Chapter Summary: Lea gives birth to Nell.
AN: Not only is this entire chapter going to be a flashback, but it is also going to be an incredibly long chapter. Also, this chapter contains an incredibly detailed description of labor and childbirth. And besides that, it is also harrowing. I hope you all enjoy.
Lea's due date was May 14, but it was now May 27 and she was almost two weeks overdue, so Dr. Garcia scheduled her to be induced tomorrow at 4:00 pm. Therefore, today was Shaun's last day before his paternity leave. However, Dr. Andrews and Dr. Lim made it a half-day for him when they let him off his shift early at 3:00 pm.
"It would be good to spend some last few moments with Lea before the baby is born, just the two of you," Dr. Lim advised. "And congratulations. Good luck."
Shaun was happy that Dr. Lim and Dr. Andrews agreed to let him off early because he felt too distracted by his thoughts about the upcoming birth to fully concentrate. He and Lea couldn't believe that in approximately 24 hours, they were going to be parents. They had so many things they could do in their window of free time before going to the hospital tomorrow: eat, nap, shower, exercise, watch TV, practice their breathing exercises, make sure their bags were packed, give Lea a mani-pedi, etc.
It was at 7:30 pm when Lea decided to make pancakes, although Shaun insisted that he would cook them while she relaxed on the couch. They ended up eating all of them and continued to watch TV, part of it involving Lea getting up to pee every 5-10 minutes.
At 8:45 pm, Lea felt wet again during one of her bathroom trips. However, she swore she didn't force it out herself.
Did my water just break...or did I just pee...or is that just more discharge? She wondered, not sure if she could tell the difference between the three. When she got up from the toilet seat and started to pull her pants up, she heard a pop and more water came out.
"Shaun!" She called out, her voice trembling. "I think my water broke!"
As soon as Shaun heard those words, he immediately made his way towards the bathroom to find Lea standing up over the toilet with her pajama bottoms dropped down to her ankles, her panties halfway down and around her thighs, and her hands pressed against the walls. His eyes widened with shock as he examined the scene. Her pants and underwear were soaking wet and a stream of clear fluid was running down her inner legs. Drops of it were on the floor and the toilet seat.
It was time.
"It did. Your amniotic fluid is clear, which is a good thing," he confirmed, grabbing a fresh clean towel from the towel rack. "I'll get you a fresh pair of underwear and pants. And I'll call Dr. Garcia and Abby."
"Okay," acknowledged Lea.
As Shaun helped her out of her soaked panties and pajama bottoms, more water continued to leak down her leg and just keep seeping out.
"Have you had any contractions?" Shaun asked, not caring that some of Lea's amniotic fluid had gotten on him. "If so, how far apart are they?"
"I haven't had any," replied Lea, feeling perplexed that her water broke but she wasn't having any contractions.
"We need to get to the hospital, though," he stated, wiping Lea's legs dry. "Your contractions might start later."
"Okay, but right after we clean this up," sighed Lea, staring at the puddle by her feet on the bathroom floor.
Once Lea showered and Shaun helped her into fresh new clothes, the couple got everything ready and then were interrupted by a knock at the door, followed by annoyed groans from both of them.
"Now is not a good time!" Lea said loudly to whoever was at the door.
"It's me, guys," they heard Dr. Glassman's disembodied voice on the other side of the door. "Debbie made a blanket for the baby. She was supposed to finish it yesterday, but..."
"Just come in and leave it on the coffee table," demanded Shaun. "The door is unlocked."
Dr. Glassman walked in to find Shaun and Lea getting their bags ready. They were definitely going somewhere.
"I'm guessing it's time?" He guessed, thinking that he should probably help them with their bags.
"Yes, we're heading to the hospital right now. My water broke, but I'm not having contractions," explained Lea.
"I'll help you carry your things. I can drive you guys if you'd like," Dr. Glassman offered.
"That will be fine, thank you," Shaun decided after Lea gave him a nod of approval. He was feeling a little too panicky to drive them himself.
This was it. Pretty soon, Shaun and Lea were finally going to meet Nell or Stevie.
"Do you have any advice for me? On what I should do in the delivery room," Shaun, who was sitting in the backseat, asked Dr. Glassman for the umpteenth time on their way to St. Bonaventure.
"Just don't complain, and whatever you do, don't tell her what is happening down there unless she asks you to tell her," Dr. Glassman implored. "With my ex-wife, I made the mistake of complaining about my foot hurting, and she said she'd break my nuts if she could."
"Okay," Shaun acknowledged as he stared out the car window. "I got it."
"So, are you nervous? This is your first child, it has to be pretty nerve-wracking," Dr. Glassman commented.
"Which one of us are you asking?" Shaun asked.
"Um...both of you," scoffed Dr. Glassman haughtily.
"A little bit," Lea answered, her hands resting on top of her big belly. "But also excited."
"Me, too," Shaun added as he tapped his fingers against the window, trying not to show how nervous he actually was.
