24weeks! (and obgyn appt)

Today, I am 24 weeks! I am so excited. I hope I keep this baby baking for a lot longer though. I am happy to have a long, boring pregnancy in the heat of summer.

I had an obgyn appt today. Dr. is very happy with my progress. On the way to my appointment, I saw my RE (fertility doctor). He was on the phone, of course, but interrupted his call to say hi to me and to say I look great. I told him that I was 24wks, etc. He was very happy. Last time he saw me, I had a hematoma that was marked as a threatened miscarriage.

My obgyn kinda rushed me, but I guess he was in a hurry. I asked him about swimming and his response 'it's ok to swim and I would prefer you do that instead of walk or run'. I will have to tell my husband, but I am betting he still won't let me swim with my son. I asked him about getting my tubes tied and he had some standard answers for me and said 'we won't do it unless you are 110%'.

I asked him if the baby was down and he said he would feel and said he couldn't tell because the baby is still so small. Last time, the girl could feel that the baby was heads down.

Thanks for the support ladies! There are many times that I didn't know if I would make it this far.

23w5d -peri appt

Today, I had my appointment and I had asked my mom to go with me. She had 4 kids, but never has seen an u/s.
The baby didn't want to cooperate much as she was facing my back and breach. My mom asked the u/s tech to re-verify the gender and she couldn't do that. Other than that, it was a great appt. The tech actually did the 3D view of the baby and they NEVER do that at my peri's office. I know they *can* but they choose not to do that for people. The u/s tech was being nice probably because my mom was there.
Of course even when she did it, the baby's face was hard to see. We saw a little of her face. Her nose looks like my son's nose.

H/B: 152bpm
Weight: 1.5 lbs - last time at the same gestation I forgot to write down what it was...
Cervical length: 3.8 plus. Wow...my bladder was completely empty, but baby was high up and breach (not on my cervix). I asked the dr if that made a difference for the length and he said 'no'. I am so happy with that because that is longer than last time and I returned into the office yesterday. (instead of working from home). I am not sure she got a good measurement since at first she said it was really hard to get it because of the baby's position. She even said 'well if we can't get a measurement, we just don't take it'. With the cerclage they don't care as much (at least with a proactive one...).

They didn't want the dr to see me, but I decided to pay extra and wait for him. Last time at this same gestation, they wanted to do the same thing...
My mom and I had some time to burn, so we waited for him.

He was really nice to her and spent time talking to me about topics that aren't related to me really. He was telling my mom and I a few stories...
He said one of his patients lost a baby at 23wks and didn't want a cerclage on her 2nd pregnancy. He said she is now 21wks with her bag of water hanging out and he told her she needs the cerclage. He never worries about people, so I am glad he is at least telling that girl that she NEEDS the stitch. I hope things work out for her. I am not sure if he wanted to scare my mom, but he told her that cervical issues and people losing babies is an epidemic and they are seeing a lot of cases. I said 'oh because ppl wait to have kids and then they have multiples' and he said 'no, we have 18 yo girls with singletons all the way up to 40 yo ladies with multiples'. He said there are so many ppl who have IC issues that he doesn't know why. I was really surprised by that comment especially from him.

He told my mom that I could travel and that I could do anything really even have sex. After the appt, she told me that she thinks he is not very conservative and that I have to take it easy and listen to my body.

I asked the dr if I could swim and he said 'yes', but most likely I won't as DH thinks it isn't smart to do for infection. I agree. DH didn't go with me, but I gave him a full update afterwards. I asked the dr about my intenstinal problems and he said 'it was ok and wouldn't hurt the baby, but if it continued to talk to my obgyn'. If I ate something raw (which I never do...) he said I could get a bug that stays in my intestines for awhile and they might have to treat it. Ugh...He said I could take kaopectate or immodium for diarrhea, but I really haven't had any stomach pain since Sunday. I hate taking stuff, so I won't unless absolutely necessary.

Oh, a few people on the IC board that I frequent have wondered when the danger zone for IC is and if the hips really take over the baby's weight. I still think the danger zone for IC rearing its ugly head is 16-24wks. I think the baby's danger zone is still 24-28wks though....I do believe the baby's weight does get more on the hips around 24wks for *most* ppl, but I believe it has to do with your frame. This gestation last time my length had grown from 3.0cm to 3.3cm. This time it grew from 2.8cm to 3.8cm. I think at least for me, my hips have taken over. (maybe around 22 or 23wks.) My obgyn told me that the danger zone for IC with a cerclage is before 20wks, but I am not sure I buy that.

Thanks for all those who read...I know there are a few who read but don't post. That is ok, if you don't comment. I still appreciate you following my progress.

