Monday, October 27, 2008

Update from my Baby Blog

Today started off extra-early. I had to go to University for my 3 hour glucose tolerance test, since I failed the 1 hour. Despite arriving before 8am, and telling two different front-desk-people that I needed to be at the other building by 11am and could I please have my nasty orange drink right away, they managed to ignore me until 8:22. That means I was going to be until at least 11:22 for my testing, and I needed to call across the street to let them know. I didn't have the number, and the lab people claimed they didn't, either. I suppose they didn't have a directory or even internet access, either. But, I did note that for a black lady, they immediately looked up her doctor's number. And with all the other black clientele, they happily sang, "Good Morning!", and inquired about their health, their day, whatever. Not so much with me. Nice.

Anyway, I felt pretty nasty by the time I left the lab...I was shaky, heart pounding, etc. Despite not being hungry, I wolfed down a small granola bar, and felt worse. I waited almost an hour and a half at the Fetal Assessment Center, since I had thrown their schedule out of whack. My ultrasound went well...we could see her hair! I have been saying that the only thing I haven't had so far is a bald baby, but I guess that's out now, too. She's estimated to weigh 3lbs 10oz, which is still larger than average. That puts her at roughly 6lbs 10oz at birth, which is more than Cam & Noah, but less than Collin. We'll see how that plays out.

Then I went for my non-stress test & biophysical profile. Things were going fabulously, and I thought I might get out in record time, when all of a sudden, her heartrate dropped. Where it had been in the 130s, it dropped to 85 or 90. I literally heard Kristen, the nurse I've been seeing, drop what she had and run over. She had me lay completely on my left side (I was only slightly propped before that). The heart rate rose to 106. Not good enough. She had me get onto my hands and knees, and the baby's heartrate went up into the 120s. I could feel her moving around, so I knew she was doing ok, but my heart was pounding. I tried to lay down again, but the same thing happened, and then they couldn't get a reading at all. Kristen called for the other nurse, and the doctor. I was given oxygen, and soon there was a crowd around me. The doctor came in and did an ultrasound...we could see her moving around, and he explained that my placenta is on the back wall of my uterus, so any time I'm on my back, I'm compressing the cord and the placenta. They told me I would need to go up to Labor & Delivery for monitoring, and then they would take it from there...meaning, if she didn't straighten up, I was going to have a Cesarean right away. I thought, this is it, I'm having a c-section this time. Well, I guess she just didn't like that floor of the hospital, because as soon as we went upstairs, she was fine. Her movement and heart rhythms were fabulous for the next three hours.

I saw three doctors and two nurses, plus two anesthesiologists. Each one wanted my history, and despite having given all of it several times before, I had to give it seven more times. Angie came up to stay with me, which was great. She lends a comforting feeling, and gives me a different perspective than when I'm just there, wrapped up in my own head. The doctor that I really liked came back in to tell me that my results were back from my 3-hr test, and they were great. She said my sugar was too low by the end (gee, you think so?!). I said, well, can I PLEASE have something to eat then? She said I could probably have something in a while, but I never did get to eat. I did get a cranberry juice, which my stomach didn't agree with. I was finally released, and on the way home, I stopped at Panera. I got a salad, half a sandwich (which of course has the calories of any full-sized sandwich one might make at home), and a frozen mocha, plus a hunk of bread...and I ate it ALL. I'm feeling much more human now. And as I sit here, the baby wiggling and having hiccups inside me, I'm thankful that she hasn't made her entrance into this world just yet. The last thing Kristen said to me was, "See you next week." I hope she's right.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Further Proof...

Further proof that when a parent realizes it is quiet, it is already too late...