Thursday, January 24, 2013

No Place Like Home


Those of you who are following me on Facebook might already know about the chaos the Creepy family went through this last week. For those of you who don’t, I’ll try and make it short. 

I was rushed to the hospital early Friday, January 11th with unexpected haemorrhaging. Turns out, I probably had a minor placental abruption (when the placenta pulls away from the uterus and causes bleeding) but the doctors also suspected a tear in the amniotic sac. Thankfully, by last Friday the bleeding had disappeared completely and the results for the tear came back negative. So they finally released this Creepy chick back into the wild, after an 8-day stay.

‘Scary’ and ‘Lonely’ don’t even begin to describe the week of hospitalization, even though I was reassured that this baby would make it to term one way or another. After the morning spent in the Maternity Emergency ward (where they prepped me for a possible emergency c-section, stuck me with steroids for the baby, and kept me for observation after I had an allergic reaction to one of the antibiotics they’d stuck into my iv), I was finally moved to a hall for at-risk pregnancies / laboring patients. And that’s where I basically lived from Friday-Friday. 

Even though the staff was very kind and reassuring, and I knew that I was in the best possible place if there were any further problems for me and the baby- the truth is, I couldn’t wait to get the hell out of there. There was no wifi or direct internet access, and thank God I at least had my phone with 3G so I could keep in touch with family and surf the net. 

The food was, well, let’s just say I didn’t know food like that existed. There’s always the stereotype about how poor hospital food is, but that had never been my experience when I gave birth in the U.S. or at the private clinic here. 

No. 

Not until I’d been admitted into a public city hospital, did I discover the true source of the ‘hospital food stereotype’. I’m pretty sure a lot of what they served had to have been in powder form at one point or another. No salt, butter, herbs, or sauce. And when they did happen to add sauce, you kind of wish they hadn’t. After the first couple days, a slow deception and anxiety would build in my gut as they delivered our trays. Gone was the usual fervor and excitement I once felt around mealtimes. That said, I ate everything I could out of sheer hunger, but still ended up losing weight for the first time during my pregnancy.

And it was a struggle getting used to the hospital bed, which- no matter how much I played with the up and down switches, was either sunken or stiff in all the wrong places. -The kind of bed that makes you wish you could remove your arm for a couple hours just so you can get some sleep.

In any case, when they gave me the green light to discharge- I practically grew wings and flew out of there. Because not only did that mean the baby and I had a good chance of making it all the way to March without further incident (if we follow doctors orders and take it easy, of course), but it also meant I could see my kids first thing in the morning and kiss their sleepy heads, (something I missed most while in the hospital. That, and tucking them into bed at night. Always got a little teary around bedtime.) eat food that tastes like food, and enjoy a bed that doesn’t make me want to remove random limbs.

In the end, there’s no place like home!

Have you ever had to endure the joys (or lack thereof) of hospital life? What sticks out most in your mind about  your stay?It’s good to be back! I’ll be picking up my regular Mon/Wed posting schedule this week and I’m looking forward to catching up with you all!

*CQG*

24 comments:

Jessica Bell said...

So glad everything turned out for the best! <3

Karen Baldwin said...

So happy you and the baby are OK. Take it easy till March eh? Me? I had a radio active implant for 36 hours and no one could come in my room. Food was delivered through a slot. Then...the toilet overflowed. Guess who had to clean it. So NOT fun and totally disgusting!

Anonymous said...

Oh wow, glad you are both alright!!!

Yes - I was stuck in the hospital for 48 hours only 2 weeks ago, having my daughter. The thing I hate about that? The no co-sleeping rule. Very annoying. I was so glad to get home and sleep in my own bed, with baby girl.

You just take care of yourself and that little one!

Anne Gallagher said...

I'm so glad that everything is okay. I can't imagine how scary last week was for you.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Thank God you're both all right! I've spent a night at the hospital - a week would be awful. Glad you're back home. Now, take it easy.

Connie Keller said...

I'm so glad that you and the baby are okay!!

DL Hammons said...

YAY!!! *Big Smile* So happy everything turned out for the better!! Now, take it easy, follow the doctors instructions, and lets bring this baby home! :)

Stina said...

Glad things are better now, Katie.

My first hospital stay was a nightmare. I had just had my first child, who was 13 weeks premature, and was in the same room as a mother with her full term baby. It was a nightmare. I didn't even know if mine would survive. This was the last place I wanted to be. Fortunately, I was released the next morning.

