Recovering? Ain't Nobody Got Time for Dat!

A post on my attempts at recovering from a triplet C-section, then back to the important stuff - the babies!

After an amazing day that started with me trying to stay pregnant for 1-2 more weeks and ended with me holding the smallest of my new triplet babies, it was time to rest and recover.  I sent my husband home with our oldest two kids, but asked my Mom to stay with me. The guest bed (a pull out chair) they had in my postpartum room would have been terribly uncomfortable for my husband but it was just the perfect size for my petite mom.

Sometimes a girl, no matter how old she is, just needs her mom. Moms are wonderfully comforting and understanding, especially where my Mom had had three C-sections and knew what I was feeling and needing. It was wonderful to have some girl time with my Mom. We reflected on how life comes full circle, how it had been almost 34 years ago that my mom was in my place, lying in bed after a difficult C-section (they hadn't numbed her enough during my birth....um, ouch!), with a new baby girl to take care of....and now it was that same little baby that was lying in the recovery bed and Mom was yet again taking care of me.

Unfortunately, she did a lot more taking care of me than resting that night. I was bleeding fairly heavily, and the nurses were a little concerned. They couldn't give me medication because they were worried it would make my blood too thin and I would lose too much blood. My uterus wouldn't stay hard (the nurse kept saying "her uterus keeps going boggy on me", at the time that made me a little nervous but now I think it's kind of a funny way to say that), and they had to keep coming in and massaging it repeatedly throughout the night to get it to contract and harden. The nurse assigned to me kept having to bring in other nurses to help her take care of me. They also called my doctor and he prescribed some medication that would cause contractions. They almost gave me pitocin but the doctor ordered something else instead, which I can't remember the name of.

In the middle of the night, I woke up from one of my few cat naps because I felt a little cold. I tried to put my feet under the blanket and immediately began shaking uncontrollably. I woke up my mom and asked her to help me. I had been so warm, except for my feet, and in an instant I was freezing and shaking, and it scared me a little because I didn't know what had happened to cause that. I am sure it was just more of a reaction to the medication they had given me the day before, but at the time it was scary for me. The nurses came in with more blankets and that helped a lot.

Finally, around 4:30 AM I believe, I told the nurses how nervous I was that my uterus wasn't staying hard. They were really sweet and calmed my fears. They kept saying "It seems like you've lost a lot of blood when we look at it on paper, but you have to remember how much blood you had to begin with, having three babies inside of you." The explanation helped me calm down and I was able to get a little rest after that. Besides, my Mom was there and ever since I was little I knew nothing bad could happen whenever Mom was with you.

Morning finally came and sure enough, true to the warning given to me by the nurse the prior afternoon, I felt like I had been hit by a truck. That was a tough day as far as pain went. Luckily my uterus was cooperating a little more by then so I was able to take pain medicine again. It was much more difficult to walk that day,  but I still made it over to the NICU to see my babies a few times, and my big babies also came to see me, wearing their adorable shirts that my cousin Caryn had made for them:

My mom stayed with me two nights, and then on Friday night my husband stayed with me since the kids didn't have to be at school the next morning. I was discharged from the hospital on Saturday evening. I could have stayed til Sunday but I just wanted my own bed again.  It was so nice to be able to lay almost flat again (stomach was still a little too big to get incredibly comfy, but it was sooooo much better than sleeping while sitting up, which is what I had been doing for the last 2+ months of the pregnancy).

This hasn't been the usual recovery. It's definitely been more difficult than my first C-section.  I never got to have that baby honeymoon where all I do for days is sit and hold and feed a baby. I feel like I have barely sat down since I got discharged. Life in the NICU is incredibly busy - but that's for another post.

I started back to work after almost 2 weeks. Luckily my job isn't one where I have to be on my feet a lot, but it does require a lot of analytical thinking and brain power, which can be hard on little sleep (don't believe it when people tell you it will be "so nice" to have them in the hospital because "you will be able to catch up on sleep while they're there." At least for me, this couldn't be farther from the truth! Late night pumping, early morning pumping, and getting kids up and ready for school doth not a plentiful nights' sleep make!)   I have to admit it has been hard to have to go straight from the hospital to teaching lessons and not hardly have any break in my day. I even have to pump in the car most days, just to have enough time to do everything I need to.

