Our Story
We found out I was pregnant on the day I turned 36. After over a year of trying to conceive, we were thrilled to finally be expecting. The pregnancy was a problem-free one, until about my 25th week. My water broke unexpectedly and I was instructed to go immediately to Labor and Delivery at Maui Memorial Medical Center. Once there, the nurses did their best to comfort us and ease our fears. I had no idea what to expect, I hadn’t gotten to that chapter in my What to Expect When You’re Expecting book. I honestly thought that they would maybe keep me there for observation or something and soon after I would be able to go home.
The Doctor arrived less than 10 minutes after we did. Five seconds into his exam and he told us were going to be medivac’d to Oahu. They gave me an antibiotic to protect against infection, a steroid shot to speed up the baby’s lung development and another medication for me to stop the labor. Two hours after my water broke, we were in an ambulance on the way to the airport.
The first few days at Kapiolani Medical Center are kind of a blur. They didn’t let me eat in case an emergency c-section was necessary. They didn’t let me get out of bed…for anything. It was a whirlwind of doctors and nurses trying to get me stabilized and ensuring that the baby was safe.
It was during that first three days that we met the staff and volunteers of The March of Dimes NICU Family Support Project. They educated us with books and DVD’s about what we may encounter in the NICU. They arranged for a NICU tour so we could see first hand what a NICU is really like. They were just there…whenever we needed them…and helped us through one of the most difficult experiences of our lives.
Rachel in the NICU
Rachel Malia was born 7 days after my water broke. She weighed 1 lb 13 oz and was 14 inches long. I was not allowed to hold her until she was a full 7 days old.
Looking back, her 6-week NICU stay was relatively easy compared to some of the others that were there with her. At the time though, every moment seemed agonizing and full of worry, fear and stress.
We got pregnant again in 2008…our due date for pregnancy #2 was 12/10/08. As soon as we found out I went to www.MarchofDimes.com to see what I could learn about preventing another preterm birth. Turns out, there’s a wealth of information about progesterone therapy (17P) which my doctor prescribed immediately.
This pregnancy, just like the first, was relatively problem free, until about week 24. My feet and hands were beginning to swell with regularity. I had been monitoring my blood pressure pretty closely during the pregnancy and noticed a small spike in the readings. In about mid September, my doctor felt the need to admit me to Maui Memorial Medical Center concerned that I may be developing preeclampsia. After 3 days of observation, I was released and ordered to stay home on bed rest. But after two days at home, the blood pressure continued to increase. I was back in the hospital again. On September 19, my ob-gyn thought is best to send me to Oahu for a consultation with a high risk ob there. Sure enough, I was developing preeclampsia, and because of my previous preterm birth, they felt it best to admit me then and there. So I was back at Kapiolani Medical Center once again.
Rob stayed with me a few days but had to return to Maui for work and to care for Rachel. We came prepared this time, I had stacks of books, magazines, DVD’s and my laptop. The goal was get to 34 weeks or the end of October.
The first couple weeks were tough. I was confined to my bed and put on a low sodium diet. I was hungry all the time and grouchy because I was hooked up to the monitors all day. The only time I could leave my room was when they took me upstairs for ultrasounds twice a week. Let me tell you, that hour or so away from my room felt like a mini-vacation.
The toughest part about the ordeal though, was being on Oahu away from my family and friends. I would talk to Rachel every morning and every night and
Around October 9th things took a turn for the worse. The days were fine, my blood pressure was normal but around 8 pm my blood pressure would shoot up. Three nights in a row this happened and I was at the maximum of 2 types of blood pressure medications. The decision to induce was made.
Olivia arrrived on October 13th. We had officially made it to 31 weeks and 5 days. She weighed 3 lb, 3 oz and was 16 inches long. She stayed in the NICU 4 weeks and though we’d been through it once before it was still agonizing. We remembered many of the nurses and doctors which gave us some comfort, but it’s really difficult to be comfortable in a NICU. Sure, I was there for 8 hours a day, every day for 6 weeks just 2 years before, but it’s hard to be comfortable in a place with so many sick babies.
