Thursday, May 5, 2011
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
May 3rd, 2011 - Daphne is almost 5 months old
Well it has been a few months since my last post. They have been amazingly wonderful, challenging and difficult months. Since Daphne’s birth we have had a crash course in baby 101, moved to Milwaukee from Atlanta, and, just recently, Andy was laid off from the job we moved to Milwaukee for. While in the process of all this change and stress, all I have had to do is look at my gorgeous Daphne and realize that nothing else is more important than the happiness and well being of my little girl.
I want to finish out my blog with the story of her birth. As is turns out, we were called by the hospital with the amnio results. They said her lungs were developed and we could head to the hospital to have a baby. We literally jumped off the couch, loaded the car, made a few phone calls and hit the rode. I think it was about 9pm when we finally got out the door.
Once at the hospital, it took a while for us to be admitted and check into our room. Being as I was not yet in labor, I was having a great time talking with everyone from the front desk lady on the maternity ward, to the hospital staff. They finally brought us to our room and we waited for a nurse to come in. It was getting late at this point and we were ready to go to sleep. I was told the process would be simple. They would insert the cervidil that night and then, if the cervidil didn't send me into labor, I would be given pitocin in the morning. If I wanted, I could take an ambian to sleep, which made me very happy. They also told me I would get an iv and they would have to wake me up during the night to test my blood glucose.
The first thing they did was insert the cervidil. It was easy and painless. The insertion of the iv, however, was a whole other story. The nurse came in and told me that they would be inserting an iv into my arm that would have multiple ports attached. This way, they could give me multiple medicines at a time without having to stick me with a bunch of needles. This sounded great! I began chatting with the nurse as she prepared to put in the iv and I was surprised when she reached for my hand. I quickly realized she was sticking the needle in a vain on my wrist not in the usual spot mid arm. I have to be honest, this proceeded to be the most painful thing I have ever experienced. I let out a scream so loud that is scared Andy quite a bit. I yelled at the nurse and suggested that she warn someone before she inflicts that much pain. Her response did not make me happy. She said, “Well, some women react just fine and others respond like you.” I don’t want to dwell on it but it really, really hurt. Anyway, next they gave me my ambian and I settled in for what I thought would be a good night sleep.
The ambian turned out to be a total waste. They nurses came in every two hours to check my blood sugar. Each time they came in, they would flip on a light and wake us both up. I didn’t get much sleep at all.
Once morning rolled around, I was ready to get the show on the road. Around 7am they started me on the pitocin. They simple hooked the medicine up to the existing iv and told me to wait for my body to respond. At this point I was not feeling anything. I felt like my normal self. My mom arrived from Dallas a little after they started the pitocin and we waited.
Around 10am, Mom and Andy decided they wanted some breakfast. They left for the hospital cafeteria and I sat in the provided rocking chair and watched some tv. I felt very strongly that I did not was to spend my entire labor laying flat in a bed. I felt that gravity was going to be my best tool and had learned that a rocking chair could help the baby to drop down. I was very excited to find the rocking chair in my room and spent a majority of the time rocking and waiting.
They had only been gone about 10min when one of the midwives came in to check my cervix. She said I was dilated to almost one centimeter and she broke my water. I had heard that once your water is broken, the contractions get more intense and labor progresses quickly. I was nervous to see how my body responded.
Another interesting aspect of labor was the control of my diabetes. I had gotten written orders from my Endroconologist about how to control my diabetes during labor. He had written in his orders that if my blood sugar did not stay below a certain number, I should turn off my pump and be hooked up to an insulin drip inter-venously. The hospital was watching my blood sugar very very closely and when my blood sugar was higher than desired, they said they wanted to hook up an insulin drip. "No problem" I said. "Your just going to hook the insulin up to the existing iv in my wrist, right?" I asked. The nurse responded by telling me that they would have to insert a second iv because the insulin would have to be alone. This, as you can imagine, sent me over the edge. They had another thing coming if they thought I was going to let them put me through that pain again. I told them that I wanted another attempt to get my sugar down with my pump and they said no. They were not interested in ignoring the written orders from my Dr. and letting me control my diabetes without supervision. After much discussion, I convinced them to let me try and in the interim they were going to test my blood sugar every 2 hours.
Well during these two hours I was pumping myself full of insulin because I didn’t want that insulin drip. I know this was not the smartest decision but I was not interested in another iv. As you can imagine, I proceeded to have low blood sugar and the nurse I got into a big fight. I asked for juice and she never brought it so I came unglued and bit her head off. In the end, my doctor called and told them that I could control my diabetes and there was no need for a drip. I apologized to the nurse and everything was fine in the end.
Needless to say, nothing happened quickly. We spent all day in the hospital waiting for me to go into active labor. We played cards, we played Yatzee, we watched tv, friends stopped by and we watched the clock. I was still completely comfortable. No real pain to speak of and no real change in my body.