A lot of people who didn't know Shaun would have thought he wasn't anxious at all, but he really was anxious about the birth of his child. As a surgeon, he was aware of all the worst-case scenarios, but he didn't share his fears with Lea. Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. It was Murphy's Law, literally.
"Everything is going to be just fine, Shaun," Dr. Glassman reassured. "Trust me. Also, Debbie told me to wish you both good luck for her."
The trio made it to St. Bonaventure at around 10:00 in the evening, and Lea still wasn't having any contractions. After arriving at the maternity ward, Shaun and Lea were assigned a room after they finished filling out the assigned paperwork.
"Good luck, I hope everything goes smooth," bid Dr. Glassman before the young couple left him behind in the waiting area.
When Lea was finally admitted and once Abby arrived, Dr. Garcia checked Lea's vitals and examined her cervix to check her dilation.
"Your cervix hasn't opened yet, or even started to soften or efface," she announced.
"Are you kidding me?" Lea groaned. Please don't tell me I have to go through another painful procedure just to avoid a c-section, she thought. The EVC was already painful enough.
"We need to ripen your cervix first. And to do that, we're going to insert prostaglandins into your vagina," explained Dr. Garcia.
"They act like hormones, and it will help ripen your cervix and stimulate contractions," Shaun intervened. Lea liked it when he did that; she found more comfort from it coming from her boyfriend's mouth instead of her doctor's or her doula's. It also helped Shaun stay calm and focused as well.
"And what happens if that doesn't work?" Lea queried, who had one hand on her belly and the other in Shaun's hand. Shaun was right by her side, and he told her that she was free to squeeze his hand or arm whenever she felt like it.
"If your cervix ripens, but contractions don't start, then they'll start you on Pitocin," asserted Abby. "But if your cervix doesn't ripen at all..."
"Then we'll have to consider a c-section," finished Dr. Garcia.
"Okay then," Lea sighed, really not wanting to have a c-section since she was informed by Dr. Garcia, Shaun, Abby, and pretty much everyone else that recovery would take longer; nothing is as easy as it looks. "Then let's go ahead and do it."
Lea wasn't progressing as she was barely dilated to even one centimeter, so Dr. Garcia had to administer a Pitocin drip to up the stakes. However, by 5:00 am, Lea had only dilated to one centimeter.
One centimeter and she was already in active labor. The Pitocin did speed up her labor a little bit, but it also made her contractions stronger, and also worse.
Lea's contractions were so painful and unbearable that she wanted to grip Abby or Shaun as hard as she could. She was well aware that he sometimes wasn't a big fan of being squeezed or touched, but she needed some comfort, and Shaun promised he would do anything for her when she was in labor. He was very good at tolerating it.
Without complaining or hesitating, Shaun let her grip him tight, gritting his teeth as she dug her nails into his arms, biting through his empathy pains.
"Shaunie!" Lea yelped loudly as a contraction hit her hard. She was also trying to ignore the constant pain in her lower back, which was caused by back labor. She let out a quiet sob. "It hurts so bad!"
Abby ran her fingers through Lea's hair as Shaun continued to let Lea dig her nails into him and make groaning noises.
"Remember your breathing and find your focal point. It can be the TV, the corner, the couch, the door, the window, or anything else in the room," reminded Abby as she rubbed Lea's shoulder with her free hand.
"Increased oxygen provides more strength and energy for both you and the baby. Inhale and blow out the candles, Lea," coached Shaun.
Lea squeezed her eyes shut and sucked in a deep breath, following her usual preferred breathing pattern; Shaun coached her and breathed along with her.
In-in-out, in-in-out.
At 4:00 pm, when Lea was five centimeters dilated, she decided that she definitely wanted an epidural.
During the wait for the epidural, Shaun and Abby would help Lea change positions and move around. They sometimes took walks around the room. Shaun did everything Abby, the books, the internet, and other people recommended he should do.
After constant Pitocin adjustments, she was finally able to receive the epidural.
"Lea, I'm going to need you to sit up on the side of the bed. I'd recommend putting a pillow in your lap," explained the anesthesiologist.
Shaun curled his hands around Lea's head, allowing her to rest her head into his chest. "It's going to be okay," he whispered.
"Dr. Murphy, I need you to stand in front of her and keep your hands on her shoulders. Make sure she doesn't move," the anesthesiologist instructed.
Once Lea was helped into the correct position by the anesthesiologist and Abby, Shaun whispered an "I love you" to Lea, and she automatically smiled back.
"Okay, I'm going to feel your back to determine placement and clean the area. It's going to be a little cold," the anesthesiologist warned.
Lea took a deep breath in followed by a moan as another contraction kicked up, shivering as she felt the freezing touch of rubbing alcohol against her skin.
"You're...doing great," Shaun shyly reassured her, squeezing her shoulders tightly. "Keep blowing out the candles. Breathe with me."
Once the contraction ended, the anesthesiologist continued with the procedure. "I'm going to give you some local now. You'll feel a little pinch."
"It'll feel like a big bee sting, Lea," informed Abby.
