Thank you, thank you for your kind comments. All sorts of replies/requests for more advice below, but this morning I finally managed to corner the pediatrician in charge of discharging the bargain baby. Our conversation went something like this:
Me (in total bluffing mode): You know that I might leave the state to avoid your policy? You know that I might face an unnecessary induction and all resultant risks just to be able to get this drug into me? You know that the supervising doctor wouldn't prescribe me a daily dose (via IV) of this drug because, oh, it's not safe during pregnancy?
Doctor: Yeah, this drug is really iffy ... and yeah, I know that all the hospital is going to do is take the baby's temperature ... and ladidadida if you and baby both look good ... ladidadida the alternatives don't sound great ... I guess we could consider an early discharge as long as you have 6 hours of the drug in you .... ladidadida ... and agree to bring the baby in to our office within 24 hours of delivery (unless that would be a Sunday, in which case beats me what to do) and take his temperature every 2 hours ... so I'll talk to my colleagues and see if they agree ...
In Summary: No one knows what the right dose of this drug is, the hospital will be doing little other than taking the baby's temperature to monitor his well-being, and even the pediatrician realizes that the risks of an induction/travel with a newborn/even just dragging a 24-hour-old baby into a sick baby waiting room are greater than leaving my Strep untreated. So yeah, if I make it to the hospital 6 hours before delivery they'll probably give the baby early discharge. Which is about 1000% better than the 12 hours or no way that I originally got.
But that is by no means guaranteed.
As for your suggestions:
1. I wish it were as easy as taking the baby AMA (against medical advice). But it's not. If you refuse medical care for your newborn in NYC you automatically trigger a CPS investigation (child protectiv.e services) and the hospital can step in and have your parental rights temporarily removed in an "emergency." Believe me, this state is crazy. For example, if you refuse the ointment in the baby's eyes it triggers a CPS investigation (the ointment is to prevent blindness if you have an unidentified STD) and while that's all well and fine it's true even if you give birth via scheduled c-section, meaning the baby was nowhere near your vagina.
2. I find it a bit funny that everything thinks all hospitals oppose co-sleeping. We had to specially request a bassinet for the fusspot because the birthin.g center part of the hospital strongly endorses co-sleeping and kept telling me that the fusspot would sleep better in bed with me. But I do think (from friend's accounts) that they take it a bit further than "reminding" you not to sleep with the baby and will take the baby to the nursery if you are clearly settling in for the night with baby in arms.
3. Snacks. Please advise. I just packed our hospital bag and I am at a total loss as to what to pack. The bag currently has: 4 chocolate bars, gatorade, a few energy bars, some dried fruit. What else can I pack that doesn't require refrigeration? I don't want to rely on myself to make a stack of lovely sandwiches when I am in labor and rushing out the door, but I really can't figure out what else to pack that doesn't require refrigeration. I also remember being completely famished after having the fusspot. And Ms. J, while I wish that I could rely on my friends ... well, better not to set myself up for disappointment when I am super hormonal anyway. Everyone in this city thinks that they are busier than they actually are.
4. As for probiotics/suppositories/garlic ... I did that. Still positive. Plus, once you test positive in this state even if you then test negative later you are still considered positive for liability reasons.
The good news is that this might all work out, the bad news is that my back-up plan is still to be discharged and leave the bargain baby alone in the hospital for some amount of time.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
We brought a ton of food to the hospital, a bit for me but mostly for hubby. You have to give up the sugar considerations and any avoiding-processed-foods considerations, but a few more foods to consider: trail mix. Dry whole-grain cereal. Fresh fruit like apples or oranges that pack well and will be fine for 2 days without refrigeration. Individual pudding cups. A jar of preservative-laden peanut butter and some crackers. Beef jerky is fantastic -- high in protein, very compact -- but don't know if you can find kosher jerky. (Though salmon jerky is also great.)
Our hospital had a public refrigerator that we could store a small bag of stuff in, so you might be able to bring a few refrigerated things as well, like string cheese or something. We also had access to hot water for tea, which would let you bring instant cups of ramen.
As for a friend bringing you food -- after each of our kids was born, we phoned a few friends who we knew would be in the area and said, "Hey, we had a baby three hours ago, and we're kind of hungry. Would you mind stopping by with a sandwich for us?" Everybody thinks they're busy, but nobody says no to that request when they're put on the spot. Don't ask in advance, because everyone will say, "It depends on what's going on...." Just call when you need them. Guarantee someone will be in your room within the hour.
Throw in a few packets of instant oatmeal, snack cups sound perfect! I only had one package of granola bars & a thing of dried apricots. It barely held me over until the first crappy meal, but my family & the hub were all there to get me food. If I could get something delivered to you I would! just tell me where to look by your hospital. :)
For snacks, how about some crackers and those laughing cow cheese wedges? Not exactly gourmet, but at least they don't need to be refrigerated.
Also, freeze-dried fruits/veggies. Those applesauce pouches that kids seem to like so much (or, I guess, just the cups). Canned tuna, if you can stand the smell.
Oh! Just thought of something else. Can you make a batch or two of muffins, to be stored in the freezer until it's Go Time? Frankly, if it comes to that, make a batch of muffin-tin quiches, freeze, and bring a small cooler bag to the hospital with you. They may not last the duration of your stay, but you could at least get a hit of protein and veggies right after the birth.
Yeah, I figured there might be a risk of CPS involvement if you left AMA. But I guess I also figured that the NYC CPS had more pressing matters to attend to than an infant leaving the hospital a day early. But, then again, there are always busy-bodies convinced that the slightest deviation from AAP-standard care marks you as a renegade, anti-ALL-medical-intervention, crunchier-than-thou commune-dwelling Socialist.
Ah, well.
My suggestion for snacks would be nuts. Almonds or whatever you like. Or chocolates with peanut butter in them. Cheese can usually make it sans refrigeration for a couple of days. I can't remember what I brought to the hospital, but I do remember that I didn't eat as much of it as H did (but then again, I had people bringing me food and would also snack on whatever was palatable on the hospital tray...).
You know, if you came this way to give birth, I would *totally* bring you food. Just sayin'.
I'm a vegetarian and I delivered at a very backwoods hospital and I brought all kinds of food... mini bagels, nutella, popcorn, cheese snacks. I barely ate any hospital food because they didn't do vegetarian well there.
I was strep b positive too and arrived too late for my antibiotics but it really wasn't a big deal. I had to stay 48 hours but there are bigger inconveniences. I don't know what it would be like to leave ANA, but I know people that refused the eye ointment and got "reported" for it but there was never any repercussions.
I cannot imagine a hospital not allowing a father to stay. I looked into 5 different hospitals out here in the midwest... you know, the hillbilly sticks, and every single one allowed rooming in and fathers to stay and had recliners or couches for them. It seems totally backwards that isn't available to you. I mean, you live in NYC, and people think that we are back woods out here?
I hope it all works out. I hope that when everything is said and done that these will not be big issues that really impacted you. Hopefully whatever happens you are surrounded by a caring staff and provided with the best experience possible.
Post a Comment