We went to our doctor today, excited to see the shunt working and Miss Avery to have a tummy that was not filled with fluids. I'd been having some light cramping the last couple days and I mentioned that when we first got there. We sat down with our ultrasound tech who always gets some measurements before Dr. Solomon comes in to tell us what she see's and talk further with us. Our US tech knows our situation very well, she came to the hospital with Dr. Solomon and did the ultrasound for my procedure when they put her shunt in 5 days ago.
We sat down and she put the jelly on my tummy and I could see that she was even excited to see Avery. The first thing we saw was a big tummy filled with fluid. Her face sank and she said "The fluid is back." I wanted to scream. She took some measurements and we didn't really talk much. Usually, we're in there a good 45 minutes before the doctor comes in and the US tech will leave and get her but about 10 minutes into the measurements Dr. Solomon came in on her own looking sad too. "It's all back" she said "and the skin around her neck and cheeks are swelling." She took over the ultrasound and the tech left. She said that my cramping could either be contractions or just that she is growing so fast and so am I and that my uterus is cramping because its getting so much bigger so quickly. She said she would put me on the contraction monitor and she wanted to call 3 other doctors and we would decide what to do but there wasn't much else to be done now.
Avery pulled the shunt out of her tummy and is holding it. Literally on the ultrasound we can see her holding it and playing with it. We don't know when she pulled it out but the fluid is worse than it was before we put the shunt in and when they put the shunt in it completely drained all the fluid so she made it all back and more in 5 days. It's so much that it's starting to push her organs up and her one good kidney is starting to look like it is in trouble from working so hard, meaning it could stop working.
We got put on the contraction machine and she called and talked with the other doctors (one of which is a family friend of mine) she came back in and told us that basically they all agree another shunt will just put Avery in too much risk to justify putting it back in and she will most likely just pull it out again or it'll get clogged quickly. That leaving her in there with the fluid will put so much stress on her lungs and organs her heart will probably stop and she will most likely be stillborn and not make it to 33 weeks like we needed her to. Taking her out now since she has so many problems could mean she can't get any surgery because she won't make it through and she will just die. Dr. Solomon says she wishes that she had a crystal ball to see an hour before Avery was going to go into distress so we could leave her in as long as possible and then take her out before her heart stops in utero. Also even if she made it to 33 weeks since her only kidney looks to be going bad could be completely dead by then and then she'll have no working kidneys and need to be on dialysis.
I was monitored for about an hour and was having no contractions so I'm not in preterm labor. It's just cramping from growing so quickly, it's also causing pretty bad back pain but there is nothing to do about it. It's just I'm getting too big too fast.
I'm so fucking mad (excuse my language.) I just can't believe this. We get this glimmer of hope and then it just gets torn away. I just want her to be okay. I love her so much. This isn't fair, this is not okay. This is not how this is supposed to be. I'm 27 weeks along with a beautiful baby who has a perfect brain and her body just can't keep up with all these problems and there is nothing else I can do.
I'm going to see an OB from the hospital tomorrow she was in the room for our procedure and we will talk to her about what she thinks. We've all been talking about possibly admitting me into the hospital for the remainder of my pregnancy, however long that maybe so they can monitor her heart and then when she starts to show signs of distress we can do an emergency C Section so she is left in utero is long as possible and hopefully can get a live birth out of that. We will decide what we should do tomorrow, I think. We have to decide if we want to have her now and see if they can do anything knowing they most likely can't but having a live birth and being able to spend time with her alive. Or leave her in there and see if she hangs on to 33 weeks but knowing she probably won't and then most likely end up with a stillbirth. How do you make that decision? Let her try to hang in there long enough so she has a better chance of living but knowing she probably can't make it that long and just letting her die or taking her out early and trying to give her a chance way too soon and knowing she probably won't live because she'll be so small but getting to see her alive? This is not fair and I'm so heartbroken. I can barley breathe I'm so mad at the world. I just want my baby girl to be okay, I just want to be able to do something for her. I would do anything to make sure she could live.
Showing posts with label last ditch effort. Show all posts
Showing posts with label last ditch effort. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
Monday, September 22, 2014
Play by Play Of My Procedure.
