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My Meriter Story
Labor Happened So Fast
It all started on Nov 23, 2009. I was 36 weeks pregnant and my blood pressure had been slightly high. My doctor asked that I come in to pick-up a urine analysis kit to do at home, so I figured I would go on a long lunch break. I work in Janesville and my doctor is in Madison. I hopped on the interstate and not a minute later, a deer ran out in front of me as I was going 60 mph. I had never hit a deer before. It hit my windshield and shattered it. The deer also hit my driver's side door and the door behind it.
Luckily, I didn't have time to slow down once I saw it coming, so I managed to keep control of the car. I pulled over and decided my car was still drivable so instead of waiting all day for a tow truck, I would keep going to my doctor's appointment. I was pretty shaken up, and when I got there I was hooked-up to a heart monitor for my baby. All was ok, but to play it safe they admitted me to Meriter for 24 hours. I figured all would be fine and I would leave first thing in the morning. Although, my baby had other plans! In the middle of the night, my baby’s heart rate dropped 3 times. The nurses ran in, flipped me over and gave me oxygen so my heart rate came back up. They were contemplating a c-section at this point, but wanted to wait a few hours until 8:00am so my doctor was available. Around 7:00am I was having strong contractions close together. At 7:30am my water broke! I think I was in denial that I was in labor - it happened so fast! My son was born just 5 hours later. When the doctor pulled him out, she discovered his cord was around his neck.
That deer saved his life. But our story doesn't stop there. Just 3 hours later, while trying to feed our new son, he turned blue around his mouth. This happened again, and he was taken to the NICU, where he would spend the next month. He was born with TEF, where his esophagus wasn't connected to his stomach. He was in surgery the next day. With 7 tubes coming out of him, it was 6 very long days before I would get to hold him again. It was the longest, hardest 6 days of my life. As a new Mom, I felt completely helpless to him. All I could do was hold his hand and stay strong for him. I pumped diligently and fed him my milk through an NG tube.
A few weeks later, he was able to eat a little by mouth. Our nurse Sue Shafranski was a true blessing to have in our life. She made all the difference, going above and beyond for our son. She remains a friend to all of us. We continue to visit her and the other amazing staff in the NICU. Our son has since had 4 dilations of his esophagus, and an unplanned surgery on his stomach. He is doing wonderful, and is the toughest little 3-month-old we know. He is full of smiles and he’s gaining weight weekly. We are so happy and blessed to have him in our life. We just want to thank Dr. Nichol and the staff at the NICU for their support and hard work.
