15 Week Appointment

15 weeks, 3 days

Weight: -4 lbs
B/P: 132/80
HR: 80's
Baby's HR: 145

We went to the OB again this morning. My blood pressure is still high, unfortunately. We had some labs taken for the triple screen. This will help us determine the baby's risk for down syndrome and trisomy 18. While reading up about this test, it looks like there is roughly an 80% detection rate and there are lots of false positives. Meaning, some babies pass this test and have problems and some don't pass and end up fine upon further testing. So we shall see. I am taking it with a grain of salt.

My doctor is referring me to a perinatologist for my blood pressure issues. This doctor is a high-risk OB, to put it simply. I will see this doctor and my normal OB for the time being. She said he will take measurements via ultrasound of the baby to make sure the baby is growing well and will monitor my labs. At some point, I may have to take medication for my blood pressure. I am completely expecting it to get higher as I progress to the 3rd trimester...and I have roughly 25 weeks to go! We will see the specialist in about 2 weeks. We see Dr. A again in 4wks, so a minor change in plan from before.

I am still planning to take it easy and relax as much as possible. Hopefully we can sneak a peak at the baby's gender at the appointment with the specialist.

ER Trip

So yesterday, I developed a bit of a migraine while at work. It was so intense that I ended up throwing up, had to leave work early, and couldn't shake it with Tylenol/ice packs/sleep.

I had Paul and my mom take me to the new hospital down the street around 8pm so that I could be seen. When I got to the ER, my blood pressure was already 145/85. (When I left work at 2 it was only 127/78 or so. Not good!!) They did a CT scan of my head and double wrapped my belly/back in lead shields for the baby. The doctor on call said that everything looked great. They gave me a cocktail of IV Reglan/Benadryl to get rid of the headache, and I got a half a liter of saline to rehydrate me.

Today, I had an appointment with my Opthamologist to make sure that I didn't have any vision problems as my headaches have been increasing in frequency and strength. She didn't find anything, either. So it remains a mystery at this point. know that headaches/migraines can also be from stress/hormones, so I am trying to ride it out the best I can. I have an OB appt. on Friday, so hopefully we will know more then.

On the plus side, I did get to see an ultrasound of the baby while at the ER. S/he had the head towards the screen. It looks like the baby was lying on its back with its feet in the air. We could see the baby kicking its feet back and forth and when the Dr. moved the wand over the baby's head, the baby shot its arms/legs out like "WHEE" as mom says. LOL! I am glad mom got to see the baby finally.

Bad Connection

In the fax, that is. The baby clearly didn't get the memo. I felt like poo all day yesterday at work and ended up with 5 patients on primary (by myself, and damn that sucked). As soon as I got home (YAY! I made it to 8pm) I took a hot bath, dried off and lost all my dinner. :o( It was an early bedtime for me with an ice pack in tow for my headache. ugh....

In other news, my friend Tamara's Dr. Appt went well yesterday. She is at 10 wks. HR is in the 150's. And I am so glad that Wendi's appointment went well today! I am so excited the munchkin will have some playmates!

Rough Week

So this week has been a really tough one. I had an amazingly fun day with Elizabeth on Monday and even got to go swimming and enjoy some chocolate covered strawberries from Godiva. Around midnight, I threw up everything. :o(

It just came out of no where, too! I wasn't very nauseated or gagging; I just stood up and had to run to the bathroom. Tuesday morning I woke up with a pounding headache and continued to gag (since I didn't have anything to toss). I couldn't even get dressed for work and ended up staying home.

I developed a really bad headache at work on Wednesday and couldn't get it to go away. I took Tylenol, used ice packs, took it easy, and nothing worked. My blood pressure was only 120/70. Finally, I left work because I couldn't even function. On the way home, I ended up pulling over on the side of the road to puke, which is very embarrassing, lemme tell you. Not that I noticed mid-barf, but when I was walking back to my oddly stopped car, I noticed several cars slowing down and looking. :o( I told Paul the people in the houses must have been shaking their heads and thinking "These damn youngsters! No respect nowadays; just puking in people's yards because they are drunk at 6pm." LOL! Not even the case over here.

Thursday was a little better, but I stayed queasy all day. I finally had a reprieve when I woke up this morning, and I have been able to get some stuff done.

Paulie told me on Tuesday, "You're not supposed to be getting sick anymore; you are in the second trimester." I am assuming the munchkin didn't get that memo, but I did my best to fax it through, so I am hoping s/he cooperates from here on out. :o)

It's creeping up...

My blood pressure that is. I took it yesterday at work because I keep having headaches. I know that headaches can be yet another symptom while pregnant, but one of the girls suggested I check my BP just so see.

139/80!!!!! Holy Snikees! That is way to high.

I have been trying to take it easy and not overdo it at work, but holy cow. I am not sure what I am doing to make it go so high. I don't think I am eating that much salt, and I haven't really changed the way that I eat.

Before I left to go home, I re-checked it again and it was 122/72. I need to think happy thoughts and stay off my feet.

3rd OB appt.

11 weeks, 2 day

Weight: -3.5 lbs total
BP: 134/80
HR: 70's
Baby's HR: 162


I had my third OB appointment this morning. So far, I have been feeling much better. I haven't been throwing up quite so much. This week I have only felt a little bit queasy, and I have been taking my Zofran regularly. However, my weight is down a bit, so I can tell all that nausea/vomiting did a little bit on my overall weight gain.

Meghan was able to come with us to my appointment since she was in town! Yay! When we got back to the roo, the technician attempted to find the baby's heart rate with a hand held doppler. I knew that it was going to be a little challenging since I am only eleven weeks and the fundus (top of my uterus) is below the pubic bone until after 12 weeks. She had a REALLY hard time, and was even listening way up by my belly button (where the fundus is at 20 weeks). Finally, we heard a half a beat and Paul, Meghan and I all perked up our ears. The tech asked us if we heard it, and we said "for just a second." She tried and tried to find it again, but couldn't.

When the doctor came in, she exclaimed, "So, you heard the heartbeat in the 160's?!" We all looked equally puzzled and I told her, "No, we only heard like half a beat." So she got the doppler back out and found it for us. It was soooo quiet that we could barely hear, but it was there.

Dr. A was concerned about my blood pressure and asked me why it was so high. I am not quite sure why because it usually is 117/75 or so. She told me that my blood pressure will drop in the 2nd trimester and spike up in the third. So we will be keeping a close eye on it for sure.

I am supposed to have an appointment at 15 weeks where she will check the triple screen and then around 17-18 weeks for a Level II ultrasound to check anatomy. We are hoping to find out the sex, so come on baby and cooperate! :o)