22w6d - Obgyn appt

Today I woke up to some loose bowels and some pain. I decided to go into the obgyn to make sure I didn't have an infection. Last time around this time, I had been diagnosed with BV and a UTI. The pain I felt was semi similar. I did capture my urine and thought it looked ok, but I am no dr. ;) I can kinda tell when it looks cloudy.
I got in with the nurse practioner and she said my urine was fine. They checked the baby on the doppler. She listened to my intenstines based on where I told her the pain was and she said they sounded irritated. She asked if I had diarrhea or vomiting. I said I had loose stools. She said most likely it was something that I ate and to eat very blandly over the next few days. bananas, rice, apples, toast (BRAT). I was glad that she didn't have to check inside my vagina.(like last time). Had my urine showed something, she would have...She offered to, but I declined if she didn't think that is what it was.
I was sick a few weeks ago, but that was vomitting and diarrhea.
I am just hoping that is all it is.
Oh, she asked me 'did you go out for cinco de mayo?'. I said no, but I did grab some food yesterday for lunch. I ate some spicy chips and I think my body doesn't appreciate spicy food with pregnancy.

Life is fragile...

I found out this week that a friend of mine lost her baby boy. He was full term and had a few problems besides spina bifida.

We are not that close, but I didn't even know she was pregnant. She doesn't live in my city. I am thinking she didn't tell a lot of her friends because she didn't know what was going to happen with the baby. His lungs just never developed due to some bladder issues.

I only found out because she posted an angel pic on her online profile.

I hate that the world gets any more moms who lose their babies. I have to say that she is the first dead baby mama that I know in real life. I have met so many online. It really is sad that anyone has to go through this.

She and her DH are in my thoughts and prayers (and her other living son).

It is just a reminder on how fragile life is...

OBGyn Appt - 19w5d

I had an obgyn appt today. I have been so bad about writing stuff down to ask my dr and writing down what he says.

Stats:
Heartbeat: It took her awhile to find the h/b but my phone was interfering with the doppler (damn phone). It was 150something bpm.
Weight: 4lbs - more on this later.
Blood pressure: normal - forgot what it was...I was talking to the nurse about her wedding - which is in 2years but I love wedding talk. :)

My dr told me that I look so much more relaxed this pregnancy. I told him 'oh I am still nervous, but I feel good and I have been doing more'. He said 'well you are out of the danger zone'. Ugh, I don't really believe that...but....He said the danger zone (with no cerclage) is 16-18wks. I think it goes beyond that, but oh well. He said he was happy to see my file and to see I hadn't had any issues in the last 4wks (in his opinion when he thinks things go badly).

He asked about spotting/discharge and I said I have none. I have less than last pregnancy. I do have some milky discharge after a BM, but that was the same as last time. Last time I had yellow discharge if I did too much...my peri thinks I may get more discharge as the baby grows and puts more pressure on the cerclage. The cerclage is a foreign body and the body does put out more discharge with it.

I told my dr that last week I had a bad vomiting spell. I threw up for about 4 hrs straight - everything I ate/drank including water. Ugh! I had a stomach bug. I was finally able to get chicken soup down and small sips of water and gatorade. I never called my dr. I asked him about it and he said it won't hurt the baby and as long as my urine is not dark yellow/orange I probably was getting enough liquid. I was worried that I should have gone in after reading others who had a stomach bug and suffered severe dehydration.

I asked him when I will be tested for GD and he said '28wks'. I said can't it be sooner and he said if they do it at 22wks, they would have to do it again at 28wks. Ugh! I told him I was tested at 8wks and he said he didn't see that in my file. I told him I am kinda eating like I have GD and he said keep doing that. I do cheat a lot though.

Oh, I asked him about my urine and he said it was fine. I told him that yesterday I thought I was getting a UTI or something. He asked if I had burning and I said 'no'. But I never get the common symptoms...I am a crazy patient I guess!

I always forget to ask about weight. I asked the nurse as I was walking out. She said 'well the dr. has your record up, but it looks like 4 lbs'. I said 'are you sure and is that ok?' She said 'well last time you had lost weight and this time you just gained 4 lbs'. She said that was my total. I am pretty happy with that amount. I have really been trying to eat well. I also crave healthy items with this pregnancy and I try to make more food. I am not relying on my husband for food all the time (like last time), so I am eating less junk food. ha!

I am counting down the days until 24wks. I know that is not a magic day really and plenty of people who go into labor then don't have a good outcome.

I feel a little better the last week or so. Not many braxton hicks contractions, feeling stronger somehow, etc.

Thanks for checking up on me!

Big u/s results!

To compare my results last time, please go to August 2008.

