- The nurses act as if you've won a contest due to being here the longest of the current patients
- Having a sonogram is the highlight of the week (just to see the outside of the hospital doorway)
- People/nurses come in & say "wow you look nice with makeup on!" (umm, thanks?)
- You have to flip the pillows/mattress topper often because you're wearing a groove in them
- You know who is entering the room by the way they knock (or don't)
- You know every nurse, custodian, & hostess by name along with many of their personal histories
- The most exciting daily event is marking another day off the calendar
- It no longer bothers you to have to pee every hour (just to be able to get out of bed)
- You've become very picky about detergent b/c it's all you smell (preferably lavender Downy)
- Your eyebrows cannot be plucked again or there won't be anything left of them
Thursday, March 31, 2011
You Know You're on Bedrest When...
Monday, March 21, 2011
29 Weeks!
We made it past our first big milestone & are a week away from the big 3-0 weeks! It's been a quiet week thankfully, with little updates around here. The babies have hit a growth spurt for sure, now filling up my tummy with their little legs & bottoms sticking out all over. I do love being pregnant & feeling the closeness with my babies. I'm trying to really cherish this time knowing it's most likely the last time I will feel it. Yes, we have decided our family is perfect & complete with three! I'm getting anxious to meet these little girls, however know that each day in the womb continues to be a huge step in their growth & development & will miss having them safe inside of me.
Thursday I had a sonogram to assess growth & the girls weighed 2.10 lbs & 2.14 lbs! My MFM was surprised, stating that whatever I'm eating is working, because they are weighing in at a week ahead of average. Their weights at birth really impact their risk of problems after birth. Praise the Lord for big babies!!
Cody stayed the weekend with me after a long 80+ hour work week & we enjoyed just spending time together, napping most of our time across the room from one another. Just to have him here is so comforting. He is truly my best friend & I'm so thankful for every moment we have together. We were able to spend quite a bit of time with Luke this weekend too & boy is he changing quick. He's so sweet & just comes up to give me kisses & stroke my face out of no where when playing. It melts my heart. I'm longing for the day when I can rock him again & play with him in his room. Sunday, my doctor gave me "wheelchair privileges" where I'm allowed to go out in a wheelchair for up to an hour a couple times a week! Cody took me on a ride around the hospitals & it was wonderful to say the least! Let me say, we truly take the little things for granted. Fresh air & sunshine was all I needed to improve my spirits & prepare me emotionally for another week. It was pretty hard after the boys left last night, but I just remind myself this is only for a season, & we will all be together soon.
My precious doctor came back from vacation today & let me know she called to check on us every day on her trip, along with praying for us daily. I can't explain what that means to have a doctor that truly cares. Whose job is more than a job, it's a calling. I don't know that she'll ever really know what she means to me & my family.
That's it for last week! Hopefully the next post will be equally as boring! Here's my verse for the day & daily reading. It made me smile!
"I am the Lord, the God of every person on the earth. Nothing is impossible for me." Jer 32:27
We need to hear that God is still in control.
We need to hear that it's not over until he says so.
We need to hear that life's mishaps & tragedies are not a reason to bail out.
They are simply a reason to sit tight.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Week 27 in Review
A little late.. 26 week photoI've been recovering this week from a semi-tramatic weekend, thus the very late post with lots of updates..
Last Saturday I was having a normal afternoon when I had the most frightening experience I've ever had with my health. I looked up from crocheting with double vision, unable to "uncross my eyes" it seemed. I sat up telling my nurse, who had just finished getting the babies onto the monitor, that I had had a sudden change in vision. Within the next second I felt my blood pressure & pulse rise radidly, pulsating throughout my body like a drum. Grabbing my throbbing head, I loudly announced that she needed to get a doctor, NOW, I thought I was having a stroke. She calmly & quickly took my blood pressure as nurses ran down the hall to my room. As soon as they got me turned onto my side & an oxygen mask on me, the symptoms subsided. The nurses stated that indeed, my BP was extremely high & pulse was racing, but it quickly went back to normal. My vision also returned. Having education in & treating stroke patients, I knew this episode had something to do with my blood pressure & that what had just experienced was not something to ignore. The doctor ordered an EKG of my heart & they did multiple neurologic exams, all coming out normal. We still don't know the cause of what happened.. but everyone is watching my BP & pulse very very closely while on the Procardia medicine.
