18 Bun In The Oven

Pregnancy and porphyria.



     Porcelain did indeed move back home. She was grieving, but she also had a baby on the way. She had to take care of herself. She'd always been very strong, but hormones are hell during pregnancy. She was so very lucky to have her sister with her at her mother's house. Having that family bond was the best feeling in the world.

     Then the cravings began. It didn't help that Porcelain had heartburn almost her entire pregnancy, but developed anemia more often as well. She all but wanted to down a pint of blood! Beef steak was a must in her house, as well as ginger tea and herbal motion sickness pills. Her doctor had her try those pregnancy vitamins, but after one dose, she never took another. The iron content gave her a wretched migraine, making her throw up even more.

     Doctors appointments were draining, literally. Because of her porphyria, they would take her blood every month just to make sure all her vitals were okay. They asked her questions like: Was she staying out of the sun? Was she taking vitamins? What was she doing for her blood pressure? The same answers every time sprang from Porcelain's mouth, even though they never found anything wrong except when she overheated. Her blood pressure skyrocketed, naturally. Thankfully her mother helped her find the very best doctor to deliver her baby. That made things so much easier.

     Until winter came, she overheated so much faster than before, becoming dizzy and nearly passing out because her anhidrosis - the inability to sweat; caused by porphyria. Staying inside in front of an AC was more than a must now, and she drank chamomile tea with cinnamon to keep her blood pressure down. It was not a fun experience. Then came her 8th month. The bliss could not be explained in words! No more heartburn!!

     There were times she wished for him to still be with her, those times when she slept alone at night, or staring up at the stars when it was moonless outside. The brief amount of time that he was in her life had left her with her own little jewel. One that she would cherish forever. People thought she would be depressed, but in reality, her baby gave her hope for the future.

     Harmony, we will call her, came in the afternoon on a chilly spring day. Porcelain's mother rushed her to the hospital. They had all the instructions sent ahead of time, but had to prep the nurses in the maternity ward when they arrived as well. Low lighting in her room, very little anesthesia if emergencies happen, no morphine for pain, etc. Porcelain didn't dilate, so they had to give her an emergency cesarean.

     Afterwards, the nurses almost put Harmony under a light, but thankfully they noticed her eye color. Babies in Porcelain's family have violet eyes when they are born, turning either blue or green soon after. This scared the hell out of the nurses. Harmony had inherited the family's genes. It was obvious when she was born.

    They had called in a specialist instead of Porcelain's doctor. Her mother had stayed with her, and heard the nurses talking. She walked up to them and declared she was her daughter's medical advocate and no specialist was going to be called. They had already done so, and Porcelain's mother was livid. Her doctor was then called, and Harmony stayed in-room with Porcelain until they left the hospital.

With hospitals, you must use your voice and your backbone, or they will completely ignore you. They think they are doing what's best, but more often than not, they just don't listen to the patients or understand that those instructions given to them by the patient are meant to be followed.



Porcelain and Harmony were released 3 days after she was born! Harmony was a 7lb 9oz beautiful replica of her mother! Somehow, she just knew, the future was going to be alright. ❤




Links for your viewing pleasure:

Anhidrosis, the inability to sweat.
Sometimes this can be caused by an inherited condition. Mine is related to my Erythropoietic Protoporphyria (EPP). I literally don't sweat. I will get flushed, my body core temperature will rise, and my blood pressure will rise. It's not fun.  This is also known as hypohidrosis.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/anhidrosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20369400

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