I was helping in the delivery room again today. The soon-to-be mom I spent my morning with today was 15 years old. She was definitely in a lot of pain, and she was definitely scared. And alone. But this doesn't seem to be anything new, as nearly every woman I've seen in maternity seems to be in the same boat. As her contractions grew stronger, she was moved to the labor bed. The nurses were encouraging her to push, just as they do with every other patient. Then, one of the nurses jabs a massive needle into her, grabs a pair of scissors, and goes to town. It took me a few seconds to process what had just happened. There was just so much blood, and the woman was just screaming in pain. I had to leave the room...my stomach was weak, and my heart went out to this woman. It was just so hard to watch. I took a breather for a few minutes, and went back in to help clean up. I guess I witnessed my first episiotomy, although I learned the word in Spanish before I knew it in English.
Later in the morning, a woman in the pre-labor room just started crying and screaming - I had taken her vital signs earlier, and I've been getting to know her, as she has been there since last Monday! The doctors and nurses rushed her to another room, and then someone came to get her with another bed. They wheeled her off to the OR for a cesarean section. I tried to ask one of the doctors what had happened (as it caused quite a commotion on the unit, especially with the women in the same room whose vital signs I was in the midst of taking...!). I didn't understand what had happened, and I guess I'll never know. It was so frustrating to not be able to understand...although I'm getting more and more used to that feeling. It still only encourages me to work and study harder so that I can understand better!
Tonight, we went out for a traditional Nicaraguan meal. Most all Nicaraguan food is fried. Ines, the BaseCamp cook (or as we call her, Mama Nica), still fries the food, but it is a lot lighter than most food here - and I realized this in going out for this traditional meal. So much grease! We all had immediate stomach aches...yuck! Oh well, part of the culture! It was interesting to try a lot of the different dishes, although between the fried cheese and the deep fried potato, I think my stomach is going to need a bit of a break!
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