I had my procedure/surgery on Friday. I had to start fasting completely 8 hours before the procedure which doesn't seem like it'd be hard but try telling a pregnant girl she can't eat or even have a drink of water all day. I don't know if it's a normal pregnancy symptom but I get incredibly dry mouth and have to drink water all day, is torture. Being that my surgery wasn't until 3:30 in the afternoon I was dying of thirst all day long. We were told to get to the hospital 2 hours early so at 1 we packed up the car with my overnight bag and all our paperwork and Ethan, my mom and I headed to the hospital. When we got there and got to the L&D Triage floor where you check in a doctor was there asking if I was there yet, saying they were ready for me early. They signed me in and said only one person could come back to triage with me so my mom went to the waiting room and Ethan and I went back into the pre-surgery triage area. Immediately they had me leave a urine sample and change into a hospital gown, by the time I was done with that they were back asking questions and hooking me up to the doppler to hear her heart rate and taking my blood pressure and all the standard hospital things. Everyone always complains about the hospital taking forever and having to wait around but we didn't wait for even 5 minutes.
After they got the initial things they came to give me the second shot for her lungs and brain development. Then they started my IV and took 6 vials of blood and hooked me up to a huge bag of saline. They kept asking questions and feeling my stomach to find her body and asking if I was in pain or had any signs of labor. Then the anesthesiologist came in and said that he'd never seen one of these surgeries but one of the OB's said to give me a spinal just like a C Section and something in my IV to keep me calm and warned me that I'd probably be sleepy. I said that was fine and we shook hands and he said he'd see me in the OR. Then came in Dr.Solomon (my perinatologist) she said she'd gotten their early and was ready to go. She had the shunts in a bag in her purse and said she wanted to go talk to all the other doctors. Then came in the neonatologist saying that if we went into labor he would take her and do everything he could to save her. Then came in the OB that would be doing the C section if we needed one and she introduced herself and made some small talk. Then came in a medical student to explain all the risks of a C section and all the risks of this procedure and make me sign papers. More nurses came in and were giving me antibiotics in case of infection in the IV, and pumping me full of medicines. One nurse came and gave me 3 medicines I needed before a spinal, one I can't remember the purpose and two were so I wouldn't throw up. Two of them went into the IV and one I had to drink, it was the most foul tasting liquid ever especially after having such a dry mouth all day. More doctors and nurses came and talked to us about everything they were doing and everyone we would see. The neonatal surgeon came in and said she still thinks 33 weeks is the best but if anything were to happen she would try her best and no matter when Avery is born she will try her hardest. While all the doctors were talking I got this reaction to one of the medicines they put in my IV and my nurse said it was a really rare reaction but she'd had it before and knew how horrible it was. I felt like I was going to jump out of my skin. I couldn't hold still my legs hurt and and I was incredibly anxious. She said to try and take deep breaths and that is lasted about 20 minutes. I could barley focus on what people were saying to me and I just felt horrible. The nurse came back with IV benadryl (which works way better than the pills you take at home) and within 5 minutes it did start to calm me down and make me feel less anxious and jittery. I was so glad she'd had the reaction before so she could empathize with me and knew what to give me, I was already so nervous to have the surgery the last thing I needed was this reaction going on for 20 minutes.
Dr. Solomon came back in at this point and asked Ethan and I "If we're in there and fetal distress starts and we can't stop it. What do you want us to do? Do you want us to just leave you here and most likely she will die and then induce you to have a stillbirth or would you want us to bring Ethan into the OR and have an emergency C Section and try to give you a live birth. There isn't much we could do if she was born alive she's too tiny and would probably die but you would have a better chance at having a live birth, though it could still be a stillbirth." We knew this could happen and that it was a possibility of having this procedure but hearing them say it like that really freaked me out. They said there was about a 20% chance (maybe less) of this happening but it was always an option and we needed to decide now before I had all the pain meds and we were in the middle of a crisis situation. I got really overwhelmed and started to cry a little bit but Ethan and I agreed we wanted every chance of having a live birth so agreed on the C Section.
