In August 2021, I went to the hospital for a scheduled induction with my third child due to some mild pre-eclampsia. My delivery was progressing as expected when I suddenly developed a severe headache, nausea, and faintness along with having a very intense urge to push. The team didn’t think there was any way I was ready to deliver but I insisted I needed to push immediately. Within 5 minutes, my son was born, not breathing, and I collapsed. I later learned that my blood pressure and oxygen levels plummeted as I suffered heart and lung failure. About 20 medical professionals were called to the room and I was given life-saving intervention over the course of several hours.
Thinking I had recovered, most of the medical staff left. It was then that severe uterine bleeding was discovered. I lost a significant amount of blood before they were able to get it under control.
While I was being attended to, my son was also being given life-saving intervention. He spent several days in the NICU before being released.
After consultation, the doctors diagnosed AFE as the cause of my complications, though the doctors hadn’t identified this during the event.
Today, my son and I are both healthy and are so grateful.
