When Polaroids Arrive

The Birth - The factual stuff. QUIZ TIME! YAY

Chapter 3

So this is the next Tuesday. I have just read the part that I wrote last time round, and I noticed that we have stopped and taken a breath at the worst time possible.

Well, that's in my emotional terms anyway.

Hey ho; let's carry on. I'm sure you're all begging to know what happened to the baby next. Even though I told you that my life wasn't that exciting to begin with, you guys obviously think so: or else you wouldn't have read just past the prologue!

Oh, the joys of writing about myself in third person. It does feel awfully bitchy!

It is quite strange actually, being separated from myself. Not totally unlike a near-death experience when I think about it.

To be honest, as you can probably gather, my birth was a near-death experience in its own right!

Now, back to the story; you don't want to read me babbling along to myself all day or night, it could be in-between for that matter!

*warning: time zones do vary!*

I was whisked away to the special care baby unit straight after...you know...I came out. They did a few checks and then wacked my straight into an incubator for me to cook.

It was 200 ◦C for six weeks until I was brown and crispy.

No.

Only kidding. This was where I had a line put in up my nose and down into my stomach for milk, and oxygen thingy. (Dunno the name. All we need to know is that I needed oxygen, OK?)

When I can put pictures on here I will. (When I figure out how to exactly, comments telling me how will be greatly appreciated!)

But the six weeks was the right amount of time. I was in fact in there for six weeks.

I was allowed to be handled, but only very gently. These were the rules for handling my precious little thing:

· The baby always had to have an oxygen supply at the side of it's face (usually in the form of a cylinder with a tiny little nozzle for the baby.)

· Hands always had to be cleaned TWICE before the little one was allowed to be handled.

· If there was any cuts or scrapes on hands, rubber gloves had to be worn

· head always had to be supported

During that time, the parents of the severely sick child either stayed the night in the parents' room of the unit, or came and visited every day. One of the baby's parents stayed every night of the three months it was there.

The baby had to stay into hospital until it's due date, and had to reach a certain weight before it was allowed to be discharged.

I've got to say that I am proud of my parents for sticking with me, and being willing to sacrifice so much more when you normally would when thinking about having a child

Here are the shocking facts:

· The baby weighed 2lbs 4oz. This is about the same weight as a small bag of sugar.

· The baby could fit on the palm of it's mother's hand.

· It's skin was so thin that you could see all of the veins in it's body, and you could even see it's heart through it's chest.

Apparently it was my bravery that kept my heart going through those hard times. And that is one thing that I am proud of: I got through it all and I'm still here, telling the world about my earliest endeavours.

Do ya' wanna hear the funniest fact if all though?

*I hear a metaphorical "yes" and a few enthusiastic giggles*

OK then here goes. You can laugh to yourself but don't bully me about it or else I might come and hunt you down!

*evil laugh seems appropriate in more scenarios that I first thought*

I was born with no...

I'll leave you guys to guess for now: leave me a comment in the section below with your guess and I'll PM you to tell you if you have it right or wrong.

*hint*= Body part