Bump Watch – Page 7 – Texas Children's News

April 15, 2014

“I’m pregnant!” I thought to myself excitedly in December, but the excitement quickly dissipated when I flashed forward to the anxiety laden weeks ahead.

Pregnancy after a miscarriage is scary. Exciting, but scary. It’s filled with the unknowns and the “what ifs.” For me, finding out I was pregnant again, after many losses left me with a roller coaster of emotions. Each little ache and pain I had stirred a barrage of questions in my head. Adding to the anxiety was deciding on when to tell others, which felt like the most momentous decision ever. It’s not that you’re trying to hide anything; it’s just a self-protective measure. Why allow yourself and others to get excited, knowing what the outcome has been so many times before…right? My husband and I were to the point that we would just laugh and tell each other we’d see how long this one lasted. You realize you become desensitized to the whole situation and develop some odd ways of coping with the uncertainty. Unfortunately, pregnancy loss takes the innocence out of being pregnant.

Over the past year and a half, for mine and my family’s sake, I had to start placing less emphasis on my losses and more on what I do have in life. The last step for us was to seek some medical advice on what else could be causing our losses. So in the pursuit to find answers and make some decisions, my husband and I were presented with some fertility options that were too outside of our comfort zone. At that time we decided if we only had our son Dillon, he would be more of a blessing than we ever deserve. So I kept myself busy and resigned to the “que sera sera” mantra regarding the whole pregnancy thing. Well, wouldn’t you know, lo and behold, a whole week later, I found out I was pregnant! I told my husband New Year’s Day and so far 2014 has been good to us. With each ultrasound and flutter of movement I feel, I get more excited and more hopeful. I am now 17 weeks along and things are going great.

After my fist loss at 16 weeks, I was connected with the Woman’s Place at the Pavilion which offers assistance during reproductive loss and grief. After my subsequent losses at nine weeks and three at only five weeks, I was referred to the Maternal Fetal Medicine Department for further testing, where everything checked out ok. Along my journey to this pregnancy, I have had the best care from the Pavilion. From the Family Fertility Center, to the additional ultrasounds with the Maternal Fetal Medicine department, they have all helped put my mind at ease that much more. Knowing the care I need is literally around the corner is so comforting.

The reason I wanted to share my story was to try and offer hope to the many women out there whose stories are like mine and need some encouragement. I wanted to let these women know there is hope, and they should never feel ashamed, or feel like a failure for a pregnancy not going to term. It took me many months to figure this out and to start letting go of some of the guilt, sadness, anger, and heartbreak that are common after a miscarriage. My healing came through reading the stories of women online, or talking with coworkers who suffered miscarriages and know what pregnancy loss feels like. That it feels like the loss of hopes and dreams you’ve made for your baby, or the loss of a bond you formed the moment you knew you were going to be a mom. Please know time will make the pain easier but never make you forget, and that’s ok…why would you want to forget about your baby? Above all else, I wrote this post so women will know there is hope after loss…if they choose to keep their heart open to the possibility.

So how do you handle being pregnant again after a loss? For me, it’s getting through one day and one milestone at a time. Surpassing the time of my first miscarriage was the biggest challenge of all, and now that I have, I can take a deep breath and enjoy this pregnancy. I think about how differently this pregnancy feels, and try to focus on that. I don’t know what the future holds, but I know worrying all the time won’t help my little one. So therefore, I choose to accept each day with this baby as a gift; a very special gift that has the ability to make the heartache less and less, and make my heart fill abundantly with joy being it’s mommy.

Rhea HoSang Celestin is a staff nurse in the Clinical Care Center.

April 8, 2014

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Nine years ago, I was sitting in a meeting with the St. Luke’s CEO when I learned that they were looking to get out of obstetrics and gynecology and maternal fetal medicine. I raised my hand and let them know we were interested to take over. I knew we were about to do something that would change women’s health care in Houston forever. Texas Children’s would assume responsibility for St. Luke’s ob/gyn and MFM services until we were able to build our own facility.

Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women opened its doors for inpatient services on March 26, 2012. It was a monumental day for everyone who had been a part of planning and executing this new state-of-the-art hospital. I knew it would make a difference in the lives of countless women. What I didn’t know then was that I would one day have a personal experience at the Pavilion as a family member.

On February 10, 2014 at 6:29 p.m., Clark Wallace was born at Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women. What a full circle moment. From the day I raised my hand in that meeting with St. Luke’s, to my own grandbaby being born here, it was surreal. This was a very special and exciting experience from a number of different perspectives.

First, it was our son Ben’s first baby. Emily, our daughter, has four sons and one daughter, but they live in Chicago, so this was also our first Texas-born grandbaby. Of course it was also impressive to experience the Pavilion as a grandparent and to be here for such a special moment in my personal life.

My wife, Shannon, and I patiently waited at home to get the news of Clark’s arrival and came to the hospital the following morning to meet the newest grandbaby. To see our Pavilion team in action – from Dr. Belfort to everyone in the delivery suite, the floor nurses, diagnostic and therapeutic services, radiology and pathology, food and nutrition – was incredible. To see it all come together in such a beautiful way and know that it wasn’t just for Clark Wallace but that it’s what all our patients are experiencing was a proud moment for me, both as President and CEO and as a grandfather.

I knew we had the right vision for this new hospital and for the thousands of babies born here every year, including my grandson. I have great pride in knowing that our grandson and daughter-in-law had the very best care. Seeing that care firsthand as member of a patient’s family and knowing it’s the same care every mother and baby receives here was truly an incredible feeling.

Now it might be hard to believe, but I promise I saw Clark smile as soon as he saw me and I might have even heard him say “TCH.” He looked exactly like Ben did when he was born, a really good looking fella with a big head and fat cheeks.

Watching the team at work from a patient family perspective and seeing the quality of care and service – from valet to the delivery room and room service – made me swell with pride for what we’ve created at the Pavilion for Women. It’s one of a kind, and there’s nothing like it in Texas, the U.S. or the world.

April 1, 2014

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When my husband and I first heard the news that our unborn daughter had CDH (congenital diaphragmatic hernia), time stood still in what seemed like a dense fog. As many would do, I ran to internet sites like Google and Wikipedia to find out more about this sometimes fatal abnormality. I was inundated with medical terminology and survival statistics. I was able to create a huge binder with all of the research I had done and carry that stack of documents with me to every appointment we had. Needless to say, I thought I was prepared for the various outcomes we could experience after our little girl was born.

On November 28th, 2010, Brooklyn Elizabeth Hales was born one day shy of her Father’s birthday and one month short of her due date. She was immediately intubated and taken to the NICU III in West Tower. For the next few weeks she struggled with stability and even ended up on ECMO. There were many dark moments in those first weeks of her life, but like I said before, we knew what we were up against. We knew that the ugly road of CDH was not an easy one, and we had prepared our hearts for heartbreak.

What we hadn’t planned for, and what never even came to mind, was how we would cope with “NICU life.” In the four months of Brooklyn’s hospital stay, I spent majority of my time at her bedside, walking the halls of West Tower, or trying to catch some rest in the Ronald McDonald House on the fourth floor. I lived, breathed, and smelled like the NICU. I had a fully organized folder on what Brooklyn could be faced with, but I had an empty hand when it came to information on how to navigate my role as a parent in the NICU. As a parent, you are your child’s most valuable advocate. You have intuition and you will spend the most time with your child. But how do you know which beep means business? Or how do you know when to speak and when to be quiet?

Or… what if my child’s pod mate passes away?
These are all questions and scenarios I had to navigate thru as a first time NICU parent. The one thing I learned over anything else when living in the NICU is that there’s a lot you CAN prepare for, and a lot you CAN’T prepare for.

