As promised, Nurse Karyn came to my room at 4AM to take out the catheter and get me up to use the restroom on my own. The catheter part was easier than I expected, the getting up out of bed was just as hard as I expected - maybe even a little harder. I raised the head of the bed as high as it would go to make me sit as upright as possible. I scooted myself to the edge of the bed using the handle on the bed for some leverage. Once I got to the edge of the bed, Karyn reminded me to use my thighs to help me up rather than using my abs. This was easier said than done. You really forget how much you rely on your abdominal muscles for everyday movements.
Once I was up, Karyn held my arm lightly as I shuffled to the restroom. I'll spare you most of the details here, however, there was an unexpected surprise as I was getting up from using the bathroom. A ginormous (I'm not even exaggerating) blood clot escaped my body and completely grossed and freaked me out. Though I really wanted to go back to bed, I knew I needed to move a bit more. After donning my robe, Karyn helped me walk down the hallway and back to bed where I found that getting back in was just as difficult as getting out. My stomach did not like me very much after I got positioned in bed. G & J slept through this whole thing if I remember correctly.
Later in the day I got up to use the restroom again with help from Karyn. She asked me if I felt dizzy at all, and I really felt okay considering the circumstances. Just after 7, Nurse Karyn introduced me to my day nurse, Alison. It turns out that Alison and I share a birthday. Every time they bring you medication you have to state your name and birth date. When Alison would bring me my meds, she would say, "What's our birthday?" Cute.
Sometime that morning, a woman came to do a hearing test on Genevieve. Luckily for everyone, G slept right through the test and passed with flying colors.
At this point I was receiving Toradol through my IV. The final dose was to be at 11:30 AM, but when that time rolled around, Alison brought me a Motrin rather than continuing the Toradol. For the rest of the day I received Motrin every 6 hours. Once I was able to get the baby to sleep, I was able to pass her off to J to hold. Then I could snooze for a bit. Look at what a natural daddy J is.
I got up later in the day to again use the restroom, and I felt very dizzy. I had to go right back to bed because I also felt queasy. I got up and tried again later, but that trip only resulted in me almost passing out. Since I've passed out before, I knew the signs. Luckily, I was close to the bed and sat right back down. I had to sit on the edge of the bed until I had enough strength to move myself back onto the bed all of the way. This day was not my favorite. Oh, and I thought you all might appreciate this picture:
I found out that Karyn was to be my night nurse again, and I was very happy about that. She was just so nurturing and motherly, and that's what I really needed at this point. Alison also mentioned that Karyn lives in Anthem. Small world I thought.
By late evening, I was in quite a bit of pain. On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the worst pain, I was around a 6. I just figured this was to be expected, so in between feedings, I tried to rest the best I could. I don't know at what point I told J about my discomfort, but he told me to talk to the nurse about my pain relief options because Motrin obviously wasn't very effective. I was crying and started to feel depressed because I didn't feel I could properly care for Genevieve in my current state. I finally fell asleep (and apparently was snoring up a storm), and when I awoke, Karyn was there. She said that J mentioned how I was feeling and asked me what my pain level was. I told her it was around an 8 now, and she apologized that my pain was allowed to get so high. She offered me Percocet, and I gladly accepted. I was allowed to have one Percocet every 4 hours and a Motrin every 6 hours.
Karyn and I talked for a bit. I told her I was a teacher in Anthem, and she told me one of her girls went to Boulder Creek High School and the other went to Gavilan Peak School. She asked me if I worked with the gal from the show Downsized, and I told her I did. She said, "She goes to my church." I told Karyn that I also attended St. Rose, and I thought again, what a small world. I have a feeling that God placed this nurse in my life for a reason. He knew I needed this connection and the kind of care I received from this woman. I am very thankful for Nurse Karyn.
That's always awesome. I had some great nurses when I delivered Sarah :) What hospital were you at?
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