"I've never been stung by bee before so I have no idea, but okay," inhaled Lea, trying to remain calm and still.
"Are you ready?" The anesthesiologist made sure Lea was prepared and ready to feel the pinch of pain.
"I think so," Lea exhaled deeply, resuming her breathing pattern with Shaun's help.
In-in-out, in-in-out.
"Alright, here we go. On the count of three," The anesthesiologist began followed by a pregnant pause. "One. Two. Three."
Whimpering, Lea gripped Shaun's biceps as she felt the needle enter her exposed lower back. Shaun kept squeezing her shoulders as she squeezed him, and he kissed her forehead.
"You're doing wonderful, Lea," consoled Abby, tucking strands of Lea's hair behind her ears. "Just keep breathing."
"Alright, time for the big needle, then the epidural catheter. You may feel pressure or a tingle go down your legs. I just need you to hold still," the anesthesiologist made clear before she continued the procedure.
"Ow!" Lea cried under her breath as tears streamed down her face. Shaun could feel her pain...literally, he could.
"Do you need more local or is it just a contraction?" Abby inquired, clearly concerned.
"Contraction! Shaun, I need to lie down!"
"You...can't right now, Lea. Dr. Singh is in the middle of the procedure. Just hold on," Shaun stressed slowly.
"Shaun, please," she begged and cried. "It hurts!"
"Keep squeezing my arms," encouraged Shaun. "Blow out the candles, Lea. Breathe with me and Abby."
In-in-out, in-in-out.
It was 2:00 in the morning, and Lea had already had it. She'd been in labor for at least one day, and she was finally in the transition phase.
No matter how many attempts she had at an epidural, it never took effect. For the first attempt, the epidural only seemed to work in certain portions of her body. It was working very poorly on her right side, which was due to the placement of the epidural catheter.
For the second attempt at an epidural, the anesthesiologist gave Lea something stronger to numb her right side, but she only got pain relief for 20 minutes. The epidural wore off pretty fast afterward to where she could actually feel the catheter in her back.
At this point, Lea had basically just given up at trying to get pain relief.
Shaun would hold her as she groaned in pain and did her breathing exercises. Physical touch from Shaun didn't solve her pain, but it did help. He was such a great boyfriend, and she knew he was going to be a great father. For Shaun, it pained him to see his girlfriend in this much pain. It was very overwhelming, but with the help of Abby, he did everything he could to power through it.
"I don't think I'm ready for this," whimpered Lea, who was squatting next to the bed and leaning against it. Shaun was squatting right down to her level, rubbing Lea's back as she squeezed Abby's hand.
"You can do this," avowed Abby, wiping the tears from Lea's face.
"No, I can't!" Lea sobbed.
"Lea, you're doing great. Just keep breathing," Shaun said as he rubbed his girlfriend's back. He didn't want Lea to know he was a nervous wreck deep down inside.
He was here as her boyfriend and birthing partner, not her doctor. Therefore, it was a lot easier to focus all of his energy on giving her comfort instead of making sure the baby gets delivered. Lea had listened to her music a few times since she was in labor, using it as a distraction from the pain.
Because of the pain, the Pitocin, and being eight centimeters dilated, Lea was feeling sick. She was in so much pain that she had vomited twice in the past 45 minutes. The second time was all over Shaun. He usually would have changed into a different shirt after this, but instead he just decided to remain in the shirt he was wearing under his vomit-covered button-down.
To make things worse, Lea was sweating, and she had a fever of 102 degrees due to chorioamnionitis, a bacterial infection in the amniotic fluid possibly caused by prolonged ruptured membranes.
Dr. Garcia immediately put her on antibiotics via IV. "Don't worry," she reassured Shaun and Lea. "It looks like we caught it just in time."
However, Shaun didn't feel reassured at all. He knew what chorio could do to mothers and their fetuses. Lea and the baby were now at risk for so many things.
Lea could have heavy blood loss with delivery or blood clots in her lungs and pelvis. If she ends up having a c-section, she could develop a wound infection or a pelvic abscess. Their baby could get meningitis or develop pneumonia. Both Lea and the baby were also at risk for bacteremia, an infection in the bloodstream, and not to mention death.
At 4:42 am, Dr. Garcia made an important announcement. "Ten centimeters. 100% effaced. You're ready to push."
"God! It's about time!" Lea sighed, already feeling weak and exhausted. "Just get this baby out of me!"
Shaun was relieved that it was finally time for Lea to push. In approximately 30 minutes to an hour, or maybe just a few minutes, or maybe even several hours (depending on how long Lea was going to be pushing), he was going to be a father. He was finally going to meet his son or daughter.
Shaun sat right behind Lea in the hospital bed while she reclined into him, allowing him to hold her. Abby and a nurse were each holding one of her legs.
"You got this," Shaun whispered to Lea as he squeezed her shoulders, and she gave a smile back.
"Alright, Lea. On your next contraction, breathe out and push," ordered Dr. Garcia.
