Hannah Jean's Arrival!

I'm sorry it has taken me so long to write this but obviously the first week as a new Mom is a very busy one!  So here we go....

A planned C-Section was scheduled for Thursday, October 4 when I was 37w4d.  It was scheduled early because of pre-eclampsia and a c-section because of my low lying placenta.  I arrived at the hospital around 11am and they began taking blood and setting up an IV.  My blood pressure was pretty high at 169/110 (the highest it had been).  After a few hours, they sent me in for my spinal.  I was pretty nervous at this point and it was really hard to not have my husband with me, but I like to think I was pretty brave.  I did as they told me and just did some breathing exercises through it to keep myself from getting too worked up.  The spinal was pretty painful but the pain didn't last long so I can't complain too much.

The feeling of my legs and torso going numb was definitely very strange for me.  The first few minutes before they began cutting I was feeling very uncomfortable and restless.  I knew I was breathing because I could talk, but I couldn't feel myself breathing....if that makes sense.  They finally brought my husband back in and that made me feel much better.  I only had one small moment where I felt some nausea and the anesthesiologist promptly gave me something in my IV that made it go away.  My anesthesiologist was wonderful by the way.  She was so sweet and kept rubbing my arms to keep me calm. 

Everything felt better honestly once they officially started the surgery because then I had something to concentrate on.  I could feel a little pressure but no pain at all and felt very calm.  The worst part about it all was the shaking.  I was shaking SO badly from the spinal (which is very normal) and it was just a pain in the ass more than anything because nothing I could do would stop it.  It went by very quickly.  They did some quick pushes on my chest which was some uncomfortable pressure but not terrible and then a nurse said, "You're about to meet your baby!".  Then another said, "I see some hair!" and then I heard the sound of her cry and oh was she wailing!  I immediately started crying and begging them to show her to me.  They brought her around the side and I was shocked how she didn't look like me AT ALL, lol.  My husband promptly left my side and went over to where they were checking all her vitals.  This part was tough because I couldn't see anything and they were working on putting me back together.  I was feeling so many emotions but was just kind of stuck there.  Then I heard my husband say, "She has Kellie's toes!".  I have a funny little toe deformity that I got from my Dad, and apparently passed it on to Hannah.  This totally made me smile.

Now for the vitals of her birth.  She came into the world at 3:33pm weighing 7lbs 11oz and measuring at 19 3/4 inches long.  Apgar was 9/9.  She was so healthy that once they brought me into recovery, she came right with me and my whole family got to meet her which was wonderful.

We trying getting her to latch to my breasts but I have inverted nipples.  We even used a nipple shield and my nipples started bleeding within 3 minutes.  The lactation consultant was honest and told me I probably wouldn't be able to BF from the nipple but pumping would be a great option.  This decision didn't come lightly though and it took awhile to finally realize this was the best option for me (because of my breast reduction as well).  I was very overwhelmed the first day and very scared of breaking her.  I loved her already but felt like I had no idea what I was doing.

By the second day at the hospital things were much better.  Once family left I had to be more hands on with Hannah and that's when everything changed.  We made eye contact for the first time and I fell so deeply in love in that moment that it just overwhelmed me.

 Hannah is now a little over a week old and the absolute love of our lives.   My husband is completely enamored by her and I am so happy we both work from home so that we can spend every day with our princess.  She is such a well behaved baby and we are feeling so incredibly blessed.  I totally burst into tears a few times a day because the amount of love I feel just overwhelms me.  Cheesy, but true.

As for recovery, some moments are tough...but I do not regret the c-section.  I am healing very well and have been up and about since the day after it.  I am losing weight like crazy, already at 5 pounds below pre pregnancy.  The pumping and lack of time for snacking sure helps. :)

All in all, life is very good right now.  I am exhausted but I don't even care.  I had a difficult pregnancy but I can happily say now that YES, it was all worth it in the end.  And I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.