Monday, March 26, 2007
Friday, March 23, 2007
Doctor Follow-up
My doctor is unable to determine the cause of the bleeding I had last Saturday, but confirmed everything looked really good and healthy on my UltraSound and the placenta looks fine. She said I can continue as normal and can keep working, walking and swimming, but if I have another episode of bleeding she may consider a "modified bedrest" plan and if I have any heavy bleeding I might be put on total bedrest. But all indicators show that this is not likely at this point.
As another precaution, starting April 4, I'm going to be seeing the doctor every week and they will conduct a Fetal Nonstress Test at each doctor visit to monitor how the baby is doing and be sure he is getting adequate oxygen from the placenta. The fact that he's still so active is a really good sign that he is healthy and getting enough oxygen now. I even asked the Dr. if I should be concerned by how MUCH he moves and she kinda laughed and said if mom's aren't worrying about their babies not moving enough, they're worrying about them moving too much! She said it is fantastic that he's moving so much, and it does not mean he's having seizures or is going to be a hyperactive kid!
I also went back to PT today and he confirmed that my right plevic bone had indeed slipped back out of alignment which is why I've had such bad back pain again over the last several days. Turns out I hadn't been doing the stretch quite correctly so once it slipped back out of alignment, the stretch wasn't doing any good. He also showed me a new stretch Phil can help me do if it happens again. I've been feeling pretty good for the rest of the day, but it will still take ice and rest to heal the inflamed muscles and ligaments.
As another precaution, starting April 4, I'm going to be seeing the doctor every week and they will conduct a Fetal Nonstress Test at each doctor visit to monitor how the baby is doing and be sure he is getting adequate oxygen from the placenta. The fact that he's still so active is a really good sign that he is healthy and getting enough oxygen now. I even asked the Dr. if I should be concerned by how MUCH he moves and she kinda laughed and said if mom's aren't worrying about their babies not moving enough, they're worrying about them moving too much! She said it is fantastic that he's moving so much, and it does not mean he's having seizures or is going to be a hyperactive kid!
I also went back to PT today and he confirmed that my right plevic bone had indeed slipped back out of alignment which is why I've had such bad back pain again over the last several days. Turns out I hadn't been doing the stretch quite correctly so once it slipped back out of alignment, the stretch wasn't doing any good. He also showed me a new stretch Phil can help me do if it happens again. I've been feeling pretty good for the rest of the day, but it will still take ice and rest to heal the inflamed muscles and ligaments.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Looking forward to labor?
At our birthing class last night, the instructor had us all go around the room and answer the question: "What are you looking forward to about labor?" The answer couldn't be the obvious: having it be over!/Seeing the baby. It had to be about the labor itself. After quite a few snickers and grunts and then puzzled silence around the room, I finally came up with my answer:
What I am looking forward to about labor is experiencing this with Phil by my side and the bond that it will undoubtedly have between us. Phil is going to be a fantastic labor support coach and I know the love I already feel for him will only deepen as we share this intense, emotional, unique, unforgettable experience.
As easy as it is to come up with all the things I'm NOT looking forward to about labor, It's always good to look at the positive.
What I am looking forward to about labor is experiencing this with Phil by my side and the bond that it will undoubtedly have between us. Phil is going to be a fantastic labor support coach and I know the love I already feel for him will only deepen as we share this intense, emotional, unique, unforgettable experience.
As easy as it is to come up with all the things I'm NOT looking forward to about labor, It's always good to look at the positive.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Not the best way to spend a Saturday
I had a little scary incident yesterday and had to spend most of the day at Overlake Hospital. First let me say the baby seems to be fine and I feel fine. I was experiencing some bleeding on Saturday morning and called the OB on-call. He said I needed to go into Overlake Labor & Delivery to have them check it out and make sure the placenta wasn't detaching from the uterine wall, which can happen with a low-lying placenta. Needless to say, this isn't something you want to hear and I was pretty scared.
As soon as we got to the hospital they strapped on a fetal heart monitor and we got a healthy heartbeat from the baby, and he was moving around as normal, so that was all a good sign. A number of nurses attended to us and performed various evaluations. Since I wasn't having any pain or cramping, it didn't indicate the placenta was detached, but they wanted to get an UltraSound to see. So we had to wait about 2 hours to get transferred to the part of the hospital that does UltraSounds.