About 6pm the my OB and midwife, who was actually a lady I had never met because she didn’t see patients at the office I went to for all my prenatal checkups, came in to discuss our plan. They said that because my body was not really responding to the induction, we were left with two options. This was shocking to me. With all the planning and talking about being induced, no one ever mentioned an induction could fail. I was shocked. They Dr. explained that they were asking my body to do something it wasn’t ready to do so it wasn’t ready to respond to the medicines. They said they could stop the pitocin so I could eat something and then restart it in the morning or we could wait a little longer and if nothing happened we could go for a C-section. I didn’t realize it at the time but Andy later told me that everyone in the room, except for me, thought I was heading to the operating room.
Here were my thoughts. If we were asking my body to do something it wasn’t ready to do then why was everyone in such a rush. The baby was happy and not in any distress at all and I certainly had no where else to be so I decided to wait and see what happens. Once the Dr. and Midwife left the room, Mom and Andy said they wanted to go get some dinner and at a local restaurant outside the hospital. I said “Good, I’m glad your leaving because the last time you left they broke my water. Hopefully you leaving will send me into labor.” I had no idea I had just predicted the future.
I went back to rocking in my trusty rocking chair and they left for dinner. They weren’t gone 10 minutes when the contractions started to get really intense. They were coming on strong and they were coming quicker then they had before. Every time a contraction would hit I would simply rock back and forth and breathe deeply. I’m sure the look on my face said it all when they returned from dinner. With each passing minute I was feeling them stronger and stronger.
The midwife came in to check on me and helped me through the pain. At this point it was about 7:30pm. She said some women find it helpful to imagine, with each contraction, that the baby is dropping. This really helped. I would take deep breaths and with each exhale I would imagine the baby dropping lower and lower.
I don’t know why I didn’t think of this but Andy asked the midwife if I was experiencing active labor. She said yes and it was the best news I had heard all day. I knew we were getting somewhere. The contractions really weren’t painful. They only lasted a minute or two and then there was a break in between. For me, the hard part was the mental stress of not knowing how many centimeters I had dilated or how much longer I was going to have to endure this. I was exhausted and I was worried that I would not have the energy to mentally deal with the pain.
I asked the midwife if she would check my progress. Unfortunately, she said because my water was broken, she didn’t want to check me and risk introducing an infection. We agreed we would wait an hour and a half and she would check me at 10pm. I worked through the contractions and watched the clock. I was ready for 10pm.
Another interesting aspect of my labor was that I had no back labor. Andy and I had taken a birthing class to learn what would happen during the birth. We spent the afternoon learning different positions, stretches and massages we could do to help alleviate the pains of back labor. Fortunately, we used none of them! The only pain I was feeling were the contractions.
When 10pm finally rolled around I asked the midwife if she would check me. This was when Andy asked “How many centimeters do you think she has dilated to? “ I was shocked when the midwife responded by saying “I would be very surprised if you are dilated to 3!” THREE!! THREE!! Was she kidding? I was beginning to feel very mentally tired and, while I was not all that uncomfortable, I was exhausted from not sleeping the night before and breathing through each contraction.
When the midwife checked me she said with excitement “You’re at 5! Let’s get you an epidural!” Within a half an hour I was medicated and ready to get some sleep. Andy curled up on the hospital cot for dads and my mom was asleep in one of the chairs. We all closed our eyes and slept.
I was only asleep about a half an hour when I started to feel the muscles between my shoulders tighten. It was the same sensation as a Charlie horse but it was in my back. I was sleeping on my side and because my legs we numb from the epidural, I could not easily roll over to the other side. I called for the nurse and explained what I was feeling. She had a puzzled look on her face. She helped me move into a few positions to get more comfortable. We tried moving the pillows, we tried my lying on my other side, we tried raising and lowering the bed but nothing worked. Finally, she looked at me and said “I have been a labor and delivery nurse for 15 years and I have never had this happen to one of my patients. I don’t know what it causing this.” We decided to ask the midwife. Unfortunately, she had no idea what was happening either called the anesthesiologist.
The anesthesiologist explained that that I was having a reaction to the pain medicine they use before they insert the epidural. She said it only happens once and a while but there wasn’t anything she could do. Once she left, the midwife decided to check me and learned I was complete. We were ready to push. I sat up and got ready to go. Next the midwife explained how to push. She told me to wrap my body around the baby and push her out. Unfortunately, this involved putting my chin to my chest. Because of the pain in my back, I was not able to move my chin down without experiencing incredible pain. None the less, I did what I could and tried to push.
Needless to say, my attempts at pushing were very ineffective. I could not put my chin down and because the epidural was so strong, I could not feel any contractions. This posed a problem because I could not tell when to push and when to rest. On top of all of that, I was so incredibly tired that I had very little energy to push.
The midwife decided that we were going to lower the epidural. She hoped this would help bring back some of the feeling so I would know when to push. We did this because I was so numb that I was not feeling any of my contractions. Once she lowered the medicine, she was standing next to the bed talking with Andy and I about our plan of attach. I have no idea what was said. I later learned that while we were in the middle of talking, I fell asleep. For some reason when they lowered the pain medicine, my body completely relaxed, the pain in my back lightened up and I passed out. When I woke up about 2 hours later, everyone was asleep.
I quickly realized that the two hour nap was just what I had needed and I was now had the energy to push. I asked the nurse to call the midwife and asked that we get the show on the road. At this point it was about 5:30am. Everyone got the coffee they needed and came to the party.