They said they were almost ready to go into surgery then, we'd been there for 2 full hours and didn't have more than 2 minutes of a breather. I asked if I could switch out Ethan for my mom so I could see her for a few minutes before they pulled me into surgery and one nurse said we went right past the waiting room and they would stop and let me see her. The doctor chimed in that they could sneak her back there for me without taking Ethan out and a few minutes later she and my Grandma showed up in the room. I asked for a few minutes to talk to them and we all nervously chattered and I caught them up on the last two hours they'd missed. After a few minutes they came in to get me and we all caravanned to the OR (or for Ethan, my mom and my Grandy they went to the waiting room.) While we were walking a nurse gave Ethan all the clothes to put over his clothes for the C Section and told him to put them on now so he was ready if they needed him, after that everyone I loved was gone and it was just the nurses and doctors and me. We stopped so everyone could get their scrubs on and so they could put a hairnet on me and the shoe booties on my feet even though I was barefoot.
They got me up and had me walk into the OR, which looked nothing like I imagined it was. It was small and crowded and just nothing like I'd imagined or seen on TV. They put my "cocktail" as they called it into my IV and said it would make me woozy that it was a mixture of morphine, and a couple other drugs that I don't remember the name of and then they had me sit forward and hug a pillow and put my head on a nurses chest so they could give me the Spinal block. After that I laid back and everyone started rushing around to get ready. They set up the Ultrasound machine and all the tools, gave me oxygen, and one of the nurses was trying to make small talk with me. They put up the curtain so I couldn't see what they were doing to me and then said I'd feel pressure because they were giving me a catheter. Next Dr. Solomon came and told me that they were going to start. By now I was feeling pretty heavy. I could think clearly but speaking was hard and I felt kind of lost. The rest of it is all kind of jumbled in my memory. I remember Dr. Solomon showing the Neonatal Surgeon all of Avery's problems they've seen and people commenting on all the fluid in her tummy. I then remember a nurse saying I should try and close my eyes but I was too scared. They then said I'd feel pressure and thats when they did their incision and poked the large placing needle and shunt in. After that is when it got scary.
All the nurses started rushing around and saying the cord was in the way, Dr. Solomon and Dr. Chambers (the OB) were saying "Come on baby move, we need a clear shot here." and the whole room got tense. The anesthesiologist's assistant was trying to tell me a joke to get me to not listen to them but they were all I could hear. I felt like I was underwater, I knew something was wrong but I couldn't quite make out what was going on. I think it only lasted for a minute or two but it felt like a long time and then Dr. Solomon said "I'm going to need the second shunt. This one won't work." She took it out and put another needle and all the things they use to place the shunt back through my incision. At this point the Neonatal Surgeon came over to pet my head and tell me how great I was doing. She started telling me about who she operates on and that Avery was cute she saw her face on the ultrasound. I think I dosed off for a few minutes around this point and then when I woke up Dr. Solomon said she' had it placed. I guess another Doctor was going to tell my family it was looking good. They were still watching her to see how she was reacting on the screen and I guess her entire belly drained in about 5 minutes. Which they were not expecting so that was good. They said she went from looking like a pregnant person with water filled to a normal sized baby abdomen. They tried to make Avery move but I guess she was tired from the meds they gave me too. They said that was normal but they put something that vibrated on my stomach to try and shake her but she wasn't moving. They said it was okay and then started to clean up. I asked a nurse how long we'd been in there since Dr. Solomon told me before the surgery it should only take about 30 minutes tops and the nurse said it'd been an hour. I asked to see Avery and I guess they showed her to me on the screen and showed me her tummy which had no more fluid but I don't remember that much at all. I asked to have a print out of her face and they said they'd give me one.
