Thursday, April 14, 2011

Changes- Prayers & Praise

Life has change quite a bit in the past few days. Here is the story:

This past Monday I had Eric come home early from work because my ribs were hurting. I had been coughing a lot from a cold, so I just figured I was sore from that. I rested for a bit & felt better. Then on Tuesday afternoon while I was washing the dishes, I started to have a sharp pain in my left side & my breathing became shallow. I could barely talk. Patricia called Eric to come home from work & he immediately took me to the ER when he got home (praise God his work is so close!). Eric waited in the waiting room with all the children until my mother & brother came, who took them back to our house.

The dr ran a CT scan & saw some spots in the lower parts of my lungs. He said it could be pneumonia or blood clots and urged me to have a cat scan done. Eric and I were a bit hesitant because we knew I was expecting & did not want to expose the baby to more radiation. (Surprise to all of you who do not know! :) But, with my family history of blood clots, we thought it best. The cat scan showed that I did indeed have a blood clot- in fact, I had TWO, one in each lung, & my left lung had some damage.

I was immediately hooked up to Heparin to thin my blood & hooked up to heart monitors. We were told that I would be admitted to the hospital "soon." Well, as we soon learned, there is a thing called hospital time. It runs on a much slower clock. They did take me to have an ultrasound while I waited to go upstairs. Eric and I were able to see our newest little one kicking and flipping- the tech said I was around 11 weeks! WOW! Much farther along than I thought! What a joy to see a healthy baby on that screen!

Somewhere around 10 PM I finally got in a room. I sent Eric home to rest & finally around 12:30 AM I was able to sleep because the drs, techs & nurses stopped coming in. Well, kinda sleep- I had so many tubes & could only lay on my back, so sleep didn't come easy. Plus, someone came in every 2 hours. On Wednesday, the next day, I was switched over to Lovenox & was even able to get off oxygen! YEAH!!! That thing in my nose was annoying! After several more tests, including an EKG, I was able to come home. YEAH!!!

So, I'm home now on mostly bed rest for 10 days. My parents have been so helpful with the children! Eric's work brought us a delicious meal last night & the ladies from church are also providing food. I will go my new OBGYN on Monday because I am now considered "high risk." (I'll also see a pulmonary specialist on Tuesday.) Because of my pregnancy (the estrogen increases risk of blood clots), I will have to give myself a shot of Lovenox once a day throughout my entire pregnancy. They will need to induce labor after having me stop injections for one day & then I will begin my med immediately afterward. This will be our first hospital birth. :( To say the least, I'm not thrilled. I'm thankful for medical technology & drs but I sure do wish I didn't have to use one!

So, in a matter of a few days, life can change. I've always been so healthy- this came as a total shock! Once again, I'm learning to cherish every minute with my family. We've known that I was expecting for awhile & it has been a test of faith- one in which I've been weak many times. I'm learning to lean on God for strength. I'm so thankful to Him for preserving my life & the life our little one!!!

Please join us in praying for my healing & for safety for both our baby & myself. Pray for energy for Eric as he cares for us all (and peace of mind for him) and for the children as their lives are a bit upside down right now. Our deepest desire is to faithful to our God in the midst of this trial!
- Heather

8 comments:

Jeremiah and Stephenie said...

Congratulations on your new little one! Will be remembering you all in our prayers over the coming months.

Jeanelle said...

Thank you for the update Heather. We have been praying together as a family for you, your hubby, your little one and your children. We also praise God for your safety!

Tracy said...

I'm so happy for you! (About the pregnancy, not the blood clots, of course!) You've been on my mind and in my prayers often, and will continue to be.

Anonymous said...

Praying for you and your whole family!
Renee

Karen Tully said...

Get well soon Heather! we are here thinking of you and Eric and the littles including the new one growing as we speak.

All our Love.

Karen, John and Little Matt

Dave Shideler said...

Thanks for letting us know. We will be praying.
Tina

Mahers Hill Academy said...

Praying for you all!

Cowgirl Wannabe said...

Hey Heather, praise the Lord you are doing better...somewhat. we are praying for you and your family. Thanks for the updates....we really miss you :(