The pushing was difficult. I had not had more than a few hours of sleep in two nights and I now had to give birth. I was so tired. The pushing wasn’t painful; it was just a lot of work. On top of all that was going on, I began to vomit. Evidentaly, this is very common during child birth. I vommited off and on through out the entire delivery.
About an hour into pushing the midwife asked Andy if he wanted to deliver his daughter. We both had no idea what she was talking about. She explained that if he wanted to, he could pull his daughter into the world. Andy was over the moon excited.
I knew we were getting close because other people started to enter the room. At about 7:45am a lady walked in all dressed in scrubs. I learned she was nurse assigned to look after the baby once she was born. Another lady walked in with a tray of very scary looking tools. It had knives and scissors and clamps. The midwife must have seen the look or terror on my face because she smiled at me and said “none of those are for you. They are simply to cut the umbilical cord.” I was incredibly relieved and went back to pushing. This was when I realized that Andy was washing his hands. I looked back at the midwife and asked “Why is he washing his hands?” She responded by saying “I could not take his pacing back and forth so I made him go wash his hands.” Andy was an incredible cheerleader during the entire delivery and he was very excited to meet his daughter.
The next thing I remember is the midwife handing Andy a pair of gloves and saying “Ok, Dad you’re up!” All I remember after that was them laying baby Daphne on my chest. She was pink and adorable and I was in love.
They took her from me rather quickly as they wanted to check her blood sugar. It was perfect. Next they weighed her. 7 pounds 18 ounces. Finally, the baby nurse looked up and said “What is her name?” That’s when I announced that her name is Daphne June Massingill. Everyone loved it. That is the story of how Miss Daphne June Massingill came into the world on December 5th, 2010 at 8:20am.
I want to finish out my blog with the story of her birth. As is turns out, we were called by the hospital with the amnio results. They said her lungs were developed and we could head to the hospital to have a baby. We literally jumped off the couch, loaded the car, made a few phone calls and hit the rode. I think it was about 9pm when we finally got out the door.
Once at the hospital, it took a while for us to be admitted and check into our room. Being as I was not yet in labor, I was having a great time talking with everyone from the front desk lady on the maternity ward, to the hospital staff. They finally brought us to our room and we waited for a nurse to come in. It was getting late at this point and we were ready to go to sleep. I was told the process would be simple. They would insert the cervidil that night and then, if the cervidil didn't send me into labor, I would be given pitocin in the morning. If I wanted, I could take an ambian to sleep, which made me very happy. They also told me I would get an iv and they would have to wake me up during the night to test my blood glucose.
The first thing they did was insert the cervidil. It was easy and painless. The insertion of the iv, however, was a whole other story. The nurse came in and told me that they would be inserting an iv into my arm that would have multiple ports attached. This way, they could give me multiple medicines at a time without having to stick me with a bunch of needles. This sounded great! I began chatting with the nurse as she prepared to put in the iv and I was surprised when she reached for my hand. I quickly realized she was sticking the needle in a vain on my wrist not in the usual spot mid arm. I have to be honest, this proceeded to be the most painful thing I have ever experienced. I let out a scream so loud that is scared Andy quite a bit. I yelled at the nurse and suggested that she warn someone before she inflicts that much pain. Her response did not make me happy. She said, “Well, some women react just fine and others respond like you.” I don’t want to dwell on it but it really, really hurt. Anyway, next they gave me my ambian and I settled in for what I thought would be a good night sleep.
The ambian turned out to be a total waste. They nurses came in every two hours to check my blood sugar. Each time they came in, they would flip on a light and wake us both up. I didn’t get much sleep at all.
Once morning rolled around, I was ready to get the show on the road. Around 7am they started me on the pitocin. They simple hooked the medicine up to the existing iv and told me to wait for my body to respond. At this point I was not feeling anything. I felt like my normal self. My mom arrived from Dallas a little after they started the pitocin and we waited.
Around 10am, Mom and Andy decided they wanted some breakfast. They left for the hospital cafeteria and I sat in the provided rocking chair and watched some tv. I felt very strongly that I did not was to spend my entire labor laying flat in a bed. I felt that gravity was going to be my best tool and had learned that a rocking chair could help the baby to drop down. I was very excited to find the rocking chair in my room and spent a majority of the time rocking and waiting.
They had only been gone about 10min when one of the midwives came in to check my cervix. She said I was dilated to almost one centimeter and she broke my water. I had heard that once your water is broken, the contractions get more intense and labor progresses quickly. I was nervous to see how my body responded.
Another interesting aspect of labor was the control of my diabetes. I had gotten written orders from my Endroconologist about how to control my diabetes during labor. He had written in his orders that if my blood sugar did not stay below a certain number, I should turn off my pump and be hooked up to an insulin drip inter-venously. The hospital was watching my blood sugar very very closely and when my blood sugar was higher than desired, they said they wanted to hook up an insulin drip. "No problem" I said. "Your just going to hook the insulin up to the existing iv in my wrist, right?" I asked. The nurse responded by telling me that they would have to insert a second iv because the insulin would have to be alone. This, as you can imagine, sent me over the edge. They had another thing coming if they thought I was going to let them put me through that pain again. I told them that I wanted another attempt to get my sugar down with my pump and they said no. They were not interested in ignoring the written orders from my Dr. and letting me control my diabetes without supervision. After much discussion, I convinced them to let me try and in the interim they were going to test my blood sugar every 2 hours.
