Two Weeks From Hell: Good Riddance, Year of the Rabbit; Welcome, Year of the Dragon!

It has been a crazy couple of weeks. I'm not sure I will be able to cover it all in one blog entry, but I'm going to do my best (so expect this to be a long, text-heavy, no pictures post)  Honestly, in spite of buying numerous pregnancy journals/calendars, I always find myself checking my blog to see how much Gracie weighed at a certain point or what my doctor told me about something, so I feel the need to keep this as up to date and complete as possible.

A couple of weeks ago, my mom, Corey and I went for what was supposed to be a fun 3-D ultrasound at one of those non-medical places. A big part of wanting to go do this is that they have it available for people to view on the internet, so Corey's parents could see it and feel involved. When we went, the lady who was doing the ultrasound went on and on about how my bump was too small and I obviously wasn't drinking enough water. Considering the fact that I have been drinking 80-100 ounces of water a day the entire time I've been pregnant, I was pretty offended/annoyed because she was flat out wrong. She told me that the reason I didn't have a big healthy looking bump was because I'm not drinking enough water. She looked at the baby for 3 minutes, said she was breech and there was no way she would get good pictures, put the wand away and said it would be better for me to come back in a few weeks. I was pretty upset to say the least. I felt like she hadn't even tried. I also felt totally insecure and worried about the size of my bump/uterus, my baby, etc.

We had an appointment at our doctor's office the next week, and I talked with my doctor about what had happened. She said she didn't think there was anything to worry about, but said that she could go ahead and set up an ultrasound to ease my mind.

I came in for an ultrasound at my doctor's office the next day (which happened to my doctor's day off). The ultrasound tech seemed a little bit concerned - baby was still breech (frank breech); but she seemed a little bit more concerned with the size of the baby (measuring in the 24th percentile) and the amniotic fluid levels. It was at 7 cm-- they want it to be between 5-25 cm and 7 cm is fairly low for this early in the pregnancy--I was at 30 weeks, 2 days. They had me do a non-stress test, which showed an active baby with a good healthy heart rate and no contractions. Another doctor in my doctor's practice came in and told me that everything was measuring within normal range and that I shouldn't worry, but they would bring me in the following week for another ultrasound to measure the amniotic fluid again. I worried all day after that happened. I felt like my mother's intution was telling me something wasn't right. I was desperate to hear what my doctor thought. I felt like she would be more concerned. I was right. I got a call the next morning from the nurse saying they wanted me to come in that day for another ultrasound to measure the amniotic fluid. I came in and went for the ultrasound with the same tech, was told it was at the same level (7 cm) and that baby was still breech. I went in to see my doctor and she was pretty concerned about the level being so low. She said that she wanted me to see a perinatologist to get their take on things. I was scheduled to go in for an ultrasound on the following Monday.

My doctor said a lot of things that really scared me at that meeting. She said that she thought that I may have to deliver early and that we would feel really good if we got to 34 weeks. She made sure I knew the signs to look for and to notice if the baby wasn't moving as much as usual. She said that if I didn't feel as much movement as usual, I should eat/drink something sugary and wait 30 minutes--if I'm still not feeling movement, I need to come into their office/go to the hospital.  She also said that, depending on how things went, I might need to go on bed rest. She said that since the baby was breech, we would probably have a c-section. I've never been set against having a c-section, but I was just shocked that my totally average normal pregnancy had suddenly turned into a crisis.

Then, I spent the weekend reading online and torturing myself for everything that could be wrong with my baby. Here are the possible causes listed for low amniotic fluid on americanpregnancy.org:

Birth defects – Problems with the development of the kidneys or urinary tract which could cause little urine production, leading to low levels of amniotic fluid.

Placental problems – If the placenta is not providing enough blood and nutrients to the baby, then the baby may stop recycling fluid.

Leaking or rupture of membranes –This may be a gush of fluid or a slow constant trickle of fluid. This is due to a tear in the membrane. Premature rupture of membranes (PROM) can also result in low amniotic fluid levels.

Post Date Pregnancy- A post date pregnancy (one that goes over 42 weeks) can have low levels of amniotic fluid, which could be a result of declining placental function.

Maternal Complications- Factors such as maternal dehydration, hypertension, preeclampsia, diabetes, and chronic hypoxia can have an effect on amniotic fluid levels.

Obviously post date pregnancy wasn't the issue, and I don't have hypertension, preeclampsia, diabetes, chronic hypoxia (that I know of). So basically that leaves the possible causes (in my mind) as:

1) Birth defects. Something is wrong with my baby. In spite of all the testing and being incredibly conscious of things from before I was even pregnant, something is wrong with my baby.

2) Placental problems. I'm not getting enough nutrients to my baby.

3) Leaking or rupture of membranes. Is it possible that somehow on one of my 15 trips to the bathroom every night, I had missed the fact that my water broke? Or have I been leaking amniotic fluid all along and didn't realize it?

4) Am I somehow, in spite of the fact that I drink so much water, pee 10 times a day at work and 15 times once I get home, still not drinking enough water?

