Well, it's been some time since the last update...so here goes:
We got out of the hospital on Saturday, and I ended up going to the ER the following Wednesday night... my incision was draining. A LOT. ...and the drainage smelled - granted, it smelled like old blood, which is supposedly normal(ish), but it still freaked me the fuck out.
14 hours in the fucking ER. 14. Fucking. Hours. ...then I finally got into a room. While in the ER - got an IV, bloodwork, CT scan, a couple bandage changes, and had to feel the pressure of thinking Gabe was about to crack. He left the room a couple of times for bathroom breaks and to walk around ... sometimes he took Val, sometimes he left her with me - not that I could do anything. Doc Williams talked about the possibility of surgery or someone from radiology using a needle to drain the incision... neither happened. I found this out AFTER I got into my room... he came in and said he'd just let it drain on its own (oh, yay) and give me antibiotics - 2 different ones (sometimes, it sucks to be allergic to penicillin)... and one of which can possibly cause problems in BF babies... I read the "CareNote" that the nurse printed out for me...and then immediately called his office - I don't want to risk Val's health b/c I'm sick. He checked again, and then he reassured me that it was fine to nurse her while on the meds...
...well, the first nurse that was caring for me scared the piss out of me. She said "you need someone here to care for your baby, while we're caring for you. Be sure to wash your hands really well before touching her, because you don't want to get her sick... just in case your infection tests as resistant to antibiotics" ...I don't remember all of what she said, but she basically told me that if I touched Val, I'd make her sick - and she was less than 1 week old. No, I didn't have anyone to leave her with...thankfully, Mom was able to come stay with me while Gabe had to work.
...and before you think it - my doc said that it was NOT MY FAULT that the incision started draining. He said that there was nothing I could have done to prevent it, even though there are people in my life who think otherwise and have told me so (you know who you are-and I'm waiting for my apology).
The drainage was coming from between the subcutaneous layer where he stitched me up and the top layer that was superglued... better than staples, thank you very much.
In other news...
Val had her 2 week pediatrician appointment last Monday (okay, she wasn't exactly 2 weeks old) with the same pedi that saw her at the hospital. He's in Conroe - do you think it's worth the drive for a pedi that you LIKE? In this case, I do...but once I go back to work, well, we'll see.
She's nearly back up to her birth weight - 8lbs .5 oz at the doc's - and she's gained 1/2" in length - up to 20.5" long! yay!
I asked the doc all kinds of questions, as did my mom & Gabe - and he reassured us as new parents that what's going on is normal (I was concerned w/the hiccups), and that she's healthy and we've got nothing to worry about...
...but I failed to ask about her behavior when she's drifting off... Val rolls her eyes up and her lids flutter when she's about half asleep...it looks like she's having a seizure, but Mom says that's normal, and that Brittney fell asleep much the same way. Gabe's not too concerned... he says I'm worried over nothing. That may well be, but I'm still gonna ask her doc when we go back next week.
Val's still eating like a little piggy... since my hospital stay, my supply has declined some, but she's still nursing and we're supplementing with formula - more formula than boob juice, and that sucks... but I think I'm on the way back to having the supply I did before.
Thanks to my mom, Gabe and I are both getting some sleep ... when we stay at Mom's while Gabe's on overnights, I actually get 9 hours or so of straight sleep - yay. Mom says that during that time, Val gets up twice - 330am and 7am or thereabouts. Not too bad...
...now, if only I can convince Gabe to make OUR bed, and let Val sleep in her bassinet next to our bed. He's scared to sleep while she's sleeping... I understand that fear, but we still need our sleep. I told him that if he's that concerned, we should invest in a motion monitor by AngelCare - it sends an alarm to 2 receivers if there's no movement for 20 seconds. He thinks that's too much $ to spend... for our peace of mind, and sanity from sleep - I think it's worth it. Val is definitely worth it.
No comments:
Post a Comment