Well during these two hours I was pumping myself full of insulin because I didn’t want that insulin drip. I know this was not the smartest decision but I was not interested in another iv. As you can imagine, I proceeded to have low blood sugar and the nurse I got into a big fight. I asked for juice and she never brought it so I came unglued and bit her head off. In the end, my doctor called and told them that I could control my diabetes and there was no need for a drip. I apologized to the nurse and everything was fine in the end.
Needless to say, nothing happened quickly. We spent all day in the hospital waiting for me to go into active labor. We played cards, we played Yatzee, we watched tv, friends stopped by and we watched the clock. I was still completely comfortable. No real pain to speak of and no real change in my body.
About 6pm the my OB and midwife, who was actually a lady I had never met because she didn’t see patients at the office I went to for all my prenatal checkups, came in to discuss our plan. They said that because my body was not really responding to the induction, we were left with two options. This was shocking to me. With all the planning and talking about being induced, no one ever mentioned an induction could fail. I was shocked. They Dr. explained that they were asking my body to do something it wasn’t ready to do so it wasn’t ready to respond to the medicines. They said they could stop the pitocin so I could eat something and then restart it in the morning or we could wait a little longer and if nothing happened we could go for a C-section. I didn’t realize it at the time but Andy later told me that everyone in the room, except for me, thought I was heading to the operating room.
Here were my thoughts. If we were asking my body to do something it wasn’t ready to do then why was everyone in such a rush. The baby was happy and not in any distress at all and I certainly had no where else to be so I decided to wait and see what happens. Once the Dr. and Midwife left the room, Mom and Andy said they wanted to go get some dinner and at a local restaurant outside the hospital. I said “Good, I’m glad your leaving because the last time you left they broke my water. Hopefully you leaving will send me into labor.” I had no idea I had just predicted the future.
I went back to rocking in my trusty rocking chair and they left for dinner. They weren’t gone 10 minutes when the contractions started to get really intense. They were coming on strong and they were coming quicker then they had before. Every time a contraction would hit I would simply rock back and forth and breathe deeply. I’m sure the look on my face said it all when they returned from dinner. With each passing minute I was feeling them stronger and stronger.
The midwife came in to check on me and helped me through the pain. At this point it was about 7:30pm. She said some women find it helpful to imagine, with each contraction, that the baby is dropping. This really helped. I would take deep breaths and with each exhale I would imagine the baby dropping lower and lower.
I don’t know why I didn’t think of this but Andy asked the midwife if I was experiencing active labor. She said yes and it was the best news I had heard all day. I knew we were getting somewhere. The contractions really weren’t painful. They only lasted a minute or two and then there was a break in between. For me, the hard part was the mental stress of not knowing how many centimeters I had dilated or how much longer I was going to have to endure this. I was exhausted and I was worried that I would not have the energy to mentally deal with the pain.
I asked the midwife if she would check my progress. Unfortunately, she said because my water was broken, she didn’t want to check me and risk introducing an infection. We agreed we would wait an hour and a half and she would check me at 10pm. I worked through the contractions and watched the clock. I was ready for 10pm.
Another interesting aspect of my labor was that I had no back labor. Andy and I had taken a birthing class to learn what would happen during the birth. We spent the afternoon learning different positions, stretches and massages we could do to help alleviate the pains of back labor. Fortunately, we used none of them! The only pain I was feeling were the contractions.
When 10pm finally rolled around I asked the midwife if she would check me. This was when Andy asked “How many centimeters do you think she has dilated to? “ I was shocked when the midwife responded by saying “I would be very surprised if you are dilated to 3!” THREE!! THREE!! Was she kidding? I was beginning to feel very mentally tired and, while I was not all that uncomfortable, I was exhausted from not sleeping the night before and breathing through each contraction.
When the midwife checked me she said with excitement “You’re at 5! Let’s get you an epidural!” Within a half an hour I was medicated and ready to get some sleep. Andy curled up on the hospital cot for dads and my mom was asleep in one of the chairs. We all closed our eyes and slept.
I was only asleep about a half an hour when I started to feel the muscles between my shoulders tighten. It was the same sensation as a Charlie horse but it was in my back. I was sleeping on my side and because my legs we numb from the epidural, I could not easily roll over to the other side. I called for the nurse and explained what I was feeling. She had a puzzled look on her face. She helped me move into a few positions to get more comfortable. We tried moving the pillows, we tried my lying on my other side, we tried raising and lowering the bed but nothing worked. Finally, she looked at me and said “I have been a labor and delivery nurse for 15 years and I have never had this happen to one of my patients. I don’t know what it causing this.” We decided to ask the midwife. Unfortunately, she had no idea what was happening either called the anesthesiologist.
