Hattie's birth story, part 1- the silent killer.

 It has been 6 weeks since miss Hattie Kay joined our family, but I haven't been able to find the time (or energy) to write down what happened. But don't worry, it's basically seared into my brain so I haven't forgotten anything.

To begin- Cora's spring break was the last week of March. She started back up on April 6, which was also James's first day of preschool. So I wanted to do a few fun things with the kids. We did some fun things, like going to a movie theater for the first time in who knows how long. But the issue of the week was that I noticed my face was super swollen every morning when I woke up. I knew I had issues with swelling at the end of pregnancy, but I still had 6 weeks to go. This was too early! I called my doctor and she said to wait until my appointment on the 1st and we'd see what was happening.

(I took this picture for evidence, and woof.)

My appointment was April 1, so I thought it would be funny to text Brandon afterward and say that he needed to meet me at the hospital. However, the truth was stranger than fiction. When I got to my appointment, my blood pressure was 130/90. My doctor wrote me a prescription for a BP medication, and told me to have Brandon check my blood pressure before and after taking it a few times and write down the numbers. I also had to go get my blood taken to see if I had preeclampsia. On top of THAT, baby was breech. So if I was able to stay pregnant long enough she'd probably turn. The question is if my health stayed stable long enough.

I went to the pool to swim and turn somersaults that night, because I heard that makes your breech baby turn. I'm not sure if it was successful, but it did feel good to be in a cool pool with my giant belly.

I started my blood pressure medicine, but there was a problem. My BP was HIGHER after I took the medicine. In fact, it was higher every time Brandon took it. From Thursday to Friday, it jumped from 130/90 to 160/100. When my doctor called me Friday night to say I didn't have preeclampsia, I said "Well that's a relief, because my husband just took my blood pressure and it was 160/100!" And then I heard the 4 words you don't want to hear from a doctor... "What?! That's not good!" She had me check it again while on the phone, and when it hadn't changed she said, "You need to go to the hospital right now. Do you have someone to watch the kids?" Immediately my hands started shaking. Thank goodness my friend Alison answered the phone when I called her, and they were willing to take the kids until we got home. I told her I didn't know when that would be, but I'd keep her posted and as soon as Brandon could get home he'd come get the kids. Cora cried as we dropped her off, which ripped my heart right out. She could see our stress, even though we had tried to keep that from her.

Date night at triage!

After taking my blood pressure multiple times in triage, they decided to admit me. Since it was midnight, Brandon just stayed there with me. I got an IV, some medicine put in there, and lots and lots of questions asked. It was so fun (sarcasm) to get my blood pressure taken every 15 minutes all night, and the baby's heart rate checked. The checks didn't always line up. At one point, the nurse came in and said "Oh, poor girl you look so tired." It was 3 AM and I hadn't fallen asleep yet! I got this funny picture of Brandon sleeping.

The next morning, Brandon went home to get the kids and my mom drove up from Irvine. I saw her arrive through the smart doorbell, and I'm not going to lie I teared up a little bit seeing her show up. Brandon said he felt the same way, thinking, "The cavalry is here".

I didn't have anything to do. I didn't even bring a change of clothes, thinking I'd be out in a few hours. Thankfully that isn't an issue in the hospital, but still. The best part of the hospital was the Harry Potter marathon on TV. I watched the first 5 movies throughout the weekend. Brandon came to visit and brought me my Kindle and a change of clothes and a toothbrush. My blood pressure stayed in the 150's or 160's, even with around the clock monitoring. I was just glad her heart rate always sounded good when we monitored her. I also got the steroid shots for the baby's lungs, and if you know anything about the steroid shots you know it was a painful experience that left me with giant bandaids in a spot where I couldn't see them.

(Funny story, a nurse came in one night and tried to wake me up for heart monitoring, and I could NOT stir. As she moved me around to wrap the monitors around my belly, I said in a slurred voice, "It's like when you're trying to get a sleeping baby out of the car seat." Haha)

That Sunday was Easter Sunday. Watching videos of the kids doing their Easter egg hunt while I was in the hospital was painful. I cried thinking I wouldn't be out of there for a long time. They couldn't even come visit because of Covid. So imagine my surprise when my doctor said "Good news, we can send you home!" I stared at her, and she said "You're stable enough with the medicine, so I want to give you a chance at home. You need to check your blood pressure a few times a day, and come back if it gets to over 160 or 100. You probably won't make it to next weekend, but we need a few extra days to help her grow." So I called Brandon in happy tears, and said I was ready to get picked up. It was an Easter miracle! As I was wheeled out, I told the nurse, "Hopefully I'm not back before your shift ends!"

When I made it home, I immediately went to the couch and laid down. A few hours later, Brandon took my blood pressure and it was 150/90. He told me to go into our room and lay on my left side, and he'd try it again in an hour. I turned on beach sounds and tried to stay calm and quiet. Hard to do when you're extremely stressed! Brandon came in and checked it, and it was 170/110. Brandon looked at me, and said "It's probably time to go back to the hospital." Now, if I know anything about Brandon, I know he doesn't tell someone to go to the hospital lightly. The only times he's told someone to go to the hospital (outside of work) was literally life or death. I told him, "It's so weird that my blood pressure can go up 40 points and I don't even feel different." He said "That's why it's called the silent killer." That was REALLY helpful to hear while I'm dealing with it.

So my mom took a picture of the 4 of us, and we were off! Appreciate the super swollen eyes.

Part 2 coming up next, in less than 6 weeks.