arrival of the twins: pt 2

So, where did I leave off?

Recovery?

Yes. And I'm going to try to speed it up as much as I can. I'm having the hardest time finding time for everything.......

So, my babies were whisked away. Tim was gone and I was left on the operating table to be sewn back together (grosse visual image, but correct nonetheless).

I tried hard to remember their faces as I closed my eyes and tried to sleep. Remember folks, it was 4 in the morning, and I had been up all night.

Sleep didn't come because several people kept nudging me to see if I was okay...

Once the procedure was done, I was rolled onto a hospital bed and taken to the recovery room. There my blood pressure was taken and I was hooked onto monitors.

Apparently my body temperature had dropped to 97 degrees during the surgery, so the nurses in recovery spent an hour and a half getting it back up to normal. I think I had about 6 blankets on me as well as a plastic bag with hot air blowing into it. Even with all of this I was still shaking from being so cold (honestly though, I didn't really feel it because I was numb from my chest down). My heart rate danced around as well, so that was another thing that needed to go back to normal before I could see my babies.

Time passed...we waited for any kind of info on the boys.

The nurse came in and asked us if we wanted to know what they weighed.

Yes, of course!

Thaddeus, baby A came in at 4lbs, 4 oz.

Shepherd, baby B was an even 4lbs.

More time passed.

The neonatologist came in to speak with us. He had a VERY thick accent so it was difficult understanding what he was telling us (plus I was loopy from the meds, the shakes and being so dang tired...). I made out that the boys both needed help breathing. Thad had a Cpap machine, so he was doing a bit better than Shepherd who had a ventilator breathing for him. They both were given surfactant to help their lungs develop (and not stick together), antibiotics, and IVs with vitamins and fats pouring into them.

About 6am (still no sleep)...I was wheeled in my bed to see the boys. It was surreal. There they were, so tiny...with all kinds of wires hooked up to them. I couldn't really touch them because so much was going on. I understood that they needed all the help the nurses and doctors were giving them and that it was best not to linger...but it still was painful when I was told it was time to go.

Thaddeus:Shepherd:

Once wheeled into my room, Tim made me as comfortable as I could be (pain increasing as the spinal block wore off). I was also hooked up to IVs and monitors, without a fan...so the chances of me sleeping were slim to none.

Tim went home shortly after to get the boys up and dressed and ready for church. A friend of ours volunteered to take them for the entire day. She has 2 boys that are our boys ages, so it was just wonderful to pass them off knowing they'd have fun and would be well taken care of.

Tim came back around 10:30a or so and brought me all the things on the "list" I had texted him. He went back home to sleep.

I think I tried to sleep for awhile. I can't remember if I did. I'm thinking barely if at all. Nurses, doctors, room service, nurse aids, and every other member of the circus came in (seemed like!), so it was hard to doze off even for a few minutes. I did perk up when a lady dressed in blue scrubs introduced herself as "one of the neonatologists" came in.

She told me both boys were breathing on their own!!!

I ALMOST CRIED!

Really?? I asked.

She confirmed again, and said that they only had nasal canulas to puff air in their noses to help remind them to continue breathing. What a relief! I texted Tim and told him to hurry up and come back over because they were gonna let us see them again!!

At this point I'm still in only a gown. Not my idea of fun, so I requested very nicely ;) to have pants and underwear put on. The nurse aid explained that it'd be a little more difficult because of my foley catheter. But hey, I was a nurse aid for several years. I know how to do it...I helped her as much as possible, but I felt so much better being at least half clothed before seeing my babies.

They made the first transfer for me into the wheelchair.

Oh, so much pain...but I wasn't gonna complain and have them suggest I stay behind for awhile longer. Still being hooked up to an IV pole (which Tim pushed behind me), I was wheeled in to see my babies.

They looked so much better than the last time. Still so helpless, but stronger somehow.

Thad:Shepherd:They lowered each of the isolettes so I could put my hands in and touch their tiny naked bodies. Both were in insolettes to help them stay warm (because they were unable to keep their body temperature up themselves)...and both were asleep.

We spent a little longer looking over them and talking about their differences, but then we went back to my room.

(Time of day is already lost in my head, but I'm thinking it was mid-afternoon on Sunday at this point). Tim stayed with me until around 7pm when he went to pick up the boys. And because I was so tired at that point, I did nothing but try to sleep.

I TRIED.

Nurses again, though not as often as those first few hours, came to interrupt my sleep.

At 10p I needed meds. At 12a I needed more meds, and my catheter came out. At 4am, more meds, and my first trip to the bathroom (excruciating pain accompained this first walk by the way). At 6a my 2nd IV was taken out. At 7, blood pressure check with the nurse shift change.

I did manage to get some sleep in between, and felt better than I had for the past 48 hours.

So, that completes Sunday.

Next blog post, I will try to push through most of my hospital stay. My brain is already foggy on those events, but so many tiny accomplishments happened that I will try my best to relive and log away.