New Years Eve Baby!

On December 31st we were surprised with the arrival of our beautiful Aurélie! She came a little early (36 weeks gestation) but she was determined to make her way into this world! She weighed just under 5 pounds and had a successful surgery where her bowel was placed inside her abdomen within the first few hours of her life!

The labour began on the 30th when I lost my mucus plug. I went to the hospital where they sent me back home after checking my cervix. After a couple of hours, period like cramps began and continued throughout the day.  By that night I was not able to cope with the pain and decided to go get checked again. They once again checked my cervix and sent me home. By the time I got home it was 1am and they had advised me to take a warm bath, have some Tylenol and try to rest. By 5am I could not handle the cramps anymore and went back. This is when they informed me that I was 2cm dilated and had to start driving towards Halifax! This was unexpected as nothing pointed towards preterm labour. 

Aurélie was born at 5:19am and then brought down to the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). She was placed on some pain medication to help cope with the procedure, placed on a ventilator to assist with oxygen levels, and then on IV to start receiving her nutrients! Over the week, they have taken her off of the ventilator as she can breathe on her own, and she has been taken off of most pain medication (she will occasionally receive Tylenol). In addition, there is a tube placed in her mouth or nose that suction’s the bile out of her tummy until she is able to digest it all on it’s own. She has had bowel movements throughout the week and were mostly mucus and bile. The doctor has informed us that if she can digest all of her bile on her own, we will be able to start feeds! Fingers crossed that our  little angel will be able to begin eating soon. 

Gastroschisis babies can be very irritable due to having empty stomachs before their feeds begin! Aurélie has been crying quite a bit due to this reason. The nurses assured us that it’s completely normal and the only thing we can do Is soothe them with either their mama’s milk being soaked around their lips or formula (whichever route you choose to go). There are times where sucrose is used on the soother and this will help appease the “hangry” baby! This past week has been long but we are so fortunate to be at the IWK and receive amazing care from the nurses, doctors, and specialists. 

I will keep journaling her progress throughout our stay at the NICU. Hopefully this information will be helpful to some!