We had been married almost a year and half when I got pregnant with Adam. I had gone to Dr. Repass because I had had a negative pregnancy test earlier but he confirmed that I was pregnant. I was ecstatic and absolutely loved being pregnant. Everything had been going great until I was about 7 months along. I began having a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions which is not really abnormal but when I began having them every 10 minutes I finally called my doctor. He sent me to the hospital. It was at night and Kenny was at work. I didn’t want to worry him or mama and daddy so I just went in thinking they would fix me up and I would come back home. No such luck. The contractions were coming closer and closer and everything they tried at the Bristol Hospital wasn’t working so they decided to send me to Johnson City, where they were better equipped to handle premature babies. I had finally called Kenny and mama and told them they needed to come to the hospital.
I rode over in an ambulance and my contractions were 3-5 minutes apart but I wasn’t in a lot of pain so again, I wasn’t too concerned. Being so young, I really didn’t have the sense to worry about it because I didn’t have a clue as to what could happen. By the time I was in Johnson City, I remember the doctor saying, “Mag her up!” and the next thing I knew I had to throw up but I couldn’t even lift my head so it went all over my chest. I’m not sure how Magnesium affects other women but for me it paralyzed my whole body. I couldn’t talk plainly and had an extremely dry mouth. I couldn’t move my limbs and I had triple vision. Mama said that my face sort of drooped so I know I looked awful.
The magnesium ultimately worked and after about a week in the hospital, I was able to go home with orders to take Terbutaline until my 38th week and be on complete bed rest. This was in May 1987 and I believe it was the hottest May on record (in my book anyway). I was extremely bloated, with lots of fluid built up in my legs, which made it very painful to walk.
I thought that when I stopped taking Terbutaline, I would immediately go into labor. No such luck but I began having hard contractions early in the morning on June 3 (Adam’s due date was June 6). I was up pacing, practicing my breathing and excited. Kenny got home from work and very nonchalantly said, “Wake me up when you’re ready to go.” What?! So, I let him sleep, took a shower, and tried to be quiet until about 6 am when my contractions were 3-5 minutes apart. I woke him up and we went to the hospital. My contractions were coming fast and hard but I never dilated. Dr. Gorrell told me my bones weren’t quite wide enough for Adam’s head but I could try and deliver him naturally or by Cesarean. I remember looking at him and saying, “I don’t know. You’re the doctor, you do what you think is best.” So, he prepared me for surgery. I’m glad we didn’t have Mr. Google back then. I’ve been reading all sorts of bad things about Magnesium and Terbutaline.
Kenny told me that he peeked behind the sheet and saw all my organs lying everywhere, willy nilly and it freaked him out. He held my hand and together we heard our Adam cry for the very first time. I knew that when I saw him I would love him but I never thought about his voice. I still get choked up when I think about it. Adam was absolutely beautiful and had the cutest little dimple in his chin. He was 7.6 pounds and 20 inches long. He was healthy and we were so happy and proud.
Back then, they didn’t have private rooms so after I had Adam there was already another girl in my room that had already had her baby. She was getting on my nerves crying all the time. I didn’t know much about postpartum depression. Well, she finally went home and then I became the crybaby. It’s funny how your hormones just go haywire. One of the nurses brought all the new mothers together so we could learn how to give a newborn a bath. She asked if she could use Adam to demonstrate. I was so proud and said sure. I was all happy until he started crying and then I cried. It was all I could do not to snatch him right out of her hands and run down the hallway. Except I couldn’t run, I could barely walk. The first time you stand up after a Cesarean, you feel like all your organs are going to fall out. “Keep trying” they said, “it gets easier the more you do it.” Breastfeeding was extremely painful at first too. Boy oh boy did I want to scream bloody murder when Adam latched on. He was a sucker too. He had blisters on his fingers and toes where he sucked so much in the womb.
Adam was the sweetest, cutest and happiest baby. He was also mama and daddy’s first grandchild so they were pretty excited too. Mama had been begging to keep Adam and Kenny wanted to go out on a date with me. I was breastfeeding and didn’t want to leave him because he was only 3 weeks old, but they finally talked me into it. Kenny and I went to Byers Restaurant and got steak and cheese sandwiches. I couldn’t be satisfied so I asked if I could use their phone so I could call mom and check on Adam. Every time I called it was busy. I went back to the table and bawled. Eventually I got a hold of mama. She had been on the phone yacking to her sisters, of course. Kenny wanted to go play Putt-Putt just down the street so I went, even though I didn’t want to. We played one game and then Kenny wanted to play again and I said, “No! I’m going to get my baby!” The first time you leave your child is always the hardest. It definitely got better, to the point of “Yes! Come and get him!”
Since I had been off a few weeks before Adam was born, I went back to work when Adam was just 6 weeks old which just about killed me. Since Kenny worked nights, he watched Adam during the day and mama picked him up about 3 and took him to her house. New mamas need more than 6 weeks to bond with their baby. Father’s need that bonding time too. I don’t remember Kenny being off any except maybe the day Adam was born. I’m so glad things changed when my boys became fathers.
Karen G. Bruce 