AHHHH I can not take it one more day!!! Insomnia is back in full force - dragging me through sleepless nights and scatter-brained days. I chalk this all up to our nervous anticipation of Thursday.
Most parents are excited to find out the "sex" - from the perspective of having a loss, this scan is MUCH more than that. People confuse this scan with a simple analysis of genitalia, but in reality, it is much, much more than that. During this appointment, the tech takes a careful look at every aspect of the unborn child. She looks at the brain, the spine, the bone structure, the chambers of the heart, the digestive system, then finally, the genitalia. Here, what is really important is that our baby is healthy and has no indicators of birth defects. For more info on the anatomy scan: http://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy/pregnancy-health/prenatal-testing/ultrasound-anatomy-two.aspx
We are of course looking forward to finding out the gender, that way we can hone in on our final name selection and register for gender-based items, but for now, we need your prayers. Pray that is baby is happy and healthy in there, waiting impatiently to meet us as we are waiting impatiently to meet him/her!
Showing posts with label ultra sound. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ultra sound. Show all posts
Monday, April 11, 2011
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Landlocked
Blink your eyes. That's how quickly everything changes.
Yesterday started off in spectacular fashion. I got up early after an actual restful nights sleep (which for those who know me know how rare that is). I got in a great shower, packed my bathing suit into my carry-on for the trip, and decided to treat myself to breakfast at the Carnegie Deli. While there I had an awesome convo with my mom and decided to go shopping for the baby with her the Tuesday I got back because things were going so well.
I was on cloud 9 when I got back to my hotel. Using the bathroom, I got into a bit of a coughing fit (that pesky July cold again) and before I could thank God for protecting my baby, noticed bright red blood on the toilet paper. I took a few deep breaths, called Kristina to get a hospital recommendation, tried getting a hold of Jesse, grabbed my purse, then a cab, and headed to the hospital.
I was bawling hysterically in the cab, called my mom again, and was told to get my act together - stress is no good for the baby. Luckily, Amie got to the hospital almost immediately after I did so I didn't have to do this day alone.
Then the waiting began. I was at the hospital for 8 hours, most of which, freezing in a tiny hospital gown, waiting for answers. My friends could not have been better people that day. They held my hand, made me laughed, cried with me, and kept my mom and Jesse well informed of every step along the way. I cant' say I was terribly impressed with any of the doctors at the hospital, but at least we finally got somewhere.
One of the most nerve racking points of the entire process was during the almost 30-minutes long ultra sound process. When we had our first ultra sound last Friday, the technician talked us through everything we were seeing from the yolk sack, to the heartbeat, to everything in between. Here, the screen was turned away from me, and they told me over and over again that they couldn't tell me anything.
In the end, results were mixed. Baby was still where she was supposed to be, HcG was at 22,000 (which is good),but the heart rate was on the low side for 6-weeks at 92 bpm, 10 bpm lower than Friday. Additionally, because of my O negative blood type I had to get (a rather painful) shot of RhoGAM to prevent my body from making antibodies that could complicate a future pregnancy.
I also had the make the easy but upsetting decision to cancel my trip. Despite the trauma of the day, I was able to discharge myself, get back to the hotel (which was the most understanding place ever and didn't charge me a dollar for checking out 4 hours late), then to grand central and onto a train to Stamford, CT. My parents picked me up from there and brought me to their house where I was reunited with Jesse.
Now, what? I'm trying to rest and not do too much worrying. That's really hard. Especially while I'm waiting to hear back from my doctor (who still hasn't called me back, I'm not impressed). My discharge papers said my chances of carrying this baby to term is down to 50%...but I'm not sure how accurate that is. I'm scared. I love this baby so much already, I just can't imagine my life without her.
More updates when I hear from the doctor. Until then, my sincere gratitude to Jesse, Laura, Amie, Kristina, Courtney, my amazing parents, and my in-laws for everything you did to get me through yesterday.
Now we wait. And pray.
