Filed under: Baby Worries, First Trimester, Pregnancy Symptoms | Tags: Pregnant
I went to my first prenatal visit today. I was so scared and nervous, especially because of the seizure I had earlier this month. My morning sickness has been more under control, so I was afraid that meant the baby wasn’t doing well! I don’t want to be sick, but I don’t want to not be sick!!!! I’ve just been so nervous about a miscarriage because of all that has happened.
The appointment was a whirlwind of activity. I was so happy that my DH was able to come. After taking my height and weight, I had to pee in a cup, but there were about five steps involved in this: clean self with wet nap twice, pee a little, then catch pee midstream in cup, stop halfway, don’t pee on sides of cup. I’ve never had so much to think about as I peed- it was a little overwhelming! After that, we did the interview. The nurse asked all the first visit questions about me and family history. After that the midwife came in, and we did some more interviewing. She talked about all the do’s and don’ts. We talked a little bit about prenatal tests for genetic abnormalities and so on. I got to ask my questions. Then we did a pap smear and breast examination. Then, the exciting part- we got to see the baby! It was amazing, and I couldn’t help but cry a bit. He was moving around a little, and we could see the heart beat. We listened to it for a little bit. The midwife said that everything looked perfect, and at this point our chance of a miscarriage drops to about 3%. She said it would be safe to tell people. I said that’s good because I’ve already had to tell people because of the seizure, and I was so worried that I was jinxing myself! After that, the nurse came back and took a ton of blood. They gave us a packet of information for first time parents. Then we made our next appointment in March. I think that I am going to get a First Trimester Screen, but I’m still reading about what that entails. I have some time until I have to make up my mind about it. My DH and I are going to go out for a quick dinner to celebrate- I’m hoping the morning sickness eases up so that I can enjoy myself.
Morning sickness hit on Sunday and has taken over my life a bit. I wasn’t prepared or expecting it on Sunday, so that day was awful. I have been able to use different strategies since then, so I’ve been managing. Part of me is happy since that means things are going as planned. It’s nice to have a good sign with all the chaos that has happened with my seizure. The other part of me is having trouble focusing on the silver lining. I’m only 7 weeks along, so I’m not looking forward to feeling this way for 5-7 more weeks. It’s hard to function at times!!!
I didn’t really understand “morning sickness.” I thought it meant that you felt sick for a little bit, but the majority of the day you felt good. No- I feel like I am about to be sick all day and all night long. I’ve only thrown up once, so I consider myself lucky so far. But, it’s only been a week. I was brushing my teeth, and I went back a little too far. Oh no fun! All I can do is keep going and keep eating. I brush my teeth twice a day, but I’m worried about cavities! I fell asleep with Cheerios in my mouth the other night (I know-totally gross). I’ve been searching the web for how to get through this trimester. Here’s what’s helped so far:
1. Sucking on a lemon or squeezing lemon juice into my ice cold water
2. Sucking on sour candy like lemon heads
3. Eating Cheerios throughout the night. It’s easier than a big cracker when my mouth is dry.
4. Potato chips, crackers, and corn chips.
5. Potatoes- baked, french fried, boiled, etc.
6. Vitamin water and ginger ale
7. Pasta
8. I bought those wrist bands for motion sickness, but they didn’t really help…
9. Yogurt drinks
10. Fruits
11. I have a yoga DVD for pregnancy, and it has a routine for morning sickness. I haven’t used it yet…
12. Sleep and exercise
On January 15th, my neurologist had me begin to wean off Tegretol, a medication for seizures. Tegretol is really risky to take during pregnancy, so I needed to know if really had to be on it. I do. I had a seizure on Tuesday. It was so scary, and I am still recovering emotionally from the whole ordeal. Yuck! At least my questions were answered. I’m not taking this medication unnecessarily. I think the baby is ok- no bleeding or cramping. I see the OB in two weeks, so I’ll have more answers about the baby at that time. I’m just trying to deal with my anxiety- I’m sure that isn’t good for the baby. I can’t believe I feel like a “bad mom” already!
I live near a yoga center that has a class called “Maternity in Motion.” I’ve been keeping my eye on the class for over a year! It’s open to women who are pregnant and TTC, but I didn’t want to be the only woman in the class who was not pregnant. Saturday was the first class I attended. Apparently the women who were in class have given birth, so I was the only one. It was pretty neat to have a private yoga class! We did some simple stretches, basic yoga poses, some belly dancing, and meditation. The belly dancing was new for me. I felt totally awkward. I am not a dancer at all. The instructor was very considerate. We had our backs to the mirrors, and she stood in front of me. I was able to let go of some self consciousness since I wasn’t being watched. I can imagine it will look much cooler when I actually have a pregnant belly. It was a neat class, so I think I’ll go again.