I go in for my u/s and then talk to the dr.

The u/s tech is pretty rushed but walks through everything.

h/b is 162bpm
Baby is measuring 18w5d - 19w. I am 18w6d today.
Baby is 10oz - which is strange since last time baby was 9oz but I was measuring ahead by 4days. Who knows?
Cervical length is 2.8cm - that's ok for me (last time at this time I was 3cm and doing very little. Now I have a little one and have to do more...more on this below per DR).

She was moving around a lot and rolling.

The u/s tech said everything looked good. She checked gender again and said that we are still team pink. The baby is head down (right now).

I guess I am surprised they even measured my cervical length. Why you ask? Well, because last time the girl said 'we don't measure it everytime'. Duh, they did last time and I think they should!

Dr. said all was well and asked if I am still having braxton hicks contractions. I said yes, but I have less of them. I told him that I was really out of breath two weeks ago, but I was stressed due to my son having surgery.

He said the baby looks good and it lowers my down syndrome rate to 1 in 1500. I asked him specifically what that meant and he said long bones, good bowel, and a ton of other stuff that I didn't write down. I am so happy that all looks good with her. He said my risk for Trisonomy 13 - I think - is 1 in 52,000 or something like that. Yes, I could still have these issues, but he said that Tri13 is found in 90% of u/s at this point (very obvious signs). Down syndrome could still be a factor, but is less likely.

Ah, about cervical length...he said 'it doesn't matter what the length is'. Then I said 'as long as the stitch is holding and he said 'yes'. He said 2.8cm is normal and they would worry more when it is 2.5cm (more so with someone with a cerclage I kinda gathered from him). He wanted to see me in 6 wks, but then started looking at my dates and said '5-6weeks'. I scheduled it less than 5wks (well by one day....) because the girl asked me which day was better for me. I told her I didn't want an appt on the 13th because I am superstitious. She just laughed. The dr said 'if you are scared and don't want to go six weeks, just give us a call and we will see you'. That is nice of him and I think the first time I ever heard him say that...

I am still scared and taking it easy. I work from home everyday and will go back to work around 23/24wks. I have some friends who help me with my son on the weekends (most weekends). The weekends are very hard especially because he had surgery, had a 24hr bug and is always sick which means he is miserable and throwing tantrums.

Thanks for your support!

Next post: What I did from 4-12wks and also a post about an obgyn nurse that I got to talk to for 30min (my work set me up with a nurse to monitor my pregnancy - more on why, etc).

I decided to get a temporary handicap placard!

My friend put the idea in my head as she said several people at work had done this. I didn't do it last time since I thought it would be a pain to get it and I didn't want to go wait in the tax office.

I was debating about going in to get one since it involved getting down somewhere and standing or sitting for long periods of time.

The first step was asking my dr. I asked my obgyn since I know my peri would think I wouldn't need one - he thinks I am normal. My obgyn gave me a prescription that said 'complicated pregnancy' when I was 11weeks. I asked him what to do with it. He said 'I don't know, I just give people this and they figure it out and get it'. Gee thanks! My friend who mentioned it to me at the beginning asked someone at work to give me the info on how to do this. Of course, she was saying 'oh sure I will help you'. Well, I got nothing from her...

I looked up online and I had to fill out a form and take it into the office. Hindsight, I should have just mailed it in. I got to the tax office today at 12:10pm (grabbed lunch via drive thru on the way). The wait was horrendous. I should know better than going during lunch, but I wanted to time it with my lunch as I don't get to get lunch out much. I took my number and their stupid system has numbers that don't go in order....great...I decided to walk back to my car and sit there for awhile. I parked pretty close. I waited about 30minutes and then went back in. Again, I had no idea where they were in the process because they don't go in order...But I stood for about a minute and then someone left their seat and I quickly grabbed it. Yea! I waited there another 30minutes and finally they called the number before mine so I knew they hadn't skipped over me. Then I waited for 10 more calls - which was the 30min...and finally they came around to my set of numbers again. The girl was quick and the window I was at had a chair (most you have to stand). I got two placards for $5 each. You can get one or two.

A good thing to know is that my dr. put that I needed it until November on the prescription, but they only issue the temporary placards for 6 months. Glad I didn't get it sooner as mine expires in September!

Now, I'll feel better if I have to go to work. I work in a different building than last pregnancy (even though I worked from home after 12wks) as I have to walk a little further to get into the building. The handicap placard should help! I wasn't planning to go into work until 24wks but I may have to attend a meeting between now and then. I am not sure. Still, I am glad that I got it if my husband and I go out as we can park close anywhere now. I will use it once I return to work too at 24wks.

I am glad I endured the 1hr headache to get the placards!