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17-10-2008 - Early Arrival

My mood while writing this blog: Emotional

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Sorry it has taken me so long but things have been so hectic lately but her goes....

On Monday the 15th September at 23:19 Ava Mae Purvis was born weighing 2lb 14oz

Some of you may remember I was complaining about pain in my upper stomach and I had made a trip to hospital on Friday the 12th to get it checked as it was so severe, my blood pressure was slightly high and blood tests showed my liver was slightly abnormal but nothing major so to go back in a week to have more blood checked. They gave me painkillers and sent me home. The pain still came back every time the painkillers wore off and my dad convinced me to go see my midwife on the Monday for my 31 week check up (my boss had originally wanted me to go later in the week as he was out of the office) so off we went will my urine sample as usual and as soon as she said 3 pluses in my urine I knew she meant protein and I knew it was a bad sign and probably pre eclampsia...I was right....she then checked my blood pressure and after the third time I was starting to panic and so was she so again I knew it was bad....186 over 121....she quickly checked the heart beat of the baby and sent me straight to hospital. She even said if my dad wasnt there to take me that she would have rang an ambulance....that scared me!

When we got to hospital they checked my blood pressure and a doctor came in to see me and explained it was pre eclampsia but a severe case, a midwife/nurse then came in with a gown for me and put a tag on my wrist, then someone else came in and gave me an injection in my thigh to develop the babies lungs...even then I didnt believe I would be having my baby that night! Apparently they needed to give me another in 12 hours time but we didnt get that far! Im not quite sure what they were giving me but I was hooked up to a drip to get my blood pressure down but 2 hours later I just wasnt improving, they tried something else and it slowly started to go down, the doctor explained he had to get it below a certain level to make it safe for delivery so I asked if they were going to keep me in and monitor me until I could go into labour...silly question....he obviously meant to get it to a safe level for a c-section!

They finally gave me something else that worked and once I was back in the "safe zone" they were then concerned with the babies results as she was having "blips" on the monitor every so often and because they were reoccuring they knew we couldnt wait for the next injection so after signing all the paper work and Chris making all the calls we were taken through to get prepared for a c-section. I must say that the experience I had with a c-section was absolutely brilliant...not what I wanted at all....but I couldnt fault it either! I was given a spinal which made my bum go all hot and weird then Chris came in and they tested to make sure I was numb with an ice cold spray! The sensations you feel are weird tugging and turning feelings in your tummy, uncomfortable but not painful in the slightest and before I knew they had started Ava Mae was born and she even let out a little cry! It was a beautiful moment as just as they were lifting her out Chris said to me "here comes Ava" and I couldnt believe it!! I had been saying for months that I loved the name Ava Mae and so did everyone at work but he was adament he didnt like the name Ava! So I said are you sure and he said "yeah, it has grown on me"!! That was the best!! They whisked her off and then came the boring part of stitching me up...I swear it felt like it took forever and finally they put me in recover for an hour to monitor me while Chris went to make all the calls. My mam had stayed too once she knew I was having my baby that night and they allowed her in to see me in recovery and once she knew I was ok I told her to go home for some sleep! About an hour later somone brought me picture of Ava and I just couldnt stop staring at it, she had all this brown hair and a cute little pout! :o)