They all put me on a board and lifted me to another bed and wheeled me to recovery. I'm not sure how long I waited or slept there. I remember the nurse handing me a copy of the picture of Avery from the Ultrasound and saying the doctor would be in soon. Dr. Solomon came in and said it went as well as it could have. That the first didn't work because her cord was in the way but once they got that figured it out it went really well and drained great. That now we just needed to hope that two things don't happen. 1. Hope she doesn't pull the shunt out of her tummy sometime and 2. That it doesn't get clogged up with calcium build up since these shunts aren't made for this purpose and that there could be too much calcium that clogs it and makes it stop working. She said if that does happen we can always do this again but we'd prefer not to. We just need this to hold out for 6 1/2 more weeks and then she can be delivered and it doesn't need to be there anymore. She told me she was going to go talk to my family and then send them in to see me. Next thing I remember is my mom, Ethan, Grandy and Opa (what I call my grandparents) were all in there and told me that I did good and it seemed like it went well.
I showed them the picture of her face and talked a little with them but I was too groggy to remember much and I'm not sure if the talking I did was making much sense at this point. After awhile there they moved me to another bed and wheeled me into the room that I would spend the rest of my hospital stay in. I took a nap and watched some shows and was constantly be poked and prodded at by nurses and they kept giving me more medicines in my IV. They brought Ethan a cot to sleep on for the night and after dinner my mom said she was going to go home. She said if anything happened to call her and she would be there immediately. Ethan and I watched some more TV and I just rested. They checked Avery's heart rate a few times and every time it sounded good.
We got to go home the next afternoon and I was told just to stay on bed rest and lay low. Now I am here at home still having lazy days. I'm a little sore from the procedure but Avery is moving around like normal and I'm feeling better every day. We have a follow up with Dr. Solomon on Wednesday (they said we may start seeing her more than once a week now) to see how Avery is looking. Hopefully the shunt is still doing its job and she has no excess fluid on her tummy. I may have to stay on bed rest for the rest of my pregnancy they will decide that when we see how she's looking. For right now I sort of wish I knew how to knit or crochet or something to occupy my hands and time of all the hours I'm just laying here.
So for right now I'm pretty happy with the outcome. Hopefully we get good news on Wednesday and it's working great, then I'll be really happy. Thank you to everyone who has written to me or asked how I was doing. Also thank you to everyone who prayed this would go well and thought about us during this scary time. Please keep up your prayers that this thing works and holds for the next 6 1/2 weeks until they want to deliver her.
After they got the initial things they came to give me the second shot for her lungs and brain development. Then they started my IV and took 6 vials of blood and hooked me up to a huge bag of saline. They kept asking questions and feeling my stomach to find her body and asking if I was in pain or had any signs of labor. Then the anesthesiologist came in and said that he'd never seen one of these surgeries but one of the OB's said to give me a spinal just like a C Section and something in my IV to keep me calm and warned me that I'd probably be sleepy. I said that was fine and we shook hands and he said he'd see me in the OR. Then came in Dr.Solomon (my perinatologist) she said she'd gotten their early and was ready to go. She had the shunts in a bag in her purse and said she wanted to go talk to all the other doctors. Then came in the neonatologist saying that if we went into labor he would take her and do everything he could to save her. Then came in the OB that would be doing the C section if we needed one and she introduced herself and made some small talk. Then came in a medical student to explain all the risks of a C section and all the risks of this procedure and make me sign papers. More nurses came in and were giving me antibiotics in case of infection in the IV, and pumping me full of medicines. One nurse came and gave me 3 medicines I needed before a spinal, one I can't remember the purpose and two were so I wouldn't throw up. Two of them went into the IV and one I had to drink, it was the most foul tasting liquid ever especially after having such a dry mouth all day. More doctors and nurses came and talked to us about everything they were doing and everyone we would see. The neonatal surgeon came in and said she still thinks 33 weeks is the best but if anything were to happen she would try her best and no matter when Avery is born she will try her hardest. While all the doctors were talking I got this reaction to one of the medicines they put in my IV and my nurse said it was a really rare reaction but she'd had it before and knew how horrible it was. I felt like I was going to jump out of my skin. I couldn't hold still my legs hurt and and I was incredibly anxious. She said to try and take deep breaths and that is lasted about 20 minutes. I could barley focus on what people were saying to me and I just felt horrible. The nurse came back with IV benadryl (which works way better than the pills you take at home) and within 5 minutes it did start to calm me down and make me feel less anxious and jittery. I was so glad she'd had the reaction before so she could empathize with me and knew what to give me, I was already so nervous to have the surgery the last thing I needed was this reaction going on for 20 minutes.