As an employee of Texas Children’s, I know that we are constantly seeking out opportunities to better our families and their experiences. And as a NICU parent, I am even more excited about the creation of a new resource class available to our parents. A few months ago I had the privilege to brainstorm with the creators of the class, Preparing for Your Newborn’s Hospitalization. The purpose of our meeting was to gain the perspective of a NICU parent and bring up what could have been helpful prior to that “NICU life.” This class, with the help of its leaders and speakers, will better prepare those parents who are awaiting their newborn’s stay. I feel that had this been at my disposal prior to Brooklyn’s birth, I would have been one of the first to sign up. I believe it will be a tremendous value to our parents and great addition to the many great classes provided by the Pavilion for Women.

To sign up for “Parenting your hospitalized baby” or any of the other classes available to Pavilion patients, visit: http://women.texaschildrens.org/Patient-Education/

March 25, 2014

Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women opened its doors two years ago and has been exceeding expectations ever since. View the photos below and see if you can guess some of the most memorable moments from the last 24 months.

Then scroll to the bottom of the page for the answers

1. What was the official first day of delivering miracles at Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women?

2. Who was the first baby born at the new facility?

3. Why was the miracle bridge lit up on the first day of inpatient services?

4. Who are the famous babies in this picture?

5. How was the Pavilion involved with the March of Dimes?

6. What other service is important to the diverse group of patients who visit the Pavilion?

7. What are some of the in-utero procedures that have been done at the Pavilion?

8. How many babies were born in year one?

9. Where is the hospital’s first community ObGyn office?

10. What did the Hackett family gift fund?

11. What is the use of the DaVinci robot?

12. Who is Baby Audrina?

Answers:

1. Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women leadership broke the ribbon on the brand new hospital on March 23, 2012, the first day of inpatient services was Monday, March 26, 2012.
2. The first baby born at the Pavilion for Women was Brayten Green, born at 8:16 a.m. March 26, 2012.
3. On the first night of delivering miracles, The Miracle Bridge was lit up in blue to celebrate the first baby born at the Pavilion for Women.
4. The “Perkins Pack,” as they came to be known, was the first set of sextuplets born at the Pavilion for Women. They gained national attention with several interviews on network television.
5. As a center dedicated to high risk pregnancies which cares for many premature babies, the Pavilion was the presenting sponsor for March of Dimes March for Babies 2012.
6. The Menopause Clinic is just one of the sought-after features available at the Pavilion that allow us to care for women at every stage of life.
7. Programs for in-utero spina bifida repair, in-utero heart intervention, and in-utero balloon placement for congenital diaphragmatic hernia were all created within the first year.
8. Within the first a year, about 5,000 babies were born at the Pavilion.
9. The first ever ObGyn clinic opened its doors in Pearland bringing the Pavilion’s outpatient services to the Pearland community.
10. The hospital received a $2 million gift to establish the Maureen Hackett Endowed Chair for Reproductive Psychiatry.
11. The new robotics program and the acquisition of the DaVinci robot allows for the use of cutting-edge techniques to help perform complex surgical procedures that are minimally invasive in both the adult and pedi population.
12. Baby Audrina Cardenas was born at the Pavilion with one-third of her heart outside of her chest. A multidisciplinary team of surgeons performed a six hour open-heart surgery where they reconstructed her chest cavity to make space for her heart.

March 18, 2014

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For a first time pregnant woman (not calling myself a mom yet) pregnancy is a beautiful thing. Yet, there are things about pregnancy that no one cared to share. They are the mishaps that I shared (unfortunately) with my patient and saint-like husband. Thankfully, it has made our marriage stronger than ever to go through it all together. Here is an inside look at the unexpected journey of the first trimester. The things friends don’t tell you and books don’t explain (or maybe they do and I haven’t read the right ones yet).

I’ve cried through a sad movie or two pre-pregnancy. However nothing warned me about the emotional changes that happen during pregnancy. Let me give you two fun examples.

