Mary Angelie~ an Answer to prayer!

This beautiful woman came in to the clinic very calm, relaxed with irregular contractions. It was tricky trying to guess how far along she was. But when i did an IE she was 7 cm, +1 station, 80% effaced. She labored well and an hour later had SROM. 15 mins later she asked to push and then 9 minutes after that, little Mary Angelie was born!

This is her first baby so only pushing for 9 mins is pretty fantastic!

The first part of the story..... I found out later on that Mary Joy and Orlando have been married for four years and have been praying for a child all this time. They were not able to get pregnant for the longest time, so when they found out the good news they were overjoyed and a bit worried. The looks on their faces when they saw their little girl was so tender.... so loving! She is their little angel! Their answer to prayer!

She got her first bath from her father, Orlando!

Myca Faulin Baby # 24

Jenevive is my continuity. She texted me early one morning but I didn't get it until someone at the clinic texted me saying she was there. When I arrived she was 7 cm with strong contractions. About 15 minutes later, her water broke and immediately she wanted to push. She only pushed for 7 minutes when little Myca Faulin was born! Her husband really caught my attention. He cared for her so lovingly while doing so on crutches. He has a lame leg.

Kurt Leogene baby # 23

Leonora was well on her way to having little Kurt by the time I came on shift. This is her fourth child and she was well versed in all the good exercises to help the baby move down. When little Kurt was born there was a tight cord coil but he doesn't seem any worse for the wear.

Baby # 22 Dhionne Kate

This is my continuity. She started texting me about 1am while I was working night shift. She was showing signs of early labor and I told her to stay at home until she was further along but she came anyway. It was a stormy night and she came in dripping wet and still in early labor. But she was far enough along, so I let her stay. It was going to be a long day is all I could think. We both needed sleep but she said she couldn't sleep... so I wasn't going to get any either! :- )

She labored fairly well but because she refused to rest the night before, was exhausted when it came time to push. I had to insert an IV. She tried to push too soon as well which made her cervix swell. She breathed through contractions but ultimately my supervisor chose to push her anterior lip back. Little Dhionne Kate was born 40 minutes later. All in all, she was at the clinic for over 12 hours. But looking back on it, i'm glad that i got to walk through it with her.

Baby #21 Cristine Jean

Shirley was a girl I did several prenatals on over the last few months. She is adorable and I always liked her a lot, but I didn't take her as a continuity.

But one night as I was working night shift in she walks. But she was in early labor and a different midwife was up first. She was sent home only to return several hours later ready to push. It was quite the birth. She was pushing the same time as another labor. They were born less than 10 minutes apart, and that was only because i asked her to wait until my supervisor could be there. She tried to wait... she really did, but I ended up being the only one in her room other than her husband. My supervisor wasn't far away though...

Gian Carl... once again!

15 minutes before shift change, one of my classmates came to get me at the house saying that there was a woman pushing. I was first up so i got my stuff and went over quick. I arrive in just enough time to don gloves and two pushes later the baby was born. There was a bit of mass confusion with all the midwives in the room but the dust settled some and all was quiet.

When I asked her his name she smiled and said 'Gian Carl'. This is the second baby this month to be named Gian Carl! I asked my supervisors where this name is from and they told me that it's the name of a handsome Filipino TV star. The best part is. I looked in the birth book and there have been 5 Gian Carls born this year!

My name sake

This lovely girl was endorsed to me already very active. She was 8 cm dilated and was already ready to push. She was quiet about it and by the time she actually started, it was only 20 minutes later that her baby was born. She came out crying and didn't stop except to eat and to sleep.

She named her Stephanie after me. My first name sake. :- )

Kent ~ Baby # 18

Meet Faith and baby Kent! This young girl is only 16 years old. She just turned 16 years old a few weeks ago. She was endorsed to me at 3-4 cm and was only interested in sitting down on a bench and rubbing her belly. I asked her to do exercises- stair climbing and walking around. She kept thinking the pain was as bad as it was going to get. Instead, it kept getting worse. She would start losing control and freaking out, then with a word and eye contact she calmed down instantly.

