As some of you may know, I gave birth to a beautiful little boy on Friday 19th August 2016. During my pregnancy I decided not to blog anything at all because it was not the most pleasant experience. However, as highly requested I am going to share my birth story with you all and I’m dedicating this blog to anyone who suffers from Adhesions Related Disorder (ARD) or has medical issues due to Adhesions.
Background Story
Last year my partner and I were curious about how having Adhesion Related Disorder (ARD) would affect my fertility please see previous blogs if you’d like to know what that is. Unlike some many others I didn’t know full extent of my adhesions and where all of them are because they are very hard to see through imaging. We went to our Obstetrician/Gynaecologist and the answer we got was basically the only way to find out was to try. It’s not a secret that adhesions can affect women’s fertility, so it seemed the most sensible thing to do. After months of trying to conceive we decided to stop trying because I found the process emotionally draining, that was in November . Surprisingly, on the day after Boxing Day I found out I was pregnant. I immediately informed my gynaecologist and she made me come into the Early Pregnancy Unit to confirm my pregnancy. I had my first ultrasound at only 6 weeks, it confirmed that baby was growing inside the uterus and that there were no adhesions there as far as they could see. There were no concerns, she did not see why I could not have a healthy and ordinary pregnancy. However, due to my adhesions I had a very painful pregnancy. By the halfway mark I had limited mobility, developed preeclampsia and Symphysis pubis dysfunction. I had to go into hospital every 48 hours for a blood pressure check for the preeclampsia. Despite all my problems, there were no concerns about my baby and he was growing fine inside the womb. The only thing that was left in the balance, was how I was going to deliver my baby. Obstetricians went back and forth with my birth plan but in the end decided that an elective Caesarean section would be the safest option for both me and baby. I agreed to this because they explained where I have had previous surgery and my bowels being resectioned in four places, pushing in a natural birth with could cause complications. Also, if adhesions were stuck to any organs, they didn’t want any tears or perforation because of it. So a natural birth was off the cards. If you know anything about adhesions you’ll know surgery is the last thing we want as we know it’s breeding ground for adhesions, so I was feeling quite nervous about that.
The Birth
I was admitted into hospital 11:30am, I was given a spinal injection for anaesthesia in my back. My partner was present in the delivery room and there were 8 health professionals there; Senior Obstretrictian Surgeon, her assistants, anaesthetists, midwife and a maternity care assistant. A bowel surgeon was also on standby just in case.
Carl scrubbed in
The caesarean was a very strange experience, I couldn’t feel any pain at all but my tummy felt like someone rummaging through a handbag. A blue screen was placed in front of me so I couldn’t see anything. The anaesthetists spoke to me all the way through and explained everything that was going on, we even had a laugh and few casual conversations. My partner was very calming and attentive throughout which really helped me. The actual process of getting the baby out was not long I was so shocked with how quickly they got him out. The stitching me back up lasted way longer and was in total 2hrs on the operating table. My blood pressure was scarily high throughout the procedure but the professionals helped keep that at bay. When my son was born my partner was the first to hold him, they told us the time of birth 14:35pm and cleaned him straight away. At this point I was getting stitched up and I didn’t get to see him straight away. All I could hear was this loud cry and noises from machinery around me. After I got stitched up, my partner sat next to me and showed me my sons face, it was very chilling moment. I was told that the operation was quite successful and there were no problems. I was then taken to the recovery room where I found out my blood pressure was still quite high so I needed to be monitored and given something through a drip. Whilst this was happening, the midwife brought over my son for skin to skin contact for the first time, I could not hold him for long because I was too poorly. The midwife weighed my son, he weighed 5lb12 with a full head of hair we named him Cairo, after the Egyptian city.
After Birth
For the first few days of baby Cairo’s life I was so unwell, I held him once a day but my Mum and partner looked after us whilst I recovered.
Baby Cairo and I
Firstly, I had high blood pressure problems from the preeclampsia, then I developed a fever and severe distension and swelling in my abdomen. I had an emergency CT scan just to check if anything had gone wrong from the c-section. It turned out that my body just had a hard time adjusting due to the nature of the operation and that my insides are pretty messed up anyway it was never going to be a smooth recovery process.
A few days in, I got a visit from the surgeon who did my c-section. She revealed that although she got baby Cairo out safely, the top of my uterus was stuck to my abdominal wall by adhesions. She told me because baby was so tiny he positioned himself as low as possible far away from where my uterus was stuck. I had no idea that I had adhesions there and how I managed to go 39 weeks pregnant with my uterus stuck at the top. I stayed in hospital for a total of 5 days and by the time I left I was walking on my own and doing a few tasks without assistance. The total recovery time for a c-section is 6-8 weeks and I have been told not to lift anything but my baby. Short walks is fine and good for blood circulation. For now I’m settling into Motherhood at home with huge help from my family, taking each day as it comes 🙂
To my fellow ARD sufferers,
I am a living testimony that pregnancy with adhesions is possible. I know many other women who go on to have 3/4 children with adhesions. If you are trying do not lose hope, where there is a will there is a way. I never imagined I would ever be a Mother, I knew I wanted children but I never got my hopes up. Now, I’ve got the most beautiful little boy, he’s already changed my world and I will continue be grateful I Thank God for giving me such a blessing. Remember you have ARD, ARD does not have you!
Baby Cairo
Take care until next time,
Shelisa xx
shelisandherspoons 