When we found out we were pregnant, images of us holding our newborn, smiling as a brand new family for the camera came to mind. The pregnancy went well with a few minor hiccups, and when induction day came, we went in with a mix of apprehension and excitement.
After two days of labor and three hours of pushing, it became clear I needed c-section.
That procedure seemed to go well until I was in recovery. That’s when they discovered my bleeding wouldn’t stop. By that point, I could feel the warmth of my blood leaving and see bags of donated blood come in, then empty as quickly as they were put up.
When I asked my amazing anesthesiologist if I was going to be ok, she soothed me to sleep with an extremely effective medication lullaby.
The hemmorage had put me into shock. I developed a bleeding dosorder called DIC, sepsis, had to be intubated, and woke up days later in kidney failure.
Not quite the birth story we had wanted for our little girl.
I survived, largely because of amazing blood donors.
My birthday is at the end of November, and I’m asking as many people as possible to donate. There’s been an ongoing blood shortage, and if you can find it in your heart to either donate or share throughout this month, you’d make this birthday girl extremely happy.