When it came time to push, she kept asking permission to push and I told her to wait. Eventually, she no longer asked if she could push, she just did it. She pushed for about an hour and toward the end Kent's heart tones were dropping. She watched her baby's head crowning with a mirror and was very excited about it. She pushed several times that way. As his head was crowning, there was a lot of resistance and I literally watched his head turn blue (cyanotic) while waiting to be born. We asked her to push through the pain and he was born. Kent's first APGAR score was 5, so we suctioned and gave oxygen and he pinked right up. His second one was 8.

Faith cried for joy after her son was born.

Baby #17 Gian Carl

Riza, Gian Carl's mother was already at the clinic when I got on shift. She was 8 cm dilated and the previous shift had broken her water in order to speed up her labor. She was very tired but was close to giving birth. Once she started pushing, her baby was born 19 minutes later. The placenta wasn't coming so my supervisor did a manual extraction. During birth, she tore a second degree tear and I got to suture her.

Gian's father, Glenn, was so attentive during birth, supporting his wife, rubbing her back and encouraging her. He was also the first one to bathe his son.

Ede Jr's Big Day!

An-An is one of my continuities. She has a remarkable history of birthing small babies. I took her as a continuity after seeing that her fundal height had not increased week after week. I was concerned that her baby would have complications and wanted to make sure someone follow up closely on her. The great news is An-An labored really well and had her baby after about 4 1/2 hours of labor. He was small but healthy.

This is her third child. When she had her last child, she was out in the mountains visiting her family. One day, she was alone in the house when the contractions started and gave birth completely unassisted after a very short labor! :-) She is a remarkable woman.

John Loyd and Janice~ baby # 15

This birth was my third baby in three days... yup... that was a pretty busy week! No wonder January sort of flew by! :-)

But to get to their story...

Janice came in very active just after lunch. I did and IE to see how far along she was and she was fully dilated with a +3 station. What that means for you that don't speak the rare language of obstetrics is, she was ready to have her baby!!! :-) Great! So I told her that she could start pushing with her contractions. She looked at me, smiled and then gazed off all dreamy eyed. She would attempt to push when I asked her to, but they were not effective. She wasn't really making an effort. I was going to wait it out but my supervisor wanted her to push so that's what we did. She seemed very disinterested in the whole process, almost as if she were watching a vacuum salesman promote the latest SLR5000 model. It was very surreal. This was her second baby so i expected her to know how to push. But it took an hour of pushing (small and ineffectual) to get the baby's head out. But then she stopped pushing completely. She looked as if she was done... like she had done all the pushing she was going to do but her baby's body was still inside. I asked her to push again but she refused. I had to reach in then lift and pull her baby out! It was all very strange. Afterwards, she was very serene and calm.... happy and somewhat detached. Both are doing great and I'm happy to say, both seem very attached to one another now! :-)

Baby Luis Justin~ baby # 14

Marilyn, Justin's mother came in with a low grade fever of 99.9 degrees. We gave her an IV and monitored her to see if it could come down before we transported her to the hospital. When we did an internal exam, she was already 9 cm along. The IV helped and her fever came down somewhat so we kept a close eye on her and allowed her to labor at the clinic. She wasn't there long when she felt the need to push. This was her first baby so she was still learning how to push and making room for the baby to come. She pushed for about an hour, steady and slow and as a result didn't get more than a tiny skin split. All in all, it was a great birth.

Precious Stones and Purple Flowers!

I got a call one evening around 9pm telling me that my continuity had just arrived at the clinic in labor. I had been praying for this lovely girl for quite some time after taking her as a continuity when I learned of her gynecological history. Her last two babies were delivered stillborn at the local hospital at 8 months and the doctors could not explain why.

This was her fourth pregnancy. She has a little boy at home who is five years old and seemed a bit nervous about her newest addition. I prayed with her, followed up on fetal movement charts and encouraged her to get an ultrasound. After she moved on into her 8th month and approached her due date, the fear of losing her baby was not as palatable even if it was still possible. She started looking happy and even excited about the birth. But she stayed reserved about it.

So when she came to the clinic in labor, I rushed over. It was a strange birth in so many ways. Her husband was attentive but I could tell he was a ball of nerves. I don't know why it never occurred to me before that he would be just as concerned as she that this baby live. I guess since I didn't see him for check ups, I sort of forgot about him.

