Episode 17: Preeclampsia, Caesarean, and Postpartum Emotions with Courtney Smith
Courtney has been through preeclampsia and a caesarean and is here to share her story with us through it all. We talk about what it was like for her to start tracking her blood pressure at 32 weeks and how she really wasn't even informed why or what was going on. Then at 33 weeks she had hit the number the doctors told her about went in, had to wait a few hours, and then was admitted for 24 hours of monitoring. Her stay ended up turning into 3 days and it was determined that she had mild preeclampsia.
She was able to return home but then at 35 weeks headed back to the hospital because she was experiencing contractions and when she arrived it was determined she was already 3-4 cm dilated. She talks about what this was like and her feelings of anxiety and how she wasn’t sure what was going on. The caesarean rate at this hospital was low and the doctor tried to have her remain in labor for as long as possible but when her babies heartbeat started to drop it was time to head to the operating room.
As soon as her baby was born she was sent off to the NICU and Courtney couldn’t even get to see her daughter until 27 hours after she was born. She doesn’t remember much due to the medication she was on for the caesarean but she shared her feelings of failure and hate towards her daughter for having to go through so much. She talks about how she still felt so alone and afraid at around 8 weeks postpartum and was asking her doctor what was going on.
Her daughter is now approaching 2 years old and their connection has drastically improved. She has also discovered that in sharing her story with others she has found tremendous healing and gained some serious empathy. I am so appreciative of this conversation and the courage Courtney has to talk about the hard side of motherhood and the things most keep hidden.
Feel free to check out her blog Knock on Motherhood or the podcast her and her husband have started called Knock on Parenthood.
Contact Courtney Smith
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/knockonmotherhood/
