A month before our second child was due something went wrong. I had woken up during the night to find that everything had shifted, and that the baby was sitting far too low. Checking my pregnancy bible, a book by Dr. Spock, I suspected that I had a placenta previa. According to the book this was a pretty dire situation for someone living on a remote Island, and that same day I got on the Friendship Rose to consult with Dr. Cyrus on the mainland.
Dr. Cyrus concurred with Dr. Spock and wanted to operate immediately. He said a placenta previa was a serious, dangerous condition, and that a c-section right away would be the wisest choice for me. However, remembering that Vanessa only weighed four and a half pounds at birth (and she was only two and a half weeks early), it was decided that I would stay on the mainland until I went into labor naturally. There were no incubators in the country and the baby needed a bit more time to grow. Staying on Bequia was not an option if I wanted to have my baby safely. I went home and packed my bag, returning to the mainland the following day.
I went to stay with my good friends Nancy and Richard Joachim, who took excellent care of me. They were very active socially, and when they couldn’t take me to evening functions they arranged for someone to be with me. Dr. Cyrus had stressed that I should never be left alone – as soon as I went into labor I had to be rushed to the Botanic Garden Hospital. It was nice staying there, the house was right by the water and I could stroll on the beach while I waited for my baby to grow. I admit I was nervous while I waited, I actually pulled my eyelashes out one by one until my eyelids were almost bald!
I woke up early one morning and realized I was in labor. My friend Nancy, efficient as always, quickly got me to the hospital. Mac had been alerted over on Bequia, and he crossed the channel with Bob Demmans in a Boston Whaler. Bob owned the only dive shop on Bequia and was to be my blood donor for the operation …. I have a rare blood type and his was a match. They had a somewhat meager blood bank at the Kingstown General Hospital and my blood type was not available. They arrived in time for Bob to give blood in case it was needed during the surgery (he fainted!), and for Mac to be there when I was wheeled out of the operating theater.
Rachel Elizabeth was born at 9:00 in the morning on September 17th. She weighed a whopping five pounds, which meant she was big enough to be with me in my room instead of the warmer birthing room. She was beautiful, at least I thought so, my friend Nancy said she looked like a plucked chicken! Soon she would be able to meet her older sister on Bequia and I looked forward to taking my new baby home.
