IÑIGO’S BORN!

 

I was still sleeping when my wife called me up around 6am from her OB’s clinic in the Philippines. They were 4 hours advance in my home country so it should be 10am there. She wanted me to talk to her doctor so I could ask her some details about the status of her pregnancy. We were expecting her delivery tomorrow and she was due for a check up today with her OB gyn.

 

Dra. Villanueva informed me that it seemed the baby would not fit into her pelvis and a caesarean section might be necessary. They could schedule her up this afternoon, instead of tomorrow, since tomorrow is a Sunday and it would cost us a bit more if it will be done on that day.

 

I agreed on her suggestions, and Didith’s voice over the phone seemed like she was all ready and prepared. She was scheduled for the operation at 3pm (11am UAE). She was admitted after her clinic check up and was prepared for surgery.

 

I tried to go back to sleep since I have had only a few hours of sleep before I got the call. My son entered into my dreams, and I dreamt of having him in my arms. I was with my wife and we were in my parents’ house in Bulacan. Suddenly, may baby disappeared from where I laid him, and that was the time I got awakened. I knew that the subconscious mind works when we sleep, and it has picked up a sense of fear in my inner being. Who would not be? My wife is undergoing a major surgery.

 

30 minutes before the scheduled surgery, I called my wife using my mobile and gave her some moral support. I knew that’s the most I can make being away from her at this time, when most fathers-to-be are at their wife’s bedside.

 

I was working a night shift in the evening, but I knew I would not be able to sleep in this situation. On my next call, my sister told me she was already in the operating room. It felt as if my hands were caught in chains and I could not do much. I am a medical professional but I am away for my wife’s medical situation.

 

Like her surgery last March, I started sending text messages to everybody on my cell’s contacts. My message read: Hi po. My wife Didith is in OR right now undergoing Caesarian Section. Please pray for her. It was overwhelming to receive text replies, and even calls from friends who gave very encouraging words.

 

It was almost 1pm here when I got a call from my sister, and she announced that the baby was out already. He was a healthy 7-pound baby with long limbs as my wife’s! My sister tried to describe my son as I tried to imagine what he looks like. She said he looks like me. He had a fair skin and very red lips. She was standing in front of the nursery window as she vividly described my baby’s features on the phone. I envied her, and wished I was the one looking at my precious child.

 

My wife was still inside OR that time. I wondered if she has seen our baby. I knew she would forget all the pains once she sees our child.

 

My cousin was fast trying to send pictures of my baby. When I opened my yahoo, I saw my son for the first time and it felt the most wonderful of all the emotions. I was teary eyed as I looked each and every pictures of him. He is the small me!

 

My sister later on called again to inform that my wife has come out from surgery and is now resting in her room. It was a big relief knowing my wife is safe, and my baby is out healthy.

 

I will be working tonight, and though I haven’t slept during the day, I knew that I was charged with a powerful energy within my veins. I will be working carrying a different perspective in life.

 

 

 

 

 

A Day of Fears

 17 March 2008 – Our day started early when my wife was awakened by severe abdominal pains. It was almost 3am when she woke me up, as she was grimacing in pain. She was clutching the right side of her tummy, teary eyed, as if something was going so bad inside.

 

I tried to observe how the pain was developing. This was the third time that she experienced this. The first one was about a month ago, but she was relieved after going to the bathroom. The second time was yesterday, while we were attending Palm Sunday Mass. She was already feeling uneasy by middle of the holy mass, so we decided to immediately go home after the ceremonies, instead of shopping for groceries as previously planned. But when we reached home, the pain disappeared.

 

So now that she was feeling the same again, I thought that the pain will subside later, or will be relieved by going to the bathroom, or by simply resting. But I was wrong. It was almost dawn and her agony was even increasing. I tried hot and cold compresses but that did not help much. None of my approach-to-pain nursing skills were working.

 

I feared it was acute appendicitis, because of the location of the pain. The other signs and symptoms were also indicative of such. But what I feared more was about the safety of my wife carrying our baby – that something bad was going on inside, and that an operation might be necessary.

 

I decided to bring her to the hospital. The nearest was The Medical City, but we feared of the astronomic costs of being hospitalized there, so we both agreed to go home to Bulacan, where her OB holds her clinic.

