LSW Kayleigh Summers works at the Linisian School in Pennsylvania. Her dog, Daxton, who narrates her the birth story of danger, her husband, and their 18-month-old son Callahan all reside with her. I’m two days past my due date, my blood pressure is elevated, and the baby appears to be large. I am now 10 cm along and prepared to push after 2 days of labor. I confessed to my nurse something unpleasant before yelling that my heart was failing before collapsing suddenly. Callahan was born at an emergency room while C.P.R. was initiated on me after I was rushed to the operating room.
While I was dying, my son was born. Thankfully, Cal recovered quickly after being delivered and fared well. I didn’t, on the other hand. Before being revived, I had been dead for almost 7 minutes, and after that, I had another cardiac arrest. They were able to revive me once more after performing CPR for a few minutes. I then rapidly started to lose blood. I had diffuse intravascular coagulation (DIC), which resulted in severe blood loss. I was in pain. 143 units of blood product are required (the average human body contains 8-12 units). I was placed on ECMO, a type of life support, because my heart and lungs could no longer keep my body supplied with oxygen. I needed to have an urgent hysterectomy and three abdᴏminal sᴜrgeries in the next few days. I was in the ventilaᴛᴏr for 5 days and in the ICU for two weeks. I gradually regained consciousness and was able to see my beautiful son on the 5th day. I was discharged on the 14th.
I was given a second chance in this life to witness my son’s development. I’m a shell of the person I was before I left for home. I don’t remember anything regarding the recent ar my body underwent. I slept 14 to 16 hours every day. Moreover, I was diagnosed with Psoriasis. In the same week that I was let go from the hospital, I started an erp weekly. Despite the fact that I’m still clinging to the “escape,” I know that as a therapist, I will require a lot of therapeutic assistance. I made a point of picking a therapist with expertise in perinatal mental health. When therapy alone was insufficient, I decided to begin taking medication.
I believe that initiating therapy early on and being willing to try the drug helped me get out of the dark earlier than doing it myself. Writing and sharing with others about my journey has also helped me deal with my grief.
