Hospital Food Never Tasted So Good!

Posted by CoderMom in Baby Photos, Dr. Visits, Photos | 11 comments

Jul 27, 11

Pregnancy is quite a journey, and believe me when I say that, or when any mother says that. It’s full of ups and downs, but it’s all worth it in the end. Today was one experience I won’t forget.

Below is a long and detailed post about my hospital stay. I needed to have a cerclage surgery to keep the baby in until it’s time. The details are deeply personal and mostly for me, but you’re welcomed to join the experience if you like. The power of positive thoughts has an amazing effect on me, and I hope future parents find comfort in this post as well. Frightening events can have a positive twist if you let mind and heart believe it.

My husband drove me to the hospital at 8am to get my weekly shot. It’s an injection on the back of my hip to keep the baby from arriving early. Believe me, it’s not fun, but then again, not everything in life is! I just think of it as something helping my baby, so it’s a positive experience for me. I hadn’t eaten or drank anything since 10:30pm last night (since I had surgery later), so my body was feeling kind of weak. The injection just slightly made it worse. I could feel the medicine piercing down my leg as I walked. But that was only the first challenge of the day, I had more fun stuff to look forward to as the day went on.

By 9am, I went to the hospital’s Labor and Delivery building for my surgery. I was starting to feel a little nervous there. To calm myself down, I just continued reading all your words of encouragement. (Thank you so much for that! It made a world of difference and helped me focus on the baby rather than my fears.) The word “surgery” always scares me. The only surgery I ever had before was for my wisdom teeth and that definitely was not the same.

I finally got called in around 10:30am and the nurse brought me into the back rooms. I felt like I just stepped onto the set of Grey’s Anatomy. It’s one of my favorite TV shows, so it was kinda interesting! Everyone was so busy, and the nurse who took me in was running around trying to find an open room. She was talking so fast… kinda reminded me of Little Grey with a hint of April. haha

The nurse finally found an empty room and they started to prep me. She then got me ready for the IV. I’ve never had one on me before, so I was asking lots of questions. Here’s the definition from the web:

The device used to administer an intravenous solution, such as the familiar IV drip used to slowly drip a bag of electrolyte solution into a dehydrated patient through a tiny plastic tube inserted directly into a vein.

So it’s a tube put into my skin (on the hand) that puts fluids in my body to keep me hydrate. The fluid is in a clear bag that hangs on a pole. I’m sure you’ve seen one on TV before. Before she put it in, I asked her if it’s going to hurt like giving blood. And she said, oh, it’s going to hurt a bit more. And I’ll probably be your friend up to this point. lol At least she was being honest! And I like honesty, and I was able to prepare myself for the pain. And it indeed hurt a lot more than a needle. The hole is much bigger, but once the fluids started dripping in, it was manageable.

As the IV started dripping, my body got really cold! My teeth were chattering! A new nurse came in to take over for the rest of my stay. She was so sweet! She got me socks, and a warm blanket to keep me shaking so much. She definitely reminds me of Bailey (the way she treats her patients, not her staff!) haha

And while this is going on, the Head anesthesiologist was explaining to me what was going to happen. They’ll be putting anesthesia on my spine and I will be numb from my waist down. But he does not want to sedate me because it could affect my baby. Good, I don’t want to be asleep either. I much prefer being awake when this is going on rather than be asleep and not remembering anything. Plus, you wouldn’t be reading this detailed post if that was the case! lol

As soon as the IV dripped 2 bags of the clear liquid — distilled water with calcium and other nutrients, and a dose of antibiotics, I was taken to the OR. I also had to drink this really nasty fluid that made my stomach want to flip. It tasted like sour cherries or something! Yuck, yuck, yuck. I was thirsty but that didn’t quench my thirst!

So I made my trek down the hall into the OR. They prep me in there and administer the anesthesia on my spine. The trick to it is slumping my back so they can put it in there. And well, once it’s in, it was a lot more painful than giving blood! All the skin around my back was piercing with pain for about a minute. I constantly took deep breaths to calm myself down, as well as think of the baby.

The numbness started working its way down my legs and left my feet tingly. Once I couldn’t move them anymore, they got me ready and my doctor came in and further explained to me what was going to happen. The operation was done mostly with me close to being upside-down. Well, maybe at a sharp angle. I couldn’t really tell but after 15 minutes or so, the blood was starting to rush to my head.

During the operation, I was amusing the nurses with all of my curious questions. I asked about all the gadgety equipment they used, how things were sterilized, what’s their main job and duties were, etc. They were talking up a storm and it was quite comforting just to hear voices. They also said, usually, people are asleep during these operations, so we don’t normally do this. heh

After 30 minutes, the doctor was all done. And he said the surgery went really well and continued to remind me that I’m on strict bed rest. And that I need to attend all of my scheduled appointments, and he’ll see me next week for a followup.

By 1pm, I was rolled and wheeled out into the recovery room where they monitored me. I wasn’t going to be discharged until the numbness went away and I could walk and go to the restroom on my own. This took a while. That anesthesia worked too well.

The nurse monitored the baby but she couldn’t get the sonogram to work properly. It was picking up my heartbeat instead. This is kinda good because she had to get another nurse to use an ultrasound machine instead. So I was able to SEE the baby and not just hear it. And I have to say, this was the highlight of my rough day. The baby was moving around so much, and kicking the placenta like it’s a soccer ball. LOL Baby definitely has nice strong legs and a happy spirit! Albert thinks the baby has his legs and feet! With as many times as he accidentally step on my toes, it’s probably true!

The nurse heated up some lunch for me at 2pm and I have to say, hospital food never tasted so good! She made enough food for Albert and me, and we ate and drank it up quickly. It was just steak (hospital steak…), potatoes, and carrots, an apple, and juice, but that definitely hit the spot when you haven’t eaten for half a day.

They continued to monitor me and the baby as I napped. Again, the anesthesia worked too well. I couldn’t start moving my feet until close to 5:30pm. By 3pm, my nurse was off her shift, and I had another one take care of me. By 6pm or so, I was finally discharged. And the most painful moment out of this ordeal was probably when she tried to rip the sticker holding the IV tube on my hand. That adhesive was strong! It was pulling my skin off. Yikes.

I was happy to finally be able to go home. Albert pushed me out in a wheelchair, and we finally got some real food on the trip home. We didn’t get home until 7pm and it was a long day for all three of us.

But all in all, everything couldn’t have worked out better. It was like being in a scene from Grey’s Anatomy without all the drama (thank goodness!). And we’re looking forward to a healthy baby being born later this year. We’re only halfway there, so hang on sweetheart!