Ruby was only 4 cm when I first checked her but her labor progressed well. She started getting "pushy" 3 1/2 hours later but she had a anterior cervical lip that needed to addressed. I got her on her hands and knees and let her push through several contractions that way, but she started showing signs of not coping well. It wasn't the physical but the emotional pain that was holding her back. My supervisor came to help and did perineal pressure to help the baby's head descend. She pretended to push somewhat but it was evident (at least from our end) she was not pushing at all. She tensed her body, she strained her neck, she got in the right position but SHE DID NOT PUSH!

We walked her through it for over an hour, we tried talking to her and asked what she was thinking. We encouraged her in every way we knew how but there was no progress. In fact, she was litterally crawling backwards on the bed away from me and my supervisor. We had to tell her to scoot back to the center of the bed twice. She thrashed and pretended to push but still didn't. Her baby's heart tones dropped dramatically and I have to admit there was a lot more stress in the room than I would have liked. One of my colleagues started telling her in Vasaya that if she didn't have her baby soon then we'd have to transport her to the hospital. It wasn't to that point yet, but apparently it got her attention and she pushed for real. From that point on, I believe little baby Iris was born within 15 minutes!

Iris came out completely posterior meaning she was looking up at me instead down at the bed when she was born. She was healthy and breathed well from the first minute. Ruby however fainted immediately. I believe it was the strain of the emotional stress because she had not lost much blood at all. She was perfectly normal when it came to her vital signs. It was just the fear and the potential pain. She woke up quickly afterwards and both have been doing great since then. Iris is healthy and strong and Ruby is doing very well recovering from the birth. This picture is of us all at their three week check.

An Even Dozen! (aka: baby #12)

The cute one in the bunny rabbit wrap is named Eugene. He came into the world quickly. His mother, Elgen, had a short labor and only 14 minutes of pushing! Her water broke while going to the bathroom and immediately she wanted to push. I did an internal exam to make sure she was fully dilated and she was!

Little Eugene came out with his hand right next to his cheek (aka: nuchal hand). This caused her to tear along a previous suture. I got to suture this! (This was my first time suturing!) It was challenging but unforgettable.

Baby # 11 "John Rey"

Jashiel, John Rey's mother came into the clinic very active. As I was doing her initial vitals she had moderate to strong contractions. Immediately afterwards, she had bloody show and looked ready to push. I asked her not to push immediately but to breath through her contractions if she could. I waited a minute looking for progress then did an internal exam. She was 9 + cm and was very "stretchy". While I was in there, I felt the baby's head move from +1 to +3 Station in one push!!! She had her baby minutes later!
She commented afterward that this was her longest labor at MMC! But she had only been at the clinic 45 minutes in all! :- ) I think she was trying to chide me for not letting her push earlier :-) But still... what a quick birth! :-) Pas-pas kaayo! (vasayan for "very fast!")

A New Year! A New Life!!!

Meet Little Christian! He was born on new years day! I worked on the swing shift and got to the clinic a little early. Lolita, Christian's mother had just barely arrived. She was active and getting "pushy". I finished checking her in by doing her vitals... and she started pushing! She had her baby 16 minutes later! She was amazing! Little Christian needed some extra help, he was cyanotic (aka: blue) for the first few minutes of life but with some oxygen and suction, he pinked right up! :-)

Lady's Night Out...

New Years Eve...

 

Baby # 9 Cendrella!!!

This lovely mother came in fairly active one morning at 6 cm. Her baby's head was in a posterior face presentation. That means the baby face was where the back of her head should have been. It was strange doing the IE as instead of a smooth hairy ball shape, I felt ridges! It couldn't quite place what I was feeling so I had my supervisor check her too. And sure enough, it was her baby's nose I was feeling!

She had some time before things got going fast so we had her do pelvic rocking to try and turn the baby into a better position and to get the baby's head to flex down. She was faithful to do the exercises, she moved a lot and was cheerful about it even though she was already quite tired.

