My Hospital Stay

The Morning After

Like I said in my previous post about this, they had wheeled me to another room and my mother stayed with me. I had not yet been allowed to get out of the hospital bed. It was early; they hadn't done their breakfast round yet. I was still full of fluid and very puffy, and I mentioned it to the nurses and asked for a diuretic, most commonly known as a water pill or water tablet, which is the term I used.

My mother agreed; if I didn't mention it before, my mother is a Registered Nurse. But even with all the fluid, I was still very obviously holding onto it. It took a few hours before they gave me the diuretic, which didn't really help much.

The nurse spent most of the early morning worrying about the fact that the nurses in the other room were supposed to remove my catheter before bringing me to the new room. My mother insisted they leave it because I still hadn't been allowed out of bed yet and was very much full of fluid.

There was enough fluid in my hands that it was not easy to hold a pen to write or sign any of the documents I was given. And the fluid in my legs? Every time they said, "Just elevate your legs," I'd tell them the fluid was acting like a seesaw. I could feel it moving every time I elevated my feet and every time I went to stand.

I was still only given the one dose of diuretics even though I was still very puffy.

During all this back and forth over the diuretic and my catheter, my mother was not happy about how that was the nurse's sole focus, not the fluid retention I had.

When Pops Arrived

Mom was getting things figured out with my stepdad on who was going to stay with me and when. Fortunately, he works from home and was able to bring his work laptop with him. So, he stayed with me the rest of my stay.

My mom had to leave a bit before my stepdad got there, so I wasn't alone long. I believe it was a bit after I was given, or they had taken, my breakfast tray when my stepdad arrived.

Side note for those who have not read the previous two posts: My husband was there for the birth and was not there at this time because he only got a week of paternity leave, and we all agreed it was best to wait until the baby and I were home before he used it.

I was still on the magnesium drip because my blood pressure was still a bit too high, so I was still disoriented and...not exactly foggy but not fully there. It didn't take much for me to zone out.

When my stepdad came in the room, we smiled, said hi, he asked how I was doing, and then I called the nurses for my baby to be brought to the room so my stepdad could meet the baby.

Guys, I am not trying to be funny, cute, or wordy, but when they brought my baby into the room, and

my stepdad and baby locked eyes, the energy in the room shifted.

Y'all, I am not joking.

The room felt like any other hospital room, but in that moment it was like there was this golden glow of warmth or something. Like a giant halo was around them.

My stepdad hadn't even picked my baby up to hold her yet!

And to this day, my child loves Pops. Pops walks in the room; the rest of us don't matter. Some days I have to FaceTime him multiple times so my child can talk to Pops.

With my stepdad there to help me, we kept my baby in the room with us the rest of the stay.

Figuring Things Out

This is the part where I apologize because it's been a bit over a year and I can't remember everything exactly in the order it happened, so please bear with me.

At some point, a nurse came to help me start standing and walking. Another nurse came to give medicine throughout the day. The lactation nurse came to check to see if I needed help with breastfeeding and to see how that was going.

Because my baby wasn't latching or reacting near my boob, she brought me a pump to use.

My stepdad quickly figured out that my baby would eat better right after a diaper change and helped to wake her up.

The Hospital Bed From Hell

The worst part was the hospital bed.

It was so uncomfortable! My butt hated it. My tailbone screamed at me to get out of that bed.

I had to stuff a pillow under my butt, and that still didn't help. While getting up and walking hurt from where they cut me, I preferred it over sitting in the bed.

And trust me when I say it was very uncomfortable and very hard to move for a while.

I had a low transverse cut C-section. The skin was glued back together, so no staples and no stitches. Trying to bend was just a no-go. I had to hold onto the handlebars just to ease myself onto the toilet.

The first day after my stepdad got there was smooth. I didn't get up to do much but go to the bathroom. I kept my baby's bassinet right next to me so I could easily reach her and the supplies on it to take care of her.

My Doctor Had a Plan

The 2nd day, the doctor came to check on me, and he said I had to poop and walk around the wing at least 3 times before I could leave.

I was not happy to hear that.

I was ready to leave. That bed was that uncomfortable.

I didn't argue with him, but I did inform him I had already pooped, which he seemed surprised and pleased by.

He also said I needed to take a shower before I left, too.

While he was talking to me, a nurse came in to check on me, and I asked for one of those belly support wraps because my stomach overhang made the incision hurt more.

He stopped the nurse, looked her right in the eye, and told her to get me the wrap, help me walk 3 laps around the desk, and help me shower.

And this is the part that kind of bothers me.

They didn't.

Several hours later, I had to call them to bring me the wrap so I could try to walk, and they had no idea what I was talking about.

Learning to Walk Again

They eventually brought it to me and left.

My stepdad had to help me.

Now, I understand I am not the only patient in the hospital. There are more patients than nurses. However, the doctor himself looked my nurse in the eye and told her to do those things.

If my stepdad had not been there to help me, what would have happened?

Would I have just been left there?

Would my child have been in the room with me that whole time?

I understand that nursing is a hard job, but that's not an excuse to not do your job.

Walking sucked.

I had to use my baby's hospital bassinet like a walker. My stepdad would walk with me, and my baby would be sleeping in the bassinet as I walked.

We spaced the walking throughout the day so I didn't overdo it, but so I could also get used to movement.

A Midnight Snack

My stepdad ordered him some Indian food for dinner that night. He made sure to get mostly bland flavors and not super spicy.

I ate the hospital food, but I did eat some of his leftovers as a midnight snack because I was hungry.

Because I hadn't been eating spicy food in like a year, it tasted spicy to me. Haha.

Finally Getting My Shower

The next morning, I took my shower, unassisted.

I had to ask for something to cover up my IV just in case they decided they needed to put me back on. And that was after I had already gotten in.

So the cover didn't attach to my skin very well.

After giving me the cover and getting it on, she didn't stay to help me.

Y'all, my stepdad had to help me. Not with the actual showering part, but with the getting dressed, handing me my clothes, and holding me steady when I needed it.

At this point, I was getting pretty tired of having to figure things out myself or have my stepdad help me with things I thought the nurses were supposed to be helping me with. I was ready to go home, and thankfully, it was starting to feel like that was actually going to happen.

But I wasn't home yet.

There were still a few things that needed to happen before I could finally leave the hospital.

And that's where I'll pick up in Finally Leaving the Hospital.