The anesthesiologist explained that that I was having a reaction to the pain medicine they use before they insert the epidural. She said it only happens once and a while but there wasn’t anything she could do. Once she left, the midwife decided to check me and learned I was complete. We were ready to push. I sat up and got ready to go. Next the midwife explained how to push. She told me to wrap my body around the baby and push her out. Unfortunately, this involved putting my chin to my chest. Because of the pain in my back, I was not able to move my chin down without experiencing incredible pain. None the less, I did what I could and tried to push.
Needless to say, my attempts at pushing were very ineffective. I could not put my chin down and because the epidural was so strong, I could not feel any contractions. This posed a problem because I could not tell when to push and when to rest. On top of all of that, I was so incredibly tired that I had very little energy to push.
The midwife decided that we were going to lower the epidural. She hoped this would help bring back some of the feeling so I would know when to push. We did this because I was so numb that I was not feeling any of my contractions. Once she lowered the medicine, she was standing next to the bed talking with Andy and I about our plan of attach. I have no idea what was said. I later learned that while we were in the middle of talking, I fell asleep. For some reason when they lowered the pain medicine, my body completely relaxed, the pain in my back lightened up and I passed out. When I woke up about 2 hours later, everyone was asleep.
I quickly realized that the two hour nap was just what I had needed and I was now had the energy to push. I asked the nurse to call the midwife and asked that we get the show on the road. At this point it was about 5:30am. Everyone got the coffee they needed and came to the party.
The pushing was difficult. I had not had more than a few hours of sleep in two nights and I now had to give birth. I was so tired. The pushing wasn’t painful; it was just a lot of work. On top of all that was going on, I began to vomit. Evidentaly, this is very common during child birth. I vommited off and on through out the entire delivery.
About an hour into pushing the midwife asked Andy if he wanted to deliver his daughter. We both had no idea what she was talking about. She explained that if he wanted to, he could pull his daughter into the world. Andy was over the moon excited.
I knew we were getting close because other people started to enter the room. At about 7:45am a lady walked in all dressed in scrubs. I learned she was nurse assigned to look after the baby once she was born. Another lady walked in with a tray of very scary looking tools. It had knives and scissors and clamps. The midwife must have seen the look or terror on my face because she smiled at me and said “none of those are for you. They are simply to cut the umbilical cord.” I was incredibly relieved and went back to pushing. This was when I realized that Andy was washing his hands. I looked back at the midwife and asked “Why is he washing his hands?” She responded by saying “I could not take his pacing back and forth so I made him go wash his hands.” Andy was an incredible cheerleader during the entire delivery and he was very excited to meet his daughter.
The next thing I remember is the midwife handing Andy a pair of gloves and saying “Ok, Dad you’re up!” All I remember after that was them laying baby Daphne on my chest. She was pink and adorable and I was in love.
They took her from me rather quickly as they wanted to check her blood sugar. It was perfect. Next they weighed her. 7 pounds 18 ounces. Finally, the baby nurse looked up and said “What is her name?” That’s when I announced that her name is Daphne June Massingill. Everyone loved it. That is the story of how Miss Daphne June Massingill came into the world on December 5th, 2010 at 8:20am.
Friday, December 3, 2010
December 3rd - 38 Weeks and 1 day
Today we went in for our normal non-stress test appointment. Being as it was the last appointment before we thought I would be induced, we took the opportunity to ask a bunch of questions. We wanted to know things like how the induction would work, when would then induce us and how long we could expect to be in the hospital. In the process of asking these questions, I happen to mention that my blood sugars are running low again and I still have not gotten an answer as to what this means for the placenta.
My mid-wife decided that she needed to get to the bottom of this and went to talk to the doctor. They both agreed that they needed to talk to the specialist and verify some of the information. Once she returned, she told us that we needed to go to the specialist’s office immediately for some additional testing. We learned they would perform an ultra sound to make sure the baby is ok, then most likely an amnio to test her lung development and then decide if they were going to induce.
This was a total surprise. Being as I have had this same blood sugar issue for the last few weeks, I was shocked by this chain of events. However, we did as we were told and went in. Once we got there, they proceeded exactly as planned. A very quick ultra sound followed by the amnio. We were then told that because I am 38 weeks, and as long as her lungs were fully developed, there was not reason to wait another week to induce and they would just induce me tonight. They said that while my low blood sugars were not concrete evidence that something was wrong, it was definitely suggestive. Being as she is fully developed, it makes more sense to have her out then to wait to see if something goes wrong.
It takes a few hours for them to process the amnio results. Its now 8:04pm on Friday night and we are anxiously waiting for the call to learn if we are heading to the hospital. If we get the call that her lungs are mature then I will have Cervidil inserted tonight to prepare my cervix for labor and then tomorrow then will start the Pitocin. We are very nervous and anxious to get the news. We are all packed, just ate and ordered some Chinese food and are trying hard to not watch the time tick by.
I think we are going in tonight. I was fairly certain most of the day that we would be going to the hospital tonight but once Andy opened his fortune cookie I knew for sure. His fortune read “You will have fun trying something different this weekend. ” Now the next surprise it to tell everyone her name.
Here are hopefully the final two pictures of me pregnant. They were taken 12/3/2010 at 8:22pm
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
November 22nd - 36 Weeks and 5 days
Ok, quick update on my adventures yesterday. I woke up early and headed, headache in tow, to my 7:45 am doctor’s appointment. I told the Dr about the headaches and she immediately sent me over to the hospital. Her worry was that I had preeclampsia and she wanted me to have some additional testing.