About 2 1/5 hours later she felt the need to push so we had her push for a while. She did an amazing job at going slowly and breathing well. Her baby's head stayed close to crowing for almost 20 minutes as her perineum slowly stretched. When her girl was born, she only had a small tear that didn't need to be sutured. Later because she was still losing blood, I got to insert my first IV which went in with no problem the first time. Later we found a laceration internally that needed to be sutured.

Everything went remarkably well! She gave birth to a 7 lb 12 oz little girl and named her Cendrella! I told them that they had their very own fairy tale on their hands. And if they were going to name her Cendrella then, she would not be allowed to scrub floors, only marry Prince Charming!

Some interesting things about this mother. She had come in the day before to my prenatal clinic where I did the health teaching. This was not her normal prenatal day but she had missed her appointment and came the following day instead. After seeing me, she said she prayed that I would be her midwife and was so excited when she came in and there I was! Believe it or not, I was her answered prayer. :- ) She was a blessing to me as well! I look forward to getting to know her better.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

It's a bit warm in here..... but yes, I'm wearing a scarf!! I got it for Christmas! I mentioned a few weeks back that it didn't feel like Christmas if i didn't have to wear a scarf.... and lo and behold! I got one in the mail!!!! Thank you all for making my Christmas fun and warmer! I love the scarf and the Christmas cards that were sent! But most of all i love you all! Your prayers and encouragements are priceless!

May this new year be full to overflowing with the many blessings He alone can bring!!!

Baby #8 Baby Irene

This little girl was born at home before her mother could even make it to the clinic. Her grandmother came to the clinic at 1:30 am asking us to come home with her because Irene's mom had had her baby and the placenta was still inside... she wanted us to go with her to cut the cord and deliver the placenta.

My supervisor told her that we couldn't leave the clinic and she needed to bring her daughter to us. She blinked a few times as if confused then went home to get her daughter and granddaughter. All three arrived along with the father about an hour later. I was next up so i went to cut the cord in the taxi.

Irene's mother, Jessica was lying in the back of the taxi and little Irene was wrapped on her lap. After cutting the cord and wrapping her up, i gave her to her father and we got Jessica in the wheelchair and pushed her into the birth room. She lied down on the bed and we unwrapped her. She had about 5 blankets around her. In one of them we found the placenta that had come out on its own. We examined it and took Jessica's vitals. Everyone was healthy and strong. Irene was cold but that wasn't too bad. Jessica got up almost immediately to shower and moved to the postpartum room. It was the fastest 'birth' I've ever attended. All I had to do was take some vitals and cut a cord! :- )

Cocka-doodle-do NOT!

 This guy is deceptively disruptive for such a small animal! He is just one of about a half a dozen 'fowl' that foul up our street. It's not so much the smell as the NOISE!

This little guy is clean and obviously well loved. He is tied to a post like a dog and even has a mini 'Rooster hut' where he gets out of the afternoon heat. But man alive, He's loud!!!
 
Rooster's compete in Cock Fights in the Philippines like in many other countries around the world. It is a national past time and a major draw during holidays. Mainly, the men dominate this arena but sometimes you'll find women court side too. Mainly, it's a chance to wager on which bird is gonna win! It's quite the 'to do' even though it is highly controversial. All I can say is Tug-tu-gau-og! (Vasayan for Cocka-doodle-do!)

Baby # 7 Little Ayanna

This lovely mother, Joan, came in at 6:30 am after I had just gotten on shift. She was pretty active so we didn't do an internal exam knowing that she was close. I just watched her labor. Around 8:30 am she felt the need to push and pushed for about 30 minutes with little progress.

I did an IE to see what was going on, and she had an anterior cervical lip. I had her labor on her hands and knees for a few contractions and another 30 min later beautiful Ayanna was born at 9:28 am.

It was so fun watching Joan's mother support and encourage her through the whole process.

Magson Menace!

This is Magson. It is an herbal oil that women put on their bellies here. I'm not entirely sure why they think it's necessary but it is very common. It's a major problem.

It causes a woman to have contractions and often to go into pre-term labor.
One young lady went into false labor at 34 weeks and found herself admitted into the emergency room.
During prenatals this morning 5 out of the 8 women I talked to have been using Magson regularly!

