A Salute to Nurses and Doctors

I had a normal pregnancy and worked until a week before my baby was due. About 3 weeks before my due date, my husband and I attended a "Bringing Home Baby" course (about 1 1/2 hours) at our local hospital, Cambridge Memorial Hospital. The nurse lead us all through how to bath a newborn (our "newborn" doll got waterlogged!), how to swaddle the baby, hints for calming a fussy baby and many other useful tips. A week later, we attended a breastfeeding class at the hosptial, taught by another nurse. We practiced the different holds, learned how to handle engorgement, how to detect plugged ducts and mastitis and tips on pumping and storing breast milk. Taking these classes ahead of time made us feel more prepared for this little being who was going to change our lives for ever.

At about 2:00 am the day before I was due, I felt kind of crampy and wondered what I'd had for supper the night before. I eventually clued in. By 9:00, contractions were 5 minutes apart, so we went to the hospital. The nurses who greeted us in the labour and delivery wing were very caring and explained everything they did as they and the OB examined me. As I was 6 cm dialated, they escorted us to a birthing room and told us to settle in. They said to buzz them if I needed anything for the pain.

Over the next couple hours, the nurses popped in and out of my room, checking me and the baby, always referring to my husband and I by our first names and making us feel special. After lunch, I asked for some pain medication, so was given some Demerol. Shortly after, they broke out the gas for me (that was great stuff!) This was about 2:15 pm and things were really starting to happen. Two nurses stayed with us from then on, encouraging me to breathe and relax and suggesting different positions to lie in bed to aid in the completion of the effacement. The OB checked in on me a couple times and by 2:45, I felt like pushing. Of course, I'd gone through the classic "I don't want to do this anymore", but the nurses kept encouraging me. One nurse, who I later found out had been a midwife in the UK, said to me "you can have this baby whenever you want". I wanted to have it by 5:00 (I wasn't setting high goals for myself!).

At 3:20 pm, our little fellow arrived. The nurses stayed past the end of their shift to coach us through to the actual birth. I tried breastfeeding right away, but Junior wasn't too interested. A real sweetheart of a nurse helped me clean up in the shower as our little fellow got his first bath.

The nurses were great in assisting with the breastfeeding. One coached my hubby through his first attempt at bathing Junior. A pediatrition visited us in the hospital a couple times and treated our baby and us like we were his most special patients (and still does!)

The morning after the birth, I suddenly (and surprisingly) developed eclampsia and had an eclamptic seizure. The nurses were quick and efficient in their response. I'm missing about 2 hours out of my memory. Scary. I got a rushed trip to the ICU. Junior was taken to the pediatric ward as there were no other babies in the nursery. The maternity ward nurses hunted down a breast pump so I could pump in the ICU to keep my milk production going. Early the next morning, a pediatric nurse brought my little bundle of joy down to me in the ICU and I gave him a bottle. That moment was about as special as the one right after the birth! Life is so precious.

Fortunately, I recovered quickly and was discharged a couple days later. I was on medication for high blood pressure, so had to visit my family doctor a few days later. My blood pressure was coming down, but he picked up an irregular heartbeat, due to the eclampsia. Tests are still taking place, determining the extent of the damage to my heart, but my family doctor and a specialist are going to every length to help me get better.

All in all, I know I am extremely lucky to live in a country with such great health care. The nurses and doctors who have and still look after me are caring professionals. They deserve all the recognition they can get!

As for home births, I probably wouldn't be writing this if I'd been at home when the seizure hit.