sicilianoj

I got pregnant with my first child in 2005. In August i started feeling really bad. Overly fatigued, achy, swelling... i just knew something wasnt right. My OB told me i was pregnant and it was normal!.....In september i went to a perinatalogist because i had placenta previa, well that had resolved but then i was told the baby was too small. I was then put on bed rest and was told that if her condition didnt improve they would be taking her early. So i went out of work and to the bed i went. She finally started growing on schedule.

* I had only gained 9 lbs by the middle of my 6th month*. And i felt a little better not a hundred percent. i got really tired really fast and i had palpatations.... again the drs told me its normal from the hormones..... just to get an idea it took me 3 DAYS to do my registry for my shower bc i couldnt make it through the whole store!....During Oct and Nov i had numerous colds or what i thought was colds lingering coughs, fatigue, chest pain each time they put me on zithromax and told me not to worry. Two weeks before i went into delivery i was coughing all of the time, and i started coughing up blood tinged sputum......all normal i was told....I also gained a TON of weight my last month but wasnt really eating bc i had no appetite ....... again......normal......... I finally went into labor on Nov25th it was a friday night. I had labor pains all night went to the hospital sat my bp was a little high but they said it was bc i was in pain and sent me home. I didnt go back again until sun afternoon. By then my bp was through the roof, i hadnt dilated anymore *only 1 cm*, my kidneys had shut down and i couldnt urinate. So they admitted me to L&D and gave me an epidural and pitocin. The first epidural didnt work so they gave me a second one. Finally they gave in i had to many problems..... baby had passed stool, her heartbeat was to steady, and all my problems. November 27, 2005 i had an emergency c-section. On the second day i had to get out of bed, i was in so much pain and the nurse basically yelled at me and told me i couldnt just lay in bed and take percocet......got a new nurse.......the third day i could finally make it half way down the hall without feeling like i was going to pass out... I was allowed to take a shower that night too. WHen i got out of the shower my ankles were about 5x there normal size i had been very swollen after the csection but they told me it was from the pitocin and the csection. But this was ridiculous i couldnt even bend my ankle to walk and it just kept getting bigger. My dr came in said it should start to go away soon. I was discharged from the hospital on a thursday after the birth, the day i was discharged i told the nurse that i was having trouble breathing she listened to my lungs said they sounded fine and that it was probably bc of the heat and off to home i went. I had to stop at my moms job while we waited for my meds at the pharmacy i was in sooo much pain and just felt like hell all my family kept telling me was how pale i looked and was i ok...Sat i called my OB bc i was still in a LOT of pain and didnt understand why... she said it was normal to rest. I was back in the ER the following Monday. I felt like i was drowning, i couldnt take a step without getting out of breath. When i was diagnosed i had full blown CHF, and my Ejection Fraction was in the high 20's Within fifteen minutes of officially being diagnosed i was told by the doctors that 1. i could have no more children 2. i had to immediatley stop breastfeeding 3. I was being admitted to the ICU 4. and that a member of the heart transplant team would be in touch with me within 24 hours. I was then given nitro, lasix, coreg, lisinopril, lovenox, and something else and hooked up to oxygen and a telemetry monitor, all well my husband and week old daughter were sitting there wondering what was going on. I was so upset they ended up giviing me a sedative, i wasnt sure which part to be upset about first! Here i am 24 years old with CHF from a disease I had never heard of. I have worked as a certified medical assistant for 5 years which is the only reason i even understood what they were talking about. I am also in nursing school but still with my medical knowledge i had never heard of Postpartum Cardiomyopathy. I was in the ICU one night and the CCU for 4 i responded well to medications and once i was on lasix the fluid drained from my lungs so they let me go home. Being away from my baby was one of the hardest things it didnt even hit me i had PPCM till i got home. I went to take a shower when i got back to get the germs off me so i could hold my baby girl and two minutes in i almost passed out...... i couldnt even shower by myself........ i was devasted..... how was i supposed to be a mom? i couldnt even take care of myself... my grandmother flew in to help with the baby and i slept most of the week she was there... i had no appetite and no energy... Eventually i started to feel better... Im still struggling bc although my EF is going up my symptoms are not going away. Ive never been so fustrated in my entire life and my family doesnt seem to get it bc on the outside i look fine but on the inside i struggle everyday just to be the best mom i can be and to just get through the day!

Jennifer Siciliano, 24 from New Jersey mother of one!