Blind-sided

This week we were blind-sided.

I don't know any other way to put it.

At a time when we should have been celebrating new life we were, instead, caught up in a whirlwind of fear, hospital stays, doctor visits, and confusing medical terminology.

Two days after Tif was released from the hospital her swelling was so severe

that it had actually affected her breathing and heart rhythm.

She woke up in the middle of the night gasping for air so we made a 3am trip to the ER. The staff started right in with an EKG, bloodwork, X-Rays, and an Echocardiogram.

Once those results were back, we started hearing medical terms

that a shouldn't even be part of a 28-year old's vocabulary.

Things like 'acute postpartum cardiomyopathy' and 'congestive heart failure'

and 'postpartum preeclampsia'.

WHAT?!?!

According to her doctors she had a textbook pregnancy! Never even ONE complication!

How could something go wrong NOW??

The ER Doctor said the Cardiologist had been paged and would be in that morning.

And, since no beds were available, we'd have to wait in the exam room until a bed opened up upstairs (which, unbelievably, took 15 HOURS!!!!).

Tif was started immediately on a dosage of lasix to start draining off all the fluid that had accumulated since her delivery.

And boy did THAT start happening quickly!

Within a matter of a couple of hours they had already drained over 2 liters of fluid.

2 LITERS! THAT'S LIKE A BOTTLE OF SODA!!

And the lasix continued to do its job.

Over the course of her 2-day stay they drained well over 6 liters of fluid off her body and she lost OVER 19 POUNDS!

UNBELIEVABLE!!

And remember that Cardiologist that was suppose to be in first thing in the morning? Yeah, well, he finally showed up at 11pm.

It was hard to be angry with him

because he gave us reassuring news after he had seen her labs.

He felt like Tif was going to be fine.

Thankfully, he did not feel that it was cardiomyopathy OR congestive heart failure (Praise God!!)--but wanted her to follow up in his office later this week to take a look at her heart without 6 liters of fluid taking its toll.

He released her from his care

but her obstetricians did not want to release her until a diagnosis was made.

They spent hours and hours researching and consulting other doctors.

Their final diagnosis?

Atypical Postpartum Preeclampsia.

Okay.

So after a day of magnesium drip she was released last night

and had that follow-up visit with the cardiologist today.

Well. Not Really.

The cardiologist wasn't there.

So we just had the echocardiogram done and we'll follow up with the doctor in a few days.

In the meantime we're trying to keep positive thoughts

and love on that sweet, sweet (did I mention sweet?) little man!