The next day they wheeled me up to see her with my mam, I had already told Chris to go see her as it wasnt fair waiting for me to be able to get out of bed so he did, when I went up with my mam I just couldnt believe she was mine and when Chris came in the room I just couldnt stop the tears from coming. My mam gave us some time alone and I managed to sort myself out but as soon as I got back to my room and got into bed I just couldnt help it again as she was so much smaller than I had imagined. 2lb 14oz....she was so long but so skiny with a hollow part between her ribs...so helpless and I couldnt even touch her...they said she was a fighter though as she didnt need any help breathing at all. By the Wednesday I was well enough to be transferred to the ward from delivery...or so we thought...the pains started again right where they were before I had Ava and they were spreading across my back, at first I didnt put two and two together and thought it was from being in bed all the time so I forced myself to get up and try walking around for the first time but the pain got worse, by now I had learned not to keep things to myself so I told the nurse, she checked my blood pressure and it was up again, they monitored me all night giving me tablets and painkillers but it didnt go away, by 4am the doctor was concerned so took more blood, she was back by 7am with the results and whisked me straight back to the delivery suite...my blood pressure was so high my liver and kidneys couldnt repair themselves from the damage they suffered during pre eclampsia, my liver was failing and my platelets had dropped and I was again at risk of blood clots, strokes, fits etc. They fixed me up for the same thing that had worked earlier to get my blood pressure down to give my liver a chance to repair itself but apparently I had developed the second stages of pre eclampsia called HELP syndrome. Luckily this time it worked much quicker and by dinner time I was feeling better and the pain had gone but I was still way off being 100 percent as my blood pressure would not stabilise. The next day (Friday) I was put back on a ward this time with 3 other women with their babies...talk about torture... I think I cried for about 2 hours straight listening to them nurse and cuddle their babies and that night was horrendous as their babies cried and they fed and changed them while I was alone in my bed with Ava in Special Care. I dont blame them, they are entitled to love and care for their babies but I knew it would break me staying there. In the end I discharged myself on Saturday morning, it wasnt easy as all of family were very upset and angry but I had made my mind up, the nurses and doctors were unhappy so I had to sign a form as it was against their advice. They gave me some tablets to control my blood pressure and we agreed I would go in every day after visiting Ava to have it checked. Needless to say as soon as I got home and went for my daily checks my blood pressure was getting better and better. Home is what I needed. I needed a routine for Ava and I needed my strength for Ava.

Ava is now over 4 weeks old and weighs 3lb 11oz. It has took a long time for her to put weight on as she lost so much when she was born as her bowls were not functioning properly. Once she started pooping though she progressed so well and they have increased her milk so much now! I started expressing 4 days after delivery and I swear thats what gave her the help she needed, some good milk from her mammy! :o) I knew I had to go along and express some milk as I was in agony with my boobs and realised they had started leeking. They were rock solid and I couldnt even move in bed so it was actually like relief when I did it! I started trying to nurse her when she was about 2 weeks old and then one of the midwifes gave me a "nipple shield" as she wasnt latching on properly. After that she was sucking away, it was amazing! I started going in at 2pm and 8pm when she was due a feed to nurse her, if she didnt do too well on my boob they would just give her a top up of my milk through her tube so that we knew she was getting enough. On Monday she finally came out of her incubator and she is now feeding well from me! I have a great supply and filled the freezer at the hospital quickly!! They have a great systems where they loan you a breast pump and supply you with bottles and labels so you express your milk, label it with the time and date then freeze it straight away, each day we then take it into hospital and put it in their freezer. So every day they defrost a bottle and feed it through her tube! Since she now takes it from my breast well they asked me to go in for her 11am feed and then stay to do the 2pm and 5pm feed as she is fed every three hours. Through the night they then give her my milk through her tube every three hours and one bottle. I have asked that they increase the bottles so that we can works towards getting her off the tube feeds. I dont want to tire her out too much so I dont want to rush her as then she might not put the weight on as quick.

Ava will be weighed again on Sunday so please keep me in your thoughts and hope that she is still putting weight on since I am now feeding her so often. I am really hoping to have her home in 2 weeks time but since she still shouldnt even be with us then I shouldnt complain. She needs time to get her strength and once she is home I will never let her out of my sight :o)

My eyes are now hurting so I hope this makes sense.

Anyone who is worried about having their baby early please try not to worry, Ava Mae is doing fantastic and I am so proud of her. I will try to get pics on soon. Take care ladies and enjoy the last weeks of your pregnancy. I wasnt able to and I was very upset for a while and felt like I had failed before I even began but I am much more positive now. I understand how these things can break you and so I try to talk about things and not keep it inside, weekends are my worst times as I lose my routine when Chris is around, sometimes once I start letting it out I cant stop, like I cant close the gates!! I try to stay positive now as I dont want Ava to pick up and my moods as she already has a big task of getting big and strong to come home to her family that is waiting and aching for her x

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16 Comments on Early Arrival


lisa*andy - Saturday, 25 Oct
OMG uve had ur baby awwwww honey shes sooooooooo gorgeous im really pleased for you WELL DONE


jennabean - Monday, 20 Oct
Big congrats to you both. Hope Ava is doing okay. You are all in my thoughts. xxxxxx

harrison mummy - Monday, 20 Oct
Congratulations and well done you must be so proud. Ava seems to be making great progress, wont be long till your one big happy family at home. Keep us informed. Take Care x x

xweegeex - Sunday, 19 Oct
OMG!! that really made me cry, congratulations to you, Chris & Ava.....im sooooo happy for the 3 of you xx
ill keep my fingers crossed that she has gained some weight & cant wait to see the pics xx

