It's finally time to introduce baby Codey Kuzma to our family.
Born 8 weeks early on 25th February 2023 at 4.07pm weighing 4lb 3oz.
To say I wasn't expecting to write this post now and have it published is a slight understatement. If
everything went according to plan then this would've been posted in May, however things don't always go
how you imagined and this is just that. I don't quite know what to write or how I'm supposed to tell my
birth story, since I don't fully know what happened yet myself, however I want to share as much as I can,
both to look back on but also to reassure those who may have had a similar experience to myself or are
interested in reading other peoples stories.
The week of his birth was a long week. Tuesday 21st February, I went into hospital to be monitored as he
was having reduced movements. Of course by the time I got there he was having a party in my tummy
and was happier than ever. As a precaution we had to go in the next 2 days to be monitored to make sure
everything was ok and they moved my ultrasound to the Friday. The monitoring went well and he was
happily moving around and his heart rate was all normal and as they should be, which was great!
At his ultrasound on Friday he was healthy and everything was, again, as it should be. The only thing
they said was he was measuring around 5lb 2oz, which is bigger than he should for 32 weeks. They
recommended I come in for another gestational diabetes test the following day, which I was happy to
do, as that could be a result of him gaining weight so quickly in such a short amount of time.
TRIGGER WARNING - Mentioning of being ill and throwing up
Saturday 25th February I woke up around 1.30am convinced I was having contractions. My stomach
was tightening every few minutes, but as I was only 32 weeks I put it down to Braxton hicks and a slight
stomach ache. As this was my first pregnancy aswell, I found it it hard to determine if it was truly
contractions as I had no idea what they should feel like. About 30 minutes later I threw up and was
even more convinced it was just a bad stomach ache. I woke up about 2 hours later and was then
vomiting every 15 minutes until 1pm. As I was being sick so often I was retching a lot and there was
not a lot coming up, other than stomach acid.
My stomach pains got worse due to how often I was throwing up for, I couldn’t sleep because I was
waking up every 15 minutes to be sick again, I was becoming weak and couldn't walk as I couldn’t
keep anything down, not even water, and my stomach pain was getting worse as my muscles were
tightening every time I was being sick.
I didn't want to phone the hospital as I had been there for 4 days in a row and was scared that I was being
worried for no reason. I did eventually phone the doctors around 1pm, and they advised me to go in and be
checked even though they think it's most likely a 24 hour stomach bug. Thankfully my partner just got
home and we was at the hospital within 30 minutes.
They hooked me up to a monitor and did a urine test which confirmed I needed some fluids as I was
dehydrated. The doctor then came in to see me, and turned the monitor away which is when we knew
something wasn't right. We didn't really get an explanation but he said he wasn’t happy with the baseline
of baby’s heart rate. They then moved me to the labour and delivery ward, at the time they said this was to
keep an eye on me as I needed fluids, but I think they were trying to keep me calm.
I was moved onto the labour and delivery wars within 45 minutes of coming to the hospital. As soon as I
got onto the labour and delivery ward there were doctors and nurses coming in and out of the room. I tried
to ask questions and find out what was happening but I was so distracted I couldn't. I had a temperature of
38.9 and when mixed with other factors and how ill I was, they believe that I had sepsis, which was making baby work double and become distressed.
They decided to prep me for a c-section as they said it’s best to get me ready and not need one, than rush
around at the last minute. I was trying my best to stay calm but as soon as c-section was mentioned I
started crying. I was so scared and everything happened so fast. My partner couldn’t help or do anything
and was trying his best to calm me down.
They gave me 2 injections, one to slow down the contractions (which they confirmed I was having) as
they were getting stronger and the other was in relation to the baby’s lungs as he was so early. The
baseline of his heart rate wasn’t improving and the injections weren't working so they rushed me down
for an emergency c-section. I was bombarded with information, questions and forms to fill out incase
anything went wrong and felt so overwhelmed. The original plan was to have a spinal so I could be awake
during the c-section, as the majority of patients are, meaning that my partner could be there also. He
quickly got changed into his scrubs and headed down with me. However as soon as I got into theatre they
said that they needed to put me under general anaesthetic as baby was getting more distressed and needed
to come now. Unfortunately this meant that my partner couldn’t be there and had to wait outside.
I'm going to speak about the rest in my 'after the birth' post, as it's been a wild journey and this post is
already long enough. But Codey was then transferred to the neonatal unit an hour after he was born, and
transferred to another hospital later that night due to needing ventilation. A week later he was allowed to
be transferred to the hospital where he was born, making it easier to visit him. He was only on oxygen for
2 days and only needed support in relation to his feeding.
There's still a lot more to share about his journey, and it's definitely been one that I didn't
expect but I wouldn't have it any other way. We are beyond blessed and in love with him
and can't wait to watch him grow!
Welcome to the world little one!
xoxo
Lea-Mai
Congratulations lovely he is adorable! I'm glad you shared your birth story, I found it so reassuring reading other people's birth stories after I'd given birth.
ReplyDeleteAmy xx
callmeamy.co.uk
Thank you! I only had a chance to read a few, but it's so nice reading other peoples journeys x
DeleteCongratulations to you all. I'm sorry you had such a difficult time. Wishing you all the best as a family! X
ReplyDeleteThank you! Definitely wasn't what I had planned, but glad he's here safely x
DeleteCongratulations lovely, Codey is adorable! I'm so sorry you had a difficult time, but I'm glad everything was ok in the end x
ReplyDeleteLucy Mary
Thank you! Crazy to think how his journey has started x
DeleteWow what a birth story! Welcome to the world gorgeous Codey and welcome to motherhood. I was an emergency c section mama and it is so tough so be kind to yourself!! Always here if you need a moan
ReplyDeleteRosie
Thank you lovely! Not what I had planned, but he's here which is what matters x
Delete