The Story of Aidan and Cole -- Part 1

The Last Days of Aidan and Cole in the Womb

Friday, June 11, 2004

I went to the doctor today for them to check on my blood pressure and to get the results from my urine science experiment. Dr. Dinh did not like what she saw when I had my BP checked. She came back into the room and told me that she was sending me to Labor and Delivery. She didn't know if I would be admitted or not.

The nurse wheeled me to the other part of the hospital. At this particular hosptial, labor, delivery, and recovery all occur at the "Women's Pavilion." I went to the triage room and they hooked me up to many monitors. I had my BP taken every 10 minutes. They put a heartbeat monitor on both of the babies. They also put a contraction monitor on my belly. I was covered in wires and ultrasound goo.

Aidan was positioned low in my pelvis and he DID NOT like to sit still for the monitor. My poor nurse worked forever to get a good read on his heartbeat. Cole was stuck up at the top of my uterus and could not move so he was easy to find. The BP cuff was painful because my pressure was so high, it had to pump up very high to get the right reading.

I was there for a few hours when I was informed that I would be admitted to the hospital. They did not like my BP readings and apparently there was a lot of protein in my urine. Both signs of pre-eclampsia.

I was set up in room 24 at the end of one hallway. My doctor and the new female doctor who admitted me came to talk to me about my condition. They told me that I would be staying there until the babies were delivered. They could not give me a timeline because of the nature of the disease I had. Eventually I figured out that we were waiting for something really bad to happen to me for the babies to be delivered. I was told at that time that I would have a C-section because of the position of the top baby (Cole) and my high blood pressure. It was not what I wanted at all, but I had some time for it to sink in.

Mom had taken me to the doctor that morning and she went home to get my stuff. The nurses hooked me up again and they had to monitor me and the babies for about 30 minutes every shift, 3 times a day/night.

Cory got off work and came to the hospital. He spent the night in a not-so comfortable chair that folds down to a sort of bed. I had to lie on my side because of my large belly. I could not get up to do anything except go to the bathroom. This day/night was not too bad as we watched TV for awhile before we went to sleep. Although, my sleep was usually interrupted by the shift change at 11 pm.

Saturday, June 12, 2004

I woke up to another day in the hospital. My doctor tried to get some measurements on the ultrasound that morning. The boys yet again did not cooperate. Her conclusion was that these were not going to be small babies. I could have told her that! My appetite had increased, and they were starving me yet again. The hospital food was not that great, but it was tolerable at this point.

Mom stayed with me all day since Cory had to work all weekend. I tried to sleep as much as possible. The meals were not brought to this part of the hospital until well past my usual eating schedule. Everyone was trying to starve me!

Each time the boys were monitored, someone had to sit there and hold the monitor on Aidan. They strap these monitors to you, but he still moved so much that they needed help. The nurses became very familiar with Aidan and his antics! My doula, Coleen, was there much of that day, too. She was a great help through all of this ordeal and ended up hold the monitor on my belly a lot of the time.

Night time on Saturday became very difficult. The second shift nurse, Rebekah, became one my arch enemies. Two of my best friends came to visit me. My doctor came by to see me, and I was in the bathroom. I was told that she would be back. Cory and my friends went to get something to eat. In the meantime, "Becky" came to take my vital signs. At that time, she told me that my doctor said I could have no visitors except for my husband. I said, "WHAT??!" I started to cry uncontrollably because at this time, visitors were a comfort to me. I turned over away from her and bawled. She said that she could call my doctor for me or something. I wasn't listenng.

A few minutes later, the charge nurse came to see me. She said that "Becky" told her I was upset. She said she would call my doc and suggest a compromise, that I could have one extra visitor at a time for a limit of 30 minutes. I said OK, but I was still upset. None of this was explained to me, and I did not understand.

Later that night, the saga with "Becky" got even worse. I could not fall asleep because of pain in my right shoulder that intensified down to my hand. Even lying on my right side I was still extremely uncomfortable. "Becky" provided no relief. I was about 10:30 PM when I called her for help getting comfortable. I got some Tylenol, and she said she could try a heating pad but she couldn't get it until tomorrow. What the hell? How is tomorrow going to help me sleep NOW. She said she could heat up an IV bag in the microwave, and I could use that. I was just wanting any relief so I consented.

A new nurse came by for the shift change. Tammy had been very kind the night before. She put the monitors on me, and I told her about the pain I was having. She said she would get me a heating pad. It took her awhile to find one, but she did. I finally fell asleep around 12:30 - 1 AM. Stupid Becky.