Cerclage Update 2

Well as David said, everything went well on Thursday with the surgery.

We arrived at the hospital at 7am and were immediately escorted to a triage room. Our nurse asked us the traditional zillion questions and did the typical blood pressure/heart rate tests. Next she started my IV. I think the IV was the worst part of the whole ordeal. By the time this was completed, an hour had gone by.

Dr. Abernathy wanted the nurse to check the babies heart beats before and after the surgery, so in walked the nurse with a little Doppler machine. After searching for about 10 minutes, she couldn't find the heart beats. I was about ready to burst into tears, but she said because they are still so small it is hard to find them with the Doppler. They brought in the ultrasound machine and Dr. Abernathy's tech came over from the office, and we got to see the babies. To say the least, I was relieved. They were squirming all over the place; it's no wonder she couldn't find them.

I asked her what she thought they were... she said it was still early, but her guess was that it was two boys. I about fell off the table. I told David that there was only a 1% chance that we would have two boys since both Scott and Evan (David's brothers) have two girls.

After the ultrasound it was 8:45am, and the anesthesiologist came in to give us the run down. She explained what she was giving me and all the feelings I would be experiencing. I got a spinal which is a numbing med delivered directly to the spinal fluid. It numbed my whole lower half (from my waist down).

I walked to the OR at 9am (right on time - which was considerably different from Dr. Gentry). I laid down on the table in the OR, and the anaesthesiologist started my spinal... bizarre. I am not one to give-up control lightly, so being numb from my waist down was a whole mind game.

The surgery itself went really well. I could only feel pressure and no pain which was nice, but I could still see all the sponges of blood on the floor. The nurses kept me entertained, and we talked for the entire hour that the operation took.

I was wheeled back to my room at 10am where David was waiting anxiously. They gave me some pain pills and told me I was stuck there until the numbness wore off, and I could do all the normal bodily functions that I did before.

Around 11am the numbness was wearing off in all the wrong places, and the pain/cramping became unbearable. The nurse gave me some narcotics, and by 11:30am I was happily in dreamland. As I slept, David got himself some lunch.

I woke-up around 12:30pm, and David got me some food (I hadn't eaten since 8pm the night before). The pain had subsided some, so I was feeling better. However, I still didn't have total mobility and the fact that I couldn't move my toes was frustrating.

Next they brought back the ultrasound machine, and we got to see the babies again. This time she said she still thought we had a boy, but wasn't sure about the second. It was funny, during the ultrasound we had five student nurses file in to watch.

Finally at 3:30pm, I was able to "walk" to the restroom and do those necessary things required to leave. We were released and made it home around 4:15pm.

The rest of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday I was restricted to the couch. On Sunday, we went to church and Target. It was great to get out and around!

So that's the story of the cerclage. The surgery went well, and David and I are moving on the next phase of the pregnancy. Please keep us in your prayers because it is the next phase that will be the most difficult.

Cerclage Update

Kristy underwent the cerclage procedure today at Clarian North. We wanted to post something tonight to let everyone know that it was successful. We had some interesting moments that Kristy will detail out later this weekend.

Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers.

Cerclage

Dr. Abernathy called today to schedule my cerclage. We decided on Thursday, September 27.

David and I thought long and hard about the two kinds of cerclages and decided on the vaginal. The abdominal is very risky and the possible complications are very scary. It was a rough decision, but we think it is the best one at this time. Dr. Abernathy said that at this point my cervix looks fine and the length is were we want it to be. She recommended we go with the vaginal as well.

I go in at 7am on the 27th, and the procedure begins at 9am. I will have a spinal (anesthesia) and then the procedure. I will have to lay around the hospital after the procedure for 4-6 hours. Additionally, I'll be out of commission for another 48-72 hours.

Tomorrow we see Dr. Gentry for the last time and will have some more pictures to post.

Day of many answers... and questions

David and I had a nice, long meeting with our specialist today. Not only did we discover what a nice lady she was, but also reconnected with our friend, Debbie. Debbie is the bereavement nurse at Clarian North that took such good care of use while we were going through our trauma of losing Claire and Gracie.

Before we get into the details of the meeting, I know you're excited about seeing those beautiful babies. Today we got to hear their heartbeats and watch them "dance" all over the place. Baby A (Zeus) was a little more active than Baby B (Apollo), but both seemed to be having a great time.

David and I came to the meeting with many questions... after many months of researching the web for anything and everything to do with preterm labor, we were ready. Dr. Abernathy sat with us for over an hour explaining and discussing each item. David and I were very impressed with the way she treated us and made us feel comfortable. We still have some decisions to make regarding our care, but overall we think we know were we're going...

The biggest shocker came with the news that Dr. Abernathy believes I'll be hospital bound sooner than later. She told me that I should prepare myself, work, home, etc. with the possibility that I could be "gone" as soon as November 1. Our mouths dropped... but we'll do whatever we have to do!

We'll post more later, but for now, I'm worn out after the day we've had.

Week 10

Today starts week 10, and I know I've been somewhat negligent in my updates. For those that like to see our progress, I apologize.

Tuesday, the 11th, we go for our first appointment with our specialist, Dr. Abernathy. She will be our guide through the rest of the pregnancy making sure we are doing all we can do to get to March.

Well, David has been taking a picture of my belly each week to keep track of our progress... it is pretty funny, so we thought we'd share the last several weeks with you. Please keep in mind the bruises on my stomach are from the Heparin shots I take twice daily (and not David - ha ha).

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10