Thursday, January 31, 2008
Last day of being PREGNANT!!
The days of indulgments is over, and in a little over 12 hours we will be heading for the hospital for our induction. I plan on taking one last belly shot tomorrow. It will be the last time my body ever grows another human being. Slightly bittersweet but more of a relief than anything. This pregnancy has been hard and getting my body back is going to be harder.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Pictures Coming soon....
I think one of the most important things that you can do is take before pictures. They are not something that we are going to want to look at during the initial stages of this journey but one we get loosing they can become a motivator, inspiration and something to show us how far we have come. I am going to be posting my pictures on my blog next week. I will have just had a baby and I am sure the pictures will be anything but "hot". I hope that those who are attempting a similar journey that they can take the time to document this stage of their journey too.
Friday, January 25, 2008
3rd Trimester...the end is in sight
You would think being in the third trimester you could relax and know the end is close. NOPE your poor pregnant body is so tired and sore it doesn't matter how far away delivery is its just not close enough. Right now today I have a full week until the induce me. The are inducing 2 weeks early. Even at two weeks the baby is expected to be over 8 pounds possibly 9 pounds. Fun huh?? Oh I am sure there are some that say, that those u/s are not accurate. Well they are and so is my history. My last two children born at 38 weeks were both in the 8 pound category. Pushing out these big headed chubby babes is not fun. I wish I had a taser for every person who suggested I just wait and let nature take its course. Um no thank you, I did that with my first and bled out when her 9lb 4oz self got stuck in my vagina.
Again this is going to be a long week.
Again this is going to be a long week.
2nd Trimester
The second trimester is known to be the best part of pregnancy. You get to experience life moving in your womb. Many of the uncomfortable pregnancy symptoms have finally gone and you are able to move on with life. For me I found this to be very true. But I also found that I sure was having a lot of braxton hicks contractions. It was summer time and I was very busy in our garden trying to grow and preserve as much as I could. At one point I felt like the contractions at 15 weeks were very intense and similar to real labor. I went to the ER, and they did an u/s of the baby. The baby looked great and the u/s tech even guessed that it was a little boy. The doctor came in and said that if they were real contractions they would do nothing to stop them. Needless to say that I was heartbroken. I couldn't imagine after seeing this healthy baby on the u/s that they wouldn't stop my contractions. After going home I contacted my old OB to find out if he could help us. He was happy to stop the contractions and do what we needed to make sure we made it to term.
I made an appointment to see the doctor. We were able to get into the doctor at about 17 weeks. He did an u/s and confirmed that something was changing my cervix as it had started to funnel and that put us in a higher risk situation. While he was looking I asked for him to take a little peak at the baby. And he confirmed that it was 100% a little boy.
When the doctor did my physical exam he found that the veins in my legs were in bad shape, and that my low blood pressure and heart palpitations needed to be looked into. He gave me referrals for a vascular surgeon and a doctor to run some heart tests.
The vascular surgeon was able to get us in at 20 weeks. He did an u/s on my legs and found that the superficial veins were refluxing blood and were diseased. He prescribed compression stockings and surgery after the birth of the baby.
The heart tests that were prescribed were a little troubling. The heart event monitor showed that I was having PVC's, PAC, and PVC couplets. They were potentially normal but annoying. They said that I would be able to take beta blockers to lessen them after having the baby. They also did a Echo Cardiogram on my heart. The results of that showed the upper chambers of my heart to be enlarged. I had a couple of minor leaks on my valves but it was considered normal. The doctor said we would have to repeat the echo cardiogram after the birth of the baby to see if my heart has returned to normal size.
At 25 weeks I had an appointment with my OB. I complained of all the braxton hicks contractions. He did a Vaginal probe ultrasound to see how my cervix was doing. He found that I still had funneling and that my cervix length had decreased to 24mm. That length put me at a 40% risk of delivery before 35 weeks. The doctor ordered that I take the Procardia and that I start modified bedrest. At this point in the pregnancy I had only gained 12 pounds. That was about to change in a big hurry.
