Sawyer Liam DeLette BrownBorn February 24, 2010 @ 10:04am
Weighing in @ 4lbs. 13oz.
and 17 1/2 inches long
It all started with me feeling really ill with fever and cold chills on Tuesday Feb. 16. Wednesday I only got worse and I just couldn't take it anymore. I felt horrible all over and I had this aching pain in the top right of my abdomen, so I called my OB and she told me to go straight to the ER. So, Michael and I went to the ER where they ran an IV and pumped me full of fluids and then sent me home. Thursday I woke up feeling absolutely awful. I already had a scheduled OB appointment that day, so I called and told them I was really sick and needed to come in earlier. They told me to come in right away, so I did. My doctor told me she thought I might have the flu and then I mentioned to her the aching in my abdomen and that concerned her, so she sent me to the hospital to get some blood work done and to get the materials to do a 24hr urine culture.
The next morning, at about 9am, my doctor called me to tell me she was worried about my test results because they were showing I had a low platelet count and high liver enzymes and there was high protein in my urine. She told me she was admitting me to the hospital and that I would be there for awhile and she was going to call them to tell them I was on my way.
Can you say total PANIC attack! Not only was I worried about the baby, but I had my two girls to figure out what to do with and my daycare kid. Thankfully, my friend Bridget had already planned to pick up the girls and take them for the weekend!
So, after rushing around to take care of what we could, we went down to the hospital where I was admitted, put on this crappy drug called magnesium that made me feel like I was burning up, dehydrated, and made my eyes burn and gave me blurry vision, and confined to bed rest. Over the next three days, I was stuck with needles and made to have done and do embarrassing things. I was stressed, worried, and I missed my family terribly, but by Sunday things were looking better and I was taken off the drugs and IV's. My labs were all looking better. On Monday, my doctor came in and said she wanted to keep me at least one more day to monitor and do another blood test. I was absolutely convinced I would be going home on Tuesday. Little did I know!
On Tuesday when my doctor entered my hospital room and I saw the look on her face, my heart sank. She told me that my lab results had gotten worse than before and I had what she thought was HELLP syndrome (low platelets, high liver enzymes, very very bad illness) and that she couldn't let me go home sick. She told me she was going to call Maternal Fetal Medicine and talk to them about what they should do. She told me if I didn't improve, they would have to induce labor. Again, I took another moment to completely FREAK OUT! I was only 33 weeks along and worried about having a preemie baby. Throughout this whole ordeal, Michael was completely awesome, comforting, and supporting. He put on a brave face where I couldn't and I am very thankful for that!
Needless to say, my results did not improve and I was told they would be inducing Tuesday afternoon. I was put back on that horrible magnesium and back on bed rest. I suffered without sleep throughout the night where every three hours they came in to "torture" me. By Wednesday morning I was in hard labor, gave half a push and out my little man came screaming with all his might! We only got to hold him for a few minutes before he was rushed off to the NICU and put on oxygen and IV's :(. Happy and sad moment. I was completely out of it having to give birth on that magnesium. It completely relaxes your muscles and makes you feel like you have the worst flu ever! I had to stay on the stuff for another 24hrs. Wednesday and Thursday morning were pretty much a blur. My doctor came in Thursday morning to tell me that all of my blood tests were back to normal. Funny thing what giving birth can do! I was kept for another two days before I could go home. . .without my baby :( .
Sawyer is still in the NICU but doing very well. He is back on bili lights because his bili reuben went back up. He is starting to nurse and he is no longer on IV's or oxygen. We are not sure when he will be able to come home, but we are counting down the days until he can be with us. Until then, we visit him every day at 5pm, which is not enough time to get all the lovin' in, but we take what we can get. We all miss him and hope that we will soon be bringing him home! Sawyer is definitely the cutest little baby ever! The nurses just swoon over him. With his beautiful white blonde hair and little dimple in his chin, he has stolen the hearts of many. We are grateful to have such wonderful nurses taking great care of our baby.
Thanks to all who have thought about, prayed for, and supported us throughout this scary ordeal! Please continue to pray for Sawyer that he will get healthy so he can come home soon!