Chapter Fourteen
The next morning Libby woke up to find that she was bleeding heavily. She woke Luca in a panic. ‘This shouldn’t be happening,’ she said. ‘What do I do?’
‘Don’t worry, we’ll call the midwife. They’ll know what to do. Are you in any pain?’ he asked, jumping out of bed and running over to the desk to find her maternity notes.
‘No, no pain. Just heavy bleeding.’ Libby sat down on the sofa, unsure of what to do with herself.
Luca dialled the emergency number to contact her team of midwives. Libby grabbed the phone off him, deciding she’d rather talk to them herself.
‘Try not to panic. I’m just going to ask you a few questions,’ the midwife said. ‘Is the bleeding heavy?’
‘Yes.’
‘Any heavier than a period?’
‘No, when I used to get a heavy period, it’s probably about the same as that.’
‘And are you experiencing any pain at all?’
‘No.’
‘OK, now I need you to stay calm and I’m going to ask you to call an ambulance to take you to A and E. The doctors will need to examine you to make sure that everything is all right.’
‘Am I going to lose the baby?’ Libby asked, her voice trembling.
‘It is more than likely that the baby is absolutely fine,’ the midwife reassured her. ‘But you do need to get it checked as soon as possible.’
Luca phoned an ambulance and gave the emergency services their address. They waited nervously, holding hands on the sofa, too anxious to talk. When they arrived, the paramedics escorted Libby downstairs and on to a stretcher. Within fifteen minutes she was at the hospital, Luca walking by her side as they wheeled her in. A midwife called Sally introduced herself and took control of the stretcher, taking her into the labour ward.
‘What’s happening?’ Libby asked. The panic was rising quickly; she was sure that she was going into labour too early and was desperate for somebody to do something to help her baby.
‘We need to make sure that you are not having a placental abruption—’ explained the midwife.
‘What is that?’ interrupted Luca.
‘It’s when the placenta separates from the uterine wall. If that is the cause of the bleeding, then you might have to have an emergency C-section.’
‘Oh my god,’ Libby gasped. Luca was deathly pale with worry; he held her hand and squeezed it tightly as the midwife set up the monitor to check the baby’s heartbeat.
‘The heartbeat is looking normal, so that’s a good sign,’ the midwife reassured them. ‘And the doctor will be along shortly to examine you and find out where the bleeding is coming from.’
Libby tried not to worry while they waited for the doctor. Luca kissed her forehead and whispered, ‘It’ll be OK,cara.’ She was so glad that she wasn’t here by herself, that she had him with her. Several minutes later, the doctor arrived. She introduced herself and explained that she would be doing an internal examination.
‘It will feel a bit like having a smear test,’ she said as she inserted the speculum.
Libby held her breath and prayed for good news. Her heart was racing so fast she could hear the blood pounding in her ears.
‘Right,’ the doctor said. ‘I can tell you that the bleeding is coming from the uterus, not the baby.’
‘So the baby’s OK?’ asked Libby.
‘Yes, the baby is fine. Uterine bleeding, though alarming, is usually nothing to worry about; it should settle down soon. We’ll move you on to the antenatal ward for monitoring and we’ll check you to see whether the bleeding stops.’
‘Thank you,’ said Luca, breathing a sigh of relief. ‘How long will you keep her in for?’ he asked.
‘You’ll need to stay here for twenty-four hours after the bleeding stops to make sure all is well, and then you can be on your way.’
The midwife came back and took her to the antenatal ward where she was monitored throughout the rest of the morning. The baby’s heartbeat remained normal and, by late afternoon, the bleeding had stopped. Libby had never felt so relieved. She realised that she had taken her pregnancy somewhat for granted since making it through the uncertainty of the first trimester. Suddenly both she and Luca realised how desperately they wanted everything to work out, how much they were counting on the safe arrival of their baby. It had given them both a massive fright.