Example #1: I love cream cheese, even more now that Baby Calderwood loves cream cheese. I could eat it on anything, in a box, with a fox, you name it! Cream cheese (in my household) may be the solution to finding world peace. I was dancing happily, waiting for my toaster to pop out these two golden brown, crispy and crunchy bagel slices – when I danced over to the refrigerator. I opened the door and took my first look… No cream cheese? Don’t panic. The world is still spinning. Let’s thoroughly investigate every shelf and drawer. No cream cheese! It was in this exact moment that the world, as I knew it, came crashing down. My poor husband must have thought a tragic event was taking place, well it was – we didn’t have any cream cheese for my golden, crispy, crunchy bagel. I cannot begin to describe the massive alligator tears that streamed down my face. The inconsolable sobbing and mourning of my dear cream cheese. I was crying so hard – I could barely breathe. My husband stood in the door way of our kitchen, with this stupid smirk on his face and said “Babe – just put some butter on the bagel, we can get some cream cheese in the morning.” That’s when the tears instantly turned to rage. Who did he think he was? The master of bagel making? Without stopping the vocal force in my throat, I let out a “LEAVE ME ALONE.” The screaming sob could be compared to a toddler. I should have thrown myself on the floor for a more dramatic appeal. Hindsight is 20/20. To sum up the story – pregnancy and hormone changes can rear their little heads at any given moment. You must be prepared. In my case, we keep cream cheese stocked like our kitchen is an Einstein Bagel joint.

Example #2: (this one’s for the husbands). Pregnancy can make a woman crazy lovey-dovey. There have been moments when I look at my husband and I could squeeze him so hard, just because I love him so much. He’s my perfection. One evening, while watching TV, we sat side by side on our couch, in our ‘reserved seating.’ He was reading on his iPad, I was flipping back and forth from the Olympics and a Law & Order Marathon. I noticed him out of the corner of my eye, and found myself oogly eyed staring at him. I reached out my hand and sheepishly said “Do you want to hold my hand?” and I gave him my best smile…. His reply… “Not really.” The emotions instantaneously boiled behind my eyeballs and alligator tears shot out like firing missiles. Hysterically, I sobbed and said “All I want to do was hold your hand because I love you and I think you are so special to me and I can’t believe you don’t want to hold my hand and I’m tired and going to bed” – All like that, all in one glorious run on sentence. He stared at me in disbelief and started to nervously giggle. He said, “Oh hun – don’t cry I just didn’t want to hold your hand, I’m reading. Why are you crying?” All I could say between hyperventilating sobs was “BECAUSE I LOVE YOU,” and then, within minutes I was asleep. I am convinced that my husband thinks I am an impersonator who escaped a mental institution. Moral of the story: If your highly emotional pregnant wife wants to hold your hand on the couch. Do it.

So moral of my two fun fact stories? The first trimester brings on a whole new level of sensitivity, tears and sleepiness. Tears that haven’t been produced by my tear ducts since I was 4 years old and I couldn’t get a toy in the checkout line. And naps consistent with a 1 week old or a narcoleptic.

I’m excited to experience this pregnancy and share it with all of you on Bump Watch. I know many of you have had the “Pavilion experience” and I am eager to experience it for myself. Let me know if you have any suggestions for when I get there! For now, let’s see what the second trimester brings!

March 11, 2014

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By Titi Otunla, Certified Nurse Midwife

Becoming a midwife was part calling and part admiration for the midwives I witnessed growing up in England. I knew I wanted to assist women with health decisions and especially be involved in one of life’s most transformative experiences – childbirth.

The midwifery philosophy acknowledges pregnancy and birth as normal physiological events in a woman’s life. When a woman chooses our practice and comes to the hospital for the birth, she will have a midwife with her throughout labor. Midwifery guidance and support ensures that labor and the birth progress is undisturbed. Midwives believe in being with women, assisting them to have the birth they desire. We teach and strongly encourage women to practice the mind-body connection, which helps prepare them for a satisfying birth.

At Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women, our team of six Certified Nurse Midwives practices with The Women’s Specialists of Houston. Our patients choose to birth with a midwife and have comfort in knowing that if their pregnancy becomes high-risk they can be referred to physicians within the group. The hospital has an intimate and soothing environment but in the event emergency care is needed, women are assured that they are in a state-of-the-art facility with world-class expertise readily available.

