2nd Day in Hospital and Discharge

The overnight stay wasn't too bad. I was afraid that nurses would come in and check on me every hour during the night which would mean no real sleep but I was knocked out and if they did come I didn't hear a thing. I didn't suffer any side effects from the shot which was great because that was the last thing on top of being pregnant that I wanted to deal with. I must admit, the hospital was pretty nice. Reminded me of a hotel except that I didn't have my own fridge and microwave lol. All the rooms, including delivery rooms, have 48" flat screen TV's and wifi. Makes your stay there very comfortable. The nurses I had had very good bedside manner, which I was very thankful for.

The hubby left early Tuesday morning (he had spent the night Monday) to go to work so I had a couple of hours to kill before my mom got there. She kept me company until about 3:00 pm which really made the day go by quickly. She's an RN too, so she knew what to expect during my hospital stay. She also got the opportunity to meet my doctor who stopped in to see how I was doing and told me that I could go home after my second shot if my condition didn't worsen. She had taken a fFN test again to see if I would go into labor within the next week and thankfully that came back negative again.

I got a new ultrasound pic. It's a close up of the baby's hand. After seeing how big the hand is I'm convinced that it's a boy because only a boy can have Incredible Hulk hands like his dad. I always make fun of my husband and tell him he has big hands like the Hulk :-) I think the picture is the cutest thing. It's like the baby's waving at mommy and daddy or is reaching up and saying "get me out of here!" Not yet Baby! You still have 3 more months to go!

Sometimes I still can't believe we're about to be parents. I've wanted to be a parent for a long time, I just never thought it would be this soon, and every time I see these ultrasound pictures it just reminds me that in a couple of months I will be someone's mommy.

The food at the hospital isn't half bad either. As I'm sitting here at home I'm REALLY missing that bed side service. Nurses constantly bringing me water, and three free hot meals throughout the day, was great. Still there's nothing like being at home.

One of the neonatologist came in and spoke with me about what procedures the baby would go through in case it was born prematurely. I had just awoke from a nap so most of the information went over my head, but it sounded like the NICU team would have everything under control if that happened. I got the other shot Tuesday night which was worse than the other one being that this nurse stuck the needle ALL the way in my thigh. I definitely didn't appreciate that. I didn't really feel the burning sensation, I guess because she administered the shot the way it was supposed to be done. Hubby showed up after he got out of his night class and spent the night again.

Wednesday morning the doctor came in and checked my cervix and everything was still the same. I hadn't dilated any further so I was free to go! She told me to take it easy at home and try to get the baby to stay in at least until 28-30 weeks when the chance of survival would be even higher than it is now. It took the nurses about an hour after that to check me out, but it felt so good to walk out of that place lol.

I must admit, as much as I was kind of against coming to the hospital (not because I don't care about the health of my baby, but because I'm terrified of hospitals and that was my first hospital stay) I'm glad I did. The health of my baby was reassured and I know I have a good team of professionals looking out for us.

Follow Up and Emergency Hospital Stay

Yesterday I went to the doctor's office for my weekly follow up exam and it just so happened that I was 1 cm dilated. Oh Joy! Then she says, "I want you to head over to the hospital, like, right now." If that couldn't have been the most inconvenient thing that I've heard since she put me on bed rest I don't know what is. I came for a routine doctor's visit, so I had no overnight bag, toiletries, nothing. She wanted me to spend the night there so that I could receive 2 shots of bethamasone, a steroid to help the baby's lungs develop just in case it's born prematurely. I headed over to the hospital and checked in around 4:30 pm and didn't get a bed until 7:00 pm. They're so lucky I didn't go into labor right there in the waiting room! I called the hubby to throw some things together in a bag for me, including this lovely laptop, for my stay and he headed to the hospital. I'm definitely going to pack an overnight bag as soon as I get home just in case something like this happens again.

After finally being admitted, the nurse did some regular routine vitals and I got the worst shot I think I've ever received in my life. The first dose was in my right thigh, and the medicine set my whole leg on fire. I've never had something burn so bad. It wore off within a couple of minutes but was absolutely horrible in the beginning. My doctor came in later to make sure my cervix hadn't dilated anymore and luckily it was still at 1 cm. She reassured me that some women can go the rest of their pregnancy being 1 or 2 cm dilated and make it to full term, something that I'm really hopeful for. I'm a resilient person and I hope that I have a resilient baby. I don't like to give up too easily, so when she told me that I could possibly make it all the way to December being dilated that gave me hope and I will do everything in my power to make sure that me and the baby come out of this healthy and happy. Stay tuned for more hospital stay details!

Follow Up at the Doctor

Yesterday was my follow up appointment from a week ago when I was first told that I would have to be on bed rest. Well.... nothing changed. I still have to stay at home, not only for a week, but for the next 5 weeks. She wants me to reach 30 weeks in my pregnancy before I go anywhere or do anything strenuous. So that means I won't be working at all until the end of October, MAYBE. I really don't anticipate going back to work until the baby is born and I kind of have mixed feelings about that.

On one hand, bed rest is a nice vacation from those that irritate me the most at my job, but on the other hand I just got a new boss and feel that I need to prove myself as a good worker, especially since I'm the ONLY black person in my department. Sure, there's other minorities there, but I definitely feel like I'm looked at differently, and I don't care how diverse and Vincentian my job claims to be. There are some things in this world that never change, and race relations are one of them. I sent my boss an email today explaining everything to him. Didn't get a response so we'll see what happens. FMLA protects me from losing my job but it doesn't protect me from people's judgement.

