Sound scary? I am terrified.
I got a call from my midwife today indicating that the results of my ultra sound showed that I had low amniotic fluid. She told me that everything looks fine but that she wanted me to go for another scan in 4 weeks. She expects that the condition will reverse itself but it could also be an indication of kidney problems or other disorders. I was on my way out for lunch with coworkers when I got the call, so I couldn't really say much. (Honestly, when I saw my scan in the first place, I thought it looked different, usually the sac looks so nice and round and mine was irregular and the baby looked a bit squished but I chalked it up to a different angle or something since the baby looks so great in his/her first photos)
When I got back to the office I googled it. Horror stories. "Prognosis is ominous in first trimester occurrences". I freaked. I left work and called DH crying my eyes out, put together a list of questions and called my midwife back. Thankfully she was still in the office and was on the phone within a minute. Some of the additional information I got from her was that the ultra sound report said "mild oligohydramnios" which was defined as "amniotic fluid which is somewhat less than normal". The baby was measuring spot on, the two measurements they use for dating came back at 13 weeks 3 days and 13 weeks 1 day, and according to my own ovulation date I was exactly 13 weeks the day of the scan. The heart rate was good (150bpm), Nuchal Translucensy was good.
She was pretty comforting. She said that she has never had a mother with low amniotic fluid before, but that one of her colleagues had one with low amniotic fluid but with a baby that was measuring perfectly and that it reversed itself. That she would expect that if something is wrong with the baby, that it would be apparent by a lack of growth. If this is the case - why is the fluid low? Is there anything I can do to increase the amount of fluid? Google is just not giving me any good answers... just more horror stories and uncertainty.
I also told her that I could not wait for 4 weeks, I will go crazy. So, she agreed that I could go earlier, 2 or 3 weeks, but that I need to know that it may not have had time to reverse itself in that short timeframe. I discussed with DH and we decided to do one at 2 weeks as well. At least that way, if things aren't looking better (or if they are worse) we will get a referral to an OB and can hopefully start working on getting answers.
Ugh.... what if the baby has kidney problems? What if there are chromosomal issues? What if the baby has actually already died in there... would I even know? What if the baby falls asleep on the umbilical cord since there's not enough fluid and doesn't get the nourishment s/he needs? If I sleep on my stomach (like I sometimes do) will the baby get squished since s/he doesn't have enough cushion?
To make matters worse, we are supposed to drive 10 hours to see my grandmother on our long weekend to tell her the good news. I won't have my next scan until after this trip. I'm not sure I can tell her anymore, at least not until after I have some answers.
DH thinks everything will be fine, as does my Mom. My poor mother... I made her cry on the phone today. I'm trying to stay positive but I'm a worrier by nature so you can imagine where my head is at. I honestly never thought I'd have to think about anything like this - just assumed we are healthy and young and everything would be just fine. Today is my 14 week anniversary and I finally convinced myself I am in the safe zone, then at lunch my world crumbled.
Has anyone experienced this? Have you seen any happy endings? Any suggestions for increasing amniotic fluid beside staying well hydrated?
PS - Midwifes are the way to go. First off, I called the office and explained who was calling and why and she was on the phone with me within 1 minute. She was calm and let me cry and sympathized with the fact that I was stressed, saying she knew that even if she told me with 99.9% certainty (hypothetically) that things would be okay that she knew I would still worry. She let me move up my next scan. She told me to call anytime with questions or if I am worried. She asked me to call her the day of my next scan to remind her and she will call the lab personally to get a verbal report so that she can let me know the results right away.
Monday, August 20, 2012
Thursday, August 16, 2012
11-13 weeks
It's been a great and exhausting few weeks. We were overseas for the Olympics and then spent a week in Paris. I'm not a big fan of the weather in London but the Olympics were awesome and we really enjoyed our vacation... other than the fact that DH & I were both sick the whole time. DH must have caught a cold on the plane as he had a sore throat starting the first day we were there... which I caught within days from him. The worst part is that it's still hanging on over 2 weeks later, in fact I feel worse today than I did the last two days. I'm coughing all night so I can't sleep, congested and just plain exhausted. I had to take tylenol a couple of days for the headache but have been staying away from other medicine... I may break down and get some straight up Robitussin cough syrup tonight, apparently it's safe for preggos.
My sympathy for pregnant women has grown immensely over the last few weeks. I just can't get over how tired I am. In Paris one day I just couldn't walk any further, I was beat so DH suggested we find a park bench and I could lay down with my head in his lap for a few minutes to get a rest. Poor guy, I fell asleep right there in the park on a bench for an hour! My sense of smell is raging. The smoking in Paris was really difficult, I would hold my breath when we passed smokers but sometimes I couldn't hold it long enough because there were just so many of them so then I would be gasping for air but it was all full of smoke which made me nauseous. Also, the tube/metros smell like sewage. One day I found it so bad I literally had to run out of there so I didn't vomit all over. The nausea overall has been better lately but still sneaks up on me once in a while at the most inopportune times like when we're in a restaurant. One day I literally had my hands over my mouth and was swallowing it because I couldn't bare the thought of the washrooms there, I was sure if I went in the smell or the nastiness of it would definitely put me over the edge. Then a few minutes later I was fine again, so weird.