Dr. Solomon came back in at this point and asked Ethan and I "If we're in there and fetal distress starts and we can't stop it. What do you want us to do? Do you want us to just leave you here and most likely she will die and then induce you to have a stillbirth or would you want us to bring Ethan into the OR and have an emergency C Section and try to give you a live birth. There isn't much we could do if she was born alive she's too tiny and would probably die but you would have a better chance at having a live birth, though it could still be a stillbirth." We knew this could happen and that it was a possibility of having this procedure but hearing them say it like that really freaked me out. They said there was about a 20% chance (maybe less) of this happening but it was always an option and we needed to decide now before I had all the pain meds and we were in the middle of a crisis situation. I got really overwhelmed and started to cry a little bit but Ethan and I agreed we wanted every chance of having a live birth so agreed on the C Section.
They said they were almost ready to go into surgery then, we'd been there for 2 full hours and didn't have more than 2 minutes of a breather. I asked if I could switch out Ethan for my mom so I could see her for a few minutes before they pulled me into surgery and one nurse said we went right past the waiting room and they would stop and let me see her. The doctor chimed in that they could sneak her back there for me without taking Ethan out and a few minutes later she and my Grandma showed up in the room. I asked for a few minutes to talk to them and we all nervously chattered and I caught them up on the last two hours they'd missed. After a few minutes they came in to get me and we all caravanned to the OR (or for Ethan, my mom and my Grandy they went to the waiting room.) While we were walking a nurse gave Ethan all the clothes to put over his clothes for the C Section and told him to put them on now so he was ready if they needed him, after that everyone I loved was gone and it was just the nurses and doctors and me. We stopped so everyone could get their scrubs on and so they could put a hairnet on me and the shoe booties on my feet even though I was barefoot.
They got me up and had me walk into the OR, which looked nothing like I imagined it was. It was small and crowded and just nothing like I'd imagined or seen on TV. They put my "cocktail" as they called it into my IV and said it would make me woozy that it was a mixture of morphine, and a couple other drugs that I don't remember the name of and then they had me sit forward and hug a pillow and put my head on a nurses chest so they could give me the Spinal block. After that I laid back and everyone started rushing around to get ready. They set up the Ultrasound machine and all the tools, gave me oxygen, and one of the nurses was trying to make small talk with me. They put up the curtain so I couldn't see what they were doing to me and then said I'd feel pressure because they were giving me a catheter. Next Dr. Solomon came and told me that they were going to start. By now I was feeling pretty heavy. I could think clearly but speaking was hard and I felt kind of lost. The rest of it is all kind of jumbled in my memory. I remember Dr. Solomon showing the Neonatal Surgeon all of Avery's problems they've seen and people commenting on all the fluid in her tummy. I then remember a nurse saying I should try and close my eyes but I was too scared. They then said I'd feel pressure and thats when they did their incision and poked the large placing needle and shunt in. After that is when it got scary.
All the nurses started rushing around and saying the cord was in the way, Dr. Solomon and Dr. Chambers (the OB) were saying "Come on baby move, we need a clear shot here." and the whole room got tense. The anesthesiologist's assistant was trying to tell me a joke to get me to not listen to them but they were all I could hear. I felt like I was underwater, I knew something was wrong but I couldn't quite make out what was going on. I think it only lasted for a minute or two but it felt like a long time and then Dr. Solomon said "I'm going to need the second shunt. This one won't work." She took it out and put another needle and all the things they use to place the shunt back through my incision. At this point the Neonatal Surgeon came over to pet my head and tell me how great I was doing. She started telling me about who she operates on and that Avery was cute she saw her face on the ultrasound. I think I dosed off for a few minutes around this point and then when I woke up Dr. Solomon said she' had it placed. I guess another Doctor was going to tell my family it was looking good. They were still watching her to see how she was reacting on the screen and I guess her entire belly drained in about 5 minutes. Which they were not expecting so that was good. They said she went from looking like a pregnant person with water filled to a normal sized baby abdomen. They tried to make Avery move but I guess she was tired from the meds they gave me too. They said that was normal but they put something that vibrated on my stomach to try and shake her but she wasn't moving. They said it was okay and then started to clean up. I asked a nurse how long we'd been in there since Dr. Solomon told me before the surgery it should only take about 30 minutes tops and the nurse said it'd been an hour. I asked to see Avery and I guess they showed her to me on the screen and showed me her tummy which had no more fluid but I don't remember that much at all. I asked to have a print out of her face and they said they'd give me one.
