Surviving Prematurity
Submitted by pulido1011
Like most young couples, my husband and I were anxious to start our own little family. We thought it would take a couple of tries but we hit the bull's eye in the first shot. Needless to say, my husband was extremely proud of himself. From what I recall, he beamed whenever someone asked us how long it took us to conceive. He's such a funny man!
My pregnancy was completely textbook for the first and second trimesters. I was experiencing everything that I read on-line and in books. There were no surprises and I was trucking along and putting on the pounds like a good little...I mean...good chunky pregnant gal.
One night, I woke up with a full bladder and I waddled to the bathroom for the hundredth time. I realized in horror that I was bleeding heavily. My husband rushed us to the hospital but it felt like the longest ten minutes of our lives. The thought of losing our baby was unbearable. I was barely 32 weeks along and I wasn't feeling the baby move for the first time in months. My hands were shaking so bad and I felt like someone was throwing buckets of ice-cold water down my back.
When we finally reached Labor and Delivery, we heard our daughter's heartbeat through the ultrasound for the first time in weeks. There was such an overwhelming sense of relief that came over me. But it was short-lived because I found out that I was actually going into labor. The doctor said that I was already 4 cm dilated, my water bag was bulging, I was fully effaced, and to top it all off, my little one was in the breech presentation. She was actually in a sitting position wedged into my pelvis. This meant I was looking at an emergency c-section as well. I was a complete and utter mess!
The doctors were able to delay my delivery for a few days with strict bed rest in the hospital. But our impatient little one decided she'd give my water bag a swift kick to end her temporary confined living arrangements.
Our beautiful daughter was born 8 weeks premature. She was so small and fragile when they took her away from me and rushed her to the NICU. I wasn't able to see her again until late into the evening.
That night, my husband wheeled me into the NICU. The lights were dimmed for the babies' comfort and all I could hear were the beeps from the ventilators and the I.V. machines. He parked my wheelchair in front of one incubator with an ultraviolet light shining brightly above it.
And there she was...my little girl...my very little girl. She was a lightweight at around 4 pounds and her tiny hand barely fit around my thumb. In that dark quiet room, our daughter shined so brightly. We spoke to her and told her how much we love her. And we sat quietly with her praying that they let us take her home soon. It was very difficult to leave my baby and go back to my room. But I had to rest as well and recover from the c-section.
Before leaving, I held my baby in my arms once more. I kissed her on her forehead and whispered to her. "Welcome to the family little one. We'll be back tomorrow...happy birth day..."
Read more birth stories or share YOUR birth story now!
My pregnancy was completely textbook for the first and second trimesters. I was experiencing everything that I read on-line and in books. There were no surprises and I was trucking along and putting on the pounds like a good little...I mean...good chunky pregnant gal.
One night, I woke up with a full bladder and I waddled to the bathroom for the hundredth time. I realized in horror that I was bleeding heavily. My husband rushed us to the hospital but it felt like the longest ten minutes of our lives. The thought of losing our baby was unbearable. I was barely 32 weeks along and I wasn't feeling the baby move for the first time in months. My hands were shaking so bad and I felt like someone was throwing buckets of ice-cold water down my back.
When we finally reached Labor and Delivery, we heard our daughter's heartbeat through the ultrasound for the first time in weeks. There was such an overwhelming sense of relief that came over me. But it was short-lived because I found out that I was actually going into labor. The doctor said that I was already 4 cm dilated, my water bag was bulging, I was fully effaced, and to top it all off, my little one was in the breech presentation. She was actually in a sitting position wedged into my pelvis. This meant I was looking at an emergency c-section as well. I was a complete and utter mess!
The doctors were able to delay my delivery for a few days with strict bed rest in the hospital. But our impatient little one decided she'd give my water bag a swift kick to end her temporary confined living arrangements.
Our beautiful daughter was born 8 weeks premature. She was so small and fragile when they took her away from me and rushed her to the NICU. I wasn't able to see her again until late into the evening.
That night, my husband wheeled me into the NICU. The lights were dimmed for the babies' comfort and all I could hear were the beeps from the ventilators and the I.V. machines. He parked my wheelchair in front of one incubator with an ultraviolet light shining brightly above it.
And there she was...my little girl...my very little girl. She was a lightweight at around 4 pounds and her tiny hand barely fit around my thumb. In that dark quiet room, our daughter shined so brightly. We spoke to her and told her how much we love her. And we sat quietly with her praying that they let us take her home soon. It was very difficult to leave my baby and go back to my room. But I had to rest as well and recover from the c-section.
Before leaving, I held my baby in my arms once more. I kissed her on her forehead and whispered to her. "Welcome to the family little one. We'll be back tomorrow...happy birth day..."
Read more birth stories or share YOUR birth story now!
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