To be honest, I don’t know much, but I know my body and going to the hospital seemed like over kill but I went to be sure baby was ok. I checked into the Labor and Delivery observation unit where they hooked me up to a blood pressure machine, a fetal heart monitor, and took some blood. I was happy they were covering their basis but I honestly just wanted them to give me something for my headache.
Finally they gave some Tylenol. We sat in the hospital for 2-3 hours and at the end of it all the blood tests, my blood pressure and the baby are all perfectly fine. In fact my blood pressure was in the lower part of the normal range and both the doctor and the nurses said that the baby was looking beautiful. I would have spent two days in the hospital just to hear that.
Unfortunately, no one had an explanation for my headache. The doctor really believes that my sever insomnia is at the root. She prescribed a sleeping pill and told my not to be shy about taking one. I am not crazy about putting something in my body that could get to the baby but she assured me it is safe.
I finally took the sleeping pill at 9pm last night and slept until 8am!! I feel like a new person. One or two nights like that I will definitely have enough energy for labor. The headache is not completely gone but I have not taken and Tylenol yet so hopefully one more night of good sleep and I will be back to normal.
To be honest, I don’t know much, but I know my body and going to the hospital seemed like over kill but I went to be sure baby was ok. I checked into the Labor and Delivery observation unit where they hooked me up to a blood pressure machine, a fetal heart monitor, and took some blood. I was happy they were covering their basis but I honestly just wanted them to give me something for my headache.
Finally they gave some Tylenol. We sat in the hospital for 2-3 hours and at the end of it all the blood tests, my blood pressure and the baby are all perfectly fine. In fact my blood pressure was in the lower part of the normal range and both the doctor and the nurses said that the baby was looking beautiful. I would have spent two days in the hospital just to hear that.
Unfortunately, no one had an explanation for my headache. The doctor really believes that my sever insomnia is at the root. She prescribed a sleeping pill and told my not to be shy about taking one. I am not crazy about putting something in my body that could get to the baby but she assured me it is safe.
I finally took the sleeping pill at 9pm last night and slept until 8am!! I feel like a new person. One or two nights like that I will definitely have enough energy for labor. The headache is not completely gone but I have not taken and Tylenol yet so hopefully one more night of good sleep and I will be back to normal.
Monday, November 22, 2010
November 21st - 36 Weeks and 4 days
Its 4am on Monday morning and I am awake with one of the worst headaches I have ever experienced. I though I would take this opportunity and update what’s been going on over the last few days.
It all started on Saturday when I met a friend, who also happens to be pregnant, to do some shopping for last minute baby necessities. We went to two baby stores and had a good time. While we were at the second store, my belly started to feel really heavy. As all women with have been pregnant know, this is a fairly common feeling. I just figured it was a typical pregnancy symptom and went on with my day.
Next, we headed to get a late lunch and unfortunately, I ate way too much. By the time the meal was over I was in pain from being so full. I had that really full, bloated, totally uncomfortable feeling. I just assumed that it would pass as the meal digested.
My next stop of the day was to meet another friend to do some Christmas shopping. We met at a store and began walking around. I realized at this point that I was having contractions. I guess my discomfort was written all over my face because my friend happened to ask if I was ok. At this point my response was “I’m not sure” and I began to take note of my symptoms. My belly was still feeling heavy and was still really uncomfortably full. I happen to take note at this time that it had been almost three hours since lunch and yet I was still SO uncomfortable. I decided to head home
Once at home, the symptoms only intensified. My contractions, while they were never painful, were becoming so intense that Andy and I decided we needed to pack our hospital bag and call the midwife. Here is what the midwife told me. She said early labor and active labor are two totally different things. Early labor can happen for a day or so and go away and I could still be pregnant for another two weeks. On the other hand, she said this could all intensify, the contractions could become painful and closer together and tonight could be the night we have the baby. She said she didn’t want me to go to the hospital until we knew for sure. Well, my discomfort did not leave and at 2am I was on my hands and knees on the living room floor trying to get comfortable.
I should probably explain what I was feeling. Like I said, I was having intense contractions but they were very inconsistent. I would have three that were 5 minutes apart and then nothing for 45 minutes. While never painful, they were just intense. I was also experiencing lower back pain, feelings of an upset stomach, and cramping in my lower abdomen. To top it off, the baby was wide awake and ready to party. I don’t know if the hours of contractions had upset her or what but she was moving like crazy.
Finally at about 2:30am I feel asleep on the couch. My symptoms were beginning to subside and while I was up every two hours trying to get comfortable, I was not in as much discomfort. By 10am the next morning, completely exhausted and desperately needing some sleep, I was feeling almost back to normal. It was the strangest thing. The contractions were gone and so were all of the symptoms.
