I forgot to do an update, probably because I'm still upset but I'm trying to be grateful that I have a healthy baby.
Julianna is doing great, she's drinking more. About 60-70. She burps easily most of the time. She stays awake longer during feeds and is more alert. She is off of the fortifier. Last night she passed her birth weight by 15grams. Her birth weight was 2240 grams which is about 4lbs 9oz. She now weighs 2260 grams which is still 4lbs 9oz. Her preemie clothes are fitting her a lot better. She lost her umbilical cord 5 days ago I believe and I still have no idea what colour her eyes are.
Now for my update, I'm still pumping. I've noticed my milk supply goes from 70ml to 100 when I drink right before pumping. My boobs are still adjusting. Constipation has been a pain. I still sweat a bit at night but its getting better. It looks like I only have 5lbs to loose. Peeing isn't painful or uncomfortable anymore but I still feel sensitive down there. My skin is becoming oilier now and my nails aren't as strong. I still take Materna. As for stretch marks I appear to have a few. I can tell I have about 3 small ones. I may have more. In pictures of my pregnant belly it looked like I had more but those were just my veins. My lines nigra is still dark. Anyways that's my update about yesterday i'll add in today's actual update later.
I was told one thing and it completely flipped. It's the long weekend so the regular doctor is away so there's a on call doctor and he believes preemies should stay until birth weight and until 36 weeks. Julianna turns 36 weeks on Tuesday and should hit birth weight today or tomorrow and she's feeding well so there really is no need for her to stay but as parents we have no say where stuck following doctors orders. I really don't have much to say, I'm upset and helpless...
As for myself, I'm feeling moody and I want her home so bad. Tomorrow we find out if she's in for another day or two. I have a bad feeling she'll be in longer.
Anyways I'm going to keep pumping until then and try to rest.
Still having Internet problems however it should be fixed today or in a few days. I've decided I will start to do short daily updates on Julianna and my postpartum experience using my iPhone.
I haven't been in to see her today but last night she gained 5grams so that was disappointing considering she should be gaining around 30grams a day.
As for myself I'm still sweating off a bit of water weight at night. My tummy feels and looks flabby. I'm very sleepy from pumping at night. I've noticed my skin is becoming more oily and my hair is growing faster again. I've also been extremely moody. And I'm becoming very ancy from not having her home. Forgot to mention that my milk took 3 days to come in and my supply is low it takes me a hour to pump 60-100ml.
Baby girls update
Today I gave her a bath, she wasn't a fan of it, she then drank 48ml for me which is pretty good. She had hiccups for 20 minutes, it made the poor things chest jump every time.
Tonight we got one of the best calls, the doctor said if she keeps gaining weight she can go home as early as Friday!!! So excited :) One nurse did tell me that babies born at 33 weeks tend to go home around 35 and a half weeks, with my son I was always told he will be able to come home on so & so day and it didn't happen quite a few times so I didn't want to get hopes up this time around.
Thus said Devon and I will have a busy busy day tomorrow getting ready for our little princesses arrival. The bassinet needs to be set up, mattress needs to be put in the crib and I need to get the diaper bag full of stuff for her and my son and I need to temporarily move my "skinny" clothes and put her clothes in my dresser until we get hers.
Anyways to end this post I have some pictures to share!
After I had Julianna and saw her in neocare I was taken to my semi private room, it was around 3:30pm so my mom stayed for a little and left and Devon stayed until 6. We talked lot, I don't remember about what but we talked. He went downstairs and got me a turkey sub for dinner which was nice considering I was craving it for months and couldn't give in .
Devon eventually left to take care of Mason and go home and do laundry. I tried to rest however it was hard with intense after birth contractions that pain medicine couldn't control. I think I might of went to see her that night but I don't remember it was such an intense day I'm pretty sure I did however I couldn't say for sure.
The day when I went to see her she was on oxygen and she was loosing weight. It was hard to see her hooked up to everything and made me tear up. I knew the next time Devon had to be there to keep me strong. After shedding a few tears I stared at my beautiful daughter and I knew she was going to be ok. Later that day I was released from the hospital.
The past 11 days I've had my ups and downs and so has she. My after birth contractions were stronger then my labor contractions. They could even last up to 3 minutes. By the 3rd day it didn't hurt to pee however I have cramping when I pee still it's more uncomfortable then painful. By the 3rd or 4th day I lost 15lbs, I've lost more weight since then. I've been sweating a lot every night, I was carrying a lot of water weight. I had a uti and was treated for it however now I might have a yeast infection so I was upset about that all because a month ago when I had uti symptoms my doctor said I didn't have one.
Now for baby girls update.
Her weight was down and up so she has been given fortifier for the past 4/5 days. She drinks about 45-50 and gets so sleepy around 40ml so she needs to start drinking more. She gains about 20 grams a day which is one third of a oz.
Today Julianna is 35 weeks and at my hospital babies born at 33 weeks can go home once they reach 35 weeks however what's holding her back is not drinking much and gaining as much as they would like. My guess is she will be there for 10 more days.
