Marlena and her husband were planning three children. The first pregnancy was very good, but the birth took place in the seventh month and she spent the first weeks of her life in an incubator. It wasn't easy with the second child from the beginning. Marlena had trouble getting pregnant, then keeping her. As a result, the baby arrived in the world two months before the planned delivery date.

My husband and I always knew that we wanted to have more than one child - says 33-year-old Marlena from Warsaw, mother of 7-year-old Wiktoria and 3-year-old Ola. - My husband comes from a family with many children. There are always a lot of people around the festive table in his house. They are all close to each other. I like this. So when we were planning our marriage, we both figured there would be three. So far we have two wonderful daughters. And although they were both born with problems, I am not discouraged. Hope this is not the end. I took my first pregnancy well. I was working all the time, I was very active and I felt great. Nevertheless, Wiktoria was born in the seventh month and spent the first weeks of her life in an incubator. A doctor from the Children's Memorial He alth Institute threatened us with a vision of cerebral palsy, but fortunately she was wrong. After a year of rehabilitation, the minor problems disappeared and the Wiki developed properly. I lacked experience and confidence then. I focused on taking care of the child and… maybe I neglected my own he alth a bit. Despite regular check-ups at the gynecologist, I didn't realize in time that I had a tumor on my ovary. I had to undergo surgery, which left me only 50 percent. chances of having a second child. I didn't break down, but I was worried about whether I would be able to get pregnant again. And maybe because my husband and I tried so hard, it didn't work out. In the end, I let it go. I decided to stop thinking about it. One weekend, I attended an integration meeting organized by my employer. There were various activities, including bungee jumping. I was scared, but I jumped. Then the thought occurred to me that it would be the same with pregnancy. I just have to… jump. I stopped being afraid, worried and wondering if this was the right time to do it or if we would make it. "Now or never," I thought, and … soon after, I got pregnant.

Problems getting pregnant

I haven't done any tests.I gave up on fate. I thought that if there was a pregnancy, I would find out quickly, go to the doctor and he would confirm it. It was like that. Unfortunately, this time there were complications at the beginning. In the sixth week, I started bleeding. The pregnancy was at risk, so I was hospitalized. It was a clinical hospital of the Medical Academy at ul. Lindley. It seemed to me that I should have excellent care, while I lay left to myself and struggled with my thoughts about what would happen next. Nobody was interested in me, and the young doctor who was doing the ultrasound couldn't even find a fetus! Fortunately, after the medication, the bleeding stopped and after a dramatic week I was able to go home. Then, throughout the entire pregnancy, until the delivery, a doctor from a private clinic led me. It was not easy. I was given 20 shots of progesterone and had to lie down for a month and a half. I was very careful about myself, for fear of losing my baby. I was careful at every step, but I did not give up the pool. The whole family used to go there and we all swam together. Anyway, when the ailments subsided, I was able to function normally, but from time to time I took a time off and took a break from work. However, the eight hours spent at the desk were beyond my strength.

Nausea and cravings in pregnancy

I felt sick throughout my pregnancy. I had no appetite, I was sensitive to smells, especially of meats and meat. Everything irritated me. I could only eat melons. I took two to work, and sometimes it was not enough, so I would buy a third one. I didn't like anything else, maybe watermelons and apples. We laugh that Ola is such a melon girl, although she does not like these fruits yet. Apart from these ailments, I felt great. My husband, Paweł, helped me a lot, he cared for me - just like my parents, who often looked after Wiktoria at that time. I felt loved and beautiful … Everyone was very happy, including Wiktoria, who auscultated with us and went to every ultrasound examination. It was she who chose the name for her sister. From the beginning there was to be Ola and the end! It was perfect, because this name fits Oleńka perfectly.

Premature labor

Unfortunately, I didn't manage to last until the end of my pregnancy. Oleńka, like Wiktoria, pushed her way into the world. At week 31, I started bleeding. The ambulance service took me to the hospital on Kasprzaka Street, where I was found to be 2 cm dilated. I was given medication to stop the birthing action and after a few hours everything went quiet. I came across a pathology of pregnancy. Despite the dramatic situation, I have very good memories of my stay in this hospital. There was no comparison to what I had experienced before! There was a nice atmosphere in the ward, the women helped each othereach other, and the midwife would come over and ask if you needed anything. I felt that I was well looked after, that all attention was focused on me and the baby. It seemed I was carrying the pregnancy to the end, and yet… On October 5, around three in the morning, I felt very bad. Two doctors came, gave me an ultrasound and found 5 cm dilated. I was taken to the delivery room and everything went on so quickly that I didn't even have time to call my husband. We were planning a joint childbirth, but Oleńka did not give us a chance. She popped up after 15 minutes! The midwife and doctors said with a laugh, "Mommy sneezed three times and after giving birth." I have to admit the medical staff was great. The midwife was talking to me the whole time, holding my hand, giving me signs with a light handshake. We got on well. Before giving birth, I did not go to childbirth school. I decided that if I listen carefully to what they say to me and cooperate with the midwife, I would be fine on my own. And so it was.

Necessary incubator

Unfortunately, I couldn't hug my baby right after giving birth, and it was very unpleasant. Ola was weak and was immediately taken for examination. She got 9 points on the Apgar scale. She weighed 2 kg, had breathing problems, so she had to lie in an incubator. In addition, it turned out that I had an intrauterine infection, so Ola had to receive an antibiotic and a drip. I drove between the hospital and home, looking forward to finally picking her up. We sat with her husband and stroked her legs through the opening in the incubator - it was our only contact with the baby. Fortunately, she had excellent care and we, after our experiences with Victoria, were more aware and calmer. For example, I knew it took a while for her to develop a sucking reflex. The nurses who looked after the premature babies were of great help. They served Ola the food I had extracted with a syringe, but at the same time, with a finger - in a disposable glove - they were stroking her palate, forcing the reflex to suck. It was a fun and very effective way. After three weeks we got home a he althy baby. I didn't even have to look after the belly button because it had fallen off in the hospital. At home, Ola was gaining weight quickly, but apart from my food, she also got a special formula for premature babies. We constantly monitored her weight and adhered to meal times.

There are plans for a third pregnancy

My husband helped me a lot. At night, I didn't even have to get up because he was feeding Ola with a bottle. Like Wiktoria, Ola was also rehabilitated. This time, however, we gave up the tiring visits to the hospital rehabilitation clinic and waiting for many hoursqueues. We used a private clinic with excellent conditions. Nobody took the baby from us and made us wait outside the office - as it was with Victoria. Nobody threatened with cerebral palsy. We went to rehabilitation with the whole family. My husband and I watched the classes, learning how to exercise with the child at home, and Wiktoria got crayons and drew in the corner. You might think that after such experiences I should have had enough. However, I hope that we will make a third attempt in some time. Maybe this time it will be Staś? Now I take great care of myself, I go to the gynecologist for check-ups every three months. I know that during the next pregnancy there may be problems again, but if it does, I will do my best to give the baby a chance to be born he althy. We laugh with my doctor that the first was born in the 30th week of pregnancy, the second in the 32nd, maybe the third will last 34 weeks?

monthly "M jak mama"

Category:

Pregnancy