The Mom Journey: Delivery & the Days Afterwards

I finally have a chance to write about my delivery and the days following while at the hospital. . It had snowed quite a bit in the early morning hours and the roads were covered. From the beginning of my pregnancy I always said I would go into labor on a snowy day. So I wasn’t technically in labor but did have a scheduled c-section.We got to the hospital at 6 AM on January 12^th and ended up waiting in the waiting room until about 6:45. That is one way to make a girl very anxious! Oh did I mention that I was having contractions and 3 cm dilated? I guess the date was meant to be. Anyhow, once we went back things went very quickly. I was off to the operating room by 8 AM sharp. Getting the spinal anesthesia pretty much sucked; apparently I have tough tendons. I remember thinking, “Where is Dr. Shaw?? She said she’d be here with me for the spinal!” Poor me…lol. Just then she was there and giving me the support I needed. I am very nervous about any kind of needles and surgery; I guess most people are. Tim was then allowed to come in and sit right beside me. I was smiling and ready to meet my baby boy. The first time I saw Jackson was an amazing moment. I just remember thinking he was little and so absolutely perfect. I touched his soft, delicate skin and felt so very blessed to have my little boy safe and sound. The day Tim and I had been anticipating for months was finally here, we were meeting our son, and falling in love all over again. Pure bliss. I was able to nurse Jackson as soon as I got into the recovery room. This little man is an ‘ol pro. Thank goodness that nursing has went so well! Then I saw Jackson’s dimples for the first time! He is the cutest little baby boy I’ve ever seen!

While still in the recovery room I had a bit of a set back; I started hemorrhaging. I had excessive bleeding with Makayla’s delivery too so Tim and I had already discussed the possibility of it happening again and the steps that would be taken if needed. Hemorrhaging was the one thing that scared me most about giving birth. Things got a little burry for awhile. My blood pressure was extremely low and I had no color at all. Looking back at my first picture with Jackson I can see that my lips were white as ever. I remember the nurse telling someone to get Dr.Shaw back up there now. Dr. Shaw told me that I had to have more babies (hmmm.) and the last resort would be to remove my uterus. They gave me a bunch of shots and did some other things. Finally my bleeding slowed down and the recovery began. I am very grateful for Dr. Shaw! I learned later that the bottom of my uterus was paper thin…so glad it was a scheduled c-section!

I was moved to a private room so that we could bond with Jackson and visit with my family. I was most excited to see Makayla meet her baby brother. Ah, a moment etched in my mind forever. She knew the baby was Jackson and gave him a hug; one of the sweetest shows of affection I’ve ever seen. We had such a great group of nurses and CNA’s taking care of us. Anytime I needed something they were right there immediately to meet my needs. Overall we had a fantastic experience at UT Labor & Delivery. I know those women meet new moms and babies everyday and they will most likely forget about me and my baby. However, I will not forget them. I will remember the kindness and caring spirit they had towards us. I feel sorta sad that after 10 months of seeing my doctor so much I will hardly see her again, except for the occasional visits each year. I hope Dr. Shaw knows what a big part she played in our lives. She delivered both our babies; Makayla Grace and Jackson Ryan.

I was ready to leave by Friday and get things back to normal but they talked us into staying another night; I was glad they did….one more night of decent sleep before the sleep deprivation truly began….lol. We left Saturday afternoon after I finished my lunch as I couldn’t resist one last meal of hospital food…haha. By the time we left baby Jackson was 6 pounds 11 ounces. He had lost 10 % of his birth weight but I wasn’t worried at all because he was already poopin and peein constantly! So Home Bound we were. Seriously there is no place like home. Today I am once again counting my blessings…well actually there are too many to count at this point. It has been a long couple of days but at the same time the last week has flown by. I can’t wait for complete healing from the surgery and for my iron level to get back to normal. For now I am a very elated, extremely blessed, quite exhausted, still hurting, happily smiling, proud mommy of TWO!

Shawna