Learnings from an Emergency Cesarean Delivery

It's Pulô's birthday month! This time last year i excited but at the same time nervous about the arrival of our little boy! To say that we are looking forward to seeing the little one is an understatement. I guess every parent is over the moon excited so looking forward to touch and cuddle the baby. But along with the excitement comes the preparation. Like many expecting parents, we had a very loooong list of things to do and prepare back then.

We thought that since i'll be having SCHEDULED C-SECTION naman, malamang hindi na kami mabibigla! BUT NO! Baby was excited to come out. We chose January 13, 2012 as his birthday but he had other plans and came out on December 22, 2011. Humabol pa sa Pasko!

Although we had most of the baby stuff on hand,  we were still caught off guard.

[caption id="attachment_1477" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Having a baby is among the events is our lives that need utmost preparation... but all the stress is worth it when you finally hold that little bunch in your arms. Best Christmas gift, ever![/caption]

Here's a few things a mama can do  before the big day! It pays to be prepared, i'm telling yah!

Get these things ready as early as your 7th month: 

Baby bag containing everything you''ll bring to the hospital

• Set of clothes that he'll wear when he's discharged 


• Mittens


• Socks


• Receiving blanket


• Diapers

Bag containing your clothes after giving birth 

• Loose blouses and pants or shorts (it will be easier to put on if they were a little loose) 


• Nursing bra


• Maternity panties


• Maternity pads


• Nursing cover (for privacy when you breastfeed or pump)


• Toiletries

Bag for your hubby

• Change of clothes


• Food


• Toiletries


• Cellular phone


• Stuff to keep him busy like Ipod, books, etc

Food for the visitors. 

• You may be a bit groggy after the operation but your well wishers will surely go hungry! 

Money and documents

• Put money in the safe place, like a carry-on wallet  that your hubby can wear.  All the documents like your Philhealth form, SSS form  should be neatly kept in a plastic envelope.  

Update your Philhealth and SSS records.

Do the checking and updating as early as possible. If you're employed, notify your Human Resources Department about your condition. Notify them as early as possible.  Aside from updating your records, be sure to check if in deed you are updated with your monthly contributions.

Have your status and your contributions updated. This is really important, i tell you! This way, you won't have to shell out money anymore since all the Philhealth deductions will automatically be reflected in your bill! Be makulit about this, kung ayaw nyo maging sobrang laki ang babayarang hospital bill!  Hubby and i were really broke after i was discharged because the deductions from Philhealth were not reflected in our hospital bill upon discharged.  Learn from our mistake of not being makulit enough. We underestimated the inefficiency of some HR staff who did not update our records on time even if we passed all the requirements early.

Since the deductions were not reflected on our bill, we had to personally file for reimbursements. It  was really a a hassle, which can be avoided. So  again, please please please, double check with your HR to see if they've updated your records!

Aside from the hassle, you'll have to wait long for the check from Philhealth. If i remember correctly, the check was released 2 months after we filed for reimbursement!

For SSS, you have to fill in a maternity notification. If you're self employed and have an online account with SSS, you can notify them of your pregnancy through the internet.  If you have to undergo a cesarian delivery, you need to pass a medical certification from the OB that you'll be having CS.  Mas malaki ang maternity benefit pag CS.  If you do this early, you can get your SSS maternity benefit even before you give birth!

Bring these important documents to the hospital: your SSS ID, Philhealth ID and the updated Member Data Record from Philhealth. Some baby blogs and websites recommend bringing a birth plan.

Prepare your breastfeeding stuff early on.

Among the things i planned to buy weeks before i return to work was a breast pump. But that was wrong pala! Based on my experience, i needed the pump even before i returned to work. Sadly, baby was not well enough to directly breastfeed. Since he was a few weeks premature, he had to be confined in the NICU and i was not able to directly breastfeed him until three days after his birth.

On events like this, you'll have to have a breast pump. You'll need to breast pump or express milk if you can't latch. So hubby bought a manual pump while i was still in the hospital.  The manual pump was a big help, don't get me wrong. But we won't need it if i had the double electric pump i'm using earlier.

So i recommend getting your dream pump even before giving birth. Read this for more tips on getting ready to breastfeed. If you can't get that pump beforehand, then you can always learn how to express milk by hand. After you gave birth, it's important that your breasts are stimulated to initiate breast milk production.

Get a steroid shot.

If you're a complicated case, your OB might ask you to get steroid shots. The steroid is injected to you tomature baby's lungs. I had this shot on my 7th month and believe me, i'm very thankful that i did!  Read here for more about the shot.

Before your maternity leave, leave things in order.  

Of course you'll have to notify you boss ASAP about your pregnancy. You also need to update and have things in order before you take your leave.  So while pregnant you'll have to work doubly hard to ensure you won't leave too big a backlog, or at least finish the requirements you promised before you take the leave. 

Baby came a day before my expected leave so i was not able to officially turnover my tasks or even formally say goodbye.  For working preggy moms, it's a must to have things in order before going on that much awaited maternity break.

Bring these extra stuff to bring to the hospital: 

• blanket, mats and pillows so you wont't be charged extra.


• extra food for your visitors


• books for you to read eg baby books and magazines

Some hospitals charge extra when you request for more blankets and pillows so better to bring your own.

Bring the  camera! 

This was my frustation that time, i can vividly remember my OB asking for the camera seconds before i heard bebe cry.  Hayyy... kung kaya ko lang bumangon noon lalabas ako at kukunin kahit ung camera phone ko. Too bad we did not have baby's first ever pics.  So to expecting moms, prepare and charge that camera and have it on hand every time.

Moms, daig ng maagap ang masipag. That's what the old people say. And actually it is in deed very true, especially for someone who's expecting.

Also worth reading:

• My pregnancy complication: placenta previa


• Do's and don'ts with placenta previa


• Downloadables for Pregnant moms 

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