As instructed, Lea tucked her chin to her chest, then pushed when she felt another contraction.
As the next contraction started, Abby counted for Lea. Shaun also helped since it was another way for him to calm his own nerves. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten…"
"Good, Lea. Keep going, that's it!" Dr. Garcia proclaimed. "Again. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten."
The same routine went on for a minute.
"Continue pushing, Lea," touted Dr. Garcia.
Gripping Abby's arm as she felt another contraction, Lea kept pushing as everyone counted in unison.
After a while, Lea started to get impatient. The baby's head wasn't even crowning yet.
"Shaun, how long have I been doing this?" Lea groaned, already even more exhausted than she was when she started.
"Almost an hour," Shaun replied, followed by an annoyed moan from Lea.
"Seriously? It's already been an hour?" Lea was shocked. She didn't even feel like it had been that long already.
"Lea, you're going to need to push harder," insisted Dr. Garcia.
"Push like you're having a bowel movement," the nurse reminded her.
"Oh, my god! I am! I'm trying!" Lea snapped at the nurse, having the urge to punch her in the face. To be honest, she really wasn't worried about pooping while giving birth. She really didn't care. She just wanted this baby out as soon as possible.
"Push, Lea," Shaun gave his own words of encouragement, which he later realized he probably should have stayed quiet for a while since he got a frustrated response from Lea.
"Shut the fuck up, Shaun!"
Shaun would have usually gone into shutdown mode pretty quick as she had never yelled those words to him before, but since he was expecting Lea to be like this while she was in labor (he even asked her to practice yelling and cursing at him when they "rehearsed" birth), it wasn't startling enough to shut him down.
"Shaunie, I'm sorry," she sighed regretfully. "Forget I said that."
After an hour, Lea continued to push and make progress despite her fever.
As Lea kept pushing whenever she was instructed to, Shaun kept stroking her hair and reassuring her with words of encouragement. "You're doing great. Just keep pushing. I know how hard you're working. I'm so proud of you."
"Good girl, Lea!" Dr. Garcia commended. "Okay, now, big push!"
Digging her nails into Shaun and Abby's skin, Lea yelped in agony and tears as she lurched forward and pushed, Shaun's hand resting on her shoulder. "Ow! Ow! Ow!"
"Good, Lea! Good," preached Abby as she squeezed her knee. "Keep going!"
Lea cried in pain as sweat was dampening her dark hair, which was made up into a messy half-ponytail. She continued to whimper.
"I'm proud of you, Lea," Shaun whispered to Lea as he stroked her disheveled hair.
"It's a bit too early to be telling me that, Shaunie," Lea grunted, feeling Shaun wrap his arms around her as she continued to push.
"Okay, Lea," noted Dr. Garcia. "I need you to keep pushing. You're doing great."
"Don't forget to breathe, babe," reminded Shaun as Dr. Garcia, Abby, and the nurse encouraged Lea to push again.
Lea sobbed as she continued to attempt to push her baby out. She let out a guttural wail of pain. "I don't want to do this anymore! I quit!"
"Lea, I understand you're exhausted and in pain, but you can't give up now," sympathized Abby, patting the top of Lea's thigh. "Use your strength, pain, and emotions."
"You have come this far," heartened Shaun, wrapping his arms around Lea even tighter. "Just keep going. Our baby is almost here."
"Okay," whimpered Lea, ready to resume pushing.
"Come on, honey, give it all you've got," encouraged the nurse as Lea pushed.
"Abby, how am I doing?" Lea whispered, desperate to know if any part of the baby was out yet because she felt like something was actually about to force its way out of her vagina. She wondered if it could be her baby's head. "Any sign of the head coming out?"
"Yes, the top of the head is beginning to emerge," she replied, her eyes gazing towards the intersection of Lea's thighs.
That definitely explained why Lea could now suddenly feel that tingling, stretching, stinging, burning pain - no wonder they call it the "ring of fire". This was the first time she actually screamed during her entire labor.
Lea's howls of agony echoed through the room. It was the loudest Shaun has ever heard her yell.
"Okay, she's crowning," crooned Dr. Garcia. "Beautiful."
"Lea, are you sure you don't want a mirror?" The nurse offered. "Do you want to see your baby's head?"
"No! Nope!" Lea answered irritably. She already had the image of the "ring of fire" ingrained into her mind, and she could already feel her vagina ripping open, which hurt like hell, and that was already enough. She really didn't want to watch that happen as she felt it.
"Dad, do you want to see?" The nurse suggested to Shaun.
Shaun was speechless. He really wanted to get a full view, but Lea didn't and he wanted to respect her wishes. Before he could ask Lea anything, Lea gave him her permission to take a look.
"Go ahead, knock yourself out," she sighed, rolling her eyes.
Shaun shifted his body off of the bed and made his way towards the foot to see the whole thing. He could see an emerging small mass of dark hair. He got excited. "Yes! I can see the hair! I can see the top of the head!" Shaun beamed enthusiastically, practically smiling and grinning, before returning to the head of the bed and getting back into his original position.
