After I was all stitched up, I was moved to a bed and wheeled into the recovery room. J was waiting for me holding Genevieve skin to skin. It was such a lovely sight. Of course I was ready to hold G right away, so J passed her off to me. I tried to breastfeed, but getting her latched was a bit of a challenge. She didn't want to open her mouth wide enough, so we had to take her off a few times until she latched better. Thanks Dianne for helping. I was not prepared for what a beautiful experience breastfeeding would be. I felt an immediate connection with my daughter and one I can't begin to explain in words. Unfortunately, waves of nausea kept coming over me, which lead to dry heaves. The nurse brought me something to "toss my cookies" in, but I never really threw up anything. If I remember correctly, they offered me something to alleviate my nausea, but I didn't really want any more medication.
I have no idea how long I was in the recovery room. I only remember lying there in pure disbelief that I had my daughter in my arms. I knew this day was coming, but the real anxiety of being a new mom was starting to set in. Eventually I was brought to my hospital room. The nurses asked if I wanted to scoot myself to the new bed or if I wanted them to move me. I opted for them to move me considering I still couldn't feel my legs or even wiggle my toes. The next several hours are really a blur right now. I don't remember much except for holding G. I'm sure they checked my temperature and blood pressure since they did that quite regularly. My nurse, Deanna introduced us to the evening nurse, Karyn. At some point they brought me a "clear liquid" dinner, which consisted of chicken broth, lime Jello, orange Jello, frozen lemon ice dessert, and a lemon lime soda. I only had the broth, the dessert, and the soda, and then I promptly threw them all up. What fun!
I think I was surviving on pure adrenaline since I did not feel very tired. I just kept holding G and staring at her. She was so beautiful despite some imperfections from her position in the womb. I'll tell you more about those later.
By now J decided to head out to the car to grab some of our things. Warning: TMI about to be shared. Karyn came in to check on me. Apparently I was bleeding quite heavily and had some decent sized blood clots. She called for Dr. Brown. I called J, but he didn't answer. I really needed him to hurry because I was a little scared, so I called him again. Thank goodness he answered. He had been talking to his mom on the phone. I told him to please hurry because I was bleeding, but I was okay. By the time he arrived, Dr. Brown was there, and she explained that sometimes the uterus doesn't do what it's supposed to do. It kind of collapses, which causes clotting like I had. They administered Pitocin through my IV to help control the bleeding. Karyn and I discussed the idea of taking the catheter out and me getting up and walking around. She said she'd come back at 4am to see if I was ready for that, and I agreed that it would be good. I knew that moving around as soon as I felt able would help the healing process.
G and I dozed off together, and once J got help unfolding the vinyl chair into a couch/bed, he too got some rest. I know at some point J took the baby, so I could sleep better. He also changed all of the diapers, and there were many. He is such a good man! It was expected that G have at least one poopy diaper within 24 hours, but she is an overachiever like her parents and had at least four poopy diapers. At least we knew she was eating well, and her system was in good, working order. I had no more nausea that whole night, for which I was very thankful. I was also thankful for surviving my first night caring for a new baby after major abdominal surgery. I don't know how people do something like that without the support of another person. I was immensely grateful to have J with me the entire time. He was my rock.
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