Yesterday, I got a new symptom. This headache!! All the others were gone but what was left was this terrible headache. I finally broke down yesterday afternoon and took some Tylenol which only helped for a little while. By the time dinner rolled around, my head was killing me. I took some more Tylenol and called the midwife again. She said while headaches in pregnancy are definitely something to be worried about, she was happy to hear that the Tylenol was at least helping some and she thought maybe it had more to do with my lack of sleep. If I wanted to go to the hospital, she could give some narcotics for the pain or I could wait until my Monday morning doctor’s appointment.
I had no interest in going to the hospital or taking narcotics for that matter. I went to bed at about 10pm last night and slept until 3am. Its now 4:30am, my head is killing me and I am counting down the hours until my 7:45am doctors appointment. I am actually headed to the specialist so they can do their monthly ultrasound to measure the baby’s growth. I am hoping to get two things out of this visit. The first are some really great new ultra sound pictures of the baby and the second is some answers to what the heck is going on with my head.
It all started on Saturday when I met a friend, who also happens to be pregnant, to do some shopping for last minute baby necessities. We went to two baby stores and had a good time. While we were at the second store, my belly started to feel really heavy. As all women with have been pregnant know, this is a fairly common feeling. I just figured it was a typical pregnancy symptom and went on with my day.
Next, we headed to get a late lunch and unfortunately, I ate way too much. By the time the meal was over I was in pain from being so full. I had that really full, bloated, totally uncomfortable feeling. I just assumed that it would pass as the meal digested.
My next stop of the day was to meet another friend to do some Christmas shopping. We met at a store and began walking around. I realized at this point that I was having contractions. I guess my discomfort was written all over my face because my friend happened to ask if I was ok. At this point my response was “I’m not sure” and I began to take note of my symptoms. My belly was still feeling heavy and was still really uncomfortably full. I happen to take note at this time that it had been almost three hours since lunch and yet I was still SO uncomfortable. I decided to head home
Once at home, the symptoms only intensified. My contractions, while they were never painful, were becoming so intense that Andy and I decided we needed to pack our hospital bag and call the midwife. Here is what the midwife told me. She said early labor and active labor are two totally different things. Early labor can happen for a day or so and go away and I could still be pregnant for another two weeks. On the other hand, she said this could all intensify, the contractions could become painful and closer together and tonight could be the night we have the baby. She said she didn’t want me to go to the hospital until we knew for sure. Well, my discomfort did not leave and at 2am I was on my hands and knees on the living room floor trying to get comfortable.
I should probably explain what I was feeling. Like I said, I was having intense contractions but they were very inconsistent. I would have three that were 5 minutes apart and then nothing for 45 minutes. While never painful, they were just intense. I was also experiencing lower back pain, feelings of an upset stomach, and cramping in my lower abdomen. To top it off, the baby was wide awake and ready to party. I don’t know if the hours of contractions had upset her or what but she was moving like crazy.
Finally at about 2:30am I feel asleep on the couch. My symptoms were beginning to subside and while I was up every two hours trying to get comfortable, I was not in as much discomfort. By 10am the next morning, completely exhausted and desperately needing some sleep, I was feeling almost back to normal. It was the strangest thing. The contractions were gone and so were all of the symptoms.
Yesterday, I got a new symptom. This headache!! All the others were gone but what was left was this terrible headache. I finally broke down yesterday afternoon and took some Tylenol which only helped for a little while. By the time dinner rolled around, my head was killing me. I took some more Tylenol and called the midwife again. She said while headaches in pregnancy are definitely something to be worried about, she was happy to hear that the Tylenol was at least helping some and she thought maybe it had more to do with my lack of sleep. If I wanted to go to the hospital, she could give some narcotics for the pain or I could wait until my Monday morning doctor’s appointment.
I had no interest in going to the hospital or taking narcotics for that matter. I went to bed at about 10pm last night and slept until 3am. Its now 4:30am, my head is killing me and I am counting down the hours until my 7:45am doctors appointment. I am actually headed to the specialist so they can do their monthly ultrasound to measure the baby’s growth. I am hoping to get two things out of this visit. The first are some really great new ultra sound pictures of the baby and the second is some answers to what the heck is going on with my head.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
November 18th - 36 Weeks and 0 days
Please note - the red marks on my hip are not stretch marks. :) They are from my insulin pump. I would not put these pictures up if they were stretch marks or any other lovely pregnancy marking.
Today I am 36 weeks pregnant!My appointments this week left me feeling different then I have in the past weeks. At the Specialist on Monday, we had our usual test where they score the baby. She scored an 8/8 and the doctor told me that I have nothing to worry about at this time. After having months of worrying, this was a nice change. With all the possible things that could have gone wrong due to my diabetes and regular pregnancy complications, this appointment marked the safe zone. I have made it past the point where the baby would be really sick if I was to deliver early and now I can actually wish her to come. This was an amazing feeling.
Last week, when I was just 35 weeks, the regular OB checked my cervix to see if I was dilating. Not only was I not dilating but my cervix was very think and the baby was still very high. They recommended I start taking Evening Primrose oil in a pill form. The Midwifes believe it can help to soften the cervix and help the body prepare for labor. Starting last Sunday, I began taking 1500mg twice a day. I has amazed when I started feeling some contractions. They have been coming on and off for the last few days and while they are certainly nothing intense, they are there.