Yesterday started off in spectacular fashion. I got up early after an actual restful nights sleep (which for those who know me know how rare that is). I got in a great shower, packed my bathing suit into my carry-on for the trip, and decided to treat myself to breakfast at the Carnegie Deli. While there I had an awesome convo with my mom and decided to go shopping for the baby with her the Tuesday I got back because things were going so well.
I was on cloud 9 when I got back to my hotel. Using the bathroom, I got into a bit of a coughing fit (that pesky July cold again) and before I could thank God for protecting my baby, noticed bright red blood on the toilet paper. I took a few deep breaths, called Kristina to get a hospital recommendation, tried getting a hold of Jesse, grabbed my purse, then a cab, and headed to the hospital.
I was bawling hysterically in the cab, called my mom again, and was told to get my act together - stress is no good for the baby. Luckily, Amie got to the hospital almost immediately after I did so I didn't have to do this day alone.
Then the waiting began. I was at the hospital for 8 hours, most of which, freezing in a tiny hospital gown, waiting for answers. My friends could not have been better people that day. They held my hand, made me laughed, cried with me, and kept my mom and Jesse well informed of every step along the way. I cant' say I was terribly impressed with any of the doctors at the hospital, but at least we finally got somewhere.
One of the most nerve racking points of the entire process was during the almost 30-minutes long ultra sound process. When we had our first ultra sound last Friday, the technician talked us through everything we were seeing from the yolk sack, to the heartbeat, to everything in between. Here, the screen was turned away from me, and they told me over and over again that they couldn't tell me anything.
In the end, results were mixed. Baby was still where she was supposed to be, HcG was at 22,000 (which is good),but the heart rate was on the low side for 6-weeks at 92 bpm, 10 bpm lower than Friday. Additionally, because of my O negative blood type I had to get (a rather painful) shot of RhoGAM to prevent my body from making antibodies that could complicate a future pregnancy.
I also had the make the easy but upsetting decision to cancel my trip. Despite the trauma of the day, I was able to discharge myself, get back to the hotel (which was the most understanding place ever and didn't charge me a dollar for checking out 4 hours late), then to grand central and onto a train to Stamford, CT. My parents picked me up from there and brought me to their house where I was reunited with Jesse.
Now, what? I'm trying to rest and not do too much worrying. That's really hard. Especially while I'm waiting to hear back from my doctor (who still hasn't called me back, I'm not impressed). My discharge papers said my chances of carrying this baby to term is down to 50%...but I'm not sure how accurate that is. I'm scared. I love this baby so much already, I just can't imagine my life without her.
More updates when I hear from the doctor. Until then, my sincere gratitude to Jesse, Laura, Amie, Kristina, Courtney, my amazing parents, and my in-laws for everything you did to get me through yesterday.
Now we wait. And pray.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Weeks 1-8, I mean 6?
Pregnancy is a piece of cake (remind me to re-read this in a couple months).
Since the big day, it's been relatively smooth sailing. I've been crankier than usual, eating more than usual, my breasts have been tender and slightly larger. But that's it. I've kept up my exercise routine, encouraged by my two amazing trainers to keep on going throughout this entire process.
The biggest change so far has been dietary restrictions. I never thought of myself as a real coffee addict until I had to give it up. I often wonder if it is the pregnancy that is making me so damn tired or the lack of caffeine in my system. Also on my list of no's: alcohol (which has been very easy to stay away from), lunch meat (slightly harder), hot dogs (I actually ordered one by accident at a concert this past week, took one bite, remembered I can't eat hot dogs, and threw it away), soft cheeses (very sad), tuna and swordfish, and sushi (I actually like avocado and sweet potato sushi just as much as the fish kind).
The hardest part of me so far is to stop worrying. We want this baby so badly, that the thought that everything may not go perfectly is heartbreaking. I spent about a week spending WAY too much time reading pregnancy blogs, trying to get to the bottom of how common it is to miscarry. I spent large portions of every day seriously freaking out, and honestly thanked God aloud when there was no blood on the TP when I used the bathroom. I've started getting better at taking each day as it comes over the last 3-4 days, but that has a lot of to do with our appointment this past Friday!