About Titi Otunla: Titi a Certified Nurse Midwife with the Women’s Specialists of Houston at Texas Women’s Pavilion for Women. She’s been a midwife for 27 years and believes that a positive birth experience is important for all women.

March 4, 2014

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When my husband Matt and I found out we were pregnant with our daughter Finnley, we both knew we wanted to use a midwife instead of an OB. A midwife is different than an OB in the sense that they usually have a more natural/holistic approach to care. While they are trained to deliver babies, they usually care for women with a normal, non high risk pregnancy. For example, instead of going to drugs to help progress labor, they are more likely to suggest things like walking, using a yoga ball, and changing position. An OB may start with Pitocin, or have a more technical approach to care. Midwives are just as capable to assess a pregnant woman, diagnose problems, and remedy them as needed, but will transfer care to an OB if the patient becomes high risk. We chose a midwife because I knew that I wanted to have a natural delivery without any medications and I wanted our baby to come when she wanted to, without anything speeding her along. My husband and I believed that with a midwife, the birth that we wanted was more likely to happen.

After doing tons of research we decided to use the midwife group from the Women’s Specialists of Houston. Luckily for us, they are housed here at the Pavilion! The group consists of six Certified Nurse Midwives, meaning they are Advanced Practice Nurses that are certified by the American Midwifery Certification Board. Not only has the group been around since 1994, they work in collaboration with the physicians in the practice, just in case you need a higher level of care. The midwives are on-call 24/7, just like the doctors, and do all prenatal visits themselves (they also provide well-woman, family planning and post-partum care).

One of my favorite things about the midwife group was that at each visit you see a different midwife. This was especially important to me and my husband because there was no way to know who would be on-call when we went into labor. I couldn’t fathom getting to the hospital and finding out the doctor on-call was someone I had never met. Because of this practice, I knew each midwife personally, formed a relationship with and trusted each one. I knew that whoever was on-call would be someone that had been a part of my care from the very beginning and I trusted my life and most importantly, my child’s life in their hands.

There are a few questions I get asked all the time by people that aren’t familiar, or even know you have a choice, when using a midwife.

Don’t all midwives do home births?

No, some midwives work in hospitals and birthing centers, there are some that only do home births though, if that’s what you’re interested in!

What if you had to have a C-Section?

Thankfully I didn’t, but if there was an emergency that could only be handled by an OB, there is always an on-call physician present in the Pavilion in the event a problem arises that isn’t under the scope of practice of the midwife.

Does having a midwife mean you can’t get any pain medication?

No! I chose to go the drug-free route and was so proud of myself for having a pain medication free childbirth. But, having a midwife doesn’t mean you have to do that. You can still get an epidural, or the pain medication of choice. Having a midwife doesn’t prevent you from having the birth you have planned. They are there to help, support and give you what you need on one of the most exciting days of your life!

If you are considering using a midwife in the future, I would suggest sitting down with your partner and discussing what sort of childbirth you imagine and ask yourself some questions. Do you want to attempt a drug free birth? Do you imagine yourself trying alternative methods for pain management such as being in the bath or shower, massage, aromatherapy oils and changing position? Do you want to have some freedom in your labor by having the option of moving around? Or, would not having an OB cause you anxiety? Feeling comfortable and confident in your decision is extremely important, so take your time, do your research and follow your gut!

Using the Midwife Group at the Women’s Specialists of Houston was one of the best decisions I made during my pregnancy (besides having a Doula, but that is another story for another time).

Now that Matt and I are expecting baby Curie #2 (SURPRISE!), I am so excited to be using the midwives again. I know we will get the time and care that we need to grow and thrive. I am so thankful for what they do every day and thankful that Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women gives those like me the opportunity to have the pregnancy and birth that we want, even if it is a little unconventional.

Read Bump Watch next week to see one mother’s experience through a videotaped midwife delivery.

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