Friday, October 19, 2007

The Ever Anticipated Birth Story...(PART 1)

You guys wanted to read it...let me warn you...it is FOREVER long! I might have to post it in installments! ;) There are pics...and they are incredible! I was GINORMOUS!

K...I'll copy it word for word from my journal:

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

It was about 4:30am when I got out of bed for the billionth time to use the restroom...it was different this time. I was having some serious cramping when I would sit down and try to void. It felt like my bladder was completely full, but I was having trouble emptying it (which could be a sign of an urinary tract infection). I went back to bed and tried to sleep, but woke up several more times to repeat the same process. Finally, stubborn Suz, who did NOT want to bother the nurses..paged her night nurse to tell her my symptoms. They collected urine by performing an "in & out" urinary catheter insertion and sent off for cultures and a UA. I was put on the contraction monitor for time being..."just in case"...

By this time, the day shift had started and one of my favorite nurses, Sherri, was my nurse for the day. My "stomach cramps" were getting worse. When Sherri walked in and saw my face in pain, she knew immediately that something was wrong. "I have NEVER seen you look like this"- she said, looking extremely anxious.

It was 8:00am...my breakfast had come, but Sherri wanted me to hold off on eating & held my insulin for the morning...to wait and see what was going on. My fasting blood sugar was 69 (which was extremely low for me)...so on top of the cramping, I felt a little shaky. Surprise, surprise, my urinary testing came back negative. Sherri readjusted my contraction monitor and we waiting for Dr. Tabor to make his morning rounds.

In the meantime, I had called Joe to tell him that I was having some pretty serious stomach cramps...to which he nonchalantly replied, "Suz...are you just trying to freak me out? You were just fine last night." I told him that these felt "different" and that I was in some serious pain. We were trying to decide if he should make his way to the hospital or not...he ended up leaving immediately. I also called my dad to give him a "head's up" b/c everything was just so weird...I had a feeling that things might progress rapidly & he had a 1.5 hour trip ahead of him WITH my dog, Shiloh. Dad called my mom and Aunt Judy (who were at my house) to tell them to hurry up and get to the hospital!

During the time that I was alone in my hospital room, waiting for Joe, mom, and Aunt Judy, my body started throwing some serious contractions. Tabor finally made his way to my room, walked in, saw me in pain, and had the same look of surprise that nurse Sherri did. He had never seen me like this and said, "I don't think I've ever seen you NOT smiling." He proceeded to check my cervix..


"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! HOLY COW!"


The look on his face was priceless..SCARY to say the least. He stands up and says: "Whelp, you're at a 3." And I'm pretty sure I said a word that I don't say very often. He looked worried...so deep in thought. To which I said, "OKAY DOC, now YOU are freaking ME out! I've never seen that look on YOUR face!"

He then tells me that the next hour will be critical in determining how we will proceed. They will monitor my contractions and Sherri will re-examine my cervix in an hour.

YIKES...HOLY COW...SERIOUSLY?! Its all happening..just like that?!!? I hadn't had one contraction for 30 weeks and now BAM! It was all happening so fast. Now Joe had walked in and he was so nervous. He sat next to me and held my hand through my intense contractions. They were coming every 3 to 5 to 10 minutes. They hurt SOOO bad! My mom and Judy had arrived.

I didn't know at the time, but nurse Sherri had already called Labor & Delivery and the NICU to tell them of my status. I was the infamous "quad mom on the third floor" and they had been preparing for my imminent delivery for weeks. When Sherri came back to examine me---"OUCH again"---still at about a 3. Tabor was monitoring my contraction from his office in the next building and wanted my cervix re-examined in another hour. We might be trying Magnesium Sulfate if the contractions don't stop.

"What?!! NO!!! ANYTHING BUT MAG!!!" I had heard horror stories about this drug and what it does to you. Mom and Joe continued to watch my contractions on the monitor...they were getting stronger (even going off of the graph paper!) and more frequent (3 to 5 minutes). Sherri came in to check my cervix...still a 3. She really freaked me out when she said, "Oh, I can feel Savannah's head!" (scary much?!)

Tabor decided to have me change into a gown, start an IV, and give me a Foley catheter. It was time for the MAG..."duuum dee duuum dum" (the ominous riff played in my head like ultimate doom and gloom were knocking at my door) They were going to try to use the Mag to stop my contractions...if it doesn't stop them relatively quickly, then it wasn't going to work and delivery would be certain.

YIKES! I can't believe this was happening and that I was about to be on Mag! When the drug started into my vein...it was the weirdest feeling. I immediately started getting HOT from the inside---out. It felt like all of my internal organs were on fire! My face began turning red and I kicked the covers off of me. I felt VERY loopy...hard to describe...but those of you who have been on Mag can for sure relate!


