Monday night, one of the greatest events that can occur in a dad’s life happened for me. Our beautiful 8.04 lbs. son was born at 8:04 pm (I like the numbers) was born, bringing forth the most joy a loving couple could share. My second wife has been the perfect role model with the loving and caring she exhibits with all of our children. What she has done for me speaks volumes of the person I have married and I couldn’t be happier.
I haven’t spoke of the pregnancy much, being so involved with the other issues I have had to deal with. I was speaking with my current wife about how I was sorry for custody issues arising at such an improper time, when she assured it wasn’t me causing the issues. She pointed out that my ex wife was probably not to happy.
Regardless, our son was born simply perfect. We really weren’t expecting it to happen the other night, but things turned out for the best.
This birth wasn’t natural like the others, but was an emergency c-section (sp?) that turned out making us thankful. They were concerned when his heart rate dropped while my wife was having contraction. They assured us it could be as simple as the umbilical cord under his arm, intermittently restricting the flow, so they gave us the option of holding out, but neither of us wanted to take the chance.
She went into the O.R. and I followed shortly, giving them enough time to prep for the surgery. I sat in her room, dressing in scrubs and waiting about a half hour. Trying to keep my mind straight, I ate the dinner (she told me to since she couldn’t eat it before the surgery) she had ordered before the emergency. It was about 6:7-7:30 and I hadn’t been home since leaving for work in the morning. I went to the hospital thinking I was bringing her home for another week.
The nurse came and walked me to the O.R., explaining the procedure and what to hopefully expect. I had never been in an operating room, so I was clueless.
The room seemed so small with the amount of equipment and number of people in there. I sat down next to my wife’s head, behind a large green cloth blocking the view to her pelvic area.
The anesthesiologist was great. He explained everything very meticulously, informing my wife the best he could of what to expect. He helped walk her through some of the scariest moments in a mothers life, assuring her everything was going perfect.
I held one hand while the other softly touched her head. When the big “pressure” moments occurred, as the doctors referred to it, I would encourage my wife to incorporate her breathing techniques; deep in through the nose, out through the mouth. I tried to keep the pattern, in and out with her, working through the pain.
The most beautiful sound a mom and dad can hear is the cry of their baby for the first time. It’s a moment that affects your very soul. To say it is a relief to know they are breathing is an understatement.
Just knowing and feeling that everything really is going to turn out right is priceless. Our perfect son was perfect. He responded excellently to all the test re-assuring us we had made the right choice.
Turns out there was an issue related to the heart rate dropping. My wife wasn’t kidding when she would tell me he was doing flips in there. After removing our son, they discovered a knot in the umbilical cord. It wasn’t stretched taught or anything, but was a loose knot that he had somehow gotten through. It terrifies me to think if they hadn’t seen that last dip in the heart rate, we may have just gone home. Things may have just been fine regardless, but even the thought of something happening to your baby hurts deep.
Everything is ok, though. Mom’s doing well recovering from a major surgery, everyone will be coming home on Thursday and I followed the correct procedure to pursue the issue concerning my other son. I am excited to get everyone home and begin our new lives together.
xatl's corner 