My first Continuity! ~ baby #6

Meet little Curt Wynn born December 14th at 12:04 pm, weighing 3740 grams!
Look at those cute chubby cheeks!!!

His mom, Menchie, is my first continuity. A continuity is a woman who I follow along with from prenatals and am on call for their birth when they go into labor. So when I got call from her two weeks before her due date I wasn't too surprised. This is her fourth baby and mothers who have had babies before tend to deliver a few weeks early. She had lost her last baby at 5 months for unknown reasons. That is why I took her as a continuity.

She texted me at 6 am that morning asking if it was okay not to come to her prenatal appointment because she had labor pains and was going to wait until her water broke before she came in. She didn't want to have to come in twice. Knowing that this was her fourth baby, I didn't want her to wait too long. I texted her back asking 'how far apart are your contractions?' She answered me by saying 'I live on such a such street in ABC district!'

Obviously we had a failure to communicate. I gave her my home phone number and asked her to call me. I asked her how strong the 'pain' was, and whether it was high or low on her belly. She tried to answer me but was having a hard time talking through the contraction. It was that strong! I told her not to wait and to come in as soon as she could. She made it to the clinic about an hour later and when i did and IE on her, she was already 8 cm! She labored well and a few hours later gave birth to a chubby cheeks little boy! But her water didn't break until the head came out! So had she waited, she would of had her baby at home! :- )

Oh the things you will eat.......

Century Eggs!

They're not for everyone but they sure are tasty! This is part of the Chinese influence in this country. I'm told by one of the Filipino midwives that it is made by boiling the eggs then burying them underground for several months in mud! That is what causes them to turn black!

Here is Jordan, one of my classmates, tasting a century egg for the first time! She thought it would be bad... but they taste like regular boiled eggs but the texture is a bit different! :- )

Little Loren - Baby # 5

Everyone meet beautiful baby girl Loren and her mother Karen!

Karen was already at the clinic when I came on shift. She was about 6 cm but was not in any pain at all! She was nick named 'Smiley' by everyone on shift because for someone in 'active' labor she sure was in a good mood!

We waited six hours and redid an internal exam to see if there was any progress and she was at 7 cm! This was unusual as this was her 3rd baby. The baby's head was well engaged so my supervisor did an amniotomy (which is an artificial rupture of membranes) to speed up her labor a bit. Immediately afterwards her contractions picked up and she lost her smile! There were other babies being born, so I stepped away for a while and when I returned about 20 minutes later she looked very active and ready to push. I set up her room and a few minutes later... Little Loren came into the world! She labored only 35 minutes after the amniotomy!

Buntis Belly!

Do you ever wonder what you'll look like pregnant? Some of you already know.... but I didn't until the day I became 'buntis' (pregnant in Vasayan). Don't worry... I'm not trying to tell you all something. I'm really not pregnant... :- ) My classmate did a plaster of one of her patient's belly and when it was all said and done we took turns wearing it! This is what I look like at 81/2 months! Being surrounded my babies does terrible things to ones biological clock! I've even started smelling every baby I hold! What was I thinking coming over here! :- ) I'm ruined for life! It must be all the estrogen in the air!

Jeulia Baby # 4

Everybody meet Little Jeulia! Her mother came in very active. She went to the bathroom to wash up and barely made it to the bed when she said she needed to push. I looked and sure enough her baby was on its way! I hadn't even put my gloves on, I didn't have a protective pad under her and I hadn't even see her prenatal chart when she started pushing!

I called my supervisor and got my assistants in the room and we had just enough time to get her situated when out came her little girl!

The funniest part was I had to ask her name during her first push. It sounded something like... "hi! my name is Stephanie! What's your name? Marianne? Great to meet you... you're having your baby! So when I tell you... push very slowly and breath!" She arrived at our clinic at 1:20 pm and had her baby at 1:28 pm.

After the dust settled I asked the mother what time her labor began. She said 1:00 o'clock. I asked, "1 o'clock in the morning?" "No, 1 pm!", she said. She had apparently been out shopping with her husband when the contractions started with gusto. They rushed to the clinic and she had her baby 28 minutes later! They didn't even have their baby clothes or birth bag with them! It's amazing they even made it to the clinic in time!