The doctor wanted to see me weekly now to be sure to keep me out of preterm labor. At 26 weeks my cervix had become very soft and was a fingertip dilated. I was put on full bedrest and now that became our struggle. Needing to care for my family as my Railroad husband was constantly away from home and trying to keep the baby inside. Each week was a milestone. With us finally taking a breath of relief at 32 weeks knowing the baby would be ok if he came.
I think I gained 30 pounds in those weeks...Bedrest and holidays just don't mix.
I made an appointment to see the doctor. We were able to get into the doctor at about 17 weeks. He did an u/s and confirmed that something was changing my cervix as it had started to funnel and that put us in a higher risk situation. While he was looking I asked for him to take a little peak at the baby. And he confirmed that it was 100% a little boy.
When the doctor did my physical exam he found that the veins in my legs were in bad shape, and that my low blood pressure and heart palpitations needed to be looked into. He gave me referrals for a vascular surgeon and a doctor to run some heart tests.
The vascular surgeon was able to get us in at 20 weeks. He did an u/s on my legs and found that the superficial veins were refluxing blood and were diseased. He prescribed compression stockings and surgery after the birth of the baby.
The heart tests that were prescribed were a little troubling. The heart event monitor showed that I was having PVC's, PAC, and PVC couplets. They were potentially normal but annoying. They said that I would be able to take beta blockers to lessen them after having the baby. They also did a Echo Cardiogram on my heart. The results of that showed the upper chambers of my heart to be enlarged. I had a couple of minor leaks on my valves but it was considered normal. The doctor said we would have to repeat the echo cardiogram after the birth of the baby to see if my heart has returned to normal size.
At 25 weeks I had an appointment with my OB. I complained of all the braxton hicks contractions. He did a Vaginal probe ultrasound to see how my cervix was doing. He found that I still had funneling and that my cervix length had decreased to 24mm. That length put me at a 40% risk of delivery before 35 weeks. The doctor ordered that I take the Procardia and that I start modified bedrest. At this point in the pregnancy I had only gained 12 pounds. That was about to change in a big hurry.
The doctor wanted to see me weekly now to be sure to keep me out of preterm labor. At 26 weeks my cervix had become very soft and was a fingertip dilated. I was put on full bedrest and now that became our struggle. Needing to care for my family as my Railroad husband was constantly away from home and trying to keep the baby inside. Each week was a milestone. With us finally taking a breath of relief at 32 weeks knowing the baby would be ok if he came.
I think I gained 30 pounds in those weeks...Bedrest and holidays just don't mix.
Waiting for Baby The first Trimester
Here I sit at 37 weeks (and 1 day) waiting for baby to arrive. I am not patient in this process at all. I told my husband this morning if I had an eject button I would of used it by now. This pregnancy has been a long one and a very complicated one too.
The complications started at the beginning with first trimester bleeding. I went to a family practitioner and was sent for an ultrasound. The ultrasound tech. told me that my baby had passed. He walked out of the room to go and find the doctor, so he could tell me of my options. When the tech came back he said the doctor would be a while so he wanted to look with the u/s wand and see if we could get some more information on what happened. Much to my suprise we found a healthy living baby, and a twin that had passed. Thus the beginning of the complicated pregnancy. I was instructed to watch for heavy bleeding, told I may or may not pass the fetus. My toilet paper inspection was in full force, yet I didn't pass the fetus or any other materials.
Overall the first trimester was filled with normal pregnancy complaints. I suffered from morning sickness, and low blood pressure. Both of these made caring for a young family difficult but not impossible. Yet the complications of the pregnancy were about to get worse.
The complications started at the beginning with first trimester bleeding. I went to a family practitioner and was sent for an ultrasound. The ultrasound tech. told me that my baby had passed. He walked out of the room to go and find the doctor, so he could tell me of my options. When the tech came back he said the doctor would be a while so he wanted to look with the u/s wand and see if we could get some more information on what happened. Much to my suprise we found a healthy living baby, and a twin that had passed. Thus the beginning of the complicated pregnancy. I was instructed to watch for heavy bleeding, told I may or may not pass the fetus. My toilet paper inspection was in full force, yet I didn't pass the fetus or any other materials.
Overall the first trimester was filled with normal pregnancy complaints. I suffered from morning sickness, and low blood pressure. Both of these made caring for a young family difficult but not impossible. Yet the complications of the pregnancy were about to get worse.
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