Bad News

UPDATE: Not much new to report from the doctor's appt. this morning. Dr. Van Kirk (my doctor here in Redding) will be calling down to UC Davis as I may need to be down there for the delivery. He just again went over the seriousness of the situation and that his goal is to get baby here safely and mommy taken care of.
Daniel leaves Friday morning to head back home to Mexico to check on/take care of things there and see/visit with our dear church. This will most likely be his last trip back there until we all 14 of us go back home together. :) Daniel and I read each of your comments together and it brings tears to our eyes knowing our brothers and sisters in Christ are bringing us before His throne. Psalms 55:22 "Cast your burden on the LORD, and he shall sustain you: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

ORIGINAL POST:

I only have a minute before I need to get ready to see the doctor here, but I just wanted to give a quick update on our u/s appt. yesterday. Thank you first of all for praying for us. Though the news was surprisingly worse than we'd hoped for, the Lord truly calmed our hearts, the doctor/staff at UC Davis was wonderful, Daniel was able to be with me the entire time (even though he had our 2 youngest with him...they allowed them all to come back for the scan as long as the little ones were quiet), and the other children back at home had a simply great time at the homes of their family /friends. And, our little baby boy is still inside me and growing just perfectly! So much for which to thank the Lord.
The reason I had this u/s was primarily due to the concern that the placenta, being as it is previa and lying over my previous c-section scars, is at risk for growing too deeply into the uterus which can be very dangerous and cause a lot of problems, especially at the delivery of the baby. If the placenta has attatched itself too firmly, it often will be difficult to impossible to remove after the birth resulting in severe hemmoraging for the mother and often the need for an emergency hysterectomy to save her life.
If the placenta is attatched too deeply, there are 3 levels in which they call this condition based on how deeply the placenta has grown into the uterus. The first is placenta accreta, meaning it has grown too deeply into the uterine wall. The second is called placenta increta, meaning it has grown more deeply into the muscle of the uterus. And then third is called placenta percreta, meaning that the placenta has grown completely through the uterus and often attaches itself to other organs outside the uterus such as the bladder or bowel. This third level is the most complicated/risky as it involves other organs as well as the uterus.
While I came to the scan knowing that I was a high rist for an accreta, we were very hopeful that all would be normal. After the lady took all the pictures and called the doctor to review them, the doctor came in to rescan me and talk about what they had found.
Diagnosis: definate placenta accreta, very probable placenta increta, and possible placenta percreta as he saw some of the placenta blood vessels already on/near my bladder.
The doctor was very serious, but very caring as well. He told me that they don't see this very often and this is what often still takes the life of ladies in childbirth. But he also right away told me that as bad as this news is to hear, that it is actually very good news. Good in the sense that we know and because we know, we can be prepared at the delivery for what possibly lies ahead and being prepared, he feels that while it may be rough, baby and I will be fine. Most of the sad outcomes, he said, are when they go into a delivery unaware of the problems.
I see my doctor here in town this morning to talk with him about the diagnosis, see if he and the hospital here are still able to handle the situation and to again let him know how many people have been praying for him as well as baby and I. Pray the Lord gives Dr. Van Kirk wisdom this morning as we talk about the different options/things that need to be discussed.
I need to get ready to go, but I will update later today, Lord willing, about my appointment and share some other thoughts :).
Thank you for praying. The Lord is so very faithful, good, and loves us so much!