January 1st, 2013 for our family started off with a BANG! Literally. I was 25 weeks pregnant with our second baby boy and I was doing great. One afternoon, I started feeling very sick to my stomach, and had lots of pain along with a fever. I thought I was in early labor because of the pain and how I was feeling. My husband took me to the hospital where they discharged me with dehydration. On "day 2" the pain kept getting worse so we went back to the hospital. This time they discharged me with round ligament pain. The OB said to go home, take tylenol, rest and put heat on the pain. The whole next day I stayed home with my first baby, Davidson, but I stayed in bed while he made a mess in the kitchen and watched way too many movies and cartoons. My husband came home from work and that night around 3 am the pain in my tummy was so bad that I had to get up and get in the tub.
I knew something was not right. So, on "day 4", we arranged for our neighbor to watch Davidson and My hubby and I were off very quickly to the hospital. That day, they finally gave me an ultrasound and a MRI to check my appendix (which we had been asking them to check the whole time). I was in need of emergency surgery to remove my appendix! The only time that I have ever been in the hospital was when I gave birth to Davidson. My natural, water-birth only lasted 2 hours and I pushed for 20 minutes. The pain I was experiencing with my appendix was worse for me than unmedicated labor! I kept telling the doctors, " I would rather push a baby out than have this pain!" The surgeons came in and decided to do the surgery the "old-fashioned way" and give me a 4-inch-long incision on my right side. I was so scared. I remember telling My husband, "I don't want to die, I don't want my baby to die." He prayed for me and they wheeled me into the operating room. In the OR, I even asked if anyone prayed and a nurse said that he did and I asked him to pray for me. He did, and the next thing I remember is trying to wake up, and asking how my baby was. I was so thirsty and D wasn't back yet. I tried to to yell out, "Help!" and a lady came over. I asked her to get me some ice chips and to call my husband. Finally, a nurse came down to check my baby's heartbeat. He had a good, strong beat!
I ended up staying in the hospital for about a week. During the surgery they discovered that my appendix had burst. The baby actually pushed my intestines over and cupped all that ruptured appendix poison so that it didn't go all throughout my body. I was finally able to go home, but didn't realize how much recovery time was in store. In my head I was thinking surgery=no more pain. I WAS WRONG! Since I had an "old-fashioned" incision, it was open and every 3 days I had to go get it unpacked and packed again. My brother and mom came to help me with Davidson because D had to go back to work. My brother actually stayed after my mom went home, she had to get back to her kindergarteners. I was ordered to take viral antibiotics for about 2 weeks or so. The day I finished my pills was on a Sunday and I was excited and happy to be on the road to recovery. The very next day I started noticing how much I would sweat at night, and on Tuesday the nausea and fever returned. Wednesday, the 23rd my brother took me back to the hospital and we stayed there until 1:30am. They discharged me with "something viral". At home, four hours later, my water broke and we were once again on our way to the hospital. I ended up catching a sample of amniotic fluid in a cup and took it with us, just so there wasn't any confusion. They started me right away with magnesium and gave me a shot to help his lungs out. I thought they would stop my contractions and I would just be on bed rest until April (he was due April 17). That did NOT happen. They were about to put me in an ambulance to be transported to UNC, but I told them they had better check me before I get on the ambulance. I was 6cm. dilated and definitely feeling pressure. They rushed me to a delivery room and I think I had 2 contractions.
Everything from then on moved so quickly. Doctor Meter sat on the side of the bed and looked into my eyes and said, "Elizabeth, you need to get your baby out." The mama bear came out in me and I said, "OK let's do this!" I pushed and he just flopped out. He was so tiny. I was so thirsty, I asked for a popsicle. I remember hearing him cry a little and D said his eyes were open. They brought him over, I kissed his head and then they took him away. After that I went into shock. I couldn't believe I had just had my baby. I went to see him in the NICU and I didnt want to touch him. It was so hard to see my baby like that. I thought I was going to hurt him if I touched him. Alexander was quickly flown by helicopter to UNC NICU in Chapel Hill.I stayed where I was for two nights, but then I was transported by ambulance to UNC for two more nights to recover. I didn't get to hold my baby until the third day after his birth. That third day will always be ingrained into my heart.