The nice part about this recovery has been the weight loss. At my two week checkup, I had lost all the baby weight plus three pounds! You burn a lot of calories running between three babies in the NICU, not to mention all the pumping. Plus, when you're having triplets, most of the weight you gain is baby and placenta weight, after that, there isn't room for much else!  I only gained 37 pounds with this pregnancy. About 22 pounds was accounted for with babies and placentas. I probably lost the rest of it in sheer water weight from the insane amount of swelling I had in my legs and feet for 4-5 days following the C-section. I gained 40 lbs with each of my single pregnancies and the weight took about 10-12 months to come off. I am super happy this one was so much easier! Though I do still have all the lovely excess tummy skin/fat from being stretched from here to Timbuktu.

Speaking of the tummy, I am 4 weeks post op and my abdomen is still incredibly sensitive. Even just something brushing against it can cause me to cringe in pain. Oddly enough, however, I can cuddle my baby against my front and not feel any pain at all :) My belly button is just now returning to it's former "innie" status. I also have a good amount of scar tissue this time around, and still have pain along my incision, which makes it hard to walk sometimes. I often feel like I am constantly being pinched or poked with a sharp object.  I am hoping that will get considerably better with time, maybe after the babies get home and we can get into more of a "normal" routine, no more constant running between hospital, school, home, and work. And my feet hurt, but that's because they grew with the pregnancy and now my shoes don't fit right :o)

The Birth - Meet the Triplets!

Following the quick ultrasound to peek in on the babies one last time before meeting them in person, I was wheeled into the operating room. I was lifted from the bed to the operating table by some very strong nurses (one of whom had been the head nurse when I had my second child as well, and she remembered me!), and was given the epidural (spinal tap? Is there a difference?). I can't even describe the thoughts going through my mind. I couldn't believe I was actually on that table, that this was really happening. All those months of waiting, the growing and stretching to inhuman proportions, all the pain and discomfort, the joints that had stopped working several weeks before, and the seemingly endless number of doctors appointments had all led up to this moment, and it was happening.  It was happening 4 weeks earlier than the doctors intended, and nine weeks earlier than nature intended, but it was happening and it was far too late to turn back. In a few short minutes, heaven and earth would meet as three beautiful and perfect babies would come into the world straight from the arms of their Heavenly Father and into ours. I was going to meet my sweet babies, and I was thrilled...and just the right amount of nervous.

NNP Kelly waiting to "catch" Asher

The nurses helped me lie down, brought my husband into the room, and about half the hospital came in as well, hustling around, getting three separate baby areas set up (we actually had to use the entire operating room and the operating room right next to it). My amazing doctor, Dr. Gulinson, began checking me to make sure I was numb. There was an excited hum in the air. It was perfectly choreographed craziness.

Finally, that blue sheet went up between my face and the rest of the world, and I was alone with my husbands' and anesthesiologists' faces peering down on me to comfort me. The familiar pulling and tugging began, and I waited. I hoped to hear cries as the babies were born, but knew that since they were coming so early, they might be silent.  But then in the hustle and bustle of an overflowing operating room, that first beautiful first cry soared through the air and my doctor announced, "Here is Asher!" Then, in what seemed like minutes later to me but was really only seconds, he announced "And this is Brooks!"  and Brooks let out a beautiful cry. Relief washed over me for another brief second, and then I braced myself for the last birth, certain that tiny Baby C would not announce himself as his brothers had. A few seconds later my doctor said, "Here is Caden!" and then, there it was - another beautiful, thin and high pitched cry, and the tears of joy and relief came that they were all here, they were all crying, and they were each in the arms of their individual, specialized teams.  I didn't know that Dr. Gulinson was going to announce each of them by name, and the fact that he did made the experience so special and personal. All of them were born in exactly the same minute, at 9:41 AM. Asher was 16 1/2 inches long and 4 pounds even, Brooks was 18 inches long and 4 pounds, 11 ounces, and Caden was 14 1/4 inches long and weighed in at a whopping 2 pounds, 14 ounces. Their Apgar scores were all 8s and 9s.