 

I feared that the travel would be too much for her. But Didith was a strong woman. She braved traveling from Ortigas to Bulacan. She had episodes of nausea and vomiting during the trip but we made it safely to Sacred Heart Hospital in Malolos.

 

The E.R. doctor diagnosed her with acute appendicitis, after reviewing her blood and urine tests. She needed immediate surgery before the appendix bursts and poisons our baby. Her OB was contacted, and also suggested surgery after having an ultrasound done. The hospital surgeon was informed. When he arrived, he quickly examined her and also recommended emergency surgery.

 

He explained though that although the signs and symptoms suggested acute appendicitis, the cause of the pain could be something else. Appendicitis is unlike other conditions where a definite diagnosis can be made through tests. A diagnosis of appendicitis can be made through a combination of assessment of signs and symptoms, and tests, but then the confirmatory diagnosis can only be made once the patient is opened in the operating room.

 

She was brought to OR about 12:20 pm. I tried to give her all encouragements and I tried to be strong for her to be strong as well.

 

When she got inside, an overwhelming parade of fears accumulated in my head. I feared that something wrong might happen during surgery. I feared that Didith might feel the pain if the anaesthesia will not be successful. I feared that we might lose our baby.

 

While the surgery was ongoing, I felt as if every minute was slowly passing.  I could not eat. I could not even think and concentrate well. But there was something I remembered. There was only one who could help us in this condition. The One above. And so I began using my cellphone to start a text brigade of prayers. While the operation was ongoing, I requested almost everybody I know to offer a small prayer for my wife and for our baby, while I utter endless prayers myself.

 

About two hours later, I was called to come inside the operating room. My heart was pounding so fast, as the circulating nurses helped me wear an OR gown, mask and cap. Did something go wrong in the surgery? Are my mag-ina safe?  I felt all the worst kind of fears in an instant. My pulse was racing against each other.

 

When I entered the operating room, I saw my wife lying helplessly on the operating table. My heart sank as I witness her trying to withstand all these ordeals.

 

The doctors explained to me that even before they were able to see the appendix, they found the culprit of the unbearable pain my wife was experiencing. They found an ovarian cyst so twisted that they knew it was the one causing the pain. They showed me what they removed – it was about the size of my fist, and part of it was gangrenous because of the blood supply that was cut in the area.

 

The appendix was small and was not inflamed. The doctors asked me if I still want them to remove it, since they were already there open. I decided to tell them to leave it untouched. I did not want her to suffer from trying to heal two internal wounds, and to take care of a baby inside her all at the same time.

 

The doctors then confirmed that my wife, and our baby were safe from the operation. That they only needed to close her so she can be brought back to her room.

 

As I went out of the operating room, there was some sort of relief knowing that the two were safe. I have always believed in the power of prayers and this day I knew it worked again for us.

 

She was brought to her room almost 4pm, and she recovered from anaesthesia in the evening. The abdominal dressing was dry and her vitals were stable.

 

I was a person undaunted by fears. When I feel it, I always try to overcome it, and I try to deny it. But now I realized that fears within me will not go, as I would forever worry about my loved ones. I acknowledged that the fear of losing someone dear to you is the most difficult fear to overcome.

 

Fears still go on inside of me. But knowing that there is Someone above who will look after us and our loved ones, I feel reassured that things are going to be okay.

 

 

 

It’s going to be a BOY!!

It was a rather busy Friday morning. After speaking with my agent at 9am, I hurried to The Medical City to pick up my x-ray films, which I needed to present to my doctor before lunchtime. His clinic ends at 12 noon.

 

Everything went well until I decided to check out the hospital’s ultrasound procedures. We’ve been planning to have it done this month since this is the time when it is possible to know our baby’s sex. I inquired at the Women’s Health unit at the 5^th Floor and found out that they can do the procedure with official results taken within 1 to 2 hours. We needed the results in time for the next day’s clinic appointment to our OB Gyne.

 

My wife is 4 and a half months pregnant now, and I knew TMC has better facilities so I thought that doing the ultrasound here is best, since the possibility of knowing the gender of the child here is more likely.

 

I called my wife from her work, and she decided to take her leave in the afternoon so we could proceed with the procedure. We decided to meet in our rented unit in Ortigas before going to TMC.

