Taking the Scenic Route

 

We arrived about two hours before the c-section was scheduled.  Unlike Zane’s birth, we checked in to the same room that I stayed in the entire week instead of room jumping every few hours that first day.  Zane and my folks spent most of this time out in the hall because I didn’t want to take the chance of Zane bumping the bed or getting upset when they are trying to get IVs in me.  They actually hit me on the first try, which I am not sure has ever happened with an IV.  Yea!     

I walked from this room to the OR, just down the hall.  In the OR I started shaking uncontrollably.  I had parts of my body shaking that I didn’t realize could shake. I was actually having problems talking because my jaw was shaking so hard.   They kept getting me those warmed blankets, which did help some.  After glancing at my blood pressure reading once I decided I needed to not look at that again…it was in the 185/115 range.  I am sure the situation wasn’t helping, but those are some scary numbers!   

Getting the epidural was a lot more painful this time.  I wasn’t expecting it to hurt since it didn’t last time and when the pain hit me I grabbed the wrist of the nurse trying to get the monitors set around my belly.  I quickly let go and apologized for grabbing her so hard.  At that point she took my hand and held it and it was so kind I almost started crying. 

It took longer than normal to get the anesthesia this time.  My blood pressure bottomed out during my section with Zane, so they were being really cautious about the dosage.  Zach came in once the epi was set.  One thing really nice is that I was able to keep my arms from being tied down.   Zach and I held hands.  It took them a bit to get through the scar tissue and there was the strangest little clicking sound while they worked through that.  (might be the gloves…I think non-latex gloves make more noise) 

She cried as soon as soon as she was born.  I didn’t realize until then how afraid I was of that moment being silent, like it was with Zane.  I burst into tears of relief upon hearing it.  She was tiny, but feisty.  Her first apgar was 7, her second was 9.  There was such a huge difference in the room and the reaction of the staff…I knew everything was ok.  I found out later that she was breech.  I guess I was really destined for a c-section with her birth. 

 

Just outside the c-section room my entourage waits while I am being prepped for surgery.  Notice the sun getting ready to rise in the background. My mom brought playdough and other distractions for Zane.  He was really excited to see them, despite not feeling his best. 

Zane started pooping out as the wait got longer.

The nursery is just off the c-section room.  Zach followed Zora as soon as she was born.  He watched as they did their measurements.  He noticed that they had a big note to NOT vax her for Hep B, but we did decide to do the vitamin K since she was pre-term (and at a higher risk for brain bleeding) and the eye drops.  Zach got to cut the umbilical cord. 

My first look

Zach holding his little girl.

We didn’t introduce Zane to her ‘in person’ (only through the glass at the nursery) because of his cold.  Zach left shortly after this because Zane was starting to get cranky and was not feeling well.  The adrenaline of the new experience had worn off for him and he was ready to go back to bed.  Originally, I was planning on seeing Zach later again that day, and expecting them to come up once or twice a day while I was in the hospital.  As it turned out, this was the last time I would see him for a week. 

The nurse gave her the first bath.  They used an insert in the baby tub to fit her (which I didn’t realize until I saw the pictures because the tub was eye level for me)  She had an actual tub bath which surprised me.  The nurse said they started doing that about 8 years ago instead of the sponge baths because there had been studies done and there was no difference in how the cord was affected in tub vs. sponge baths.  I don’t think they did the alcohol swab around the cord either for the same reason.  (I could be wrong on that…it might have been done in the nursery when she went in for testing every few hours). 

The hats were all hand knitted by a group of church ladies.  They had quite a selection of them.  On a funny “you can tell I knit” note, the hats were constructed sideways instead of starting at the brim…instead of 2×2 purl and knit stitches, they were knit with 2 rows of knit, then two rows of purl.  I had never thought of doing a rib stitch that way.  The hats were also huge and we had a hard time keeping it on her head.

And now, finally, I get to see her with my glasses on.  Wow she is tiny!  The epidural was really high, affecting even my arms and hands to a degree, so I had to have help with nursing again.  I was thrilled to find she did have the rooting and latching reflex, even though she had a rough time actually accomplishing it.  We weren’t able to get a good nursing session in for a few hours because of my lack of sensation in my arms and fingers to help her, but she got a little bit initially. 

A high epidural has some strange effects.  It made me appreciate how difficult it would be to be paralyzed.  They had to help me do everything, including turning me on my side to try and nurse.  I also found I couldn’t cough.  I had a cough stuck in my throat, but lacked the ability to actually cough.  It was really disorienting and made me realize why a chest cold is such a dangerous thing for somebody who is paralyzed. 

Another major difference between this birth and Zane’s is that this time there were several nurses that helped to clean me up really well.  They were gentle and thorough…didn’t seem to be in a hurry to get done, but rather taking the time to make sure I was comfortable and cleaned up well.  With Zane’s birth, I went home with all of the grossness of the entire stay still on me and Zach had to try and help me get clean at home, which required me to make a trip up a flight of stairs to accomplish. 

I also had the same reaction to anesthesia that I always seem to have.  I completely lose the filter between my brain and my mouth and talk non-stop.  As I come out of it a bit more, I am even able to recognize that I am doing that, but can not make myself shut up.  I drive myself crazy.  My mom always laughs at the point I start recognizing it myself because she gets to hear me griping about the fact I can’t make it stop.  lol

And finally, some time to get to know her.  We still didn’t know her name at this point, although there were a few names that just didn’t fit once we met her. 

 

ETA:  Link to Zach’s xanga post that day:  1st post, 2nd post