All I could do was listen and try and figure out what was going on. The nurses were counting in unison and sounded very enthused and jovial...I still have no idea what that was about but it was kind of funny to listen to.  And then, finally, the nurse practitioners for Asher and Brooks came to my side and showed them to me for a split second. Caden was too fragile to be brought to me at that moment and I didn't get to see him until later in the NICU, but JJ did snap a picture.  Asher and Brooks looked exactly as I had pictured them - like smaller versions of my older son and their Dad, all rolled into one (or three, haha).

Asher and Brooks being born.
This is an extreme close-up of the mirror that hangs on the wall that you can see in the picture above. If you look, you can see Asher laying outside getting his umbilical cord cut and Brooks being born. I was zooming in on the picture to look at something else and noticed you could see the babies in the mirror. I am so glad I found this, because I think it's pretty cool!

  

Brooks with his "catcher" Katie, NNP.

Dr. Gulinson handing Caden to Laura, NNP

Caden with NNP Laura

Unfortunately, our camera battery, unbeknownst to us, was defective and died right after these first few pictures. I will forever be heartbroken about that. Luckily, we have cell phones that can take decent pictures, though it's not the quality of our digital camera.

All of the babies were briefly intubated to have a special medicine injected into their lungs and were prepared for their first several days in the NICU with IVs, nasal cannulas, and feeding tubes. The developmental therapist wrote a detailed description of everything that the happened to the boys in the first few minutes of their lives, most of which I had no idea about until I read the reports. I am so grateful for such a detailed summary, I know the boys will find it fascinating to read all about their birth in such detail. She even vividly described their rooms in the report.

At one point, the neonatalogist, Dr. Leonard, came into my vision and told me how they were doing. I don't really remember what he said, but if it had been worrisome I would have remembered it. Then the work on getting my huge belly closed back up began. I remember hearing my doctor joking with the nurse, and I knew that if they were able to laugh, that I must be doing fine as well. One of my big worries towards the end of my pregnancy had been that I would bleed too much and need a transfusion - I even had a special IV just in case I needed one. But hearing the laughter helped me know I was okay.

Asher at almost an hour old

Brooks at almost an hour old

Caden at an hour old

Once I was pieced back together, they wheeled me into recovery, where the onslaught of phone calls, text messages and facebook posts began, and thankfully, they made the time pass quickly. I spent quite a bit of my 2+ hours in recovery shaking uncontrollably from one of the medicines they had given me. Then I was wheeled to postpartum, but first, since it was "on the way" my nurse wheeled me down the NICU hall and I got to see my little sweethearts.  That was an experience like no other - imagine meeting your baby for the first time and all that goes with that, and then being wheeled to the next room and experiencing that first meeting all over again...and then going to yet another room and doing it again!

They were so beautiful! I had expected them to look funny, being so early, but they were these perfect, albeit small, babies with 30 itty bitty fingers and 30 adorable toes among them and 3 beautiful heads of hair. Brooks and Caden had blonde hair (Caden's being nearly white blonde) and Asher had brown hair. They all looked like miniature versions of their dad and older brother. So that makes my husband 5 for 5, since none of my children look anything like me. I would have thought I had the dominant genes, having darker hair and darker skin than my strawberry blonde, fair skinned, freckled husband. Apparently not.

Asher, Daddy, and Mommy

Brooks, Daddy, and Mommy

Caden, Daddy and Mommy
Gotta love that post-delivery double chin.

I couldn't stay in the NICU for long since I was in a huge hospital bed, so eventually they wheeled me toward the postpartum area. As I entered the wing, they played Brahms' "Lullaby" over the speakers three times - the tradition in this hospital is to play that song each time a new baby is born. I've had the opportunity to have that song played for me and my children 5 times in this hospital, with three being one right after another.

I was feeling pretty good following the C-section. After a little time in postpartum, my nurse had me get up to walk and I felt like a rock star. I had no issues getting up and walking around the nurses' station (I didn't even need the stomach brace that they offer!), and my nurse exclaimed, "Wow, you are the best C-section patient I've ever had!" I responded that it was a lot easier to walk now that I didn't have three people inside of me.  Plus, they had promised me I could go see the babies again as soon as I walked so I had a big incentive. One of the nurses warned me to take it a little easier, that if I didn't I would wake up the next day feeling like I'd been hit by a truck (turns out she was right, but I will get to that in the next post).