They all put me on a board and lifted me to another bed and wheeled me to recovery. I'm not sure how long I waited or slept there. I remember the nurse handing me a copy of the picture of Avery from the Ultrasound and saying the doctor would be in soon. Dr. Solomon came in and said it went as well as it could have. That the first didn't work because her cord was in the way but once they got that figured it out it went really well and drained great. That now we just needed to hope that two things don't happen. 1. Hope she doesn't pull the shunt out of her tummy sometime and 2. That it doesn't get clogged up with calcium build up since these shunts aren't made for this purpose and that there could be too much calcium that clogs it and makes it stop working. She said if that does happen we can always do this again but we'd prefer not to. We just need this to hold out for 6 1/2 more weeks and then she can be delivered and it doesn't need to be there anymore. She told me she was going to go talk to my family and then send them in to see me. Next thing I remember is my mom, Ethan, Grandy and Opa (what I call my grandparents) were all in there and told me that I did good and it seemed like it went well.
I showed them the picture of her face and talked a little with them but I was too groggy to remember much and I'm not sure if the talking I did was making much sense at this point. After awhile there they moved me to another bed and wheeled me into the room that I would spend the rest of my hospital stay in. I took a nap and watched some shows and was constantly be poked and prodded at by nurses and they kept giving me more medicines in my IV. They brought Ethan a cot to sleep on for the night and after dinner my mom said she was going to go home. She said if anything happened to call her and she would be there immediately. Ethan and I watched some more TV and I just rested. They checked Avery's heart rate a few times and every time it sounded good.
We got to go home the next afternoon and I was told just to stay on bed rest and lay low. Now I am here at home still having lazy days. I'm a little sore from the procedure but Avery is moving around like normal and I'm feeling better every day. We have a follow up with Dr. Solomon on Wednesday (they said we may start seeing her more than once a week now) to see how Avery is looking. Hopefully the shunt is still doing its job and she has no excess fluid on her tummy. I may have to stay on bed rest for the rest of my pregnancy they will decide that when we see how she's looking. For right now I sort of wish I knew how to knit or crochet or something to occupy my hands and time of all the hours I'm just laying here.
So for right now I'm pretty happy with the outcome. Hopefully we get good news on Wednesday and it's working great, then I'll be really happy. Thank you to everyone who has written to me or asked how I was doing. Also thank you to everyone who prayed this would go well and thought about us during this scary time. Please keep up your prayers that this thing works and holds for the next 6 1/2 weeks until they want to deliver her.
Thursday, September 18, 2014
Last Ditch Effort
Our doctor called us this morning and woke me up the first call said that we had an appointment with the neonatal surgeon on Tuesday. I said that was fine and thanked them for making me the appointment. About an hour later I got another call saying that our Doctor got off the phone with the surgeon and the surgeon said that she needed Avery to get to 33 weeks along before she had a good chance of operating and having Avery survive. Our doctor said she didn't think Avery would make it that long in utero without her heart stopping with all the fluid built up in her abdomen putting stress on all her organs. So they both agreed they needed to do something and that something would be putting a shunt through me into Avery's tummy and leaving the shunt in her until birth and that shunt will constantly drain any fluid in her abdomen into my amniotic fluid and that we needed to have that done tomorrow. I asked the risks and they said that we always have risks putting a needle into my amniotic sac (the risks being that it could break my water and put me into preterm labor or give her fetal distress.) They said that the risk in not doing it though is much higher than the risk in doing this, after a lot of thought and a long talk with my doctor I agreed to have this done tomorrow.
