Long night at the hospital

Dear Reader,

Hospitals... that's the best place on Earth to spend time... I went there at 11AM on Friday and only left at 6AM on the next day morning. 19h spent waiting, that's a load of things to tell everybody, so I'll make it a long post.

At noon, I left my office, Yukyin told me that she was given the green light to go to the labor room. That's quite a milestone, you need to be at least dilated 3cm to go there, and there, you'll have a selective choice of pain killers :D. She wanted an epidural and you can only get it there. Also, one is to note that passed 6cm of dilatation, the epidural cannot be started.

The hospital was very busy, a lot of people everywhere, 40 wards in the waiting room, only 12 in the labor room and we think that they only reserve some of them for people going from the waiting ward to the labor room, the other are for ER we supposed. So, she needed to queue before she could get access to the next room. Unfortunately for her, several people went ahead of her, they were more dilated or had more advance symptoms (water break for example).

From time to time, she came into the corridor where I was waiting to talk to me and I could see how painful it was, every 4 minutes in average, she started to breath strongly and deeply, closing her eyes, grasping my arms during somewhere between 45s to 1mn45. Containing her pain as strong as she could. She was obviously feeling a lot of pain. I would have given anything to take part or even the whole thing if I could.

Then, she would return on her ward, waiting for a potential nurse that would come to examined her and take her down to the labor room.

17h30, visit allowed, I quit the corridor and entered the waiting room, I was allowed to stay at her side. One couple next to us was in the same boat, the wife was crying every 5 minutes at each contraction. She could not hold it anymore, she asked for a nurse to get her examined and they decided to move her to the next room.

At this moment, Yukyin was not feeling happy anymore... crazy things came out of her mind... but she was really not happy of the attitude of the hospitals. Hey public services you know? She waited to long and was watching enviously at all her mates that were going down. So, she asked to be examined, the nurse tried to keep her here by advising her to eat her meal and get reexamined later. She could not hold it anymore... She wanted to leave.

18h30, examination done, she was ready to get going, no jokes now, we want a ward to take us down that's all. So, she was brought to the labor room and I was asked to wait outside. 19h, she called me from the inside and ask me to go dine something as it won't be so early. She told me that all the nurses were trying to persuade her not to get an epidural because of this and that, risk for the mum, risk for baby... etc... I told her to make the best choice for all of us. At that moment, the nurses pierced the placenta and she started to feel a lot more pain... She kept screaming and requesting her epidural but the nurses were trying all their ways to avoid it... by saying that she needs to have blood sampled and tested for verifications and all other stupid lies on Earth. I know that being a nurse is a tough job, but these are our feelings.

22-23h, she finally got it affix... She begged it so much that she got it at the end. She called me and it was a whole other person on the phone... she was still feeling movement, but she did not feel the pain at all. At least, she could continue the labor phase without feeling too much pain. At that moment, she was dilated 5 cm. However, she asked me to pray for something else. Baby's heartbeat is not fully regular, there is sometimes some drop in speed. I start to get worried. It's so painful how powerless we are in such situation.

At one o' clock, she called me back and she told me that she was still dilated 5 cm, but she got a new problem... FEVER. She started to have a fever and was closely monitored. They could not figure out what was the origin of the fever, it can be anything, reaction to the epidural, infection etc... chances are that the baby got infected too. Anyway, moral was lower than ever.

At 2AM, she called me and said that she as nothing more to say... Fever was getting more and more problematic, the medical team advised for a c-section. But as she was already 5cm dilated, she could end up worst case having a haemorrhage. She was fed up that everything went so wrong... the pain, the fact that she could not get there earlier, the fact that her cervix did not dilated at all, the fact that she needed to beg her epidural, the fever... Lost of confidence, lost of will, the only thing she wanted is to go home and have a rest in her beloved bed. She told me that she already sign all the papers and requested to see me before she went in the operation room.

I saw her at around 2h45, prayed with her: "Lord I am laying the two most precious thing at your hands, please take well care of them". And then she went. One guy around me had the same thing happen for his first kid, so actually this guy was of a great support. "All will be fine".

3h15, a nurse asked me to enter the labor room, I had the chance to see our little baby. 3.115kg, born at 2h57AM. What about the mum then? The nurse told me that she is fine, still in the operation room for placenta removing and stitching, she will be under monitoring for an extra hour. So, that's not finished yet. I took pics of the baby and went out... waiting again to know if she was ok.

4h30AM! Yukyin was pushed out on a ward! yeay! I am so proud of her, that's the only thing that came to my mind! woohoo. I left the hall and gave my best wishes to my waiting companions. Then I helped to settle up in her area. Right now, she is recovering, she can't still not stand and walk around, maybe later today.

Actually, She is feeling peaceful and felt how much our Lord blessed her with the fever. If she did not had the fever, she would be kept in the labor room and would have been waiting for her cervix to be dilated to 10 cm before action. Really give thanks to the Lord.

The nurse gave me directions in order to see baby in the Pediatric Dpt. I went there and had the chance to play a bit with her cheeks during 20 minutes.

6AM, I finally left the hospital. Tired, I fell asleep in the train, while waiting the minibus... in the minibus.

It's only 1PM, and I can't sleep anymore... too many people are calling, I will have a proper sleep tonight I think.

Now, there is too much to think, to plan,to do

Again, please ask me for the updates, try not to call Yukyin at her hospital or even visit her before she gives the green light.

Really thanks for your support and your prayers, I pray for the way God bless my family and that He bless you even more.