I had my First Trimester Screening on Tuesday. It was an interesting experience. Big surprise, I was feeling nauseated. After I checked in, I had to use the restroom since they wanted me to have an empty bladder for the ultrasound. When it was my turn, a nurse took me to a small conference room. We talked about my history and any risk factors I may have. She explained that they would be combining my family history with my age, blood work, and ultrasound measurements. She said I would get the results in a week. Since I was almost 30, she said my ratio was already 1:500. She explained that the Second Trimester Screening would look at the anatomy and gender. They would also take blood at that time. They would get an idea of my risk for cleft palate and spina bifida. If the baby was leaking spinal fluid, then it would show up in my blood. I’m not sure if I got all the details correct- the nurse talked so fast. I’m sure she’s been going through that speech at least 20 times that day!
After that, they took be back to the waiting room to wait for an ultrasound room to be available. I took another trip to the potty to make sure my bladder was empty. When they called me back, I was taken to the ultrasound room. They used a doppler on my belly. I had to pull the top of my pants down so they could goop me up with gel. The ultrasound was amazing. I could see the heartbeat, and I even got to hear it. I saw the baby move around. It was surreal! It really looked like a baby. It was amazing how much he changed since my first ultrasound 4 weeks ago! I saw arms and legs. He was so cute. The tech said it was too early to tell gender. I couldn’t tell what was umbilical cord or gender, so I’m taking her word for it. They did a 4D view for a little bit, but it didn’t look as cool. I can imagine 4D looking amazing what the child is bigger. DH wasn’t able to go, so I was so happy they put the whole thing on DVD. It was so fun to watch it later at home. They also gave me a few pictures.
After the ultrasound, the a nurse came in to take my blood. I was feeling woozy since it was close to lunch time, so I laid down. The doctor came in for about 30 sec. to let me know that things looked good and to answer any questions. He said the results would be ready in a week. After that I scheduled my second trimester screening, and the appointment was over. I’m interested to hear the ratio. I left feeling positive about the experience and my chances of having a healthy baby.
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.
I am about to begin Week 6. I’m excited to see what happens this week. I don’t really have any symptoms other than my BB are big and sore. I’m starting to get tired in the afternoon. So far, no morning sickness, but I feel funny if I don’t eat on time. There are a few other symptoms, but I’m not sure if it’s a symptom or just a random things happening. I’m peeing more, but I am also drinking more water. I’m constipated, but I’ve been eating less vegetables lately. I’ve been more hungry for carbs lately… It’s little things like that I find in pregnancy symptom books, but I’m not sure it’s pregnancy or just me being me.
Previously, I was not quite a D, but a C wasn’t quite perfect around PMS time. So, I’m not surprised that I have jumped up to a D so early in the pregnancy. Today I treated myself to some new bras. It feels so much better. I’m thinking I might wear a stretchy one to sleep in at night. I looked at the maternity bras, but they didn’t fit as well as the bigger size in regular bras. I’ve read that your bra size changes all the time, so I’m going to pack my C’s away for a later time. I’m wondering just how big these BBs will get over the next 9 months!!!!
I was very sick on Friday. I even had a fever- yuck! I felt like I had the flu. Cold, achy, sore throat, cough… It was no fun. I’m feeling much better today.
We had a nice breakfast yesterday with my in-laws. They were coming over to celebrate DH’s birthday, but little did they know they were about to become grandparents for the first time! I had the table set with some pretty china, and each setting had it’s very own pregnancy test with two pink lines. I thought that was a clever party favor. They were very excited for us, and it was fun to share the secret with someone other than doctors. They will be the only ones we tell for awhile. We’re going to keep it quiet until March- just in case… I’d like to tell my parents, but they have a terrible track record with secrets. They would tell everyone and anyone, so they will have to wait. They have 5 grandkids already, so it won’t be quite as special to them as with my in-laws.
I’ve been treating myself to setting up my Target baby registry. You can keep it private, so I’m having fun playing with it without anyone knowing.
Filed under: Baby Worries, First Trimester, Pregnancy Symptoms | Tags: AF, OPK, Pregnant
I’m only four weeks pregnant, so I’m not sure what is a symptom or just my mind playing games on me. Today I woke up with a sore throat. I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I’m just so excited. I’m exhausted in the morning and keyed up at night. I dragged myself to work. Thankfully it was a slow day. I’m so tired and achy feeling, but I couldn’t take a nap after work. I’m taking off tomorrow. My in-laws are coming for breakfast this weekend, and I can’t seem to get motivated to clean the house. I do one thing, and then I have to sit and be lazy for awhile. I figure with that rate it’ll take me a whole day to get everything done for the weekend.
In summary, at a little over 4 weeks, my pregnancy symptoms are:
- Mild cramping in the evening or if I move suddenly
- My BB are slightly tender and big
- Sore throat, achy, and tired
- I’m not nauseated, but if I feel funny if I wait too long between meals
- Creamy CM
- The most important symptom- No AF
Yesterday I was reading about chemical pregnancies, which was a terrible thing to do to myself. I got a little worried and stressed about it. It was later in the evening, so I didn’t want to use a pregnancy test without FMU. Last thing I wanted was to see was a BFN! So, I used an OPK- Still pregnant. It was such a relief to see the two dark lines. It’s pretty neat how the OPK picks up HCG as well as LH. I felt better! FX that the baby sticks around for the whole 9 months.
I think it’s so weird that I’m four weeks pregnant already. I know I wasn’t pregnant for two of those four weeks! I made my first OB appointment. It seems so far away- Feb. 19th. I’ll be 8 weeks pregnant by then. OMG- I’m pregnant! My fingers and toes are crossed that all goes well between now and then. The appointment is going to be about an hour, and I guess they will do blood work then. It feels weird to actually tell people I’m pregnant. I told my OB, my acupuncturist, my BF, and DH.
DH is out of town. I was going to wait to tell him in person, but that wasn’t going to happen. I just blurted it out to him. His birthday is this weekend, so his parents are coming up for a visit. I think we’ll surprise them with the big news. The baby will be their first grandchild. I was searching for creative ways to tell them. All the ideas made me just cry! It will be my parents 6th grandchild, and my grandma’s 13th great-grandchild. (I’m trying to not focus on the 13!)
I had a hard time sleeping last night. I was anxious and excited. I was also hungry, and I had to pee. I spent yesterday cooking, and the lingering food smell has been bothering me. I think it’s a psychosomatic symptom. Otherwise, the only symptoms I have are an aching in my uterus and sore BB.
I keep checking the pee stick. It still has two lines on it. I wonder how long they will stay there…
