on jaundice / yellow skin
I wasn’t able to hold my baby in my arms yesterday. And for the whole day, I just contented myself with looking at her few pictures, wondering, worrying if she’s ok.
About mid morning yesterday, the hospital’s paediatrician dropped by my room and informed me Yui have yellow skin/jaundice and that her bilirubin is high. So they will subject her to photo treatment wherein she will be subjected to UV rays the whole day. I haven’t read about what jaundice on newborns mean so I asked the doctor if it’s detrimental to her health. He assured me it’s usually treated. But I lingered on the “usually”. He said he’ll tell me the results by the morrow.
I searched the Internet and the references I got were pretty worrisome. That if left unmitigated, it could lead to cerebral palsy or brain damage. Hubs and Okasan assured me however this is pretty normal. That hubs had it as well when he was a newborn and was himself subjected to the same UV rays (like father like daughter huh hehe). And the book I have here with me, Stoppard’s The New Baby Care Book, also affirms that physiological jaundice/yellow skin is pretty normal for newborns, is not a disease and usually occurs around the baby’s 3rd day of life, disappearing around the first week of life.
(segue: for my hospital stint, I brought two books – Book 3 Part 2 of the Song of Ice and Fire series and this baby care book. During labor, I tried to distract myself with the fantasy series but addicted as I am with the book, it wasn’t enough to distract me from the pain. When I woke up after a long sleep after the operation, I saw the baby care book on my bedside table, placed by my husband for my easy access. I took the hint. 😀 )
The yellow colour is actually brought about by the presence of bilirubin, the yellow pigment part of the broken-down-primitive-red-blood cells.
Per some references I read however, if the bilirubin is quite high, even when it’s really just physiological jaundice, it is normal practice to treat it, one treatment of which is subjecting baby to UV rays (if in the hospital) or sunlight (if at home).
We saw her in the nursery in the evening and my heart constricted seeing her alone on a special case, eyes covered for protection against the UV.
The worrywart in me prevailed however and hence was only able to sleep for less than two hours. Come morning when one of my OB visited me, I asked about my baby who has been photo treated and if there has been any word. Like the others, he assured me as well that it’s nothing to worry about and that it’s usual phenomena specially for Asians.
True enough, come 11am, my baby was brought to me! Cleared and sunburned. For three days I’ve been trying to lie on my side but couldn’t do it because my stitch is still painful. Even 30min before Yui was laid beside me, I still can’t do it. But when my baby was already placed beside me, without even realising it, I was already lying on my side cooing to Yui. The things babies can make you do. 🙂
I sang her some songs which eventually made her drift to sleep. Curiously, she fell asleep around the time I was singing the song that Mama used to sing to my brothers to make them sleep and which i sang to my brothers as well when it was my turn to lull them to sleep. When I realised what I was doing, well, suffice it to say that there was watering somewhere in the face and a voice cracking.
Precious moments.
on milestones
Finally after four days, my shadow, the IV drip stand is finally gone! Hand is swollen though from all the different drip medicines I’ve been having. Yes that’s not a leg. That’s an arm in each photo.
The IV was finally removed after having had cleared all the necessary tests for one who underwent a CS operation (email me for questions hehe). And with the IV drip shadow gone, I’m now allowed to breastfeed Yui. Alas, I’m not quite successful with it yet. Will try again at 9pm and at 12mn.
When we got back to my room, the dinner that awaited me took us all by surprise.
The one with the roofed sea bream fish and sticky rice is a congratulatory for me for having had cleared all the milestones for my cesarian operation (pain, tests, medicine, food, and loo tests besides). Of course I ate with gusto. The fish is SO good! Hubs reminisced how after the operation I had to start from liquid food then semi liquid food then almost normal food and then a feast. Yey!
I’m one day ahead of sched. Supposedly I’d only be breastfeeding tomorrow. I wonder if they’d discharge me earlier than planned which is on the 26th yet. Let’s see.