As you can imagine, I was just a peach to be around all weekend.

Even though my doctor said she wasn't sure I needed to attend, we decided to go the all day childbirth and infant care class that I had signed us up for over 2 months ago that was scheduled for the next day after my appointment with her. It was actually very informative and a great distraction. While we were there, I noticed that none of the other pregnant ladies were drinking anywhere near as much water as I was or having to pee as much as I was. I didn't know what to make of that. Maybe my baby just needs a lot of water?

After lunch, there were a few kicks from Gracie, but not as many as I'm used to. I got super paranoid. I was also very glad that we were at the hospital for the class. We got to the hospital tour part at the end of the day (which Corey and I have already done before, but decided, what the heck, we will go again) and I couldn't feel the baby move. I poked her over and over again, still no movement. I ate an entire orange, and we still weren't feeling anything. We were walking around in labor and delivery on the tour and after 20 minutes of not feeling anything post-orange, I told Corey I just wanted to sit down and see if I could feel something. Corey asked one of the orderlies about where would be the best place to sit down and we split off from our group.

Before I knew it, the nurses at the hospital were saying they wanted me to come back and check how things looked. As soon as I got into the hospital gown, Gracie started hiccuping and kicking me hard. My immediate reaction was relief, frustration (that little stinker) and "we've got to get out of here before they charge us!" (Hey, maybe I'm cheap, but whatever). Corey went to check with them to see if they would let me leave and they wouldn't. They wanted to do a non-stress test to make sure everything looked okay.

Of course, she moved around and had a great heartbeat. The nurse was great, and she took down a lot of my medical information for their records, which is good for when I actually do go in for delivery-less to go over. They did say that the NST showed a few contractions--most likely just Braxton Hicks. Corey and I have decided that it may be that the tightening in my stomach from the Braxton Hicks while I was standing may have been why we couldn't feel her move as well. Once I sat down/laid down, she was bouncing around consistently. They discharged me within an hour and said everything looked fine but I was right to be concerned and they wanted me to come in if anything like that came up again.

That was a long day.

Then, on Monday, I went to the perinatologist. The ultrasound technology at that place is better and the tech is more used to dealing with high-risk issues. The doctor then comes in and does some measuring/looking himself. Both came back with higher amniotic fluid levels -- they both measured it to be around 12 cm. When I watched them measure, I realized how easy it would be to measure it differently--it's not an exact science. But the doctor thought things looked fine, said baby is in the 36th percentile based on their measurements and didn't see any reason why I would need to deliver early.

I've tried to determine the reason for the difference in measurement from my OB's office to the perinatologist and I'm still not sure--but I think it's either related to better ultrasound technology or possibly the baby moving and revealing some fluid she was hiding.
Little. Stinker.
But overall, what a relief! I felt totally de-stressed! It felt like all of a sudden, I was free from worry again. I also was sure that my doctor would feel better about things. Once she got the report, she cancelled the other appointments I was scheduled for that week (Wednesday and Friday). She is having me come in tomorrow for my appointment and another ultrasound, but said that the perinatologist's report is exactly what we wanted to hear.

Later that same Monday (a little over a week ago), we got some other not-so-great news. Corey got laid off from his job. No warning, and honestly, the company has been pretty terrible about the whole thing. It makes me so mad-Corey has worked there for 3 1/2 years. He has transformed their inventory processes, he has done so much for that company and been very dedicated. It came down to money--they didn't care that his wife was having a baby in 2 months, all they cared about was getting someone to do his job (not as well) who would be fine with getting paid less.

It stinks. It is the worst timing. Neither one of us has ever been laid off before, and it's kind of a shock to have it happen now. But I'm so proud of Corey. He is so hardworking. In spite of our worries and fears related to money and the future, he has forged ahead. He has several interviews and has been so organized and calm throughout the whole process. I know, in the long run, he is going to end up in a better job with more opportunity for growth.

I'm doing my best to be supportive and not stress too much about everything--there have definitely been some moments of questioning why we are having to go through all of this, but there isn't really anything to gain from that. The weekend we were so worried about Gracie's health, I said to Corey--I just want one weekend without something stressful happening. This past weekend, despite Corey lost his job, we honestly were happy and less stressed. Because we have each other and my baby is healthy in my tummy. And that makes me realized that we are going to be okay--because our priorities have always been each other and family. We know that jobs aren't that important, they just pay the bills.

All I can do is ask for prayers that this issue will get resolved soon.

I'm not big on astrology or the Chinese zodiac, but I have to say, I've been reading a lot about it lately. Apparently, the Year of The Dragon is supposed to be a lucky one. Baby Dragons are said to be very fortunate and Chinese couples make plans in advance to try and have their baby in "the year of the dragon." We were lucky enough to have a dragon baby without even realizing it. So, despite the Year of the Rabbit being great overall to "The Bunny Family" I have to say, I am thrilled that it is over. The last few weeks of it have stunk. And I'm looking forward to what's to come in the future. It's a scary but very exciting time for our family.

Elizabeth