Before the nurse left the room, I felt a tinge of pain down low that I had never felt before. She reported that I was also having contractions show up on the monitor. She decided to check my cervix to be on the safe side, reporting that I was now dilated to 5 cm & could feel Addison's head. They pulled the wires from the wall & monitor & whisked me to L&D.
Once in L&D, I was put on Magnesium Sulfate to stop the contractions & also help prevent neurologic deficits in the babies. This is a great drug but comes with horrific side effects including a burning sensation throughout the body, intense sweats, nausea, vomiting, difficulty breathing, etc etc. After the events upstairs, I wasn't a bit afraid though, just wanted to prevent labor at all costs.. When the doctor arrived & checked my cervix herself, she stated I was only 3 1/2-4 cm, not the 5 I was told upstairs! With the contractions coming close together, I was still at a high risk of delivering soon. They would keep me on the monitor all night & hope that the mag worked it's magic. The doctor thankfully gave me some pain medication in my IV that knocked me out completely within seconds, giving me a wonderful nights' rest even on mag!
The next morning my contractions subsided & the doctor decided I was safe to return to antipartum. I never thought I'd be happy to return to this place! What a blessing, once again! The rest of the week I've been recovering from the mag, which completely wiped me out. My eyes have been impacted the most, feeling slow & tired most of the time, but that's ok with me as long as we're still here! They also restarted Procardia to keep the contractions at bay. Let's hope it continues to work! Here's my wonderful L&D nurse who even wrote a verse on my board as a constant reminder:)
Thursday I had a sonogram to recheck fluid levels & development. The girls looked great! Fluid levels have slowly begun improving more & more each week. One surprise was the Addison had her hand above her head, which is currently right against my opened cervix. Yes, her hand was sticking THROUGH my cervix! The MFM (maternal fetal medicine specialist) stated that he wanted her to move it before delivery, but wasn't too concerned that this would be a problem at this point & also said he was very pleased with their development looks. Praise the Lord! Tomorrow will be 28 WEEKS!!! I've been quite emotional the past few days, feeling incredibly thankful that God has brought us this far. I never imagined we'd be seeing 28 weeks with a 95% survival rate when we arrived at week 23. Well here we are, & I feel like shouting it from the rooftop!
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
26.3 Weeks
What a rollercoaster! Goodness, I'm ready to get off this ride.
Yesterday I went in for a sonogram to assess the babies ambilical cords due to some "decelerations" on the monitor showing that Elle's cord is being compressed more often than normal. It has been happening for very short time increments, but the doctors have increased amount of times we monitor the babies each day just to make sure she isn't having decels for any longer time amounts that they aren't seeing. I am so thankful they are thorough! I've also been having increased uterine "activity" so they wanted to make sure this wasn't doing anything to my cervix.
Elle's fluid level was normal-Yay!! and Addison's was the same as last week-still low amount, but good news that it's not decreasing! After assessing the girls, he saw that my cervix looked more open than previously. When he asked if I was very sure that I wasn't having any spotting or anything, I knew he was worried about something. He did a digital examination of my cervix, finding that I am now dilated to 3+ cms. Of course my nerves quickly kicked in & I lost it for the first time in over a week. He ordered the nurse to start an IV, begin Betamethasone booster shots for the girls' lung development & start me on a medication Procardia to hopefully stop the contractions (that I am not even feeling, but are opening my cervix). Once they start this medication you usually don't come off of it until the birth. The nurses worked quickly & within 15 minutes I'd have all the medications & IV fluids started. The monitors showed no change throughout the day, however today my uterine activity & contractions have subsided & Elle hasn't had quite as many decels as she did yesterday. Praise God!
