I will spare you all from many of the gross details that followed the delivery if possible and I promise that this is the last of these posts. Of the entire labor/delivery/post partum process - this next part was the worst!! I was so sore from the stitches I got plus my stomach muscles were stretched out so I couldn't move too well. I couldn't even sit up by myself! While on the epidural, I had to have a catheter. Apparently that can cause some "bladder trauma." It happens to most people so it's no big deal, but it takes a while to fully regain bladder function. I had to call a nurse almost every hour that night to help me to go to the bathroom. I constantly felt like I had to go and sometimes I did and sometimes I didn't - it was so annoying! Luckily we had the best nurse in the world who was so sweet. She helped me sit up, walk the 3 steps to the bathroom (I was still too weak to do this by myself without passing out), and then get back to bed. I couldn't sleep at all that night because of the magnesium, even though I was exhausted. It was the most uncomfortable I've been in quite some time. Once they finally took me off the mag the next day, I started feeling much better. We got to enjoy the rest of hospital stay - and I must say, we really did enjoy it! We both loved all the doctors and nurses so much!! One of the pediatricians in the nursery was actually a friend/sorority sister from college, Dr. Julia Stewart. It was so neat that one of Caroline's first doctor's was someone that we knew. I know all the doctor's are top notch, but it made me feel so much better knowing the doctor personally! Thanks Julia! We were allowed to leave around 6:30 on Tuesday. After almost 3 full days at UAB, we were excited to go home.
My mom came to Birmingham the next morning and helped us out for a few days while we tried to figure out the whole parenthood thing. She left us on Saturday afternoon and Adam's family came to visit for a bit. I was still in pain and super weepy, but overall things were going well...until the next morning.
Adam got up and went to church, so his mother watched Caroline while I took a shower. I was enjoying standing under the warm water until I got a little light-headed. I went to adjust the water when I noticed that I was standing in a pool of blood. I got out of the shower and gushed more blood with each step I took. I called in Adam's mom and she helped me lay down on the floor while we called Adam and the hospital. The on call doctor told me to come in right away. Adam hurried out of church and went through red lights to get to me. On the way there, Adam was trying to keep me calm. He said, "I'm sure it's nothing. On the way home we can even get some lunch on the way home." Little did he know that it would be another 2 days before I would leave the hospital. Once we got to the hospital and the doctor's did their exam, they told me that I had some "retained products," in other words, part of the placenta was still left inside. The only way to remove it was to have a D&C. I wasn't emergent, but the surgery was scheduled for that afternoon. After I got out of surgery and got to the recovery room, my BP went super high and caused the worst headache of my entire life. I was crying and pathetically asking the doctors to help me. Thanks to this, I earned another couple nights in the hospital...hooray.
So far, there haven't been any other major traumas and hopefully there won't be anymore and we can just concentrate on being a new family. I am really looking forward to everything that is coming!!! Alright...off to bed I go. I'll have some fun new pictures tomorrow of sweet little Caroline!
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