Then there were three

I feel like every girl wonders when they'll start their family, what pregnancy will be like and what labor will be like for them. I know I had certain ideas or expectations. It was going pretty well until my third trimester. The first trimester came with some nausea and arthritis pain, but nothing unbearable. The second trimester brought sciatica pain which an amazing maternity pillow fixed. The third trimester was a roller coaster. Here is the birth story so you don't have to read farther if you don't want to. Also I apologize now for the long length of this post.

At one of our ultrasound appointments they noticed I had a high amount of amniotic fluid but it wasn't too abnormal to be a concern yet. My doctor felt it best to have me come in twice a week for a non-stress test to be on the safe side. After three weeks of coming in they noticed I had slight higher protein count than normal but wasn't enough for concern. When I came back later that week, my protein count was even higher but my feet weren't abnormally swollen and my blood pressure was good. Just to be safe and make sure it wasn't preeclampsia they had me do blood work and a 24 hour sample to check my protein. Everyone seemed calm and explained everything to me well so I didn't feel too concerned. I came back after the Labor Day weekend with my 24 hour sample and my blood pressure was high. Now my doctor had a more serious look on his face. 

My doctor began by telling me I had preeclampsia but we wouldn't know if it was mild or severe until the blood work and 24 hour sample was analyzed. If it was mild then he was going to push up my due date from September 30th to September 11th. If it was severe he would most likely induce me tomorrow. Before I left he put me on bed rest until we knew for sure. Panic started to set in. 

I drove home and called Micah filling him in and he was panicked. We didn't feel prepared and Micah came home to help get ready just in case tomorrow was the day. He was able to get a lot done and I don't think I would have felt as calm as I did without him doing so much. 

The next morning we waited for the phone call to hear about the test results. Our 4th anniversary was the next day and Micah had a fantastic surprise for me. He had made a picture collage for me (I was impressed at how well it turned out) and a movie of the past 4 years that ended stating the excitement for the new adventure on the way. This helped to calm me down and was so nice! (I'll have another post on that later). 

Anyway, they called saying the blood work came back clear but they were still waiting on the 24 hour test results. To me it sounded like we were in the clear. We attended the shower Micah's co-workers held and then I drove home to stay in bed. About two hours later they called with the 24 hour test results. My protein was incredibly high and my doctor wanted me to come to the hospital and wouldn't be leaving the hospital until we had the baby. I called Micah and he scrambled to find a ride home. Luckily a member of our ward was able to drive him and also give me a priesthood blessing. 

We got to the hospital and my doctor explained that my protein count was in the 2200's and it should be around 300. I was only 36 weeks and 4 days which makes the baby premature but since it was only a few days away from full term, and with preeclampsia things can change quickly, he felt it best to induce me. They started the process using Cervidil, which made for a long, sleepless night. 

In the morning, around 7:15, they started me on Pitocin and I was dilated to about a 3. They also put me on magnesium to prevent seizures which can happen with preeclampsia (magnesium is the worst stuff. You feel nauseous and groggy). I sat in the rocking chair to change positions and not more than 45 minutes later my water broke. The contractions started and kept coming really fast. They gave me the epidural and I barely felt the needles. I was finally able to relax which also helped my blood pressure lower a bit. Not too long after receiving the epidural I was dilated to a 9 and we started pushing. Clara was born at 10:01 a.m. on our anniversary September 5th. It was a quick delivery which was a blessing with everything going on. Micah was an amazing support for me and I was impressed at how well he handled everything! 

Not too long after Clara was born they did a second glucose test and it was quite low and she wasn't maintaining her temperature. They rushed her off to try and give her some formula to try and raise it, and put her in an isolet to keep her warm. We waited patiently but it seemed like a long time before they came in and told us Clara was in the NICU and wasn't keeping any formula down. She was put on an IV and eventually they decided to give her stomach a rest and not feed her any formula or breast milk.

Micah and I were worried and luckily our friends came by to visit. Their little boy spent some time in the NICU and understood our concerns. They gave Clara a blessing which also helped calm me down. Luckily the next morning she was able to keep some formula down and by night time I was able to give her some breast milk as well. Each day she kept doing better and the hospital let me stay in my room and "nest" until Clara went home. Needless to say we were ecstatic when Clara was able to be in our room. We were even more excited to leave the hospital and head home. 

The delivery and hospital stay was not what I expected at all. It was hard to adjust to having our baby much sooner than we thought, and then not even being able to hold her very much after she was born. We are making up for it though now we are home. 

I will always see it as a blessing to have been visiting the OB twice a week so we could catch the preeclampsia when we did. Also I will always be so grateful for everyone who helped or checked in on us, and for my mom changing her plans and coming to help me out. I'm pretty sure I would have not been able to handle the situation without her and Micah.