The Helicopter Ride
Since a few of you asked, I'll give you a little account of my Helicopter Ride. It's not a high-action crazy story, but it was certainly eventful at the time.
At the end of my pregnancy with the twins, I woke up one morning and had a weird morning. I was getting ready for work felt a contraction. I had an appointment scheduled for later on in the day, but decided to call work and tell them I was going to try to get in early. The doc was able to see me right away. When she checked me out, she said she wanted me to get to the hospital right away and she'd deliver me. I was scheduled to have a c-section about 10 days later, but she felt a foot and thought it could be dangerous. I was about 35 weeks. But twins are usually early. The hospital where I was to deliver doesn't have a neo-natatl unit, but the Doc felt confident that they'd still let me deliver since I was closer to 36 weeks rather than 35. I cried the two minute drive home... no I bawled because I didn't feel ready. I didn't even have my bag packed. So I got the hubby, and we headed to the hospital. When I got there, the nurses told me they weren't going to let me stay there and were going to air evac me to either Tucson or Phoenix. I chose to go to Phoenix. So a half hour later I was in a chopper headed to Good Samaritan. It was pretty cool... I wasn't experiencing labor pains or anything at this point. And it was a non-emergency so I just laid on my side and looked out the window. I got to the hospital, and the OB Ward was so packed I had to wait awhile to get a room. I wasn't experiencing labor anymore so they didn't think I'd be delivering anytime soon. They figured they'd keep me overnight for observation and let me go home. The baby had shifted and there wasn't a foot down there anymore, just her bottom. Another cool thing during my stay there was the Discovery Chanel was filming Special Delivery and the producer interviewed me. My story wasn't juicy enough I guess, cause they didn't come back. I sent everyone home. Overnight, though, my story got kind of wild. My water started to leak, and they thought I just peed a little. When they ran the test they saw that it was the water leaking and told me it would probably fill back up and I'd be able to go home still. Then, I was having lots of pain, but they wouldn't appear on the monitor. When I told the nurse that I thought if I could go to the bathroom #2, the pain (which was really low pressure in the abdomen) would stop. She checked me out and I was dilated to 6. She said call your husband, you need to have a c-section now. An hour later I was in surgery. I'd dilated completely to 10 before I even got the epidural for the operation. Hubby wasn't there at the start of the surgery. There was a really nice doctor, or male nurse that was helping me. Hubby got there as they were sewing me up, and I will never EVER forget the look on his face when he walked in. Well, part of his face since he had that surgery mask on. He got white as a ghost, paused and looked like he would run for the hills if he could. The twins love that part of the story... about how Daddy was a ghost. When they took my daughter out of me, all I could see was her Dad. Today, everyone says she looks like me, but that moment, all I saw was her Dad, especially the nose. Then when my son came a minute later, he looked like a little angel. He wasn't quite as ready to be out of me as my daughter was, so he needed a little oxygen. There were so many people and doctors in the room, it was frightening. At the time, I wasn't but when I think about it now, and with what I know now, it kind of freaks me out a little bit. We were so very lucky. There were no problems at all and the twins got to come home with me. My daughter, Brandolyn was 4lb 6oz and my son Magnus was 5lb 3 oz. They were born at 5:02 am and 5:03 am on Nov. 7th 2002. I love their story. To me it was amazing, exciting and magical. They were little miracles in every sense that they were so small but so very strong.
My daughter, Ava-Bernadette has a great story as well, but her's is much quicker. I went into labor, and again they thought they'd send me home. I wasn't dilated until the doc checked and was finally at 1cm. He "stretched" me (ewww, I know) to 3cm. He came back 30 minutes or so later to break my water and I was already 6cm. Then I was instantly 10cm. They were scrambling to get the doctor's coat on and get all the equipment ready for me to deliver my baby. I never had contractions registering on the monitor but I was in the same kind of pain with the twins. I had planned to have a natural birth, but when they said I wasn't dilating I was begging for a c-section and drugs again. When the doc finally said I was dilating, it was a relief. After that everything happened so fast that they wouldn't have had time to give me anything at all.
I know it will sound crazy, but childbirth was an amazing kind of painful. The exhileration I felt after all the pain was so gratifying. I'd love to give birth again. I don't know if I ever will, but maybe there's a someone who needs a surrogate out there. Sigh....
Okay, ya'll know a little too much info about me now, lol! You have no idea how many times my eyes welled up with tears writing this out.
Since a few of you asked, I'll give you a little account of my Helicopter Ride. It's not a high-action crazy story, but it was certainly eventful at the time.