Emilie - Sunday, 19 Oct
that made me cry... i am so happy for you three... you are one hell of a lady, so brave, your little beauty already has your personality, thanks for sharing XX

melanieK85 - Sunday, 19 Oct
hiya hun! just wanted to tell u ur birth story is nearly identical to mine. i went for a routine check up on 30th sept and my bp was high and i had +3protein in my urine so i got kept in. I had pre-eclampsia and was put on delivery and friday 3rd oct i was goin down to theatre for a c section. i hated the section tho, just because of all the tuggin about. then baby connor appeared 6 weeks early weighing 4lb 15oz, all the staff said hes a whopper for 34 weeks but then he got whisked of to neonatal and thats upsettin isnt not bein able to bond with your baby straight away. anyway connor came home on friday after bein in for 2 weeks. how long has baby ava mae been in for now? ur story well brought a tear to my eye!! xxx

weenie - Saturday, 18 Oct
Yay, congrats! Glad to hear you are both doing well!

stace04 - Saturday, 18 Oct
Hey Karen, so sorry to hear you have been through so much!! You both are fighters!! Love the pics she is such a little Angel! Lots of love to you all with big hugs and kisses to ur lovely little one. Take care of yourself my sweet

Love and hugs, Stace xxx

x Lily-Anns Mummy x - Saturday, 18 Oct
OMG ! congratulations honey xx and u r so so brave. ive got early signs of pre-eclampsia and reading this has made me feel a little less scared! u poor thing to of gone through all this. but at least your beautiful little girl is doing well and you are feeling better. all my love x sarah x

laura2525 - Saturday, 18 Oct
Hi Karen, Wow!!! What an insperation to all!!!! I am so amazed after reading ur story!!!! Firstly BIG CONGRATS and weldone on being so, so brave, Secondly make sure u take it easy and try not to get ur self to worked up because i just no all will be fine!!! My fingers will be tightly crossed for Ava's weigh in and u must update us all as soon as possible... Thinking of u lots!! x x x PS - Ava is a beautiful name!! x x

Gemma24 - Saturday, 18 Oct
Bloody hell Karen you are amazing! I know you told me briefly what happened, but reading that was heartbreaking. I'm so pleased that you are both doing so well now. That was so lovely Chris saying her name like that, so touching it made me cry.
It's really encouraging how well the staff at Wansbeck have cared for you both, now I know me and my little one will be in safe hands. Love to you and Ava and Chris. Hope she has put on more weight when she gets weighed again. xxx

cluck77 - Saturday, 18 Oct
Reading your story brought a tear to my eye, you have been through so much and are amazingly strong, you should be very proud of yourself!!! Chris should be just as proud, it must have been awful for him watching helplessly.
Ava Mae is a beautiful name for such a special little fighter, I'm so pleased all is going well and that you have enjoyed your cuddles and the fact she is nursing!!! I will keep my fingers crossed she has gained weight on Sunday.
I love the pictures you have posted, please keep us updated!
I wish the three of you all the best xxx

newcastlechick - Saturday, 18 Oct
Karen the story is unreal - you've been through so much and are coming out the other end/. Ava is sooo lucky to have you as a mum i hope you know that.
She is defo fighter and will be home before you know it.
Pleased your doign better as well. Its a strange old world we live in but when things like this happen we realise what an amazing world we live in as well. The technology and care of the staff sounds 2nd to none and 1 pound weight gain by Ava is fantastic, shes not gonna suddenly pile a load of weight on at that size/. Before you know it she'll be in her Newborn clothes and being ulta spoilt rotten (if she isnt already)
Loads of love and look out for the piccies on facebook.
Love
Sharon and Zane
p.s. she is beautiful :-))))))

TraceyL - Saturday, 18 Oct
omg congratulations on being a mummy, it sounds as though Ava Mae (gorgeous name) is doing brililantly and is really pulling through, you sound like you are coping brililantly, and you should be very proud of yourself. i will keep my fingers crossed for her weigh in tomorrow that she is putting on enough weight and she will soon be home where she belongs with you and Chris. All the best to the 3 of you xx

firstbabbyclaire - Saturday, 18 Oct
congratulations, you are both fighters and ill be thinking of you!! get some cute pics on here x x x

Kandace - Saturday, 18 Oct
CONGRATULATIONS on your little Ava. I am glad you are both doing ok. Take care and I cant wait to see the pictures of your beautiful little girl.