 

We did not wait long until we got our turn for the ultrasound. The doctor started the scan and showed us the different body parts of our baby. It was so exciting! She even counted the fingers of both hands and feet, and showed us a more or less picture of his face. He is so cute! This was the very first time for us to see our baby’s face, and he seemed to be smiling at us.

 

The most important part came when the doctor started checking out his gender. She found the putotoy, and so… it’s going to be a BOY! The doctor checked several times by scanning at different angles, and she was definite and positive by what she saw. It’s definitely Inigo coming for us!!

 

When we decided to give the name Inigo provisionally, while waiting for a confirmation of his gender, we were still unsure. But we found it difficult to find a female name for a baby girl. Maybe, our intuitive minds were functioning and we felt it was indeed Inigo coming.

 

I can’t wait till Inigo joins us in this world. I am sure his presence will bring enormous joy to our family. Love you, son!

Thanks for all your prayers!

First of all, allow me to apologize for not having posted anything for more than a month. I am sure most of you, especially those who read my last blog entry, know that my wife was into a high-risk pregnancy. We needed to move to Bulacan, where our parents can help look after my wife. For a month, my better half rested, took all the necessary precautions in order to save our baby.

 My wife had repeated her ultrasound recently and I am so happy to announce that the results are so encouraging. The placenta is now normally localized and has moved up, unlike before that it was abnormally low-lying. There is no more bleed from inside.  Her OB has allowed her to work again next month. 

I just want to extend my sincerest gratitude to those who responded to my previous post and helped us pray for the safety of my wife and baby. God indeed listened to us.  

My wife and I are still taking all the precautions though. Since Didith will start working again, we decided to get a place near her work. We are so blessed to find a very nice unit just a stone throw away from her office building. This will save her from her long and bumpy travels to our Antipolo house. 

We will still need your prayers though until our little angel becomes old enough to come out on his own. Only the One above knows our baby’s destiny, but with the help of your powerful prayers, God will give this blessing to us. 

Again, thanks everybody for all your prayers. I will forever be grateful for your kind deed.

Please help me pray…

 My wife and I visited our OB-Gyne last December 22 for our 2^nd prenatal check up. We arrived a few minutes before the appointment time. Little that we knew that our visit that day would change how we live our everyday life. 

The doctor initially used the doppler to check for the heart tone. She was surprised by how loud the heartbeat was being heard, in relation to the baby’s age. My heart jumped with joy as I heard the first sounds coming from my angel, as if he was telling me “hey dad, I’m here!”.

The doctor then requested an ultrasound scan using a screen. We got excited with the idea of seeing our baby for the first time. After the probe was placed, the screen showed images of the small baby, with the head and trunk clearly visible. I felt happiness from within, and I even got more excited to see my baby in person. 

The radiologist wrote his diagnosis and explained that he found some bleed from inside and that the placenta was low-lying. He said that the bleed could resolve on its own. But the position of the placenta is a concern.

We then decided to bring the results to our OB-Gyne. She saw the ultrasound pictures and suggested to my wife that she take a month leave from her work. She explained that the baby is not in a good situation and that rest is a necessity in order for the pregnancy to continue. The bleed from inside could progress if my wife continues her daily travels to work and back home. 

I knew from the doctor’s advice that we could lose our angel if we do not take precautionary measures. And that all our joys and excitement could disappear in an instant. 

My wife has now taken her leave, and we are taking all the necessary measures in order not to stress the pregnancy. I try to do most of the household chores for her and I make sure she is taking all her medications. But even if I do everything, I know that it is nothing compared as to what my wife is doing for our baby. Her carrying and taking care of herself for the baby is more difficult than whatever I am doing for this situation. 

I know that only God has the authority to choose who lives and who does not, who will be born and who will not be born. So I pray hard everyday to ask God to keep eyeing on my little guy, and that He help my wife with carrying him. I would understand if this is His way of making me understand how difficult fatherhood is, but I just want Him to make the two safe. 

And so, guys,  I need you in this matter. I need your prayers for my wife to avoid a complicated pregnancy. I need your prayers for my little angel to be born healthy. I need your prayers for us to be able to withstand these trials.

Help me hang unto the greatest gift I can possibly receive.