Thursday, November 29, 2007

The Scoop

I am so sorry I haven't posted. I kept wanting to give you guys the whole labor story and the drama that followed, but that would involve time...something I have yet to find in my attempt to mother two children! :o) Therefore, you'll get the quick summary for now. I plan to write down the details for myself eventually, but at this rate, that will be next year!

Anyway, yes, Amanda, I am alive ;o) and actually doing much much better. As some of you may know, you can't really get rid of a blood clot; you have to wait for your body to absorb it. But I am on a blood thinner for the next 5 months to prevent the clot in my lung from getting bigger. I was getting my blood checked twice a week to make sure it was at the right consistency, but now my levels are more stable, so as of this week, we are attempting checking it once every other week. Yeah!

Another reason I didn't post was because there was actually more drama that followed the blood clot drama. As you may have noticed from my post, I ended up staying in the hospital a little longer than planned. The day before they hoped I would be able to go home, I developed a large hematoma in my left uterine wall that was EXTREMELY painful. As in I'd rather have 5 kids without drugs than go through this pain again. At one point, I was on two Vicodin pills, they doubled up on my morphine IV, and I was still in pain. They finally gave me Demerol (yes all at the same time) and then, well, all was well with the world... :o)

The pain of the hematoma kept me on my back for a few days and was preventing me from peeing on my own. So in went a catheter and LOTs of pain meds.

They usually do surgery and drain the hematoma, but they couldn't do
that for me because of the blood thinner. If I went into surgery, I could hemmorhage, which would obviously not be a good thing. So the hope was that my body would absorb the hematoma. They prepared me for emergency surgery in the event that it got bigger, but thankfully, that never happened. But, I had to stay in the hospital until I could walk and pee on my own again. And deal with the pain. That's why I got home late Monday night instead of Friday.

The real blessing was that Miss Kendall was able to stay with me the whole time. The nurses took great care of her and ensured that she was fed on demand. The doctors assured me all the meds I was on were safe for nursing Kendall, so I was able to breastfeed the whole time. Because I wasn't able to sit up for a while, we mastered the lying down feeding position -- something I could never get quite right with Emma. I have to say feeding Kendall was the only thing that kept me sane during those 11 VERY long days.

I'm not sure I'm ready to write about the emotional impact of all of this just yet, but I have to say that being away from Emma was by far the worst part of it all. Half of my heart was so overjoyed to have Kendall in my life, but the other half was so very broken that I couldn't see my first baby. The one I spend every second of the day with. The one who understood enough to miss and cry out for me, but wasn't old enough to understand that I didn't leave her for good. Some day I'll be ready to write more, but for now, let's just say my heart is still on the mend. And I think hers is a little bit too.

The hematoma still hasn't gone away, but the pain is decreasing every day. And according to my OB appointment yesterday, it is finally getting smaller! It's about 1/4 the size it was 5 weeks ago, so hopefully in a few more weeks it will be completely gone.

They've done tests and concluded that the blood clot was a "fluke" of pregnancy, meaning that nothing in my blood or genetic makeup makes me prone to clots. It was just the increased estrogen levels and the pressure in my pelvic area. They assume a clot formed in the pelvic region, and then after delivery, popped up into my lung. Also, believe it or not, the blood thinner is what caused the hematoma. I felt like I couldn't win!

I do realize how very blessed I am that they caught it -- and that I am alive today -- but if I'm going to be honest, the whole thing still seems more like nuisance than anything. Yes, God did protect me and answered the MANY prayers that went up for me, but it is a strange feeling to have such a fuss made over you. But more on all that later.

Anyway, Miss Kendall is doing great, although her tummy seems even more sensitive than Emma's -- but at least I'm prepared this time. And Emma is adjusting fairly well. She was pretty shaken up with me being gone for so long, so it took us a while to get back on track, but we're getting there. I have my good days and bad days, but I know I'll eventually find my Mommy groove again. For now, I sit in awe of you women with three and four children. How do you do it???

So that's the scoop for now. I realize this doesn't seem like a "quick summary," but there is so much more I could write! Hopefully I can start posting more often. Poor Kendall is already getting treated like a second child...she's almost 6 weeks old and I have yet to write her one-month letter!

