Our Story

I am hoping to highlight one person's story a week since each person's story is so different. Listening to others was an important part of the "healing & dealing" process for me. Finding bits and pieces of peoples stories that I could relate to. I have had a few people say they were willing to tell their stories so as long as there is a story to tell, I will post it! You can e-mail me at jacsbpiblog@hotmail.com if you would like to share your story!

Here's our story ....

Nothing is more exciting than finding out your pregnant - especially after you've been trying. We found out I was pregnant January 2013 with a September 2013 due date. We were ecstatic! I knew I didn't want to find out what we were having because I wanted it to be a surprise. 

During my pregnancy we found out that I had a marginal insertion of the umbilical cord. Let me explain.... Think of the placenta as a bulls eye and the umbilical cord as a dart. The dart's goal would be to hit the bulls eye dead center. In our case, the dart had just missed the bulls eye. Think of it as hitting the ring right around the bull’s-eye. Initially, I freaked out! What did this mean for the baby?!?! What it meant was monthly ultrasounds to make sure the baby was growing and getting all the nutrients he/she needed - I could deal with that and prayed that the baby would grow okay! The ultrasounds were an added perk for us because each month we got to see our little bundle of joy and we were thankful that week after week she was growing just as she should be!

Our final ultrasound was on September 23^rd and they estimated the baby was about 8lbs 5oz. They also told us that this was just an “estimate” but that the tech usually estimated on the high side. However, the baby can be off pound either way (so give or take a pound). At our last appointment on September 25^th we scheduled an appointment for me to be induced the next day. I was going to be a first time mommy and I don't know many people who like going over their arbitrary due date. I knew I was ready to hold that "little" peanut. Later we would find out that this decision was probably one of the best decisions we ever made.  

We arrived at the hospital EARLY that morning and the induction went according to plan the first 12 or so hours. I had terrible back labor so I opted for the epidural earlier than I had hoped. Around 7:00pm that evening was when I started to push. Everything seemed pretty normal until, I’m not really sure at one point, the doctor started getting a panic look on her face. I was at the end of my rope pushing (and the epidural did not work nearly as well as I though it should because I felt A LOT)! As the doctor became more and more panicked the next thing I knew she called some sort of "code" and within seconds 5-6 extra nurses ran into the room. Including one who jumped up onto the bed pushing her fist into my abdomen as heard as she could, and telling me to push (I will never forget her face). The next however long was kind of a blur. We didn't even know if the baby was a he or she. My husband told me that things were crazy and I'm sure there are some details he purposefully left out (which I don't ever care to know and thank him for this). Once the baby was born she was whisked over to the incubator table to make sure she was breathing. My husband never even got to cut the cord, but after they knew the baby was breathing the doctor opened the baby's legs to show my husband that it was A GIRL! Like I said, this part was quite the whirlwind so I'm not exactly sure the exact order of everything. I instructed my husband not to leave our daughters side. The origional "plan" was to have skin to skin right after birth but at this point, "plans" were only good intentions. I know my husband was trying to keep everyone quiet but I knew something was wrong as I could hear doctors and nurses talking about her "arm." Being an occupational therapist and even in my shocked and groggy state, I managed to mumble "is it a brachial plexus injury?"  Despite my husbands good intentions to keep the doctors and nurses quiet, because he knows I'm a worrier, I could hear doctors and nurses talking about her shoulder being "stunned" and possibly a broken clavicle and/or humerus. She would have to go get x-rays to be sure. She did have full movement in her wrist and fingers which I was thankful for! When they finally brought her over for skin to skin I was excited to finally get to see my baby girl. However, I was still trying to digest everything that just happened. I don't think I can exactly explain ALL the thoughts that went through my head but I was concerned about her and what this meant for her. She was healthy and had all her appendages but seeing her poor little right arm hanging there broke my heart into a trillion pieces. 

My baby girl weighed in at a whopping 9lb 7oz, a pound in the direction I hoped it wouldn't go (so much for erring on the high side). The x-rays came back clear and likely confirmed what I had originally thought......brachial plexus injury. At that moment I had an array of mixed emotions. I had learned about brachial plexus injuries in school but despite being a therapist, everything I knew when out the window. I was a MOM now and that came first. I don't know how many of you believe in "signs" but despite all my worrying, for one minute I felt a complete calm wash over me the day we were leaving the hospital saying "don't worry everything will be okay." I knew that message was from my grandma watching over us from the heavens above. As quick as that moment came, it went, and back to worrying I went but I knew I would move mountains from my little girl!