They said that it would be at the hospital and I'll need to fast for 8 hours. We will go into the ER and our doctor, the neonatal surgeon and another OB will all be in the room and I'll get an epidural (most likely) and some laughing gas to keep me calm and we'll go through and insert the shunt during an ultrasound and try to drain the fluid. I'll be kept overnight for monitoring to make sure that I don't go into preterm labor and to make sure that she is okay and stays calm and happy. I will not meet the surgeon Tuesday anymore, I'll just meet and consult with her tomorrow. Doing this does not ensure she'll make it to 33 weeks alive but it gives up the best chance so we can have our C Section and have an alive baby that can go immediately into surgery. That is when they'll take out the shunt as well so it will stay in her the remainder of my pregnancy.
I then got a third call from our doctor asking me to come in today and get the steroid shot to help her lungs develop quicker and it also helps with the blood vessels in her brain. I agreed and went in and got that. It wasn't too bad of a pain, my hip and butt area were a little sore for awhile but I'm okay. I'll get a second shot of this steroid tomorrow at the hospital before my procedure. I'm terrified something is going to go wrong. Our doctor showed me the shunts that she has sitting on her desk waiting for tomorrow when she will meet us at the hospital.
Please God just let Avery get through this, let her have no distress and let my amniotic sac accept it no problem. Let these shots help her lungs and let her little body hold on for the next 7 weeks and keep developing so she can be born alive at 33 weeks with no fluid on her stomach and strong enough to withstand surgery. I am terrified for my child's life. She's been through far too much and she isn't even born yet. I'm supposed to be able to be able to protect her from all pain and evil while she's in utero and tomorrow she will feel some pain with a needle being inserted in her tiny stomach. I'm so scared, I don't know what to do. I am doing everything in my power to keep this baby alive and it still doesn't feel like I'm doing enough.
I go into the hospital at 1:30 tomorrow and have the procedure at 3:30 and then will be there overnight. It shouldn't take more than 45 minutes or an hour to complete this procedure and we should see the fluid start to drain immediately after inserting it. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. She needs to get to 33 weeks, she needs to fight this, she needs to live.
They said that it would be at the hospital and I'll need to fast for 8 hours. We will go into the ER and our doctor, the neonatal surgeon and another OB will all be in the room and I'll get an epidural (most likely) and some laughing gas to keep me calm and we'll go through and insert the shunt during an ultrasound and try to drain the fluid. I'll be kept overnight for monitoring to make sure that I don't go into preterm labor and to make sure that she is okay and stays calm and happy. I will not meet the surgeon Tuesday anymore, I'll just meet and consult with her tomorrow. Doing this does not ensure she'll make it to 33 weeks alive but it gives up the best chance so we can have our C Section and have an alive baby that can go immediately into surgery. That is when they'll take out the shunt as well so it will stay in her the remainder of my pregnancy.
I then got a third call from our doctor asking me to come in today and get the steroid shot to help her lungs develop quicker and it also helps with the blood vessels in her brain. I agreed and went in and got that. It wasn't too bad of a pain, my hip and butt area were a little sore for awhile but I'm okay. I'll get a second shot of this steroid tomorrow at the hospital before my procedure. I'm terrified something is going to go wrong. Our doctor showed me the shunts that she has sitting on her desk waiting for tomorrow when she will meet us at the hospital.
Please God just let Avery get through this, let her have no distress and let my amniotic sac accept it no problem. Let these shots help her lungs and let her little body hold on for the next 7 weeks and keep developing so she can be born alive at 33 weeks with no fluid on her stomach and strong enough to withstand surgery. I am terrified for my child's life. She's been through far too much and she isn't even born yet. I'm supposed to be able to be able to protect her from all pain and evil while she's in utero and tomorrow she will feel some pain with a needle being inserted in her tiny stomach. I'm so scared, I don't know what to do. I am doing everything in my power to keep this baby alive and it still doesn't feel like I'm doing enough.
I go into the hospital at 1:30 tomorrow and have the procedure at 3:30 and then will be there overnight. It shouldn't take more than 45 minutes or an hour to complete this procedure and we should see the fluid start to drain immediately after inserting it. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. She needs to get to 33 weeks, she needs to fight this, she needs to live.
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