This whole time we were in a tiny room about the size of a walk-in closet with no tv or any other ammenities (no bathroom!) and just a small hard chair for Phil. Plus, they didn't want me to eat or drink anything, so by 3pm I was starving and cranky. Once we got in for the UltraSound, the first room they put us in was having techincal difficulties with the machine, so then we had to wait to be transferred to another room. Phil and I were getting really agitated. I think all this waiting is some kind of tactic hospitals use to deter people from ever wanting to come in to the hospital unless it is an absolute emergency!
The radiologist said everything looked good with the placenta, and in fact it's moved away from my cervix more than 2 cm, so that is good news for delivery. The annoying thing is after all that, they still couldn't determine why I was bleeding and basically just said to go home and take it easy.
I haven't had any bleeding today and I hope it continues to stay that way. I have a Dr. appt on Thursday so we'll see if she has anything else to say about it.
The good news is that the UltraSound showed the placenta is now far enough away from my cervix we shouldn't need to plan on a C-section, he is positioned head-down where it should be, and it is definitely a boy!
As soon as we got to the hospital they strapped on a fetal heart monitor and we got a healthy heartbeat from the baby, and he was moving around as normal, so that was all a good sign. A number of nurses attended to us and performed various evaluations. Since I wasn't having any pain or cramping, it didn't indicate the placenta was detached, but they wanted to get an UltraSound to see. So we had to wait about 2 hours to get transferred to the part of the hospital that does UltraSounds.
This whole time we were in a tiny room about the size of a walk-in closet with no tv or any other ammenities (no bathroom!) and just a small hard chair for Phil. Plus, they didn't want me to eat or drink anything, so by 3pm I was starving and cranky. Once we got in for the UltraSound, the first room they put us in was having techincal difficulties with the machine, so then we had to wait to be transferred to another room. Phil and I were getting really agitated. I think all this waiting is some kind of tactic hospitals use to deter people from ever wanting to come in to the hospital unless it is an absolute emergency!
The radiologist said everything looked good with the placenta, and in fact it's moved away from my cervix more than 2 cm, so that is good news for delivery. The annoying thing is after all that, they still couldn't determine why I was bleeding and basically just said to go home and take it easy.
I haven't had any bleeding today and I hope it continues to stay that way. I have a Dr. appt on Thursday so we'll see if she has anything else to say about it.
The good news is that the UltraSound showed the placenta is now far enough away from my cervix we shouldn't need to plan on a C-section, he is positioned head-down where it should be, and it is definitely a boy!
Friday, March 16, 2007
Physical Therapy ROCKS!
So I went to the Physical Therapist my doctor prescribed for my lower back pain today. I was a little skeptical that it would do any good and thought a deep tissue massage sounded much more appealing.
Boy was I wrong! The physical therapist, Kevin Hansen, specializes in OB PT and knew exactly what the problem was in my back. The weight of the baby has been pulling my pelvic bone on my right side forward, tilting it out of alignment with where the pelvic bone fits into the spine bone like a puzzle piece, which has been causing the pain and numbness in my lower back and right leg. (This would be a lot easier to visualize with the skeleton model he showed me!) Anyway, all he needed to do was have me bring my knee toward my chest and perform some magic stretches to get my pelvic bone to rotate back into its correct position and - voilá!
I will do that stretch morning and night and also ice that area for 10 minutes each night to heal and re-strengthen the ligaments holding my pelvic bone to my spine in the right position. Kevin also showed me how to avoid having it slip back into that misaligned position - how to lift things, stand, and sit correctly. I go back in a week to make sure it's still where it's supposed to be or if he needs to re-align it. Walking out of the office I could really tell it already felt a lot better! Yay!
Boy was I wrong! The physical therapist, Kevin Hansen, specializes in OB PT and knew exactly what the problem was in my back. The weight of the baby has been pulling my pelvic bone on my right side forward, tilting it out of alignment with where the pelvic bone fits into the spine bone like a puzzle piece, which has been causing the pain and numbness in my lower back and right leg. (This would be a lot easier to visualize with the skeleton model he showed me!) Anyway, all he needed to do was have me bring my knee toward my chest and perform some magic stretches to get my pelvic bone to rotate back into its correct position and - voilá!
