Another perk of c-sections for the crazies among us? It's planned! Well - this time around mine was. And let me tell you - it was GLORIOUS!! Day... time... all set. No hemming and hawing around, waiting for mother nature to take it's course. Nothing against Mother Nature, but her and I are on two separate pages - she never gets things done fast enough for me : ) My c-section was moved up a few days at the end... from the 20th to the 17th. After spending two consecutive weekends in the hospital with various monitoring needs (contractions at 37 weeks, possible water leak at 38 weeks) - I was DONEZO. And so were the doctors. So the delivery date was moved from Monday to Friday - at exactly 39 weeks. In the days prior I went and got my hair done, nails done, eyebrows done. I was packed. The house was clean. It was kind of like planning for a vacation, minus the beach and fruity drinks. The only down side? No eating or drinking for 8 hours prior to the surgery. Food wasn't a big deal... but not drinking anything in the oppressive Georgia heat was tough. Since my c-section was scheduled for 4 p.m., I couldn't eat or drink anything after 8 a.m. So, to avoid turning into a rabid wilderbeast around noon, I set my alarm for 7 a.m. to eat breakfast. Just as I was taking the last bite of my egg sandwich, my phone rang. It was the hospital - calling to see if I wanted to move up my c-section to 11 a.m. UMMMMM- HECK YES I DO!!!! Except that I had just eaten... so I couldn't do it. Bummer, right? So I went back to sleep and then headed over to the hospital that afternoon.
It's funny, because I don't remember much from my first c-section. From what Daniel has told me, I was really freaking out and the doctor started yelling and the anesthesiologist had to knock me out. Not surprising. This time around, I was keenly aware of everything that was happening during the c-section. Actually - in my honest opinion - I was a little too aware. Somewhere in the middle of knocked out and wide awake would have been ideal : ) I didn't feel any pain, but I could definitely feel, hear, smell and see a lot. At one point I told Daniel I could smell burning popcorn. Something was burning, but it definitely wasn't popcorn (EEK!). The "suction" tube ran past my head, so I could hear and see all the lovely fluids fly past when they broke my water. The one part that was pretty cool was that I could feel the moment they pulled Deacon out of my belly - it felt like a lot of pulling and prodding and then literally felt like a "pop" and then I heard him crying. Pretty cool!
The best part of my c-section experience was the hospital room. I know, I know. You all know how much I hate hospitals. But somehow we ended up in the VIP Suite as the nurses referred to it as... it was an awesome corner room with huge windows and gorgeous views of the Atlanta skyline. Waking up at night to feed Deacon isn't so bad when you have panoramic views of the city : ) Room 490. If you deliver at Northside in Atlanta, try and request it. It was heaven!
Another positive of this c-section was that the doctor fixed my scar. Last time around, the incision had opened on either end and in the middle, so those parts never looked right even after they finally healed. This time the doctor removed those parts and reworked the scar so it's a super thin line - like a pencil line vs. a jagged magic marker line. I was tempted to tell her that she could do a tummy tuck while she was down there, but I decided it was best not to joke while my intestines were on the outside of my body and fluids were slurping down a tube next to my head.
So even though a c-section is major surgery with potential complications a mile long - it's really not so bad. I know they get a bad rap as not being "natural" and all, but after going through pregnancy for 9 months - does it really matter how the baby comes out? Natural hole or man-made hole, the baby has got to get out somehow : )
