Just A Spoonful More Than a Brick of Butter
The Start 13
Picture of Kayden wrapped in plastic for warmth only 30 minutes after birth
I have been trying to think back and remember the small details and all the people.
I remember Zoe, I released Kayden’s body into her hands from mine. She coordinated everyone in the room. I looked at her and said “tell me what you want me to do”. He was so small that I wasn’t in any pain or maybe I was shock but my only care was ensuring the best outcome for him.
She said just stay still and she got his arms out. Then asked for a half push and that was it he was out.
There was maybe a minute for someone to find sterile scissor and delayed cord clamping. A tall blonde nurse said “we are going to take him”, I already knew this was the case and said “yes go”.
It’s all bit blurry, maybe 2-3 people left with Kayden. He was taken to the ward resuscitation station wrapped in what I call the puppy pee pad. It’s that green plastic with tissue on one side pad they put under you if your leaking or bleeding. The ward resus station was unfortunately cold and so Kayden got cold. If I was in the birthing suite everything would have been warm and ready. Considering everything that happened that fact that he only got cold is incredible, his apgars were 4 then 6.
I found out later one of those people that ran off was Megan and she managed to intubate him within a minute, a very impressive feat on a tiny baby. Tiny as in 565 grams, just a spoonful more than a brick of butter.
I got a shot of oxytocin and it took a few pushes to get the placenta out. It was about a fourth of the size of Sylvie’s, they said it looked healthy and it went off for lab testing. It was only a few minutes to get the placenta out but it felt like an eternity. I just wanted to know if the baby was okay and what was happening to him. We hadn’t named him at this point.
I had a quick shower and got dressed to go see him. The nurse took me down in the wheelchair which I accepted. I remember after Sylvie I wanted to walk myself and then lost my legs half way down the hallway, so I thought best not do that again.