THE Blood, Not Stats! Part Four

Meanwhile, over three hours later in the chapel...thank God for praying husbands! And thank God for a God who hears and answers! My OB was explaining to Mike that, “There was a lot of bleeding.” (I bled out two and a half times.) Blood had to be brought from Honolulu (which is approximately ½ hour drive depending on traffic) via ambulance during the surgery. And she said "My blood pressure got low enough several times that brain damage was a concern." She told him he could visit me in the critical care unit.

When I woke up I couldn't speak because I was still intubated. Can I just say, intubation is so not cool?! The tube looked small; however, it felt like a semi tractor trailer had parked right down the middle of my throat! And "suction"...who thought of such a thing?! Attention all nurses, I love nurses!


Mike and my OB/GYN was in my room and I asked for a pen and paper. I wanted to know where my baby was! I wanted to see my baby! I heard my OB/GYN explain to Mike since I was writing in cursive, there was no more concern regarding brain damage. I thought, “Brain damage?!? What happened today?!? "And WHERE is MY BABY?!" I wasn't able to see her because she was on a different floor receiving oxygen therapy, was on IV, and being monitored. It was almost like torture as I thought about my baby all night. I didn't get to see her until noon the next day. Mike was a very busy man running between me in CCU, our baby in an incubator on a separate floor and our toddler who was in the next town over!

Regarding the surgery, my OB/GYN explained the three incidences of the ripping in my stomach was my uterus rupturing. There was no diagnoses, treatment or change in activity, and my uterus was ripped for approximately three months until delivery as I went about my normal routine. Every time there was a rupture, the placenta plugged the hole...this happened three times in a week. Over the course of the next several months, the placenta grew through the rip, over my uterus and grew to my bladder and other organs. During surgery, two other specialists had to be called in to very intricately remove the placenta from my organs as to not cause damage. Once my uterus was cut during the c section, the placenta detached unplugging the hole causing bleeding. (Did I mention...a lot of bleeding?!?) While trying to get the baby out, blood rushed up the umbilical cord and out her mouth. (She was on iron therapy for three months.) 


This is how I explain what happened. God sent His angels to keep charge over me and my baby in all our ways!

Continued tomorrow.