At today’s appointment with the OB, the Midwife checked my cervix and told me that it was thinning and I was dilated ½ cm. Now I know ½ a cm is not much but I swear the Primrose is working. I have only been on it for 4 days and already there is a change. Starting at 37 weeks, which happens to fall on Thanksgiving, I can increase the dosage. My hope is that when I up the dose, the baby will come during week 38. This way she will fully mature and yet I wont have to be induced at week 39. I guess we will have to wait and see when Miss Massingill decided to make her grand arrival.
Speaking of her arrival, I want to share what people have been saying to me. Just as a reminder, my due date is December 16th but since they don’t let diabetics go to 40 weeks they will induce me on December 9th if I am still pregnant. Andy has been saying for a while now that he thinks I will go into labor on Thanksgiving. I think that he just wants her to be born on Thanksgiving because he is dying to watch a Cowboy game with his daughter. I was telling all of this to Robin Cheney and her response was something along the lines of “I was kinda thinking the same thing.” Ok, so two people think that next week is the magic week. I thought all of this was coincidence until I went for a massage on Tuesday. As I was leaving, I was talking to massage therapist and saying that I was not sure when I would be back because I didn’t know when the baby would come. As I was finishing up my conversation with her, the girl behind the counter, who I have never seen or talked to, interrupted our conversation by saying “I think she is coming on Black Friday.” I asked her why she thought this and her response was “I have been right the last three times and I can just tell. You baby is coming on Black Friday.” Now I’m starting to believe it. Maybe we will have a baby next week!! I am secretly hoping they are all correct because I am so excited for her to get here. Other the other hand, I want to be sure she is totally healthy before she is born so I want her to stay in as long as possible. Again, we are just going to have to wait and see!
Monday, November 1, 2010
November 1st - 33 Weeks and 4 days
Since I wrote my last post, I have had 2 more appointments. Last Thursday I went to the OB for my Non-stress test. They hooked me up to the machines again that monitor the baby’s heart rate, her movements and my contractions. My little girl is happy but I am not. I did not have a single contraction. :( Not even a Braxton-Hick! I know that I am still only 33 weeks, and I certainly don’t want her to come now, but I was hoping for some sign that she might come just a little early. I want to meet her and I am kinda over being pregnant.
I asked the doctor to explain, in further detail, what the specialist had said last week. She looked at my ultra sound results from last Monday and determined that the baby’s femur is measuring at 31 weeks, her head is measuring 34 weeks and her belly is measuring 35 weeks. When all of these measurements are taken into consideration, the baby is still is the 57% percentile. She said that she is not worried at all! She went on to say that the baby is measuring at 5 pounds and if she gains a ½ a week for the next 6 weeks then she will be about 8 pounds. Totally normal!
We then discussed my chances of going into labor naturally verse having a scheduled C-section. She said that baby’s of diabetic mothers usually have slower lung development. As result, they will most likely not take the baby before 39 weeks. As that time, they will determine if they should induce or perform a c-section. Based on the baby’s current measurements, if I make it to week 39 then they will simply induce. This was amazing news!! Last week, when I was 80% sure that I was going to have to have a c-section, I was feeling like my diabetes was going to deprive me the experience of a surprise birth. (Surprise meaning not knowing if my water was going to break or I was going to have to be induced) I now feel like I can have the same experience as every other pregnant woman.
Today, I went back to the specialist for the test that I discussed in my last post. They do an ultra sound and give the baby a score on movement, breathing, fluid levels and baby’s tone (how they use their muscles.) They get 2 points for each category. Baby was wide awake and on the move this morning so the test only took 10 minutes. She scored and 8/8 and all is good.
Baby is happy and all is well! Now, if I could just get comfortable and get a good night sleep, I would be happy as well :)
I asked the doctor to explain, in further detail, what the specialist had said last week. She looked at my ultra sound results from last Monday and determined that the baby’s femur is measuring at 31 weeks, her head is measuring 34 weeks and her belly is measuring 35 weeks. When all of these measurements are taken into consideration, the baby is still is the 57% percentile. She said that she is not worried at all! She went on to say that the baby is measuring at 5 pounds and if she gains a ½ a week for the next 6 weeks then she will be about 8 pounds. Totally normal!
We then discussed my chances of going into labor naturally verse having a scheduled C-section. She said that baby’s of diabetic mothers usually have slower lung development. As result, they will most likely not take the baby before 39 weeks. As that time, they will determine if they should induce or perform a c-section. Based on the baby’s current measurements, if I make it to week 39 then they will simply induce. This was amazing news!! Last week, when I was 80% sure that I was going to have to have a c-section, I was feeling like my diabetes was going to deprive me the experience of a surprise birth. (Surprise meaning not knowing if my water was going to break or I was going to have to be induced) I now feel like I can have the same experience as every other pregnant woman.
Today, I went back to the specialist for the test that I discussed in my last post. They do an ultra sound and give the baby a score on movement, breathing, fluid levels and baby’s tone (how they use their muscles.) They get 2 points for each category. Baby was wide awake and on the move this morning so the test only took 10 minutes. She scored and 8/8 and all is good.
Baby is happy and all is well! Now, if I could just get comfortable and get a good night sleep, I would be happy as well :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
