Doctor's Appointments and a Hospital Stay

It's been a couple of weeks since my last update and there is a lot to catch up on.

I went to see my OBGYN for a regular prenatal appointment just after the New Year. We talked about the new diagnosis and about my experience at Maternal Fetal medicine. We talked again about how she wouldn't be able to deliver me at the hospital adjacent to the Children's hospital where the baby will have surgery. With the new diagnosis, she and I both were wondering about the possibility of having her deliver me at Norton Suburban, where she is contracted to deliver, and then to transport baby after delivery. She said if that didn't work out, she had a doctor in mind that she wanted to transfer my care to. I had an appointment already to see the Pediatric Cardiologist and I was to talk to her about the possibility of delivering at Suburban, and Dr. Nett would do her research, too.

I had the appointment for a fetal echo cardiogram and with Dr. Lucinda Wright, one of the Pediatric Cardiologists at Kosair Children's Hospital on January 11. The appointment went well and Dr. Wright confirmed the diagnosis of Coarctation of the Aorta. She was very personable and answered all of our questions. She did say that I should not deliver at Suburban. She felt that the safest place to be would be at Norton Hospital Downtown where the baby would be able to be quickly treated if any extra problems arose. Even though I wish Dr. Nett could deliver me, I completely understand, and of course want to be at the best place for our little boy. We made another appointment for an echo for when I am 36 weeks pregnant, just to see if anything has changed as he grows.

January 14 was my Grandma's 85th birthday! My sister picked me up and Tanner up, and we carpooled to the restaurant in Crestwood to have lunch and surprise my Grandma with my Mom and several of Grandma's friends. We stayed for about an hour and a half and had a great time. As we were gathering our things to go, I told Tanner we should go to the bathroom one last time before heading home. After I helped him, I had to go. I was shocked and shaking as I discovered I was bleeding. I wasn't sure what was happening. It was like the beginning of the pregnancy when I had the Subchorionic Hemorrhage, except that had been resolved. I wiped twice, and it wasn't stopping. I pulled myself together and went back out to the restaurant. I didn't want to alarm my mom and Grandma, so I didn't tell them. When I got in Amy's car, I told her what was happening and called the doctor's office. They told me to go straight to the hospital, Labor & Delivery department to have them check me out. In hindsight, I should've gone downtown, just in case the baby had to be delivered, but I was a bit emotional and the triage nurse didn't know to tell me any different.

Amy dropped me off and took Tanner and Logan, I called Wes and he got to the hospital within about 10 minutes of my checking in. By the time I got to the hospital, I was bleeding even more. I was scared, to say the least. My baby already has a heart issue, it would not be good to add premature birth on top of that. I did not want him to be born yet! The nurse checked me to see if I was dilated at all, and fortunately, I was not. They hooked me up to the monitors to check baby's heart rate and to check for contractions. Baby's heart was in the 140's and I was not having contractions. An ultrasound tech came in to take a look at what was going on. They were looking to see if the placenta was pulling away from the uterine wall, or for any other reason for the bleeding.

Everything looked good. The placenta was fine, and there was no other signs of why I might be bleeding. The hospitalist OBGYN, came in to have a look. She examined me and said she didn't see any other active bleeding, but she wanted to admit me for the night as a precaution. I was disappointed, but understood. I didn't want to be discharged too soon and have something happen worse once leaving. So, I called my sister and told her I would need her to pick up my older kids from school and keep them for a few hours. Wes was supposed to go to school that night, but decided to not go and stay with me for a bit. He went home and got me a few things I wanted for the night, and stayed till time to put the kids in bed. There wasn't any reason for him to stay, and I wanted the kids to stay in their routine as much as possible, since they had school the next day.

The next morning, Wes took the day off of work so he could get the kids to school and stay with Tanner. We were hoping I'd go home that day, but that wasn't the case. Dr. Evans, Dr. Nett's associate rounded on me that morning. She said she wanted me to stay another 24 hours as a precaution. I wasn't having any active bleeding, but was still spotting and she wanted to make sure it wouldn't start up again. Again, I was really disappointed, but knew I had to stay. Fortunately, nothing eventful happened in the next 24 hours. They did order steroid shots, to be given 24 hours apart. They are to strengthen baby's lungs in case he were to be premature. So, I got one Friday morning. Wes and Tanner came to visit for a while, and my sister, Amy and her kids came to keep me company, too. It was nice to have the day broken up a little. They monitored the baby and me twice a day, and everything looked great. They had to move the sensors several times because he is so active and he kept kicking off the monitor!

Saturday morning came and I finally got to see Dr. Nett. She said I could be discharged! We talked about our next step of action in our plan. She said that if anything else were to happen, I was to go to Norton's downtown. She also told me that she had talked to Dr. Nick Carracato who is an OBGYN in an office that delivers downtown. She said she "hand picked" him and feels like he will be a good match for me. He will work closely with Maternal Fetal Medicine about my case, but he would be the one caring for me and eventually he (or someone in his practice) would be the one to deliver that baby. She did that so I wouldn't have the risk of having Dr. How deliver me, the one I had a negative experience with at Maternal Fetal Medicine.  As a side note, I don't want anyone to think I hate Dr. How. I just had a bad experience, and I don't feel that given her bedside manner and the way we started off that I want her to be a part of our experience, given the circumstances, especially. Plus, I'll be honest, although she may be a great doctor, and some may really like her, I find it hard to trust her after she gave us such a wrong diagnosis for our baby. Anyway...

So, I got my second steroid shot Saturday morning, and let Wes know I was ready to be picked up. He was at a birthday party with the kids at Chuck E. Cheese, and I didn't want them to have to leave early. So, my sister Amy kept an eye on them until after Wes picked me up, and then we went to pick them up at the party. It was nice to be out of the hospital and go home!

I am grateful for all of those who helped out and messaged me, and for friends who were quick to offer to bring dinner. It is wonderful to know we have such a great support system, and that so many are thinking of us and praying for us. Wes' coworkers even had some beautiful flowers sent to the house to wish a speedy recovery.

We are praying that the next 9 weeks go smoother and that baby boy stays put. It seems we really can't predict what is next for us in this pregnancy! I just keep thinking how much this little boy will be worth it! We love him so very much and can't wait to have him here. Even with all of the chaos, and all of the worry and nerves that go along with our situation, I know that we are being watched over. I went visiting teaching yesterday and shared a message about how the Lord wants us to be of good cheer. Even in the midst of trials, we can have joy and hope because of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm not going to lie, I wish our situation were different, that our boy had a perfect heart. But, that is not the case, so we just move on, knowing that his life and plan for him is in God's hands. No matter what happens, he is ours for eternity. The blessing of having our family sealed in the temple does not end in this life. We are together forever. I pray that all will go well and that we will raise a healthy little boy into adulthood! But, no matter what happens, how hard this road will be, I know that the Plan of Salvation is real. Our Savior came to earth to suffer not only for our sins, but also to suffer all of the pain that we would feel in this life. He has been through it all. He sends the Holy Ghost to guide our path and to comfort us in hard times.

I have another appointment this week to check on the growth of our baby, and then we meet Dr. Austin, the heart surgeon at Kosair on Monday. Hopefully, he is growing strong and making himself ready to make his appearance in a few weeks. Thank you again for your prayers and support. We feel it.