Thursday, September 27, 2012

Lots of Tears Today, but Not due to Baby (Day 6)

Today has hands-down been the worst day in the hospital so far.  Well, Saturday might have been worse be cause it's the day I lost my pregnancy freedom, but today definitely sucked.

Here's a picture to start my story:


So IVs are apparently supposed to be switched every 4 days to avoid infection and what not.  They gave me an extra day because mine was comfortable and my veins have been so difficult.  But today was the day.  I asked the nurse early when she expected that we would change it since I was already nervous.  Boy oh boy did I have a need to be.

First, my regular nurse tried.  After she failed, my skin was sticking out in a blob about a half an inch from my inch.  I'm not very squeamish, but I do not like when my arms change shape when they are not supposed to.

So she called an anesthesiologist.  He was a younger guy.  A TCU fan.  We chatted a bit.  Then he missed his stick on one arm and then blew the vein on my other hand.  That gauze in the upper right portion of my wrist is him.

So they called another anesthesiologist.  But he never came.

So this other nurse swore that nurses do it better than anesthesiologists anyway.  She blew one on my right arm and then got the successful stick in the hand of my left.  (The other large gauze is from my previous IV.)

If you're counting, that's 5 sticks, one IV.  Two of the 5 sticks will leave massive bruises, the other 2 were ok (I guess).

I think I was teary after my arm blew up the first time.  Then I really cried after the 3rd one.  Then in the middle of all of this, the resident comes in and turns my Mag up because I'm having so many contractions.  I'm pretty sure most of the contractions were crying and the others were caused by terror and pain.  But now I'm back on 2mg.  I'm holding off the woozy-drunkenness pretty well, but I feel it coming.

So instead of finishing a school project this morning, all I successfully did was get an IV in my hand.

But then my mom came and organized my room (I added a rolling cart to hold all my stuff and a wall calendar to help me keep track of the time) and my good friend came and brought me a small Jamba Juice (since I'm still fluid restricted).

And now The Princess Bride is on and I'm relatively relaxed.

And only lab techs and the most experienced nurses will be touching my veins (as I tearfully asked the Charge Nurse who appeared in the middle of the madness).

The problem is that no one believe that I'm a difficult stick because they can see my veins.  But then they roll or they break because they are fragile.

(Guess I hadn't quite let it go yet.)

Day 6 - Night 7 - Signing off.

(Well...super quick update: I'll be on Mag until Monday because they wanted to get me to 24 weeks (tomorrow), but they don't want to take me off on a weekend when my normal doc is not here.  So on Monday, we wean, then we watch.  For like a week.  If I'm stable after that (and not bleeding at all - it's still lingering) then I could go home.  I don't really see that happening though...)


19 comments:

  1. I am so sorry :( I find that I don't have many emotional pregnancy hormones, but frustrating things become about 10x more frustrating and I cannot imagine that. I hope you get some good sleep tonight!

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  2. I hate hate hate IVs!! I was on bedrest for 3 weeks before my son was born (luckily some of that was at home) but I know that IVs were always the worst!

    Glad at least ya got some Princess Bride!

    Thinking of you--hang in there!

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  3. Oh no! I'm sorry things are still so difficult and that they stabbed you like this! I hope you get a good night sleep and are able to recharge your batteries.

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  4. Oh no your poor arm! I barely could read through your horrible needle sticking experience - hang in there!!

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  5. Can they get you a phlebotomist in the future? I know they're kind of the lowest on the hospital totem pole, but they're the only people I trust to get my veins. It's what they do all day long. Or at least, before anybody sticks you, you need to insist that only an experienced person do it. Ugh. It sucks that you're back on the mag all weekend. But I'm glad your baby is still in there!!

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    1. I made sure that it's only lab tech for blood draws from here on out. It was amazing how I could barely feel the blood draw with the tiny little needle after having 18 and 20 gauge needles for the IV disasters (phlebotomists don't do IVs...).

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  6. That is just horrible. My arms hurt looking at your pictures. Hoping the contractions and bleeding stop so you can go home.

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  7. Oh my gosh, this is my nightmare -- and my veins are the same! I've always been needle-phobic, but when I had to have a bone marrow aspiration 6 years ago (which I was already nervous for), the nurse blew veins in both of my arms trying to draw blood and I passed the F out. Since then, it is a huge mental/ emotional struggle to get blood drawn or an IV in, which now that I'm pregnant, I have to do every month. Ugh. I'm so sorry this happened to you :(

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  8. Oh that sounds awful. I am so sorry. Did they make a note in your chart about it so you don't have to explain everything all over again next time? (Maybe there won't be a next time?)

    Just curious...why are you restricted to fluids?

    I know things don't seem to be getting much better, but I'll keep hoping that you get to go home anyway. You've been such a trooper so far, you deserve some time in your own bed!

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    1. The magnesium can lead to fluid retention and pulmonary edema, so that's why less fluid. I still have an IV bag...then I'm allowed to drink about 600ml (like one drink)! But I think they're gonna try to take me off the mag today so I'll be back to normal.

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  9. Have they done the fFN test? So sorry for all of this and hope you can go home soon.

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    1. I'm not sure what that is exactly, but all blood work has come back normal.

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    2. It's a Fetal Fibronectin (fFN) test. It's a vaginal swab (yay no blood needed!) that helps predict the risk of preterm labor. It might be worth looking into and asking your doctors to run this. If the test is negative, it's pretty reliable (95%) that delivery will not occur in the next 2 weeks. Might give some short-term piece-of-mind.

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  10. Oh my gosh this sounds awful. Fingers crossed that everything goes well this week and you are able to head home!

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  11. Oh honey I'm so sorry that this is where this pregnancy has led you, it started out so rough, can't a girl catch a break?! Getting an IV put in my arm twice when I had the baby because the first time didn't work was worse than the labor, the epidural and actually having the baby, I had a bad stick and cried as they dug around in my arm and that pain lingered! That spot was SO sore I can't imagine having to get a new one every 4 days!!!

    Hang in there honey, hoping you get to go home before you have this baby!

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  12. OMG I hate IVs too. I am so sorry for all your pain. :( Thinking of you. Do you manage to get any sleep in the hospital?

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  13. As if things weren't difficult enough already ....

    Hope your veins are feeling better and that everything else is improving too!

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