My friend wasn't so lucky. Her baby was born 16 weeks premature and the mom had to have an emergency c-section, which meant staying in the hospital for several days. She got stuck with a roommate who whined about her baby keeping her up all night. My friend was ready to whack the woman in the head.

Louise said...

So glad you and baby are okay! I'm also glad you're back home now with the rest of your family - and REAL FOOD. Rest and take it easy until Baby gets here!

jaybird said...

Oh Katie- I am so happy everything is OK with you and the baby and you are home again. Thank God!

Ironically, I went 28 years without ever being hospitalized ONCE, but from the second I got pregnant, man did that change! I was hospitalized 27 times after that. Every single day I spent in the hospital, sucked hard. (For all the reasons you listed above and more.) I couldn't wait to get the hell out of there either.

As a consequence, I loathe hospitals and must literally force myself to walk through the doors just to visit family and friends.

Natalie Aguirre said...

So glad it turned out okay and you're feeling better and at home. It's a wonderful feeling.

My husband has been in the hospital many times, including when we were on a trip in a strange town where we knew no one. That was a nightmare. It was always so good when he came home and I knew I didn't have to go there again.

Dianne K. Salerni said...

I am so relieved you are home and baby is doing well. I think I would've gone insane, stuck in a hospital that long with no internet and lousy food. Couldn't your husband smuggle some in for you? (Food, not internet.)

Old Kitty said...

Oh what?!?!?! What!??! Oh Katie! :-(

I am so sorry to read this - oh no!! But you and baby are ok, right?!?! Oh my stars, how scary!!

Please please please take care and be safe little Katie junior and mum! Take care
x

Carrie-Anne said...

I hope you make it to your estimated due date with good health and that the baby is born at the proper time, in a good season.

I've had 7 surgeries, two of them inpatient. The food wasn't so hot at first at the first hospital, but after I switched to the vegetarian menu so I could actually eat more than the side dishes, the food quality picked up considerably. I hope I never have to go back to a hospital again. (I knew even before my car accident that I was going to have homebirths if I ever had kids.)

Anonymous said...

Hi, Katie! So glad you and the baby are both okay. Please, take it easy and get plenty of rest. You are in my prayers.

Yep, I remember a couple of hospital stays that were not baby related stays. Hospitals are no fun. : (

Botanist said...

Wow! Dramatic, and very, very scary. So relieved to hear that things have sorted themselves out in the end.

Only experience of staying in hospital was about 50 years ago when I had my tonsils out. Can't remember anything about the food, except the soreness in my throat when I tried to eat after the operation.

Tonja said...

Good that things are better. Take care of yourself!

I had an extended stay after I had a c-section with my third child. I was on a restricted diet, which confused the food service staff. So they brought me raw carrots and steamed carrots for every meal. Seriously.

D.G. Hudson said...

Very glad to hear you and the baby are well. (I laughed at the part about taking off a limb so you could sleep).

I've always taken the doctors up on the offer to go home early. Something about sleeping in the hospital - I can't do it, I end up listening to everything.

Take care of yourself.

Tamara Narayan said...

Wow, I'm glad your safe and back at home. I've only been in the hospital a few days after having my girls, but my husbands had a couple of longer stays. He too complained of the uncomfortable bed and all the noise. There was a 'Law and Order' marathon running on his neighbors TV, so that 'chung-chung' really creeps him out now.

LTM said...

oh, NO! I'm so sorry to read this! I've never had a prolonged hospital stay *knocks wood*--only when my girls were born, you know. The usual few days. And the food's okay. Nothing outstanding, but I don't remember it.

That's almost insult to injury staying in a FRENCH hospital and getting crappy food! So glad you guys are doing better. Here's to a quiet ride to March~ <3

Elliot Grace said...

...so glad all's well with you and your little one. As a father of three and a husband to a mother who pulled through three C-sections, we feel your pain ;)

El

Red Boot Pearl said...

That is awful! We are having baby in March as well, and that would be way scary! I'm glad you're doing better.

Laura Pauling said...

So sorry you had to endure that! But I am glad you and the baby are okay!

Unknown said...

Oh my! Thar's just awful. I'm so glad you (and your baby) have come through it all okay. I've had three slipped disks, so I know about hospital stays. Luckily, I was in an expensive, private room and had good food. It was practically a hotel stay except for the fact I couldn't move. :P

I wish you good health and happiness in 2013!

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