The Omphalocele

Two days after her birth, Dr. S looked at Elizabeth’s hernia and didn’t know what to do, so he sent us to a specialist: a pediatric surgeon. So we drove to Children’s Hospital an hour later. I remember feeling tired and my back was hurting, I wished I didn’t have to do this. I just wanted to be at home. Well, we arrived at the clinic, and the doctor was still in surgery so we waited there for over an hour longer than expected. Finally, it was our turn to be seen. Dr. Feltiz took one look at Elizabeth and new exactly what it was. He said to us, “Well, you won’t be going home today. We are going to admit Elizabeth to the hospital today and she will need surgery tomorrow morning. I already have a full schedule, but I will rearrange it so she gets in right away.”

“What?” I thought, “Surgery? Tomorrow? What?” This was happening way to fast. I was feeling very panicked. The doctor explained that a hernia like hers was called an omphalocele, and it can have 5 different things trapped in the cord: vein, artery, intestine, colon, bladder. The latter would be the best case scenario, Intestine being the worst, and a more invasive surgery. But she was already suffering an infection, redness was spreading on the skin surrounding her cord area. If we hadn’t come in as soon as we did the infection would have taken over within a week and she would’ve ended up in the NICU.

So, we moved to the next building over, to the hospital rooms and were admitted that afternoon. I had already cried for over an hour as we waited in the clinic for a hospital room to be prepared for us. My postpartum depression had started showing up that day, but with this news, the depression and crying reared their ugliest head of all.

Dave and I decided since there is risk involved in surgery that Elizabeth should be baptized. Dave called Fr. Corey to see if he wanted to do it. He came right to the hospital that night. Suzanne Peach was also there. She had brought us our essentials from home and to bring Clare home from the hospital. An emergency baptism was performed for Elizabeth Mary Anne on December 22, 2010. I cried through it all.

We visited for a while, I tried to keep my mind off of what was to come, but eventually the nurse came for Elizabeth for her IV. Dave went with her because she didn’t have an id tag yet. I stayed in the room and cried more and more. Dave said that one of the worst things in his life is to watch his daughter scream like she did and not be able to help her. The times in my life that I have seen my husband cry are less than the fingers on my hand, and it hurt me to see him hurt too. Elizabeth was brought back to me with an IV in her little hand and I cried for her. I’m glad that Elizabeth’s early birth didn’t cause more complications because I don’t think I’d have been strong enough to handle more than I did on this day, minor as it was.