It's tough having another preemie in the hospital but I'm able to make it through the day knowing my son got through it and so will she after all girls do better, there the superior being. It's what all the doctors and nurses say ;)
On March 13th it was a normal day, I had my 33 week ob appointment. My ob was away so another doctor was in. He said I was measuring great and I lost half a pound in 2 weeks which I guessed was water weight because I was getting up sweaty at night. Later that evening Devon had to go stay with his grandparents to take a driving test (G license) early the next morning. About an hour after he left I started feeling really sick, he called me and told me the van broke down and by that time I was starting to feel really horrible and started to throw up. It was a rough night to say the least. The next morning I felt even worse and I started to panic, Devon took his test and was trying to get back home to me but he was unsuccessful. Luckily my mom was able to come over around 11-12pm and I will always be grateful for her being there when I needed someone more then I ever had, she helped out sooo much! She took care of my son, cleaned and brought a lot of comfort. Later that evening I started to feel better so I figured I would stay home and sleep some more and my son could have a sleep over at grandmas and grandpas after all Devon called me and said the van would be done the next day. My mom asked multiple times if I was sure I wanted to stay and I said yes, Devon was quite upset I didn't go but I thought it would be too hard to get up and go for a 15 minute drive. It was around 9pm when I started to feel really sick again, I eventually went and lied down in bed. I really didn't know what to do, I didn't want to bother my dad for a ride but I had a bad feeling I shouldn't be alone. The moment I realized I needed to leave was when I put my phone on my vanity beside me and it miraculously shot down beside me. I then texted my mom saying I want to come over and she responded that my dad was on his way.
Before I left I had a feeling I should bring my hospital bag and diaper bag but I ignored it and left. Once I got to my parents I felt a bit better but still nauseous. I ended up going to bed around 12 or 1. Around 2 or 3 I got up having back pains. It was soooo hard to get comfy and they kept waking me up. At 6am I realized I was having contractions. My dad had just left for work 10 minutes ago when I timed them to realize they were frequent, real contractions. I got up my mom and said "I think I'm having contractions" I don't remember what she said but she stayed calm. I went into the living room and called Devon, all I remember telling him is I'm having contractions, there close and you need to get here (they were 3-5 minutes apart). He was shocked and worried yet he managed to tell his grandma and she offered him a ride. After I hung up I started bawling, I knew it was too early and I was worried and disappointed. My mom calmed me down and told me to go to the bathroom and check if there was blood. I had a bit of pink discharge and thats it. We got ready and my mom called my dad so he could come home and watch my son in the meantime my brother watched him.
Once we got to the hospital I was sent to pee and and be hooked up. It was clear I was having contractions and they were 3 minutes apart feeling like a 7/10. The nurses came in and were super friendly, they really were amazing ladies and help me stay calm the entire time. The doctor came in and she too was super sweet and made me feel like everything was going to be ok; she checked me and I was 3cm (this was around 8:30). I had a feeling there was no going back and my contractions got closer and stronger. To be honest I don't remember the exact timing of everything all I remember is that I was in a lot of pain and when I was checked again I was 4cm with contractions feeling like a 9 coming every minute so they moved me into a delivery room, not to long after that Devon arrived and 30 minutes later I got the lowest dose of epidural possible because Julianna was so little. I believe this happened around 12, anyways it hurt sooooo bad but the back pain stopped. It was around 12:30 when I started feeling contractions coming from down there and they started to get painful. The nurse told me it was normal because the epidural was a low dose. I did get itchy but it was nothing major however the iv did make me cold but it hydrated me and made me feel a million times better. I believe it was around 1:15pm when they checked me again and I was 9cm, it was a shock to us all. There was no going back. I remember thinking I need to stay strong, I need to get ready to have this baby and oh my god this epidural isn't working, I felt the nurse drain my bladder and check me which I didn't feel when I had the normal epidural (in Canada its already a low dose compared to the USA) so I knew delivery was going to be painful.
It was after 1:30pm when I felt like I had too push ie poop, I was quite nervous I actually needed to poop but there was no pooping thank god. I was wheeled off to a emergency delivery room and Devon was sent off to change and sanitize. I waited about 15 minutes until everyone was there and then I had my water broken and it was a lot of "water"! I pushed for 3 minutes, it was quite something feeling my baby girl come out. I didn't find it was hard, I actually hated having to wait to have a contraction to push but I did and it was so satisfying to hear her cry because I knew I did it and that she was ok.
They placed her on me and all I could think is how she was sooo small and had so much hair and looked just like me. They then took her to clean her and weigh her, everyone told me how I did an amazing job and she was such a good weight (4lbs 15oz) I felt so happy and relieved. They brought her over to me and it was amazing to see her all cleaned up and just how light and tiny she was. As I held her the doctor put one stitch in me and Julianna was soon taken to neocare. The nurse and student stayed with me and talked, they told me how amazing I was and calm compared to most women. They told me she would do great and I knew they sincerely meant everything. After a hour I was put in a wheel chair and taken to see her. She was now hooked up to machines and it was sad to see my daughter in such a state but I knew it was for the best.
Devon came in and we stared in awe at her, he then switched places with my mom and she started crying which of course made me cry. After a little bit I was sent to go rest and so begun the rest of my journey with another baby in neocare.
Updates of the past 5 days will be added soon :)
I will also edit this post later I just quickly wrote it up and I'm sure I want to add more details at a later time.
