As I said in my last weekly pregnancy survey (35 Weeks), it would probably be my last one. The problem was it was not until just a few short hours after it was written I would realize just how true those words would end up being when I felt my water break and we knew our time with Megan Grace was coming to a close.
It was not really a surprise. We knew that her condition was getting worse and my pregnancy complications were also beginning to put me at risk between the bleeding and the excess amniotic fluid I was carrying around due to her condition.
A little after 1 am on Sunday night (Monday morning) I woke up with what I felt were real labor contractions. They were definitely more painful that the Braxton Hicks contractions I'd been having for weeks. The problem was after enduring two late night trips to L&D I really did not want to wake my husband in the middle of the night again just to spend another night in the hospital just to be sent home the next day.
At 2:30ish I felt a huge gush that just kept gushing and I knew either I was losing a life threatening amount of blood or my water had broken. When I got to the bathroom I was able to determine it was my water so we gathered our things and headed out to the hospital knowing it would be only a very short time until we would be meeting our daughter, Megan Grace.
Once we arrived at the hospital, the on call doctor was actually well versed in regards to our case due to prior arrangements made by my doctor for her to serve as a backup in case of an emergency such as this. The stretcher was standing by along with the team of nurses ready to prep me for the OR. They drew my blood, inserted my IV, checked Megan's heart rate, and monitored my contractions.
Earlier in the evening, when I had been pretty sure I was having real labor pains I never did time them however I knew I was having a lot of them in a short period of time. As I was being prepped in triage, they informed me that my contractions were already only 2 minutes apart and man did they hurt.
It was only a few minutes later they were wheeling me down to the OR on the stretcher. Once we made it inside the doors of the OR area I lost it. I was scared along with many other emotions but the nurses were amazing! They helped me keep my cool throughout the whole procedure and I'm eternally grateful for them.
Once we got in to the actual OR they gave me the spinal and hooked me up the IV lines and we were off. It wasn't long before they pulled out our beautiful Megan Grace and brought her over for us to see before they went to clean her up.
She did not make it out of the OR alive however we are just grateful for the wonderful 10 minutes we were able to spend with her before she passed away.
After all this, I was taken to recovery where all of our families and friends came back to see us. I'm so glad they all came to see Little Megan Grace, hopefully it will be a moment they all treasure forever because I know we are glad they were all here to share that experience with us.
We kept her with us for a few hours before we said our goodbyes along with the rest of the family and then it was time to let her go.
It does sound strange but although we are both sad in way we are both also so proud of her for fighting as long as she did. What a strong little girl!
Thanks to all of the friends, family, and strangers that have helped walked us through this journey. It would have been a lot more difficult without each of you stepping in to help no matter how big or small the gesture may have been. Thank you and we love you all!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Little Megan Grace, Our Daughter, Our Angel
Posted by Miche at 7:07 AM 28 comments
Labels: Megan Grace
Sunday, June 28, 2009
35 Weeks
So this is probably my last weekly pregnancy survey.
I'm not 100% sure but at this time next week Megan Grace will probably have arrived whether it is by our choice or her own. It just seems we do not have much time left together so we are doing the best we can.
We have no idea what our lives will look like after Megan Grace arrives but we hope and pray for the best.
Thank you all for your support all along this long and many times painful journey.
How far along? 35 weeks!
Total weight gain/loss: 40 pounds and counting. We found out this week that a lot of this may end up being water weight. Due to Megan Grace's condition I'm carrying around a lot of extra fluid in my belly. For a long time I had been monitoring this but I had stopped asking at some point during that time and it has gotten a little out of control.
Maternity clothes? Yep.
Stretch marks? Same as last week.
Sleep: Horrible. Since I'm off my feet all the time now when I go to bed at night I'm in pain halfway through the night. My back and my hips are the worst. I'm thinking it is because I am already laying down for most of the day.
Best moment this week: Megan Grace still being with us. Not much longer until we have to let her go but for now she is still here.
Labor Signs: Lots of contractions and some other stuff that indicates labor is not far away if we do not get the c section scheduled first. Hopefully I won't go into labor on my own because we are really hoping to avoid doing this in an emergency situation.
Belly Button in or out? Pretty flat at this point.
What I miss: Not being in so much pain all the time. I'm sore from trying to sleep plus the contractions are making it pretty miserable :(
What I am looking forward to: See above.
Weekly Wisdom: Take things hour by hour and day by day. It will get easier.
Posted by Miche at 8:01 AM 30 comments
Labels: Megan Grace
2:30 in the Morning
and i'm up again. This whole not sleeping thing isn't working out so well. At this point I've resorted to morning naps. Oh well!
Posted by Miche at 2:29 AM 0 comments
Labels: Megan Grace
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Just Hanging out on the Couch
Yep, still here on the couch.
It looks like I still need to write about three things I posted about in this post. The problem is I'm glued to the couch so taking pictures is sort of difficult because I have to wander around gathering the stuff and putting it back so those will have to wait until later.
The only news on the horizon here is that late Sunday night or early Monday morning we had the priviledge of going back to L&D again. Fun times!
They released me Monday afternoon back to my couch. My doctor will be back Tuesday so we are going to meet with her and schedule a c section hopefully. Not what we were hoping for but at this point it looks like the lesser of two evils for many reasons. So please pray for us as we approach Megan's birthday which will likely be at the end of next week. Also, please pray for my safety since it is surgery and I've never been in the operating room in my life. I'm pretty scared of the whole process honestly so be thinking of me as well during this time.
Finally, thank you to all of my wonderful babysitters who have come to sit with me so my husband can work some while I'm at home. You have all been great! Thank you :)
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Posted by Miche at 11:23 AM 5 comments
Labels: Megan Grace
Sunday, June 21, 2009
34 Weeks
How far along? 34 weeks!
Total weight gain/loss: It looks like I'm holding steady at about 40 pounds for now based on my weight at my appointment this past week.
Maternity clothes? Yep.
Stretch marks? Same as last week.
Sleep: Horrible. Since I'm off my feet all the time now when I go to bed at night I'm in pain halfway through the night. My back and my hips are the worst. I'm thinking it is because I am already laying down for most of the day.
Best moment this week: Steve got to feel Megan Grace move again. Also, the fact that she is still with us. We are all just hanging in there.
Labor Signs: Not really other than a few contractions every so often. If I start bleeding again or having more regular contractions then we will be headed back to the hospital for the duration and/or delivery.
Belly Button in or out? Pretty flat at this point.
What I miss: Not being chained to my couch.
What I am looking forward to: See above.
Weekly Wisdom: Follow doctors orders even when you don't want to.
Posted by Miche at 9:46 AM 0 comments
Labels: Megan Grace, Pregnancy Weekly