After I walked, they allowed me to go over to the NICU to see my babies again, and by this time, my older babies were here to meet their new little brothers too. They were fascinated and immediately took to them, speaking lovingly to them and touching their little fingers.

Asher

Brooks

Caden

After this visit, I spent the rest of the afternoon in postpartum, but got to come back and visit them once more at about 10:30 that night. And I got a great surprise - they let me hold Caden for the first time!

He was so little, 6 pounds smaller than the size babies I was used to holding. But I loved holding every single ounce of him.

I am so grateful for the amazing team of doctors, nurses, sonographers and therapists I had throughout this pregnancy and delivery. Dr. Pedron and Dr. Gulinson were incredible, and their staffs were each so supportive and caring. I could not have been in better hands.  It was also fun being able to watch the excitement of the doctors and the nurses at getting to do something that just doesn't happen very often. That afternoon, my doctor posted on Facebook:

"Obgyn of Phoenix
August 21 via mobile

Exciting day to um...deliver triplets!!! What a great day. Mom and all three are doing fantastic!!! And the dad is about to fall over. From 2 to 5 children in an instant. :o)"

I was so flattered that he was so excited about the birth of his first set of triplets. In fact, one of his staff later told me he practically floated around the office for days afterward! How often does a patient get an opportunity to see a doctor that excited? I feel so blessed that my boys came into the world straight into a room full of people who were genuinely thrilled that they were there.

After my special time with Caden, I headed back to postpartum for what would prove to be a very long night. But I will save that for another post!

The Birth - Part 1

Wow, what a whirlwind the last couple of weeks have been!

Last I blogged, I was 30 weeks and feeling about as good as could be expected. I hadn't been placed on bedrest yet, though I spent most of my days in my recliner, except when I ventured out to the living room to teach piano lessons. The babies looked good and comfy, and I was preparing myself for at least another month of pregnancy. I was quite confident that I would make it to 34 weeks at least.

Sorry for the blurry picture!

On Monday the 19th, I went in for my usual bio-physical profile appointment with my perinatologist. My friend Amanda had taken me to the appointment since my husband had to work and I was expecting that this appointment would be more of the same. I had also brought my son with me since he had had a traumatic first day of preschool and refused to leave my side. He was so excited to "see" the babies on the screen during the ultrasound. I was a day shy of 31 weeks.

We got through to the end of the appointment, and to my untrained eyes everything had looked good. But then my sonographer started a sentence with "Unfortunately...". Immediately I was transported back to week 14, the only other time my sonographer had started a sentence with that word, and then followed it with the heartbreaking news that Caden had a serious birth defect.  I nervously waited for the rest of her sentence, and she told me that Caden's blood flow was showing some unusual activity. I relaxed a little, knowing it could be serious but thinking that in the case it probably wasn't too bad since her face didn't show too much alarm. She left the room and I waited for the doctor to come in and tell me what he thought about it.

A few minutes later he came in, his demeanor obviously reserved,  and proceeded to explain to me what the blood flow problem was. I have to admit I don't remember much of the conversation or the details. I remember him likening the blood flow to switching a light switch on and off when it really should be staying on all the time. I remember my son getting restless and Amanda taking him out to get him a lollipop. I remember them coming back in and Amanda, upon seeing the look on my face, kneeling in front of me and holding my hand. I remember the doctor telling me I would be going to the hospital, most likely for the duration of the pregnancy. Everything else is a blur.

On the way back to the car I called my mom (my husband wasn't answering...his office is a black hole for wireless signals) and cried and cried. Then my husband called and I explained to him what was happening. I texted my students and told them lessons were cancelled. I cried to Amanda that I wasn't ready, the babies weren't ready. Then I cried that they would likely be born in August and have the peridot as their birthstone, when I had really been hoping to have some sapphires in my mothers' ring.

Amanda and I drove to pick our kids up from school and then came back to my house to get a bag together for me and the kids. My husband met us at home and Amanda took our kids to her house for the afternoon and a sleepover (seriously, every girl needs a friend like her).

