On Wednesday I had two doctor's appointments in Orlando, one with our Maternal Fetal Medicine Doctor and the other with the Gyno-Oncologist who will have a large part in the portion of the surgery after the delivery of the baby. Thankfully, it appears my placenta is behaving, as in some patients, it starts to spread like wildfire and wreck havoc on the surrounding organs. It still appears on the ultrasound to be localized and we are crossing our fingers that this is the case once they take me into surgery. The placenta in a way is kinda of like a blood rich tumor and that is why the Gyno-Oncologist will be involved in my case. During my appointment with him, we discussed the ideal scenario which would be delivery of the baby followed by the hysterectomy and a plan B in case the situation is a lot messier than what the images have shown. Prior to delivery, they will insert balloon catheters into my uterine arteries that can be immediately deployed to slow blood loss if that becomes an issue. Plan B consists of delivery of the baby, then deploying the catheters, closing me up and letting things settle for 2-3 weeks, to then go back and do the hysterectomy when the uterus and placenta have had time to shrink down. Of course, in a perfect world, I am very hopeful that I can avoid having two surgeries.
Baby M is definitely unaware of everything going on as he is growing at warp speed...almost as if he knows he has to come early. Ultrasound shows I am measuring about 3 weeks ahead of schedule and the latest weight estimate is 4lbs 10oz. With that said the doctor's have collectively decided to move everything up a week as to prevent an emergency since it is optimal for me to be delivered in a controlled and planned environment. My delivery is scheduled for January 12th at 1pm and the baby will be 34 weeks. With each passing day my risk of bleeding goes up and so we have decided to pack up and head to Orlando on Sunday! Doctor's recommended being as close to the hospital as possible, as soon as possible. Originally the plan was to hopefully make it down her until January 8th but things change quickly. I have now put on my logistically coordinator hat as we pack up to move for what appears to be the next month.
Marc and the girl's will come up with me Sunday to help my Mom and I get settled, then will return for a week with the girl's. On January 10th they will plan to come back up and we will just have to take it day by day until after the baby arrives. I am finding it helpful to be able to focus my energy on the planning process, as I don't think the reality of everything that is about to happen over the next couple of weeks has really set in. While I was hoping to keep our little guy cooking a bit longer, I will be so happy once this is over and we can move forward with our lives, as a family of 5!
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Placenta Accreta is definitely not to be taken lightly and I frequently think of how I got to this point. What if I had not let the doctor convince me I needed an elective c-section when Madison was born? What if I had been more informed and demanded a trial at labor when I went into labor on my own with Madison at 37 weeks and the doctor ordered the nurse to give me magnesium and send me home since it was a Saturday night. I hope when this is all over I can find a way to turn these damn lemons into lemonade, find a way to turn my situation into something productive. I don't know what that may be yet, but clearly things happen for a reason and I believe in some way I will be able to give something I have learned back to others. For many Mom's their prognosis is much worse than mine...some are told to terminate pregnancy and some mother's don't survive the delivery. What hit home really hard for me this week is that one of the woman in my support group did not survive her delivery. When I learned this news, I broke down, I cried for her and the three children she has left behind, for myself and for all the other mother's who are fighting this battle of placenta accreta like I am. The only way to push through is remind myself that I have my own story and I will fight with every ounce of my being to make it out as a survivor!
So, today, I dedicate this blog post to Maribel Sanchez. I never met her personally, but would frequently see her posts in my Facebook support group. She has left behind 3 beautiful little girls and a loving husband. Life is so unfair....
A member of our support group has started a go fund me page in her honor and I will leave the link here...https://www.gofundme.com/maribel-sanchez-memorial-fund
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