I'm still off veggies for the most part. I'm also not really enjoying the sight or smell of meat. I'll try to eat a few bites here or there but my diet's been largely starches and carbs. Potatoes in particular - mashed, fried, whatever, just potatoes. Oh and crepes, I ate one or two crepes with Nutella daily in Paris. I'm hoping to start craving veggies again soon because I know I'm not being healthy at all which is very unlike me. I HAVE been eating fruits, lots of juicy oranges, apples, bananas, berries. I guess that's one good thing.
Wow I'm such a complainer. Sorry!
On the bright side, we had our ultra sound the day we got home and there really is a little person in there! Isn't s/he cute? I was shocked at just how much s/he really looks like a little person with all the major parts. The little knees and the belly make me melt!! The scan was for our nuchal translucensy test... which was measured at 1.5mm which I think is in the safe zone for down's... yipee! Baby was bouncing around so much the tech was getting frustrated because she had a hard time getting her measurements haha. I'm in for it! I didn't like drinking a litre of water right as I got out of bed that morning but boy was it worth it! I can't wait for my next ultra sound and I don't even know yet when it will be! Going to start telling people about this pregnancy soon (other than my immediate family who already knows, so that's pretty exciting!).
I still don't have a belly but I think it could be coming soon. I'm definitely a little thicker in the middle - where my hips used to really stick out, now they don't anymore! But nobody other than me would notice that. My boobs are definitely bigger but really only to me and DH. When I was getting dressed one morning he was like "whoa, jugs! You're going to need to get some new bras soon!". I'm busting out of my old ones, just not sure if I should buy new ones right away or wait just a bit longer as I'm sure they're going to keep growing...
Not much else to report... just hoping this cold goes away soon! I need some sleep so I can function at work.
Has anyone broken the news to their work yet? If not, when do you plan to? I'm thinking around 18 weeks maybe.... but am really struggling to stay focused and awake during the days so sort of wish I could tell them earlier and maybe have them cut me some slack!
My sympathy for pregnant women has grown immensely over the last few weeks. I just can't get over how tired I am. In Paris one day I just couldn't walk any further, I was beat so DH suggested we find a park bench and I could lay down with my head in his lap for a few minutes to get a rest. Poor guy, I fell asleep right there in the park on a bench for an hour! My sense of smell is raging. The smoking in Paris was really difficult, I would hold my breath when we passed smokers but sometimes I couldn't hold it long enough because there were just so many of them so then I would be gasping for air but it was all full of smoke which made me nauseous. Also, the tube/metros smell like sewage. One day I found it so bad I literally had to run out of there so I didn't vomit all over. The nausea overall has been better lately but still sneaks up on me once in a while at the most inopportune times like when we're in a restaurant. One day I literally had my hands over my mouth and was swallowing it because I couldn't bare the thought of the washrooms there, I was sure if I went in the smell or the nastiness of it would definitely put me over the edge. Then a few minutes later I was fine again, so weird.
I'm still off veggies for the most part. I'm also not really enjoying the sight or smell of meat. I'll try to eat a few bites here or there but my diet's been largely starches and carbs. Potatoes in particular - mashed, fried, whatever, just potatoes. Oh and crepes, I ate one or two crepes with Nutella daily in Paris. I'm hoping to start craving veggies again soon because I know I'm not being healthy at all which is very unlike me. I HAVE been eating fruits, lots of juicy oranges, apples, bananas, berries. I guess that's one good thing.
Wow I'm such a complainer. Sorry!
On the bright side, we had our ultra sound the day we got home and there really is a little person in there! Isn't s/he cute? I was shocked at just how much s/he really looks like a little person with all the major parts. The little knees and the belly make me melt!! The scan was for our nuchal translucensy test... which was measured at 1.5mm which I think is in the safe zone for down's... yipee! Baby was bouncing around so much the tech was getting frustrated because she had a hard time getting her measurements haha. I'm in for it! I didn't like drinking a litre of water right as I got out of bed that morning but boy was it worth it! I can't wait for my next ultra sound and I don't even know yet when it will be! Going to start telling people about this pregnancy soon (other than my immediate family who already knows, so that's pretty exciting!).
I still don't have a belly but I think it could be coming soon. I'm definitely a little thicker in the middle - where my hips used to really stick out, now they don't anymore! But nobody other than me would notice that. My boobs are definitely bigger but really only to me and DH. When I was getting dressed one morning he was like "whoa, jugs! You're going to need to get some new bras soon!". I'm busting out of my old ones, just not sure if I should buy new ones right away or wait just a bit longer as I'm sure they're going to keep growing...
Not much else to report... just hoping this cold goes away soon! I need some sleep so I can function at work.
Has anyone broken the news to their work yet? If not, when do you plan to? I'm thinking around 18 weeks maybe.... but am really struggling to stay focused and awake during the days so sort of wish I could tell them earlier and maybe have them cut me some slack!
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