"Lea, would you like to feel your baby's head?" Abby proposed.
Lea nodded a yes and then allowed Shaun to take her hand and then guide it towards the area between her legs.
"Oh, my god," breathed Lea as she felt her baby's damp wet curls. "I can feel it. Our baby has hair!"
Shaun could feel it, too.
Desperate to get her baby out, Lea continued to push very hard and fast, even as she felt her baby's crowning head rip her open even more. She howled in agony as she felt her crotch rip apart like tissue paper.
"Okay, Lea, slow down," commanded Dr. Garcia urgently. "Try not to push too hard or too fast. Just relax for a few seconds before you continue pushing."
Lea didn't want to tear up to her asshole, but she might if she didn't slow down.
After a few more seconds of waiting, Dr. Garcia told Lea that she could finally start pushing again. "Push, Lea! Push!" She ordered.
"Ow! It fucking burns! It's ripping me apart!" Lea yelled as she felt a burning sensation as the rest of her baby's head emerged, ripping her open even more - hoping her now second-degree tear wouldn't become third/fourth-degree.
Shaun made noises of excitement as he watched his child's head be born. But as Lea tried to push the shoulders out, she seemed to be having trouble.
"Damn it," Dr. Garcia cursed under her breath. As a doctor, Shaun knew that when a doctor said that or any similar phrase during any procedure, that meant something was wrong.
"What's going on? Is it shoulder dystocia?" Shaun guessed, trying to remain calm and not freak Lea out.
"Yeah, looks like it," Dr. Garcia sighed and then immediately called in for an extra nurse and got ready for action. "Start my timer."
Shaun got off the bed so Lea could lay back, crouching down next to the bed to her level and wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Abby and the nurse helped Lea pull her legs back further towards her chest. The nurse was using one hand to push down on the area above Lea's pubic region.
Shaun stroked Lea's sweat-matted hair, and he could tell that Lea was scared and in pain as she tried to push the rest of their baby out of her body.
He suddenly noticed that Lea's fever was now one degree higher than it was earlier. "Dr. Garcia, her fever is at 103 now," he disclosed frantically. He was scared, and so was Lea.
Dr. Garcia glanced at the monitor, her face shifting to an expression of panic as she saw how high Lea's fever was. "Lea, don't push! Don't push!"
After a few seconds, Dr. Garcia finally gave the news to Shaun and Lea of what needed to happen.
"Okay, Lea. I need you to listen carefully. I'm not going to sugarcoat it, but your fever is at 103 now. If we don't deliver this baby as soon as possible, your baby could have brain damage or die. Suprapubic pressure isn't working, so I'm going to need to perform an episiotomy. I'm going to give you a local anesthetic to numb you, so you won't feel the incision."
"Okay," breathed Lea. She just wanted this whole thing to be over so she can finally hold her baby. She was not looking forward to getting a needle down there.
"It will be numbing gel, not an injection," whispered Shaun in reassurance, causing Lea to sigh in relief.
Shaun grit his teeth as he felt Lea's hand, which he had just now offered her at the moment Dr. Garcia applied the lidocaine gel, grip his own at its tightest. He bit his lip as she squeezed his hand very hard, and it hurt...but he sucked it up and didn't complain.
Even with all those years of medical school, Shaun couldn't help but feel physically sick as he saw a fresh burst of blood come pouring out once Dr. Garcia made the incision into Lea's perineum. He was feeling Lea's pain and fear right alongside her.
In less than two minutes with the assistance of forceps, Eleanor Clementine Murphy was born on May 30, 2021 at 6:11 am after 33 hours and 26 minutes of labor.
"It's a girl," announced Dr. Garcia.
Lea was practically bawling at that moment.
Although Dr. Garcia allowed Shaun to cut the umbilical cord after it was clamped, Lea couldn't experience immediate skin-to-skin contact like in the original birth plan. The reason why: the little girl wasn't crying. Not one shrill could be heard from her.
"She's not crying," Shaun observed, obviously very worried. "She isn't breathing! What is her Apgar score?" From what he perceived, his daughter's Apgar score did not look good so far - probably less than a four. Some of her body was pink while other parts were blue. She was limp and lifeless.
Lea saw the look on her boyfriend's face. He looked like he was about to cry. "Is she dead?" She prodded, choking up. "She's not alive, isn't she?"
"Her airway is blocked!" A nurse said frantically as she assessed the baby. "Possible meconium aspiration! We need to get her to the NICU right now!"
Shaun knew that meconium aspiration wasn't good, especially if Nell inhaled meconium deep into her lungs. To make things worse, they weren't sure if the chorio had any effect on her yet. Neither she nor Lea were out of the woods yet.
Shaun and Lea watched helplessly in tears as their daughter, still covered in blood and other fluids, was whisked away to the NICU.
They didn't even get to hold her.
"Is Nell going to be okay?" Lea cried as Shaun squeezed her hand and Abby stroked her hair.
