At 24 weeks pregnant, I was diagnosed with preeclampsia. From that point on, I had to do every other week ultrasounds, and once I hit 32 weeks, I did 2 appointments a week. One was an ultrasound and one was a nonstress test. Everything was perfect with my sweet baby boy on every visit!

On July 22, I went into the hospital at 36w5d to start my induction. They first started me on cytotec overnight. Every few hours, they would come in and put one in, then leave, then check me for dilation, then leave again, then eventually put another one in. I wasn’t progressing at all, so they thought to try pitocin. I remember being in pain, but I don’t remember how bad it was any longer. I guess it’s true when they say you forget all about the pain. After giving me pitocin, my baby’s heart rate started to drop with each contraction.

I was terrified, his father was terrified, and everyone was terrified. They stopped pitocin and tried some more cytotec, but things just weren’t working out. They decided to give me the epidural (I consented) because they were going to try to break my water soon. But, while checking on me, they accidentally broke my water early. 24 hours passed and I still hadn’t progressed but .5 a centimeter so now I was at 3 centimeters. 4 days later, I had only progressed to a 3. My water had been broken 24 hours now, so they put me on the schedule for a c-section later at night. But, I spiked a fever and my blood pressure started rising. So they came into the room after telling me I had 5 hours to mentally prepare for a c-section to now telling me I had 20 minutes.

I was terrified, his dad was terrified, and everyone was terrified. They wheeled me back, prepped me, then allowed my partner to come into the room. It was cold, it was bright, it was sterile smelling. Then they started, and all I could hear was something electrical that sounded like a saw, and then I could smell burning flesh. Above me was a light, and in the reflection I accidentally saw everything. I saw my stomach cut open, I saw everything. I was horrified, but I told myself I had to remain calm. And then I heard my baby boy crying, and everything was worth it. They took him from the room and my partner went with him, and I could hear my baby boy just crying. And then they brought him back, all cleaned up and as soon as his cheek touched mine and he heard my voice, he calmed down. He just wanted his mommy.

Then they took him again with my partner while I got fixed up. My partner says he kept telling him “Here comes mommy” every time he heard he’d wheels rolling nearby. And when it wasn’t me, he (my partner) got sad and scared. Then a code blue went off in the hospital, and my partner panicked thinking it was me. But the nurses assured him I was okay. And then I was done, back in the room, and holding my sweet boy. He’s beautiful, born at 12:00 pm on July 26, weighing a whopping 7lb2oz for being born at only 37w2d. I love him an unbeliever amount.

While the first few weeks were hard on not only my body but also my mind, I wouldn’t change it for the world or anything else. 💙