Newborns are supposed to sleep all the time, right?? Right. Not. Our first week home was quite interesting! Sleepless nights, lots of screaming, no poopy diapers, etc. It was quite emotional for me as well, because I didn't know what to do! I called and talked to nurses, lactation consultants, and had tried everything they suggested to get him to stop crying and sleep. We decided maybe he wasn't getting enough to eat when I tried pumping and would only get an ounce. We decided to start supplementing with formula. As soon as we did that, we had a SAFISFIED baby!! It turns out my milk never really came in. I wasn't as bummed about the not being able to exclusively nurse but the fact that everyone puts so much pressure on moms to nurse. I am glad he got the important colostrum in the beginning and at least one breast milk bottle a day for 2 weeks, but it just was too much to try keep up with when there wasn't much of a supply.
I really didn't realize how common this is until I started talking to other people. In our classes and in the hospital, everyone puts so much pressure on nursing and basically throws out the guilt trip if you can't do it. Once I finally got the courage to just do what is best for us, I felt a million times better! Corbin was 6lb7oz at his one week check, so not back to his birth weight. Our dr was very supportive of our supplementing and we went back on Monday and he weighed 7lb4oz!!
Our latest struggle has been finding the right formula. We've been through constipation, projectile vomiting, and hopefully now are on the right track. This whole having a newborn thing is such a steep learning curve and an exhausting one at that!
Yesterday I started bleeding from my incision. Tim took me in to the dr and it turns out I had a hematoma. They drained it and there was lots of old blood. I had a sharp pain in that spot the last couple days so I should feel quite a bit of relief. I have to keep a dressing on it for the next couple days and hopefully the recovery goes even faster now! What's one more set back?!
Currently we're enjoying snuggles and naps on the couch and getting used to bassinets and swings. Slowly but surely!
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Corbin's Birth Story
On Friday August 23rd, I worked hard to get things finished up and was telling people that I would be throwing a temper tantrum if I had to come back to work on Monday! I wasn't due til Wednesday, but was getting really tired of work and people commenting how I still hadn't had this baby yet! I was looking forward to a nice relaxing weekend complete with lots of naps.
On Saturday, Chelsey and Riggins came to hang out while Tim was combining! We had a great time just sitting around, talking baby stuff, and she sterilized all my bottles and helped get the last few things ready. We went for a short walk and I could definitely tell that this baby was on the downward move. Saturday night, Tim got home around 9pm and they had finished combining. We sat around and talked for a little bit and decided it was time for bed. I went to the bathroom and headed to bed. I bent over to pick up a pillow off the floor, and a big warm gush came running down my leg! I hurried up back to the toilet. I told Tim that I either peed myself or my water broke. I got my answer as I sat there and it just kept coming!!
Tim started to get nervous about what we should do. I told him that I was going to just go bed and try get some sleep and he should do the same. Shortly after lying down, contractions started. People aren't kidding when they say you'll know real contractions when you feel them!! I layed there for about a half hour timing the contractions, anywhere from 6-8 minutes apart. I called the hospital to let them know so they could get ready for me but told them I was going to stay home for a while longer. I tried to get some rest but that's pretty hard to do in 5-8 minute increments! Finally at 2:45 I had decided that contractions were getting strong enough that I wanted to head in. We loaded up our stuff and made our way to the hospital.
Once we got there, they put monitors on me and checked and I was already dilated to a 5! Things were progressing great and my dr would order the intrathecal. I was breathing through contractions and the meds couldn't come fast enough! Once I got the intrathecal I was able to get a little rest. The told me intrathecals take away about 80% of the pain. It sure wasn't long before I was at an 8 and contractions were miserable. Then the nurses and my dr started getting concerned because Corbin wasn't handing contractions well. His heart rate would dip down with each contraction and not quite come back up to where it should be. This went on for a while and I wasn't progressing. Eventually they gave me the option of waiting to get to 10, have an hour or two of pushing that he might not handle well, OR csection and get him out without more stress. After listening to his heartbeat a little longer we decided we needed to get him out.
At this point I turned into a total emotional wreck. Contractions were awful and often, I was concerned about my baby and just the fear of the unknown with the csection. It seemed to take forever for them to let Tim in the operating room after getting him dressed up in scrubs. About 10 minutes later, we got to hear the scream of our sweet boy! It was the most amazing sound ever and seeing him was the best moment. It turns out the cord was wrapped around his neck and shoulder and he was trying to come out with the right side of his head first. It wouldn't have been an ideal situation and probably would've ended in csection anyway. It broke my heart when Tim and Corbin had to leave me, but I am so thankful for my amazing doctor and the anesthesiologist who kept me sane during that half hour. Once I got wheeled into the recovery room they put Corbin skin to skin on my chest. Words cannot describe that feeling!! :)
So blessed to have this little man in my life!!
On Saturday, Chelsey and Riggins came to hang out while Tim was combining! We had a great time just sitting around, talking baby stuff, and she sterilized all my bottles and helped get the last few things ready. We went for a short walk and I could definitely tell that this baby was on the downward move. Saturday night, Tim got home around 9pm and they had finished combining. We sat around and talked for a little bit and decided it was time for bed. I went to the bathroom and headed to bed. I bent over to pick up a pillow off the floor, and a big warm gush came running down my leg! I hurried up back to the toilet. I told Tim that I either peed myself or my water broke. I got my answer as I sat there and it just kept coming!!
Tim started to get nervous about what we should do. I told him that I was going to just go bed and try get some sleep and he should do the same. Shortly after lying down, contractions started. People aren't kidding when they say you'll know real contractions when you feel them!! I layed there for about a half hour timing the contractions, anywhere from 6-8 minutes apart. I called the hospital to let them know so they could get ready for me but told them I was going to stay home for a while longer. I tried to get some rest but that's pretty hard to do in 5-8 minute increments! Finally at 2:45 I had decided that contractions were getting strong enough that I wanted to head in. We loaded up our stuff and made our way to the hospital.
Once we got there, they put monitors on me and checked and I was already dilated to a 5! Things were progressing great and my dr would order the intrathecal. I was breathing through contractions and the meds couldn't come fast enough! Once I got the intrathecal I was able to get a little rest. The told me intrathecals take away about 80% of the pain. It sure wasn't long before I was at an 8 and contractions were miserable. Then the nurses and my dr started getting concerned because Corbin wasn't handing contractions well. His heart rate would dip down with each contraction and not quite come back up to where it should be. This went on for a while and I wasn't progressing. Eventually they gave me the option of waiting to get to 10, have an hour or two of pushing that he might not handle well, OR csection and get him out without more stress. After listening to his heartbeat a little longer we decided we needed to get him out.
At this point I turned into a total emotional wreck. Contractions were awful and often, I was concerned about my baby and just the fear of the unknown with the csection. It seemed to take forever for them to let Tim in the operating room after getting him dressed up in scrubs. About 10 minutes later, we got to hear the scream of our sweet boy! It was the most amazing sound ever and seeing him was the best moment. It turns out the cord was wrapped around his neck and shoulder and he was trying to come out with the right side of his head first. It wouldn't have been an ideal situation and probably would've ended in csection anyway. It broke my heart when Tim and Corbin had to leave me, but I am so thankful for my amazing doctor and the anesthesiologist who kept me sane during that half hour. Once I got wheeled into the recovery room they put Corbin skin to skin on my chest. Words cannot describe that feeling!! :)
So blessed to have this little man in my life!!
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