy for driving myself and then whisked me upstairs.
Harris Methodist Alliance is a brand new hospital and very small. They only deliver about 60 babies a month right now so I got top notch service when I got there. I was probably the only one in triage and only about 3 other ladies were there in labor.
I must have looked bad because they started working pretty quickly. My fever was now 101.9 when I got there and Hannah's heart rate (she was alive, thank the Lord!) was over 200 (dangerously high) and mine was high too. I got an IV hooked up and they started running tests. The first test was for my water breaking and it came back negative. But, the charge nurse didn't believe it. She said she thought things were too wet down there for it not to be and they ran a more sensitive test to check. Meanwhile, asking me the 100 questions, in which, involved asking if I thought my water had broken. I told them I didn't think so, but I did describe my several peeing the pants scenarios.
Around 4 a.m. the more sensitive test came back and it turned out my water HAD BROKEN. It was a very slow leak and at this point, it could have started on Tuesday. Which all red flags went up at that point because I was running a fever and now they were concerned about infection.
My water bag was still intact when they checked me, because it had potentially slid around and made a new "pocket" so when checked everything seemed normal. When in fact, it had broken.
I had no idea any of this could happen and I had no idea that my water had broken. I just figured I would have a gush or something that would scream " my water broke!". Wrong.
I called Adam close to 5 a.m. and told him my water had broken. He was half-asleep and half in shock. Since I was 4 c.m. and 50 % effaced and this point I knew he was panicking because we all knew how fast I went with Leah.
I was wheeled into my room and on the way I stopped to use the restroom again. I could feel how wet I was and knew at this point, my water was indeed broken.
Around 6 a.m. I was hooked up and Dr. Tse (my doctor) came in to check on me. They were worried about my fever and it I was told that I was Group B positive! This was news to me! I was not with Leah and didn't even know I was until they told me at the Hospital. All in All it just meant that I would need antibiotics and that Hannah would be extra checked once she was delivered. So, they got the antibiotics going for my Group B and got my started on a very low dosage of pitocin to get things going.
Adam arrived with Leah and shortly after my Mom and brother arrived. Note: everyone thought for sure I would deliver by noon. However, things didn't go as fast as we thought..
Once my fever had broken, they started the pitocin and things were under way. I wasn't in a lot of pain this time with my contractions, which was a nice surprise. I was at a 5 when my nurse came in and started having me flip from one side to another.. this was only the beginning of trying to re-position me so Hannah's heart rate would stay okay. Turns out, she wasn't tolerating the contractions very well when I had the pitocin going and her heart rate would drop. So, because of this they had to alternate between the very low dosage of pitocin (aka, couldn't really turn it up to get things going) and just turning it off and letting my body contract naturally.
Close to noon time I was still at a 5 when they came in for my epidural. I hadn't requested it yet, but since she was doing someone else's she decided to pop in and see if I wanted mine done. I figured, sure why not! Maybe then things would really get started. She couldn't believe how calm and collected I was at a 5! :) (thank you!). I of course, was a nervous wreck about the epidural. I'm not even sure what about it makes me nervous but -- it just does. However, she did an AWESOME job and I didn't cry (like I did last time) and it really didn't hurt. Also -- it turns out she completed her nursing anesthesiology program at the University I work for -- so that was pretty neat!
Dr. Tse had came in to check on me again after noon. I was at a 6 and Hannah's head was moving down but she still was tolerating things well and now .. I was starting to run a fever again. So, they decided to just stop the pitocin all together to try to get my fever under control. She discussed the possibility of c-section because at this point, it was getting dangerous for both of us. I really did not want a c-section but I had came to terms with that if -- it had to be done it had to be done -- I really just wanted us to both be okay and things were starting to get scary. She wasn't sure what exactly was going on, but she was confident I could delivery vaginally, we just needed time. And time .. was getting sparse by the hour.
Sometime around 3 or so (I think) my fever was going and Hannah's heart rate was VERY high and Dr. Tse returned. I was still contracting without the pitocin, but it was slow going and I had not progressed any further (still a 6). At this time, she decided to do one last attempt to help things for both Hannah and I.
I forgot the name of it now, but they pretty much ran a reverse catheter into my uterus and pumped cold saline fluid around Hannah. The hopes were, that this would cool her down (she was getting too hot from my fever) and lower her heart rate. If they could get her heart rate down, they could start the pitocin again.
My fever had broken and they ran the reverse catheter.
It was working!
Hannah's heart rate was okay, once again and my fever was broken. Around 4 or 5 the pitcocin started going again and things progressed very quickly. Before I knew it, I was a 9 and I had to call Adam (who had went down for dinner) and tell him it was getting close. I then texted and called all the family to let them know -- it was officially GO TIME! (Finally...)
I could feel the pressure and knew it was time. When the nurse checked me, she was surprised at how quickly things had went and before I knew it -- we had a swarm of nurses and the NICU team in place. The NICU team was there because of my fever and the potential for infection, they were going to have to extra testing on Hannah once she was born.
Dr. Tse came in and we started the pushing process. I warned them how the last time, I was told I was a horrible pusher but Dr. Tse say said " they were WRONG, you are an amazing pusher". I didn't believe her at first, I thought maybe she was just saying that to give me a boost of confidence. But, within 3 contractions Hannah came flying out sunny side up!!
Dr. Tse said that was the quickest sunny side up delivery she had ever seen.
Hannah was placed on my chest and they began wiping her off and she started crying. I told her HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Like I had done with Leah and I teared up..
She had a head full of black hair and the same button nose that Leah did.
She was taken over to the NICU team and they did all the normal checks -- EVERYTHING came back NORMAL and she was healthy and strong.
I had begun shaking again and could feel my fever coming back. Sure enough, it did. I spent the next hour breaking my fever.
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Because of my fever and everything that happened they sent a part of my placenta off to be culture and tested and for the next 48 hours I was on antibiotics every 8 hours and another every 24 hours. I also had to have my blood drawn 1-2 times a day. Hannah was also put on antibiotics every 8 hours and had her blood drawn.
But-- when it was all said and done everyone came back in the clear.
They still are not sure what exactly was causing the fevers. But I never had another one, after she was born. All the blood work, placenta testing came back normal. So, it seems to have came from my water breaking and me not knowing it. But, we will never know for sure.
It was quite the labor experience! Set aside the fever --it was very painless and easy. I am so thankful for all the prayers that went out for us during it and that we are safe and healthy.
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