It all started many weeks ago at the doctors office. My doctor was out of town for the week. My regular appointments were every Tuesday. On this particular Tuesday I was told that I had borderline high blood pressure. Which most of you know can lead to preccalampsia or toxemia. I was told to come back on the Friday that week to see if it would go down. I came back on Friday and I still had high blood pressure. I had also developed a cold/flu symptoms, the usual stuffy nose and sore throat. My doctor was still out of town so the PA said that we should just wait until the doctor came back to see what he said.
I waited until the next Tuesday. My blood pressure had gone down, cold remained. My doctor told me that I was fine and to just take it easy. At this time I was 37 weeks. Well the moment that I had high blood pressure I would pray every night that Hallie was ok and that I would go into labor when the time was right. It amazes me how Heavenly Father knows exactly what you need.
38 weeks rolled around and I had my appointment in two days. It was Sunday and I woke up just not feeling very good. I was kind of nauseated, but not enough to make me worry. Jordan and I went to Stake Conference, where we heard some amazing testimonies. I'm glad we went. Jordan's parents were driving his brother, Spencer, and sister, Chalai, back from Oklahoma and they arrived that Sunday night. Usually I am chipper and so happy when Jordan's family comes. But I was just in a terrible mood because I was not feeling good. I started to get a pain right where my diaphragm is. From about 4 o'clock on I just kept telling Jordan, "I do not feel good." It was just this weird I not feeling good. About 11 o'clock Jordan and I decided to get some rest instead of hanging out with his family.
When we got to our apartment, the pain got more severe. It was a constant pain that I can't even really explain. The best I can put it, was that I got the wind knocked out of me, but the pain from that would not go away. Of course, I started to cry just worried out of my mind. We decided to try and get some rest.
I slept for about an hour and a half when the pain was really intense and I felt like I was going to vomit. I called my mom. I didn't know if I should go to the hospital or what I should do. My mom told me that if I had any doubts in my mind to just go. It wouldn't hurt. I just felt so embarrassed. What if it was nothing and the pain would just go away? I decided to first call the answering service to my doctor. Basically he was NO help. He told me that I could go into the hospital now if I was worried or wait until they opened at 8. The pain was getting more severe and it was 2 in the morning. I could not wait. I just did not feel right. We decided to drive into the hospital.
When we got to the hospital I got hooked up to monitor babies heart rate and to see if I was contracting. I did not possibly think I was having contractions. The pain was in my upper ribs and constant. As soon as she hooked me up she asked if I felt like the pain was more intense. I told her maybe a little. She told me I was for sure contracting. I was stunned. The pain I was feeling could not be that! She then checked me for dilation and I was between 1-2 centimeters. The nurse happily told me that I was in early labor and that they would probably just send me home.But they wanted to check me again in 2 hours just to make sure.
During that time I threw up and started to actually feel when I was contracting. But the pain was getting more severe. When I would contract it felt like a rock in my upper abdomen. I had Jordan feel it and he thought it was abnormal. The nurse got a hold of my doctor and they decided they wanted to do blood work.
After my blood was drawn I tried to find a comfortable position to sleep. I finally did and slept for about an hour when I was woken up by my nurse. She was very calm and told me that I had HELLP syndrome. She told me that they were going to start me on oxytocin right away and that Jordan and I were going to have a baby that day! We were so excited. And then we started freaking out a little because we had not brought anything with us to the hospital. We asked the nurse and she said that Jordan had time to run home and get everything we needed. Jordan decided to leave right then so he wouldn't miss anything.
About five minutes after Jordan left my doctor arrived at the hospital and came to my room. He checked to see if I was dilated any more from 5 in the morning. He checked and I was still between a 1-2 and they had just barely given me the first dose of oxytocin. Then he got up turned to me and said, "we have to do a c-section, and we have to do it now." I was floored. I think my jaw literally hit the ground. He went on to explain that I was not dilated enough and if we waited any longer the c section might not be possible and vaginally would take too long. He then went on to tell me my liver enzymes were through the roof and that is why I was having such bad pains. He also went on to tell me that my blood platelet levels were at 43,000/mm. A normal persons levels are at 150-160,000. I was more than half below.
After my doctor left the room I immediately started to cry. A c-section had never crossed my mind the entire time I was pregnant. Let alone an emergency c-section. I was so scared. To top it off my nurse said, don't worry I'll make sure the doctor doesn't start before your husband gets back. I called Jordan right away. He wasn't even home yet but had to drive back (which he told me he drove 85 the whole way). He got there and again I burst into tears. I didn't even have time to call my mom to tell her what was happening. All she knew is that I had gone into labor, but she didn't know about the c-section. I sent her a quick text to tell her to call Jordan if she needed anything.
While that was going on, the anesthesiologist came in and explained to me what was going to happen. I was going to have a spinal tap. Basically everything he said was in one ear and out the other. I signed the forms, Jordan was dressed and I was about to walk into surgery.
Before we left the room, Jordan gave me a priesthood blessing. He didn't have oil or anyone to help him, but he did it anyway. All I remember him saying was that Heavenly Father loved me and would be with me. As I walked across the hall Jordan's parents showed up. We got to give them hugs, and again I started to cry, along with everyone else there (including the nurse).
I walked into the surgery room all alone, but the strange thing was, I was completely calm. I had stopped crying and I knew everything was going to be ok. The spinal tap went completely fine, it was not scary to me one bit. I was so excited when Jordan walked in. It took all of ten minutes before little miss Hallie was out. They brought her over the curtain so I could see her. She was so beautiful. Jordan got to hold her while I got stitched up. I finally got to hold her when they took me into recovery. It was the most releaving feeling in the whole world. Everything went smoothly and I had my little girl in my arms. She was simply amazing.
After the labor and recovery, we were wheeled to my room. Jordan and I decided to look up HELLP syndrome on the internet. This might not have been a good idea. I'm wondering if my doctors didnt really explain anything to me because they didn't want me to freak out. But basically there are 3 classes of HELLP syndrome. I had Class 1, which is the most severe. After further reading, if it is not caught in time, 1 in 4 women die from the syndrome. This was very scary to me... to think what could have been. But I know that my prayers every night kept me safe, and Jordan having the priesthood authority to give me a blessing of comfort and safety gave me the peace that I needed.
All in all, this experience has made me appreciate the church and the gospel in my life. It has made me appreciate my temple marriage, that Jordan and I are sealed for time and eternity. Not death till us part. We are together FOREVER. And if anything would have happened to me or to Hallie, we would, and will have each other, as a family forever.
That is the story of how Hallie Jane came into our lives. She is the biggest blessing in the world. She is healthy, safe, and beautiful. We couldn't have asked for more. We love her. After a week we cannot even imagine life without her.