"We don't know if she is out of the woods yet," explained Dr. Garcia after hesitating for a bit. "But right now, we need to focus on delivering the placenta, okay?"
"Alright," sighed Lea, drained and exhausted. Nevertheless, within minutes as she tried to deliver the afterbirth, she began to feel off and not to mention lightheaded. "I don't…feel well," she blurted out slowly.
Shaun glanced briefly at Lea's cardiac monitor, which was now up to 140. "Lea's heart rate is up to 140," he alerted Dr. Garcia.
It wasn't long before Lea started to bleed profusely all of a sudden. "We got some bleeding here!" Dr. Garcia shouted, looking scared and panicked. "A lot of bleeding!"
Suddenly, all of the commotions of orders being shouted, commands being made, the monitors beeping, and Lea weakly begging to know what was happening were starting to put Shaun into sensory overload. Distraught, he reached into his pocket to retrieve his plastic scalpel and uncover the cloth from it.
"Shaun, what's going on?" Lea, exhausted and disoriented and a little frightened, asked frailly. She was feeling pain in her lower abdomen.
Shaun didn't say anything. He couldn't even get any words out or even try and figure out what was wrong with his girlfriend. It was like he had forgotten everything he learned in medical school. He was just standing there, clenching his scalpel tightly.
"Systolic is down to 70!" He heard a nurse yell.
Shaun could see all of the blood and pieces of the placenta splattering onto the bedsheets and the floor and also all over Dr. Garcia as she inspected.
"That looks like a complete uterine inversion," Dr. Garcia worriedly observed. "Third degree. Start administering magnesium sulfate!"
Shaun knew that wasn't good.
Lea's womb was literally flipped inside out, causing a postpartum hemorrhage. This was bad. He could faintly hear the demands to push the uterus back in, for all kinds of units of fluids, and for more help being yelled.
"It won't go!" Dr. Garcia imparted in an apprehension. That statement started to spiral Shaun into an even bigger panic.
Lea had already completely lost consciousness at this point and Shaun had spaced out and froze in place, terrified, slowly placing his hands over his ears, probably about to collapse to the floor. He wasn't aware of what was going on anymore, not even a nurse pushing him out of the way. It was all faded.
"Shaun," Shaun heard Abby's voice. It wasn't long before she gently guided him out of the room. She knew she needed to get him out of the room and away from all of the chaos to explain the situation to him.
Once they were away from most of the noise and Abby had calmed him down, she finally told him what he needed to do. "Lea is hemorrhaging and there is a uterine inversion. I know you already know this, but they're going to need us to step out while they try to save her. I suggest that you go with your daughter to the NICU or just wait outside, do you understand? It's going to be okay."
Shaun nodded and obeyed Abby's orders. "Okay."
He could become a "widower" and a single father, become childless while still having Lea, or he could become "widowed" and childless.
He realized that he should go to the NICU with his newborn. Whether or not Lea would survive this, his daughter really needed him right now, and Shaun also needed her. However, Shaun needed Dr. Glassman first. So before he and Abby went to the NICU, they went to the waiting room to get Dr. Glassman and Debbie and update them.
They really needed to sooner rather than later because Dr. Glassman has been here for like almost 34 hours on and off call.
When a half-awake Dr. Glassman and Debbie saw Shaun coming down the hall with the doula, they were excited to hear everything until they actually saw the look on their faces. Shaun was roughly ruffling the side of his hair, distraught, and close to crying; already crying actually. He hadn't started hitting himself yet.
This could only mean one thing - there were complications. The last update they received from Shaun was that Lea was eight centimeters dilated and she had contracted chorio.
"Shaun, what happened? Is Lea okay? Is the baby okay? What's wrong?" Dr. Glassman was trying to figure out what had happened. Did Lea die in childbirth? Was the baby stillborn? Did neither Lea or the baby make it?
No matter what, Dr. Glassman could tell that whatever happened wasn't good news.
Shaun didn't even answer. He just ran up to his mentor and hugged him, and this was the hardest that Shaun had ever embraced him. Dr. Glassman just wrapped his arms around Shaun to give him comfort as Abby and Debbie placed their hands over Shaun's back to assist in giving comfort. Whatever went wrong during the birth, Shaun was definitely going to need a lot of comfort right now.
"It's a little girl," Abby somberly finally broke the silence as she explained everything. "The baby got stuck in the birth canal and she also inhaled meconium. Lea started hemorrhaging due to a uterine inversion while she tried to deliver the placenta. We're not sure about the status on either of them right now."
"You need to come to the NICU with me," Shaun blubbered to Dr. Glassman, still in distress. "She needs me."
"Okay, alright," affirmed Dr. Glassman. "We'll come with you."
Dr. Glassman dreaded what road Shaun was going to have to take. He feared that history was repeating itself. The tragic deaths of his rabbit and brother were deemed to be the worst moments of his life. Now, Shaun was probably going to lose his girlfriend and his new daughter.