Ahh....good ole Mag!

I was still throwing intense contractions every 3 to 5 to 10 minutes...so needless to say, the Mag was NOT working! Dad was already on his way from Waco. I had texted all of our friends to tell them that I might be delivering that day. And about the time Joe had walked downstairs to grab a slice of pizza, Sherri walks in my room with Dr. Thigpen (Tabor's associate)...Dr. Thigpen proceeds to tell me that my contractions weren't stopping and he would be assisting Dr. Tabor in my C-Section that was scheduled for 3:00pm that day! WOW! He stated that the NICU only had FOUR BEDS LEFT...IN THE ENTIRE NICU! They were all right in a row and they had our name on it! He continued to tell me that he wished every patient were like me and that I had such a great attitude and outlook on this pregnancy and this was the reason I had gotten so far!

WOW, I couldn't believe that in one hour, I was about to be delivering my babies!!! Joe walked back into the room to find Thigpen in there and his eyes got HUGE! SCARED! He scarfed down his pizza and his stomach was in knots! We started calling friends/family/everyone! I wrote on my blog...very loopy...but notified my blogger buddies that I would be delivering within the hour! ;)

This video is incredible...look at my stomach! Notice the red mark? My skin was actually bursting and bleeding in some spots! That's how much it stretched! OWWW! The indention is from the tocolytic monitor that was strapped to my tummy. The stretch marks...well...they are just absolutely beautiful! ;)




Crazy, huh?

I was taken down to Labor & Delivery, tons of nurses were in the room, trying to fill out the paper work to get me ready! It was mass chaos! My dad had made it in from Waco (speeding like a mad man!), my brother made it, my best friend Adriane was in attendance...the Steeces were stuck in Minnesota and were on the next flight out! it was all too surreal. So much going on...so much happening too fast! WOW...slow down...please...this is like a weird dream!





Finally, SHOW TIME! After snapping some pics, I was rolled down to the C-section room...we took up both of the two largest rooms they had. Two babies would be taken to one room, the other two would stay in my room. There were TONS of staff in there...22 people to be exact! Being a surgical nurse, I felt completely at ease in the O.R. Anesthesia started my spinal and I kept asking for Joe..."Don't forget my husband!...Someone please don't forget to bring in my husband!!" (like they would?? come on, Suz!)

...to be continued...

(I know...don't you hate me?) :)

35 comments:

Anonymous said...

...I'm not seeing a video posted? Am I missing something??? =(



I'm really looking forward to reading the rest of the birth story!!

JAMIE'S CREW said...

Oh Wow! Cool! Great start to the Birth Story Suz! I am so proud of you! From start to now - you have been the most awesome inspiration! BTW - the video worked for me just fine. Thanks Suz for loving your Blog friends.

hugs to the babies and to you and Joe!

Jamie Pugh - McMoms

Leah said...

Yay for the birth story--I will be waiting anxiously for the remainder!

A Perfect Pandemonium said...

Ok, that was like reading a book you're really into and then all the sudden it ends...no more! That so was not nice!

Becky said...

Sounds just like my twins story to begin with.. I went 33 weeks with nothing... then all of a sudden they decided to come and there was no stopping them! Mag is definatly the worst thing EVER!!

Jennifer Walker said...

That is so amazing, Suz. I was thinking the exact same thing that Ashley just wrote above. Crazy!

I can't wait to hear the rest.

Jennifer
www.babyblogaddict.com

cori said...

ugh, i had mag too (pre-e though...) and we have a pic of me JUST LIKE THAT! http://www.flickr.com/photos/cori_w/163811775/
that stuff is vile.

can't wait to read the rest of the story!

p.s. your skin was bleeding?!? gah!

Andria said...

Okay, between you and the Murray Quads, the suspense is KILLING me! I'm so glad you got your birth story written down...it is so much fun to read over and over again for YEARS to come!

Anonymous said...

So neat to hear the story. My 3 year old is here in my lap... as he says, "I wanna see the belly again!!" I look forward to reading more....

suzspeaks said...

Amazing!!! I can't wait to hear the rest!

Kristi said...

Great story! I was on mag for 24 hours with my first child, then spent 6 weeks in the hospital until she delivered at 36 weeks. I feel part of a special club. That stuff really bites!

Courtney said...

very fun...thanks for the suspense! i can't believe you looked so little with FOUR babies in your belly! You seriously didn't look as if you were carrying quads! So sorry about the stretch marks though...I hate mine and I am sure they weren't near as bad, since mine was only 2 singles.

Nancy Hood said...

I simply love your blog~

Laura said...

I love this post! Can't wait for more. Great video too! I have to say that it just touches me deeply everytime I see your mother and her twin and see how close they are to this day! It warms my heart that my twin girls get that for the rest of their lives. It's so cool that you will get four who get that too!

