A first email

When I was in the hospital, I wrote this draft of an email, but didn't send it.  I can't remember the date I wrote it but it was either the first or second day after Ryan was born.

Hello everyone.

First, we'd like to thank everyone for their thoughts, prayers, and well wishes.  Every little bit helps.  I wanted to send out a quick update and a little background on what has been going on these past few days.

It all started with this: (Men and young children may skip to the following paragraph)
Placental abruption (also known as abruptio placentae) is a complication of pregnancy, wherein the placental lining has separated from the uterus of the mother. It is the most common pathological cause of late pregnancy bleeding. In humans, it refers to the abnormal separation after 20 weeks of gestation and prior to birth. It occurs in 1% of pregnancies worldwide. Placental abruption is a significant contributor to maternal mortality worldwide; early and skilled medical intervention is needed to ensure a good outcome, and this is not available in many parts of the world. Treatment depends on how serious the abruption is and how far along the woman is in her pregnancy.^[1]

Yep- that said 1%. 

Although I was not diagnosed right away... (not even til they actually got to look at the placenta) mine never showed up in any ultrasounds. I'd had some spotting, and was admitted to Southlake for a few days to keep an eye on things. During my time, they monitored me and baby, and everything seemed fine so I went home to take it easy.  A couple of days later, things still weren't quite right so I went back to Southlake feeling crampy and still bleeding.  They wasted no time getting me transferred via ambulance to Mount Sinai in Toronto.  We made record time from Newmarket to downtown in under 30 minutes. Scary.  Scott drove down and it took him an hour and a half.

The wonderful staff at Mt. Sinai stayed by my side trying as hard as they could to get the contractions to stop- at this time, Ryan was 24 weeks and 4 days gestation.  Every day we could keep him in, his chances of survival grew... we wanted him in MUCH longer.  However, mother nature had other ideas, and the following morning, things started progressing and we were forced to make the decision whether to deliver naturally or c-section.  After brief but emotional debates, we decided on a c-section for a number of reasons. It turned out to be the best choice we could have made. 

Ryan Douglas McPhail entered the world at 24 weeks, 5 days gestation.  On April 28 at 6:30 am.  Weighing 1 pound, 12 ounces.  His original due date was August 13.

Our lives have forever changed.

Ryan will be a resident of Mount Sinai's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit for the next 4-5 months.  We aren't even counting months at this point, we are counting minutes.  He is in the best possible hands, with a nurse by his side at all times.  Every moment can bring good things, or bad things. Here are some of the good things that have happened over the last 48 hours:
He is stable
He has had many visitors - he's even met his big sister, Sadie
He is a tiny version of his dad
We held him, changed his diaper, washed his face, took his temperature, and listened to his heart.
He is like holding a little bald kitty.  (Mr. Bigglesworth, if you've seen Austin Powers)

We spoke with one of the head doctors today and she outlined potential risks and lots of scary medical stuff that I will write more about in an online journal I'm going to start for those interested in following along with our progress.

I will most likely be discharged on Tuesday, so we'll need to get a plan in place as to how we can be parents can to a kid and a dog who live in Newmarket, and one who lives in Toronto.  Sadie has been over-the-moon happy spending her days and nights with her Grandma and Grampy, so we are eternally grateful for that!  Everyone has been so generous with offers to help - I will definitely keep all of the offers in mind, and when we get our plan in place, I'll start calling in on some of those favours :-)

Thank you once again to everyone who has sent well-wishes, and everyone who has sent food!  Ryan needs a lot of people in his corner, and he's starting off with a pretty solid team.

I may not be able to respond to emails and texts regularly, but keep them coming - it's nice to remain connected to the outside world.

Thank you again everyone.
Love the McPhails - Kerri, Scott, Sadie, Ryan, and Baxter