So, we didn't make a conscious decision to try to get pregnant, it just was
something that sort of happened.
we had like a five-year plan, so
I literally got pregnant right on our five-year anniversary.
Women with spinal cord injuries can get pregnant and do get pregnant.
Ask the doctor if they have any prior experience with anyone with a spinal cord injury, or
who was in a wheelchair or really any kind of mobility related disability.
Well, the formal assessment we recommend is really a good exam with your doctor,
a review of your medication history, a review of your family medical history
because it's important for us to know what patients are taking,
be that herbal,
be that prescription or be it over-the-counter.
Somebody who has a
heart problem might need to see the cardiologist before pregnancy, somebody
with terrible asthma may need to see their pulmonary doctor beforehand.
The need for a maternal fetal medicine specialist depends on the patient's
medical history and pregnancy history. You know, many spinal cord injury
patients have no underlying health problems, but for the woman who's over 35
or over 40 or who has other underlying medical conditions like diabetes,
they will need to see the maternal fetal medicine specialist.
Luckily I do have
two different kinds of wheelchairs, I have a manual wheelchair as well as a
power wheelchair and obviously the power wheelchair is really helpful when you
start to get bigger and, you know, need to move if you still need to move around
quickly, but I was still able to move around and maneuver just fine in my
manual wheelchairs.
Anytime I would need to go to the doctor and they would
ask for a urine sample I just used the bathroom normally but made sure there
was some sort of collection device or tool that they had pour that into the
collection cup and you know give a urine sample as
a lot of times you know I would just wear dresses so I didn't have to fool
with extra clothes when I went to the ob/gyn they would always ask for my
weight and to visit a separate area of the hospital that had hospital beds
where you can you know transfer onto them in the actual bed weighs you they
would weigh my husband first and then they would weigh him hoping holding me
on the scale and then subtract his weight spinal cord injury patients have
no more risk for an early delivery than other women so about 10% of women
deliver prematurely but that's the risk you have and you know if you have twins
it's more likely if you have other underlying medical conditions it's more
likely the route of delivery is determined by the mom's medical
condition in the baby's medical condition we would prefer a vaginal
delivery because the healing is faster for mom there's less bleeding there's
less risk for infection so I didn't feel contractions in the way that you know
maybe an able-bodied person might feel them I actually was in a wedding the day
that I started going into labor and was having all that back pain and I had no
idea didn't get back so you know late that night after it was over and then
you know kind of had that back pain all night and again just thought I'd had a
long day and was tired but actually the following morning my water broke at that
point you know I kept having like fake late labor you know to keep going to go
to the hospital thinking this was it and it was the classic like you know I've my
water broke the curtain you know it got tired it was textbook like textbook
perfect the contractions kept coming and they told me this is you have the
opportunity to take it now and if not and you won't be able to so I went ahead
and I took that for Durrell and I didn't you know it basically paralyzes
everything so you can't feel anything so I didn't really feel when she was coming
out the anesthesia for my STI patient depends on their level of injury and
what they feel so for the patient who has pain yes an epidural is a great
option for her I have not seen more dysreflexia in patients with epidural
when we use general anesthesia in a pregnant woman we also put the baby to
sleep at the same time so we always try and avoid that you know at this point I
have a pretty good idea of the best way tooks kind of explain things to people
and how things are gonna work and they usually just luckily just trust that I
know what I'm talking about I would recommend having an advocate at the
delivery we had an extra nurse come in and my husband he like would hold my
legs up to and I was able to push and have a natural birth during the pushing
phase most women and their partner and the nurse are holding the legs back to
push once we get closer to delivery we do have stirrups you're gonna need to
bring your medication with you and your own like personal self-care supplies as
far as my self-care goes I kept my normal routine we rotate our patients so
much in labor and delivery that they don't really spend much time to develop
any pressure point issues have not seen dysreflexia be any more problem
postpartum than it was for the patient before so the same management that she
usually does is what she can do now we don't see an increased rate of a PT
atomy breakdown or infection in our spinal cord injury patients know and it
may be scary but be positive as it can be because if you don't have good mental
state and good things won't come so you have to stay positive
you