I will do that stretch morning and night and also ice that area for 10 minutes each night to heal and re-strengthen the ligaments holding my pelvic bone to my spine in the right position. Kevin also showed me how to avoid having it slip back into that misaligned position - how to lift things, stand, and sit correctly. I go back in a week to make sure it's still where it's supposed to be or if he needs to re-align it. Walking out of the office I could really tell it already felt a lot better! Yay!
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Classes
We had our first "Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Newborn Care" class last night. The 7-wk class actually covers more than just "hee-hee-hoooo". For example, last night we discussed a woman's anatomy, what is going on with our bodies and baby, and some tips and techniques for relieving pregnancy aches and pains.
The instructor is a certified doula and the class is taught through Overlake Hospital. The class size is bigger than I expected--about 15-20 couples, all due around May. We also have a "reunion" once all the babies are born.
It was comforting to hear other women talk about how pregnancy has affected their bodies in similar ways as me, even weird ones like changes to our hair and fingernails. I think it was also good for Phil to hear some other dads with similar questions and concerns ("what can I do?!!"/"what is happening to my wife?!")! :)
Some of the great takeaways I got from the class were: to alleviate heartburn, chew gum (but not peppermint) after eating a meal - the 'base' in saliva neutralizes acid; eat a banana in the evening to help with midnight leg and foot muscle cramps; and different exercises, sitting positions, and stretches I can do to help with back pain.
I tried to sit at my desk in one of the positions the instructor recommended today for a little while (chair turned around, straddling the back of the chair) but it didn't seem to help. By about 3pm, my lower back is really killing me. I will see a physical therapist on Friday to see if there are other stretches, exercises, and postures that could help. I may also get another maternity massage but insurance doesn't cover that so we'll have to see.
On the 4th week of class, we get to tour the hospital. I'm looking forward to that.
The instructor is a certified doula and the class is taught through Overlake Hospital. The class size is bigger than I expected--about 15-20 couples, all due around May. We also have a "reunion" once all the babies are born.
It was comforting to hear other women talk about how pregnancy has affected their bodies in similar ways as me, even weird ones like changes to our hair and fingernails. I think it was also good for Phil to hear some other dads with similar questions and concerns ("what can I do?!!"/"what is happening to my wife?!")! :)
Some of the great takeaways I got from the class were: to alleviate heartburn, chew gum (but not peppermint) after eating a meal - the 'base' in saliva neutralizes acid; eat a banana in the evening to help with midnight leg and foot muscle cramps; and different exercises, sitting positions, and stretches I can do to help with back pain.
I tried to sit at my desk in one of the positions the instructor recommended today for a little while (chair turned around, straddling the back of the chair) but it didn't seem to help. By about 3pm, my lower back is really killing me. I will see a physical therapist on Friday to see if there are other stretches, exercises, and postures that could help. I may also get another maternity massage but insurance doesn't cover that so we'll have to see.
On the 4th week of class, we get to tour the hospital. I'm looking forward to that.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
30 weeks down... 10 (+/-) to go...
This is one active baby! His movements are really strong and visible just by looking at my belly. It's so freaky! Man, once he's born, we're never going to get any sleep. Not that I'm sleeping very well now. My back is starting to ache, especially my lower back. I also get cramps in the arches of my feet in the middle of the night. And my dreams are very vivid and strange. I've read this is all normal, but it still amazes me how much being pregnant affects every facet of my body and mind.
Our nursery is painted! We did a light blue on one wall and then a light mocha color on the other 3 walls. Phil is a good painter. Doesn't he look hot in his painting coveralls?
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
The results are in...
I had my Dr. appt yesterday. She went over the results of my glucose screen and blood tests and I hate to brag ;), but everything couldn't be more perfect! All my results came back healthy, including the one I was really worried about - the Rh sensitization screen. So far, my blood has not developed any antibodies that attack Rh-positive blood (which either means the baby is also Rh negative, or my blood hasn't come in contact with his prior to getting the first Rh immune globulin shot). I got another Rh immune globulin shot just to be safe that will cover me up to delivery.
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