My husband and I drove to the hospital and we were soon admitted to antepartum. Two wonderful men from our church, and personal friends, George and Scott, had met us shortly before we were admitted and joined me in the room to assist my husband in giving me a priesthood blessing, a very important part of my faith, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They also provided some lighthearted and witty (hilarious, actually) banter that helped to greatly ease my anxiety. 

I was soon draped in the latest in hospital gown couture, and fitted with several monitors and elastic bands. One monitor tracked my contractions, which I was having every two minutes. That came as a surprise to me, as I had been dismissing my contractions as Braxton Hicks for the past two weeks. Most of the contractions I couldn't feel, but the ones I could feel were quite painful. They were especially bad on Monday night. 

The other monitors tracked the babies' heartbeats - it sounds a lot easier than it actually was. My babies are only the second set of triplets ever born in this hospital, and to my knowledge, the first set of triplets to be monitored in this way (known in single pregnancies as "non-stress tests"). I had to have several NSTs over the next 2 days, and each time the poor nurses would have to stand in awkward positions over my belly, holding the monitors over their intended baby, and try to get continuous readings of their heart activity. I think they had to have 10 or 20 minutes straight of monitoring, but it really took more like 45 minutes, because inevitably a baby would move and they would have to chase after it and start all over. I laid there as still as possible, afraid to move and mess something up.

Even when they weren't performing an NST, I had to keep the monitors on each baby, though they did finally give up on trying to keep a monitor on Asher since he was on the underside of my belly, thus very hard to get to. His readings were perfect so they weren't too worried about him. Monday through Wednesday morning was spent trying to keep the monitors in place, nurses running in at all hours when the flat monitors would finally give in to gravity and start sliding down my enormous and round belly. I had a brief respite from the restrictive bands and uncomfortable monitors on Tuesday when I had another ultrasound which showed no change in Caden's condition.

Early Wednesday morning, my nurse informed me that Caden's heart rate had dipped a few times during my contractions in the night. I remember thinking, "This could be the day", and waiting for daylight to come so that my doctor would come in and give me an update, since I figured he and my perinatologist would not want to take any more chances. Then I opened my iPad and saw an email that said it was President Thomas S. Monson's birthday and I thought, "What better birthday present than to have three future missionaries born on his birthday?"

At 8 AM my doctor came in and told me that he felt it would be safer for the babies on the outside, and told me "We are having these babies today!" I figured "today" meant "later this afternoon", but then he told me that I would be going to get prepped for surgery immediately.

I called my husbands' office phone. No answer. I called his cell phone. No answer. Finally, I called the front office and told the school secretary what was happening. She immediately sent one of the other secretaries running to find him while I waited on hold. Eventually she came back on and told me he was on his way. Apparently, he had stepped out of his classroom and had just gotten back when the secretary ran in and told him. He said he became very flustered and started stammering about where she could find the lesson plans for a substitute teacher, and the secretary basically stopped him and said "Go now. We will take care of everything." Luckily, he works only about ten minutes away from the hospital, so he was by my side shortly after I had been wheeled into the room where I would be prepped for the C-section.

Things like this always make me feel like I am caught up in a whirlwind. I was signing consents, meeting the nurses who would be assisting, talking to the anesthesiologist, getting IVs in, and drinking this horribly disgusting sour drink that was supposed to help me with...something...I can't remember what, but it was the nastiest thing I think I have ever tasted. We quickly snapped a pre-delivery picture, and afterward I realized I had forgotten to cover up my belly and there wasn't time to take a second one. So, if you don't enjoy looking at very pregnant bellies, please quickly skip to the next paragraph. I include this here despite my great personal embarrassment (I am a very modest person) only because I want to remember how we looked right before we met our three miracles. I had never seen myself from this angle during the pregnancy, and after the delivery, when I saw this picture for the first time, I was astounded at just how far away my belly was from my face. It looks like it's in a different time zone.

My doctor came in and announced that we had been delayed due to an emergency C-section. Most people would be annoyed at being bumped, but I was fine with it - it meant that I must not be in as much danger and that the babies would be fine a little while longer. It was actually comforting. My doctor had a portable ultrasound machine brought in so he could get one last look as to where the babies were at so he knew where to make the cut.  When he knew where the three babies were positioned, he pointed to each of them and asked me what their names would be. Then it was time to go into the operating room.