Livingstone Orphanage

A few weeks back I went to an orphanage here in Davao. While I was there I met some adorable little ones! There are about a dozen children aged from newborn to about 8 years old. They are playful, loving and absolutely precious!

We were there visiting baby Joshua, one of the students babies that was given up for adoption. Joshua's story is a little unique. His mom went into labor prematurely and was rushed to the clinic by her boss. She gave birth in the back of his fancy SUV to a small but otherwise healthy little boy. Had she not given birth in the SUV we would have been forced to transport her to the hospital. But God worked everything out for the best and she and little Joshua stayed at our clinic. The next day he was taken to Livingstone Orphanage!

As we stayed and played with the children, we were overwhelmed with hugs and cuddles. We were tugged on, prodded and crawled on ... I had a blast! I think I took about 100 pictures. Here are some of the best ones.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Merry Christmas!!!
I'm in the final throes of Christmas Dinner Coma! I'm not sure I'll make it... I'm going under.... I cannot stay awake!
But I have to wish you all a wonderful and happy Christmas... and Jesus a wonderful Birthday!

Please forgive the cheesy reindeer hat but I couldn't resist!
My prayer for you all is that this season would be full of amazing memories of God's blessings all throughout the year!
Your prayers are my biggest blessing Thank you so very much God bless!  ~Stephanie

Thanks-Giving-Eating-Laughing

As a school and clinic we gathered everyone together (well ... everyone who wanted food that is!) and had ourselves a feast! There is a huge benefit to having so many women around! Gourmet cooks at that! But of course, thanksgiving here couldn't happen without RICE! I'm even starting to like rice... (this is big!) Don't get me wrong. I eat rice and I smile. But it has no flavor so i look at a lot like 'Filler'. Along with rice we had stuffing, chicken, home made rolls, steaming hot mashed potatoes and desserts galore! It was wonderful. Nothing at all like home! But it doesn't have to be! I'm not home!
These lovely ladies are students like us. And there is always laughter when they get together! : -)

Baby catch # 3

Everyone meet lovely Lyn-lyn and little JD Nathaniel!
This is her 3rd baby. So, she was very relaxed and controlled during her labor. It was amazing! Both she and her little one made it through with flying colors!
Afterwards, when i asked her and her husband what they would name their precious little boy.... they both just stared at me blankly than looked at one another and laughed. Apparently, they had run out of good boy names on their previous children. So we called him 'little one'. By her third check up, she finally told me they had decided on JD... but get this... their other boy is named DJ! That's just asking for trouble! :- )

Baby catch # 2

Everyone.... Meet Baby Princess Dhanna! : - )

She made her way in the world on November 13th with a quiet gentle birth. Her father is a nursing student and her mother is planning on studying midwifery! They were both amazing... they were interested in everything going on! They asked lots of questions! It was fun and refreshing!
There was only one complication to this birth. This young mother wouldn't stop bleeding after the birth, so we had to insert an IV and give her some oxytocin. But she decided her IV drip was going too slow so every time I left the room she would speed it up! :- ) I didn't know if I should laugh or lecture!

The neighborhood!

We live on a little circular street and it comes to life at all hours of the day! Mainly, it is a thorough fare for pregnant women and new mamas! They come and go at all hours of the day!

But it is also a playground for some very fun and enthusiastic kids! Basketball is high on the list of things to do. So is tag and tag-ball!

I went to play a bit of B-ball the other day and 3 1/2 foot 7 yr olds were kicking my butt! :-) It was humiliatingly fun! They ran me thin, then chased me as I became the 'monster' who would turn them into zombies if i tagged them!
Their laughter is a comfort and real reminder that life is to be lived to the fullest!
The other day, a few of the girls gave them watermelon.... they were all smiles!

My first "catch" could have used a mitt!

Okay... so the day of my first 'catch' had to come sooner or later. Last night/this morning was the day! But it was far from a 'catch'.

This lovely first time mom came in at 3cm at 10pm last night just as i was getting on shift. Normally she would have been sent home to labor there, but it was late and she lived somewhat far away from the clinic, so she was admitted.

