Wednesday, January 7, 2009

It's All Relative

One of the nurses recently told me that the unit sometimes has prisoners as patients. The prisoners get a private room and are handcuffed to the bed. They each have their own personal guard rotation; the guard sits in the recliner next to the bed and usually monopolizes the TV. Fascinating. I'd made comparisons between the hospital food and prison food, so I asked the nurse: "What do the prisoners think of the food here?"

"They think it's fantastic," she said.

So it's possible I may have been exaggerating the food's awfulness. It's not good, but most of the time it is edible. Occasionally it is tasty (maybe one meal every two weeks). Still, when it's time to eat most of the entrees I often end up talking to myself, trying to psych myself up for the task.
Just eat it. It's not going to kill you.

How bad can it be? Take one bite.

You're 34 years old. You aren't a picky kid anymore. You can eat this. Be a grown up.

It could be much worse. What if you were in a Mexican prison? That would have to be worse.

You're lucky that you even have food in the first place.

The sooner you start to eat it, the sooner you'll be finished and won't have to deal with the food for a few hours.

Just hurry up and swallow it and wash it down with some milk...
The good news is I've managed to get my weight back up and have gained about 4 pounds overall since I checked in more than 7 weeks ago. The contractions have kind of calmed down for the most part, although they still rear their head from time to time. Friday we will be at 30 weeks gestation. If we can get to 34, Baby Girl and I should be golden.

I sometimes feel that we've had really bad luck, especially compared to all the women who sail through their normal pregnancies and end up with a healthy baby every time. My first two pregnancies seemed like worst-case scenarios, ending in the first trimester. But now I understand that some things are much worse than that.

In the past few months, two friends of mine have lost their babies in the second trimester, delivering them too early for the babies to survive more than a couple of hours. I can't imagine how devastating that must be.

I've complained about the food here, and I've complained in general about my "confinement," but we now have a good chance of having a healthy baby.

In that respect, we are very lucky.

6 comments:

m said...

It could be worse. What if you had to eat my mom's chicken and waffles? ;)

You know, it is all relative. Even in our situation, I keep trying to remember the "it could be worses." We could have delivered the girls and NEVER been able to hold them...They could have survived but only for a few days...They could have survived but with painful ailments....

There are a lot of could have scenarios (my babies could still be here. You could have had a great and non-bedrest filled pregnancy without complications. Hell, we could have each had NO problem getting pregnant in the first place...) and it is probably just as important to remember the ones that could have been worse.

You are almost there! Checking in faithfully to see how you are on the journey.

caramama said...

I often think that as well. For the difficulties we've had, it still could have been worse. In my mind, it doesn't make what you are going through less of a struggle or less frustrating, but it does help to think about the good aspects.

Thinking of you often! I'm so excited that you and the baby are still hanging in there!

May said...

Oh, so very true. Thoughts like this are what allowed me to endure the bedrest with (some) sanity intact.

30 weeks! What a fabulous milestone!

Ask your nurses if there's a secret menu at the hospital. I eventually discovered I could order the meals prepared not for the patients, but for the staff cafeteria. MUCH better.

dcpeg said...

I LIKE May's suggestion about asking for the same food the staff gets!

Any wheelchair time soon? Since you didn't mention it, I'm assuming you're still cooped-up. Nasty weather, anyway. . .

It's a good sign that you've still got your wits about you. Lots of us are rooting for you - hope you can feel our good vibes sent your way! Stay strong, WOMAN!

Mary said...

Whoo hoo! 30 weeks!
I think I would make my husband bring me my meals in to the hospital. I don't know if I could handle that food either. But, it sounds like prison food is by far worse, lol.

Anonymous said...

I hear ya -- sometimes the "could be worse" mentality is all that gets us through. Kevan has all kinds of things going on right now, but one of his therapists tells me stories about the other kids she sees, and I always feel so thankful after hearing them...