Deanna said...

Oh Suz! That sounds so familiar! I hated Mag and it did not stop my contractions with the quads eihter. And the whole only 4 beds!! They only had 2 beds at Harris and that was after pushing me off all day. The girls stayed at Harris and they boys went to Cook's for about 2 weeks. I do remember the "circus" in the delivery room, we had people who had nothing to do with the surgery coming the see the "quads" Thanks for sharing your story. And I love the pics, the one of Joe is priceless! I have to say for having 4 babie in that stomach you looked great!! Mine was just one big fat blob although I did look like I was going to pop from about 20 weeks. I can't wait to here the rest.
Deanna

Tracy said...

Loving the story so far! I'm glad that you wrote everything down while it was still fresh in your mind!

laura said...

Thank you for sharing the story with us...can't wait to hear the rest and see more pictures! I loved the video--you guys sound so joyful and at peace in the midst of a crazy day, or I guess I should say, crazy 30 weeks! What a witness in trusting God.

The Nanny said...

That's amazing. And your hubby's face in that last pic is priceless! :-)

Can't wait for the rest!!!

Amanda said...

That's amazing!! I'm glad to finally read how it all went down. You looked great..even with 4 babies inside!!!

Casey's trio said...

Love it Suz! Crazy how it happened so fast...my favorite part was the video clip..."See ya on the flipside!" Too funny girl. Can't wait for part 2!

decemberbaby said...

What a great story! Please don't wait too long to post part 2... I need closure on this anecdote!

Nicki W. said...

c'mon, suz! i am on the edge of my seat! i hear so many birth stories and they just never get old to me! yours is extra exciting!!

TigerFamily said...

I've been following your blog all the way from GA! You guys are amazing. My husband marvel at you and your husband...you are so blessed. We thought twins was busy...ha! Yep, Mag has got to be the worst. They filled me full of that at 32 weeks and of course it didn't work, even after a bolus and me telling the Dr. that even though I was at 8, labor was going to stop:) We have a picture of a big box fan blowing on me and my husband, mom, pastor, nurse and drs all wrapped in blankets. I have never been so HOT in my life. So impressed you made it to 30 weeks with 4. We only made it to 32 with 2...and had been to the OB ER 3x with contractions. I too am a nurse (PICU and Peds cardiac ICU) and DID NOT like our OR experience. I wish I had a journal to look back on but I hardly remember our delivery. My BP dropped after the epideral (we were going to do the vag. thing) and they "lost" twin B's HR...so in 7 minutes flat they had us out of our delivery room, in the OR and twin A out! Talk about a well oiled machine:) I do remember the Dr saying no time to scrub this is a wipe and go...I DO NOT like being on that side of emergencies...So glad you had a happy delivery and that you've got 4 healthy and beautiful babies. Can't wait to see them grow. Multiples are so much fun...the bond is indescribable. It's so fun watching our 2 monkeys and what all they get themselves into. Congrats on your beautiful bunch. Children are a blessing from the Lord.

Anonymous said...

Girl, i aspire to be as brave! Reading that made me cry, but then again a lot of stuff makes me cry these days :)
Casey
http://gerwerbabies.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

Love hearing the birth story!! Can't wait until you post more about it (whenever you can find time of course) :) Just to let you know, me and some of the other nursing girls always look at your blog together. If we see you've updated we're like "Suz has updated, come read!" and we all gather on the couch and ohh and aww over your precious family! Just thought that was kinda funny, haha! Looks like yall are doing great! Still praying for all of you!

Robin, Tommy, and Manze said...

I love it! Can't wait for Part II!

Lindsey Eason said...

How did you manage to write all that while taking care of your four lil' ones?!?! You are one very impressive lady with a very impressive story to tell - can't wait to read the rest!!

Sunni Len said...

Nope don't hate you I don't know how you found the time to write this much. Love ya write when you can

Julie said...

I love it...i'm anxiously waiting for Part 2!

Unknown said...

Girl how in the world did you ever find time to write all of this and included video/pictures! Your awesome...great post! Can't wait for Part II

G24 said...

Can't wait for part 2 :)

~Denise~ said...

Thank you for sharing your experience with us. That lovely mag....yuck. I was on it for HELLP Syndrome.

Looking forward to the rest of the story!

Jodi said...

Waiting for The Second Act! :) Bless your heart... the bleeding?!?! WHAT?!?! Your tummy didn't look NEAR big enough to have 4 babies in it, so I can't believe that bleeding thing! Crazy.

And, I wanted to say that in the previous post, I love that A and E have initials taped to their pj's. Priceless. :)

Carrie said...

I can't wait for part 2! Your poor belly...I can't believe that.

Anonymous said...

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