She had mild contractions and paced the clinic early on and I checked on her every 30 mins to an hour, just to see her progress. At 2am her waters broke but still the contractions were only moderately strong. I check on her progress at 3am and again at 4am but the baby didn't appear to be coming any time soon. All looked like she need a few more hours.

I went to rest and came back to check on her at 5 am and she looked like she was pushing. I asked her if she was trying to push and she just grunted and said... 'It hurts really bad!" One of my supervisors heard us talking and came to check, we called for more help as the mother pushed. Blood and discharge came out. I tried to get her to lie down so I could see what was happening. She wasn't in the best position for birthing a baby. (She was half sitting on the bed with her legs tucked beneath her.) But before she could lie down, she pushed again and the baby came out!!!

I had no gloves on nor any protective sheets beneath her! The baby came out all on its own! After some controlled chaos and a lot of clean up, we got the mother to another bed where she finished birthing her placenta. (The bed she was on was covered in amniotic fluid and blood! As was I and her husband!)

The placenta was birthed with a lot of blood loss. Her uterus wasn't firming up like it should. We gave her oxitocin, massaged her fundus and inserted an IV. She ended up loosing over a liter of blood! (this is not common!) and she had a 3rd degree tear that needed suturing! Her bleeding didn't slow down so my supervisor did a manual exploration to see if there were any retained membranes. This is never comfortable but for her it was very necessary! Her bleeding slowed to a stop and my heart rate slowed with it!

Fortunately, we didn't have to transport her or her baby! The baby girl is named Jeanycah. And I'm happy to report that she is doing great despite her rushed entrance to this world!

Several hours later, as mother and baby rested and ate, I finished my paperwork and handed the postpartum care over to the next shift. This birth was not what I expected. I doubt my supervisor expected it either! But God saw us all through it! Jeanycah and Mom are doing great! and I am wiser for the wear!

Please pray for Mama (Je Je) and Baby Jeanycah!! For health and a quick recovery! And pray that I would learn from this, and know how better to help my future labors!

I MISS MY CAT!!!

So..... I've been thinking... wouldn't it be nice to have a kitty! One that would sit in my lap and shed on my clothes... one that would sleep on my face and hunt all the geckos. But, those in my life are just not as excited about me getting a cat as I would hope!

I got a CAT-igorical NO when I asked!
So, I thought... what about a bird! They are all self contained and I could pet a bird and pretend it's a cat.... I could train it to attack geckos... and who knows.... meow! But that was ex-nayed as well.

So what are my options? What causes absolutely NO PROBLEMS? What won't catch flea, shed or run away? What won't make a lot of racket, bite off your nose or smell funny? What won't cause any allergic reactions or keep you up at night? Yep... you guessed it FISH!

There is only one problem.... Fish suck! Unless of course you lightly bread, pan fry and garnish with a cilantro mango chutney! :- ) Yumm!

All I can say is.... I MISS MY CAT!!!!!

Lyn-Lyn's Eleven!

This little guy is a little miracle.... His mother was one of the women I did a few prenatals on. She was very nervous about her pregnancy. She is 35 years old and hadn't had a child for 11 years. She was afraid that perhaps she wouldn't remember how. :- )

I really liked her and when I saw her come into the clinic in active labor while I was on shift, we were both thrilled. Normally, I would have taken her as a continuity (which is when I am her only midwife) but I wasn't expected to be delivering babies any time soon. So when God put us together anyway, I was very excited.

There was only one problem. She came in at 6 cm but with VERY HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE. It was 140/100. If we couldn't get it to come down, we would have to send her to the hospital to give birth.

None of the women that come to our clinic want to go the hospital. When we transport them for complications, they are never happy to go. The hospital will not allow anyone to support them while they labor. They go through it without any loved ones. The staff there is over-worked and the rooms are stark and sad. Plus, it costs much, much more.

Lyn-Lyn was not excited when we told her she might be transported. I went to talk with her about it and we prayed. We prayed A LOT!!! Then we left it up to God. Long story really short... her BP came down little by little and little baby Joncel Kieven was born a few hours later.

The best part is she gave birth on her first son's birthday! How is that for timing? She has had two boy exactly 11 years apart!