When they got to the NICU, Nell seemed to be okay so far and her current Apgar score was slightly better than her previous one. They were able to remove most of the meconium through suction, but she still needed to wear a nasal cannula for awhile. She also needed to be monitored due to the infection Lea had contracted in her amniotic fluid. The odds were good for her, but they weren't given any updates on Lea yet.
When Shaun told the whole story, Dr. Glassman couldn't imagine what Shaun and Lea must have gone through during the birth of their daughter - 33 hours of labor, needing to be induced, two failed attempts at an epidural and having to endure it all without any pain relief, Pitocin making her sick, contracting chorio, shoulder dystocia, an episiotomy, giving birth with a fever, forceps delivery, meconium aspiration, and then a postpartum hemorrhage and uterine inversion. All of that combined sounded horrible and scary. He never thought he could picture Lea terrified and in a lot of pain while Shaun had to watch everything happen helplessly.
"Ready to meet your daddy?" Nurse Villanueva cooed as she carefully lifted the infant out of the bed before bringing her over to Shaun. "Ready, Dr. Murphy?" She asked as she presented his daughter to him.
Shaun was shaking as he lifted out his arms, his breath frozen in his chest. He managed to bob his head before Nurse Villanueva carefully placed the little girl into the safety of her father's arms.
He tentatively pushed his hand from beneath her buttocks up to support her neck before gently nudging her head into the crook of his arm and cradled her head. After a few moments, Shaun felt his breath release and the tension in his muscles ease. He relaxed and allowed himself to enjoy the moment of holding his daughter for the first time.
He glared down at the tiny human in his arms. She definitely had Lea's nose and ears, and his eyes and mouth. She had a small mop of brown hair, which she could have inherited from either her mother or her father. She was the perfect combination of both Shaun and Lea.
"Her eyes are blue…just like mine," announced Shaun. He brought his finger up and Nell immediately grabbed on.
"Congratulations, Dr. Murphy," professed Nurse Villanueva, giving Shaun a proud smile.
Everything felt so surreal for Shaun. This was his child, something he never thought he would have. This baby was actually his; his baby with Lea - his lover and his best friend. He just wished that Steve was here to celebrate the moment with him, though.
The neonatologist later informed Shaun, Dr. Glassman, and Debbie (Abby had another client to attend to) that Nell was unharmed by Lea's infection, which was a relief.
When they were finally able to see Lea, she was still unconscious and she was being given saline and antibiotics via IV tubes and she was on a ventilator. Apparently, they weren't able to reposition her uterus by hand or even with hydrostatic replacement, so she needed an immediate laparotomy and her uterus had to be repositioned surgically. She also underwent a few transfusions and embolization of the blood vessels. She almost died, but she was stable right now and had been transferred into a postpartum room.
Nell was fine and Lea was stable, that's all that mattered to Shaun right now. And Shaun was going to wait by Lea's bedside until she woke up…and their baby girl was going to be waiting with him.
Lea woke up feeling woozy and lightheaded, her eyes slowly opening and taking in the brightness of the room. She sensed something poking into her arms and she felt like she was tied down. Something was positioned under her nose, wrapped around her cheeks, and tucked behind her ears. She was slowly coming back to consciousness as she heard the steady beeping of a machine. She wondered where she was and what had happened.
Lea then realized that she was in a hospital bed before everything came flooding back to her. The last thing she could remember was trying to deliver the placenta and then something went wrong. She couldn't quite remember what it was.
She attempted to sit up, but a dull pain was blooming between her legs and deep in her lower abdomen.
"Lea…" She heard a familiar voice call out to her. Her head tilted slightly to the side towards the voice, where she noticed a blurry figure. As her vision started to become more clear and less foggy, she realized that it was Shaun.
She looked up at him, his face breaking out into an ecstatic smile and a relieved laugh bubbled out from his throat. "You're okay," he exhaled as he reached his arm out to push the call button. "You're okay. You're okay…"
Lea stared at the ceiling trying to take everything in. Then, she remembered that her baby had to be taken to the NICU. She wanted to know about her baby first.
"Shaun," she hoarsely grasped her boyfriend's name, her mouth feeling dry. "Where is the baby? Is she okay?"
"Nell has an Apgar score of nine and her vital signs are good, so she is fine. She weighs seven pounds and two ounces, and is 21 inches long. She was unharmed by the chorio, but you still have a fever. She is right here in the bassinet," answered Shaun, motioning his hand towards the foot of the hospital bed, which stood a see-through bassinet with a tiny bundle inside. Lea couldn't believe she actually missed that. "I was holding her the whole time but then I decided to let her sleep. Dr. Glassman and Debbie were here earlier but they had to go to work. Abby had another client to get to."
Suddenly, a nurse walked into the room, his radiant smile spreading across his face. "Looks like somebody is awake," he said to Lea. "I'm here to take your vitals and then I will leave you two alone with your baby."
"Thank you, Nurse Dhanoa," credited Shaun as he stepped back to let Nurse Dhanoa do his job.