We met Dr. Neary for the first time very early Friday morning. According to my calendar, I should have been 7 weeks and 5 days pregnant, but upon ultra sound inspection, they found me at only 5 weeks 6 days.
Sidenote: When we were first thinking about having a baby, we told ourselves that we would NEVER have a baby in March. My grandmother, my twin brothers, my father, my grandfather, along with a handful of cousins have March birthdays. For us, March is Christmas part two - there is no way to stay out of the red. When we thought we were almost 8 weeks pregnant, the due date was Feb 20th, but now that we are pushed back, you guessed it, the new due date is March 5th. Even though this isn't what we intended, it may be a sign that this baby is meant to be born the Jones way :)
The baby had a strong heartbeat at 102 bpm - Jesse and I literally wept with joy as we "saw" our little one for the first time. The almost 2 week lack is most likely due to some odd ovulation on my part (and maybe explains why it took so long for us to conceive). The doctor let us know that when you can see the baby's heartbeat and there's been no bleeding, chances for miscarriage drop to under 5%, letting us truly breathe a sigh of relief.
We get to go back for another ultra sound on the 20th to ensure baby weeks is growing well - and I am pumped!
Other than kicking this pain in the butt July cold out of the way, I am looking forward to everything to come, especially for a cruise to Canada with my best friends!
Since the big day, it's been relatively smooth sailing. I've been crankier than usual, eating more than usual, my breasts have been tender and slightly larger. But that's it. I've kept up my exercise routine, encouraged by my two amazing trainers to keep on going throughout this entire process.
The biggest change so far has been dietary restrictions. I never thought of myself as a real coffee addict until I had to give it up. I often wonder if it is the pregnancy that is making me so damn tired or the lack of caffeine in my system. Also on my list of no's: alcohol (which has been very easy to stay away from), lunch meat (slightly harder), hot dogs (I actually ordered one by accident at a concert this past week, took one bite, remembered I can't eat hot dogs, and threw it away), soft cheeses (very sad), tuna and swordfish, and sushi (I actually like avocado and sweet potato sushi just as much as the fish kind).
The hardest part of me so far is to stop worrying. We want this baby so badly, that the thought that everything may not go perfectly is heartbreaking. I spent about a week spending WAY too much time reading pregnancy blogs, trying to get to the bottom of how common it is to miscarry. I spent large portions of every day seriously freaking out, and honestly thanked God aloud when there was no blood on the TP when I used the bathroom. I've started getting better at taking each day as it comes over the last 3-4 days, but that has a lot of to do with our appointment this past Friday!
We met Dr. Neary for the first time very early Friday morning. According to my calendar, I should have been 7 weeks and 5 days pregnant, but upon ultra sound inspection, they found me at only 5 weeks 6 days.
Sidenote: When we were first thinking about having a baby, we told ourselves that we would NEVER have a baby in March. My grandmother, my twin brothers, my father, my grandfather, along with a handful of cousins have March birthdays. For us, March is Christmas part two - there is no way to stay out of the red. When we thought we were almost 8 weeks pregnant, the due date was Feb 20th, but now that we are pushed back, you guessed it, the new due date is March 5th. Even though this isn't what we intended, it may be a sign that this baby is meant to be born the Jones way :)
The baby had a strong heartbeat at 102 bpm - Jesse and I literally wept with joy as we "saw" our little one for the first time. The almost 2 week lack is most likely due to some odd ovulation on my part (and maybe explains why it took so long for us to conceive). The doctor let us know that when you can see the baby's heartbeat and there's been no bleeding, chances for miscarriage drop to under 5%, letting us truly breathe a sigh of relief.
We get to go back for another ultra sound on the 20th to ensure baby weeks is growing well - and I am pumped!
Other than kicking this pain in the butt July cold out of the way, I am looking forward to everything to come, especially for a cruise to Canada with my best friends!
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