At the end of my pregnancy with the twins, I woke up one morning and had a weird morning. I was getting ready for work felt a contraction. I had an appointment scheduled for later on in the day, but decided to call work and tell them I was going to try to get in early. The doc was able to see me right away. When she checked me out, she said she wanted me to get to the hospital right away and she'd deliver me. I was scheduled to have a c-section about 10 days later, but she felt a foot and thought it could be dangerous. I was about 35 weeks. But twins are usually early. The hospital where I was to deliver doesn't have a neo-natatl unit, but the Doc felt confident that they'd still let me deliver since I was closer to 36 weeks rather than 35. I cried the two minute drive home... no I bawled because I didn't feel ready. I didn't even have my bag packed. So I got the hubby, and we headed to the hospital. When I got there, the nurses told me they weren't going to let me stay there and were going to air evac me to either Tucson or Phoenix. I chose to go to Phoenix. So a half hour later I was in a chopper headed to Good Samaritan. It was pretty cool... I wasn't experiencing labor pains or anything at this point. And it was a non-emergency so I just laid on my side and looked out the window. I got to the hospital, and the OB Ward was so packed I had to wait awhile to get a room. I wasn't experiencing labor anymore so they didn't think I'd be delivering anytime soon. They figured they'd keep me overnight for observation and let me go home. The baby had shifted and there wasn't a foot down there anymore, just her bottom. Another cool thing during my stay there was the Discovery Chanel was filming Special Delivery and the producer interviewed me. My story wasn't juicy enough I guess, cause they didn't come back. I sent everyone home. Overnight, though, my story got kind of wild. My water started to leak, and they thought I just peed a little. When they ran the test they saw that it was the water leaking and told me it would probably fill back up and I'd be able to go home still. Then, I was having lots of pain, but they wouldn't appear on the monitor. When I told the nurse that I thought if I could go to the bathroom #2, the pain (which was really low pressure in the abdomen) would stop. She checked me out and I was dilated to 6. She said call your husband, you need to have a c-section now. An hour later I was in surgery. I'd dilated completely to 10 before I even got the epidural for the operation. Hubby wasn't there at the start of the surgery. There was a really nice doctor, or male nurse that was helping me. Hubby got there as they were sewing me up, and I will never EVER forget the look on his face when he walked in. Well, part of his face since he had that surgery mask on. He got white as a ghost, paused and looked like he would run for the hills if he could. The twins love that part of the story... about how Daddy was a ghost. When they took my daughter out of me, all I could see was her Dad. Today, everyone says she looks like me, but that moment, all I saw was her Dad, especially the nose. Then when my son came a minute later, he looked like a little angel. He wasn't quite as ready to be out of me as my daughter was, so he needed a little oxygen. There were so many people and doctors in the room, it was frightening. At the time, I wasn't but when I think about it now, and with what I know now, it kind of freaks me out a little bit. We were so very lucky. There were no problems at all and the twins got to come home with me. My daughter, Brandolyn was 4lb 6oz and my son Magnus was 5lb 3 oz. They were born at 5:02 am and 5:03 am on Nov. 7th 2002. I love their story. To me it was amazing, exciting and magical. They were little miracles in every sense that they were so small but so very strong.
My daughter, Ava-Bernadette has a great story as well, but her's is much quicker. I went into labor, and again they thought they'd send me home. I wasn't dilated until the doc checked and was finally at 1cm. He "stretched" me (ewww, I know) to 3cm. He came back 30 minutes or so later to break my water and I was already 6cm. Then I was instantly 10cm. They were scrambling to get the doctor's coat on and get all the equipment ready for me to deliver my baby. I never had contractions registering on the monitor but I was in the same kind of pain with the twins. I had planned to have a natural birth, but when they said I wasn't dilating I was begging for a c-section and drugs again. When the doc finally said I was dilating, it was a relief. After that everything happened so fast that they wouldn't have had time to give me anything at all.
I know it will sound crazy, but childbirth was an amazing kind of painful. The exhileration I felt after all the pain was so gratifying. I'd love to give birth again. I don't know if I ever will, but maybe there's a someone who needs a surrogate out there. Sigh....
Okay, ya'll know a little too much info about me now, lol! You have no idea how many times my eyes welled up with tears writing this out.
VIEW 5 of 5 COMMENTS
raiven66:
I completely agree...I loved childbirth. If I could, I would just be pregnant and giving birth all the time! Natural labor is the way to go...that way you remember everything perfectly and can retell that story for the next many many years to come. Love you sissy!
sandman3030:
Very cool story.