"How are you feeling, Lea?" Nurse Dhanoa asked.
"It hurts a little bit down there," replied Lea. "And I still feel a little groggy and nauseous."
"You will be sore for six weeks," reminded Nurse Dhanoa. "I am also aware that you still have a fever."
Nurse Dhanoa took note of Lea's temperature, pulse rate, respiration rate, and blood pressure. He also checked Nell's vitals as well.
"Your vitals are good, and so are your daughter's," he explained before eyeing Shaun. "I think Dr. Murphy can tell you the rest."
Shaun nodded a yes before Nurse Dhanoa left the room, leaving Shaun, Lea, and Nell alone.
"What happened?" Lea prodded, still feeling groggy.
"There were complications," replied Shaun in a serious tone. "You had a postpartum hemorrhage caused by a complete uterine inversion. It was third degree; the uterine fundus projected beyond the vaginal introitus," he explained. "They were able to surgically reposition your uterus. You have been out for nine hours now. It's 3:00 in the afternoon. You were on a ventilator earlier, but you have a nasal cannula now. And…"
"Can I hold her?" Lea interrupted, just wanting to see her daughter.
Shaun couldn't say no to that. So far, Nell has spent all of her time in her father's arms. Her mother hasn't gotten to hold her yet, so it was her turn. "It's time for you to meet your mommy," he told the baby, placing his hand into the bassinet to stroke her cheek.
Shaun helped Lea sit up and adjust herself in the hospital bed before he lifted the little girl out of the bassinet, causing her to stir and fuss a little.
Lea pulled back her gown, revealing her bare upper chest. She felt her breath slowly release as Shaun placed the infant onto her chest. Nell was still fussing a little bit in her mother's arms, but she became calm again when Lea settled.
Tears filled Lea's eyes as she held her daughter close to her chest. It was incredible to believe that this was her and Shaun's child. Nell had a small cap on her head, covering the small mop of brown hair she had.
"Hi, sweetie," Lea whispered softly. She gently put her hand on Nell's, and Nell reached up and grabbed Lea's finger.
Shaun watched his girlfriend and daughter together for the first time and he felt his heart swell so much he thought it might burst. He stroked Lea's hair and pressed a kiss to her temple as he brushed his finger across Nell's cheek, smiling. "She looks just like you," he whispered.
"And you. She's kind of giving me the exact same look her daddy always gives me," Lea added playfully, looking up and smiling at her boyfriend.
Lea was crying, and Shaun couldn't help but cry as well.
"You scared the hell out of me," said Shaun.
"Yeah," she chuckled softly. "I'm sorry you had to see all of that. And I'm also sorry for yelling at you."
"That's okay," Shaun finished, kissing Lea on the lips. "You did great. You were in labor, so you had an excuse."
Lea smiled and pressed a kiss to the crown of Nell's head before pulling Shaun in for a kiss.
Minutes later, they were able to remove Lea's nasal cannula and IV tubes. However, not long after that and learning to breastfeed, she decided to go ahead and eat dinner (she hadn't eaten anything for hours), so she handed Nell back to Shaun.
Then, Shaun set Nell back down in the bassinet before slipping off his shirt.
"Shaunie, what are you doing?" Lea asked, giggling a little as she took a bite of her bread.
"Skin-to-skin contact," replied Shaun as he picked up the baby and then sat down in the nearby chair, holding her to his bare chest. "I was offered it while she was still in the NICU, but I didn't feel comfortable taking my shirt off in front of Dr. Glassman, Debbie, or Nurse Villanueva."
"That makes sense," agreed Lea, her heart melting at the sight of Shaun and Nell.
After a brief visit from Debbie and Dr. Glassman as well as a few of Shaun's colleagues offering their congratulations, it wasn't long before Lea decided to get some shut-eye. She was exhausted from the whole ordeal.
Not long after Lea drifted back to sleep, Dr. Glassman stepped in after the end of his shift to tell Shaun that he was going to see the baby for a while before going home back to Debbie. It was 10:00 in the evening and he noticed how exhausted Shaun was when he saw him yawn.
"Shaun, you should get some sleep," he advised. Although Dr. Glassman did get some sleep in an on-call room during the time that Lea was in labor, Shaun hadn't gotten any sleep at all in the past 48 hours.
"My paternity leave has just started," reminded Shaun. "I won't be on call for 18 weeks."
"Yeah, but you've got a new alarm clock now, pal," joked Dr. Glassman, eyeing the infant in Shaun's arms, patting her tiny head. "You definitely need a lot of it right now. Don't forget about yourself, and make sure you tell Lea the same thing."
While Lea was unconscious, getting Shaun to eat and shower took a lot of convincing from not just Dr. Glassman and Debbie, but also from the nurses and his co-workers.
"Okay, Dr. Glassman," Shaun yawned, carefully placing a sleeping Nell back into the bassinet.
"Congratulations, Shaun," praised Dr. Glassman, tears stinging in his eyes as he patted Shaun's shoulder. "I'm proud of you."