12 comments:

Stephanie Wilson she/her @babysteph said...

Oh wow- I am so glad you are ok! And that you were still able to nurse... amazing! You are super-mama! And believe me- you'll fit into that Mommy Groove sooner than you know!

Steph

Anonymous said...

THANK YOU FOR AN UPDATE! I swear Bryan was sick of me saying "I need to hear from Lisa, I want to know what's going on with Lisa and should I call Lisa??"

More so I'm thankful everyone is on the mend, I can imagine how torn you must have been all the while dealing with terrible physical pain. Take all the time you need to heal from everything, what an ordeal!

I am bummed to hear about Kendall's belly though! But at least you have probably more than enough research under your belt, afterall you were educating the doctors! I'm looking forward to hearing more about it and impressed you continued to BF through it all. You're a champ.

I hope you guys enjoyed your Thanksgiving, so many reasons to be thankful! xoxoxoxoxo

tracey.becker1@gmail.com said...

Glad to hear you're on the mend! A new baby is a big deal, and then to add all of the medical issues, well, you have definitely had your hands VERY full!

Unknown said...

I can only imagine how your heart must be feeling going through all that, but you sound like you are managing well and focusing on the positive.

You'll get into the swing of things before you know it, and will have a hard time remembering what it was like with only one babe!

one hot momma said...

Lisa,
My "number 2" delivery was very "eventful" as well. Not quite as much as yours, but I'm still reading your unwritten emotions and feeling them right along with you. I'll be praying a hedge of protection around you as it will be hard adjusting for a while...keep talking to your friends and if you need to talk to someone that's "out of your immediate" circle, I'm available. My e-mail is eddiefam@sbcglobal.net. Just shoot me an e-mail. In the meantime, I'm so thankful you're home and on the mend. Give yourself time...and, remember rule #2...GRACE for yourself! God gave Emma a heart full of love for her momma and he also gave her a memory that erases the yucky emotions she's feeling right now. She won't remember... my oldest has no recollection of my time away...(time meaning both physical and emotional)...God is good that way. Hang on to that!
You're in my prayers!
Laura

Anonymous said...

Oh, girl. I'm sorry there was so much craziness for you surrounding Kendall's birth. I had no idea things were that complicated. I'm glad you're on the mend, and hope that you're enjoying having two sweet little girls. Going from 1 to 2 kids was by far my hardest transition...after that, what's another one, two, etc... :)
Have a great weekend, and I can't wait to see some new pics of the girls WHEN YOU GET TIME! I know how that goes! :) Love you!!!

Glass Half Full said...

And you are growing stronger and stronger with each day. Sending thoughts and hugs your way!

Lori

Jen said...

Lisa,

I found your blog through Jana's (Jana is married to my cousin.) I am a Labor and Delivery nurse and mamma to two. I got tearful reading your story. When we brought our second child home I had a condition called "benign positional vertigo". It had nothing to do with my pregnancy, but it occured at 38 weeks of pregnacy. I couldn't see straight and was unbalanced for almost 2 months. The hardest part was not being able to care for my 2-year-old. I remember my heart breaking when we had to send to him to Grandma's because I just couldn't handle his high pitched voice or quick movements. It is OK to have your heart break. Let others do for you what you can't. Treasure the times with both children. Soon you'll be doing things with Emma again!

Carol said...

So glad you're all doing well. Praise God! Prayer does work, Lisa!! =]

Mommy Brain said...

Wow! And you nursed throughout this entire ordeal?!?!? You are a hero! Keep getting stronger!

Butterfly Mama said...

WOW! I'm glad that you still got all that special nursing time with Kendall and that Emma and you are on the mend. Thanks for the update. I didn't even do a one month anything for my daughter either just started at two months. I guess that just goes with the territory of being kiddo #2.

I totally relate - I know this isn't what you want to hear but it's been three and a half months with two kids here and on many days I still have no Mommy groove, it's just so different.

Alas, I ramble... I'm very grateful that you are ok and settling in as best as possible.
Hugs, Heidi

Lauren said...

Just visiting via Mama C-ta...

Hope your recovery is speedy and easy! Congrats on the new baby!

Lauren