The doctor did prepare me for what labor is most likely going to look like since she said I'm one of those that likes to be in the know! (the doctor's HAVE to be exhausted by my constant questions & needs for explanations of everything) But this helps me so I'm not ashamed! Dr. B said it will most likely be "fast & furious" no matter which way the babies come. They are both still head-down which is wonderful, but if they have to get them out because of decreased heart tones/distress, it will be an emergency c-section. She said it will all happen very quickly & that Cody probably won't even be able to make it in time. This breaks my heart, but at the same time, last week we thought he'd be thousands of miles away right now & God has provided a way for him to work here & can be here within 45 mins or so. At this point, I truly just want the best for my babies & know this isn't going to be a typical birth experience anyway, so I'll take whatever comes gracefully. I told the specialist that I'm determined to be here until at the very least 28 weeks, but am praying for 33! He smiled and said he is hopeful for tomorrow. Oh well, he can be the professional & prepare for the worst, but I'm expecting much more! Another quote from Dr. B today was "when you came in you weren't in the game, now the game is on." She's my cheerleader & I feel so very blessed to have her. She said her family prays for us every night & that she is bringing her little girl to meet me tomorrow. Now there are not many doctor's like that in these busy times!
Have to end with a verse I'm learning to take to heart these days: Be still & know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted in the earth. Psalm 46:10.
Be still.. I believe this is the first time in my life I'm obeying
Yesterday I went in for a sonogram to assess the babies ambilical cords due to some "decelerations" on the monitor showing that Elle's cord is being compressed more often than normal. It has been happening for very short time increments, but the doctors have increased amount of times we monitor the babies each day just to make sure she isn't having decels for any longer time amounts that they aren't seeing. I am so thankful they are thorough! I've also been having increased uterine "activity" so they wanted to make sure this wasn't doing anything to my cervix.
Elle's fluid level was normal-Yay!! and Addison's was the same as last week-still low amount, but good news that it's not decreasing! After assessing the girls, he saw that my cervix looked more open than previously. When he asked if I was very sure that I wasn't having any spotting or anything, I knew he was worried about something. He did a digital examination of my cervix, finding that I am now dilated to 3+ cms. Of course my nerves quickly kicked in & I lost it for the first time in over a week. He ordered the nurse to start an IV, begin Betamethasone booster shots for the girls' lung development & start me on a medication Procardia to hopefully stop the contractions (that I am not even feeling, but are opening my cervix). Once they start this medication you usually don't come off of it until the birth. The nurses worked quickly & within 15 minutes I'd have all the medications & IV fluids started. The monitors showed no change throughout the day, however today my uterine activity & contractions have subsided & Elle hasn't had quite as many decels as she did yesterday. Praise God!
The doctor did prepare me for what labor is most likely going to look like since she said I'm one of those that likes to be in the know! (the doctor's HAVE to be exhausted by my constant questions & needs for explanations of everything) But this helps me so I'm not ashamed! Dr. B said it will most likely be "fast & furious" no matter which way the babies come. They are both still head-down which is wonderful, but if they have to get them out because of decreased heart tones/distress, it will be an emergency c-section. She said it will all happen very quickly & that Cody probably won't even be able to make it in time. This breaks my heart, but at the same time, last week we thought he'd be thousands of miles away right now & God has provided a way for him to work here & can be here within 45 mins or so. At this point, I truly just want the best for my babies & know this isn't going to be a typical birth experience anyway, so I'll take whatever comes gracefully. I told the specialist that I'm determined to be here until at the very least 28 weeks, but am praying for 33! He smiled and said he is hopeful for tomorrow. Oh well, he can be the professional & prepare for the worst, but I'm expecting much more! Another quote from Dr. B today was "when you came in you weren't in the game, now the game is on." She's my cheerleader & I feel so very blessed to have her. She said her family prays for us every night & that she is bringing her little girl to meet me tomorrow. Now there are not many doctor's like that in these busy times!
Have to end with a verse I'm learning to take to heart these days: Be still & know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted in the earth. Psalm 46:10.
Be still.. I believe this is the first time in my life I'm obeying
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