Other than the job issue, I've been pretty at ease. I'm still not dilating so that's still a good sign. She also did a preterm labor test called the Fetal Fibronectin (fFN) test. It can determine if a woman is going to go into labor within the next week or two. She called me today and told me it was negative, which is a very good thing. It means that my little bun will continue to bake for a couple more weeks. I really don't think I'll have this baby prematurely. Sometimes a mother just knows. I think I'll make it to December with no major problems so I still try to move around and get a little exercise so I don't get blood clots and other complications that come with bed rest.

Everyone keeps telling me that I should enjoy this free time while I can because the real work will be here soon. I'm going to try to take their advice...

Day 4 of Bed Rest and Things that happen to your body that nobody tells you about pregnancy

So it really hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be. I was thinking that I would be so extremely bored and out of my mind, but that hasn't been the case at all. Now, if this continues until it's time for me to give birth then I don't know how this is going to play out. But me and the hubby have been researching houses so that's had me preoccupied for the last couple of days. I did sneak out to look at a couple houses, but I came right back home! I've been feeling good so far, so lets hope I stay on that path. Today I'm not going ANYWHERE. Tomorrow may be a different story because my sister's wedding is tomorrow and I haven't figured out how I'm going to tackle that.

I promised to talk about the things that happen to you when you're pregnant that no one tells you until you actually experience it.

**Warning*** These descriptions may be too vivid or make you lose your lunch. Read at your own expensive, although I promise it will be educational.

1. Mucous plug: This lovely occurrence happens at the beginning of pregnancy. It acts as a "plug" to block infections from reaching the uterus and baby and also prevents aminotic fluid from leaking out. You may experience heavy vaginal discharge at this stage. It is released when it gets close to the time for you to deliver your baby. I don't even want to describe what it looks like and if you want more information I suggest you look it up lol
2. Speaking of increased vaginal discharge, I feel like I'm on my period most of the time. Wearing a panty liner can help with feeling fresh.
3. Calcium intake: The baby will suck all the calcium from your body, and if you don't do something about it, you will have very brittle bones, nails, hair, etc.... Drink milk, eat cheese (the pasteurized ones), yogurt, leafy green veggies, and other sources of calcium.
4. Food and Drinks: Other than not drinking your favorite martini, there are also items that you should not intake. You can't eat deli meats, unpasteurized foods like cheeses, and certain salad dressings like caesar (one of my favs). These items may contain bacteria that will not be healthy for the baby's development.
5. Pets: If you have a cat, do not clean the litter box, enough said.
6. Leg Cramps: Random leg cramps in the middle of the night are NOT fun. They are very painful Charlie Horses and something I could definitely do without. To help with these make sure you stay very hydrated and consume LOTS of calcium. Drink a glass of milk/water or eat some yogurt before bed. Bananas don't really help me but it might help others.
7. Braxton Hicks Contractions: This is the body's way of preparing for delivery. They are uterine contractions that can start as early as 6 weeks into your pregnancy. They are painless, but annoying and depending on how strong they are can be very uncomfortable. And yes, they get stronger with time. These can sometimes be brought on by dehydration, so drink plenty of water, especially if you're no where near the time to give birth.
8. Waking Orgasms: Okay, this may be a little personal but happens to many women. Since there's so much blood rushing to that area, many women c an experience orgasms in their sleep. Trust me, I know.
9. Labor Stimulation: I learned about two things that could bring on labor, and that's....nipple stimulation and the hormones in semen. Supposedly, nipple stimulation causes the release of a hormone called Oxytocin that can bring about labor. Semen has a hormone called Prostaglandins that can soften and dilate the cervix.

Ah the joys of pregnancy. I think the only thing that I enjoy is the feeling of my little one moving around (and maybe the sleeping orgasms). Everything else kind of weirds me out and I only wish that my mother, aunts, grandmas, etc warned me of these experiences. I probably would have felt better prepared. However, these are the things I've experienced so far and I'm sure there's more to come.

Bedrest Day 1 and 2

So when I first learned I was being put on bedrest my mind immediately started thinking of ways to entertain myself in case this thing last for more than a week. So I made of list of things to do while confined to my bed:

• Clip my cat's nails because she stabs me when she hops on my lap
• Finish my crochet blanket that I started more than a year ago and never finished
• Catch up on my Soaps
• Work on wedding album
• Finish my thank you cards
• Research baby room decorations
• Research baby names
• BLOGGING!

The next couple items were things my soror recommended:

• Look for houses on the internet
• See what's ON DEMAND
• Play games online
• Read books
• Get in some good sleep I'll be missing when the baby comes
• Check out upcoming movies (that I may not see anyway because I can't get out the bed)
• Look up new baby gadgets
• Look up crockpot recipes (which will come in handy when I can't stand for long periods of time)

I'm trying to keep a positive outlook with this. So yesterday I looked for houses online and started on finishing my crocheting. I also flat ironed my hair in bed which turned out very impressive. I'm trying to keep in mind that time flies and that I can't believe I'm already 6 months when it feels like yesterday that I took the pregnancy test. I'm not a big TV person so I'll be doing a lot of internet play and reading. I might even pick up playing video games. Who knows. Daytime television doesn't exactly interest me, I'm more into the ABC primetime shows like Lost, Grey's Anatomy, and Desperate Housewives which I'm desperately missing and I'm sooooo glad that it's finally September! Coming up next will be my blog about things I never knew would happen to my body when I became pregnant.

24 Weeks and Bedrest

Yesterday was my 24 week prenatal appointment and I was not prepared for what I was about to hear. Two years ago I had a LEEP procedure done because I had precancerous cells on my cervix. The procedure basically cuts that portion of your cervix off so the bad cells don't multiply and it can regenerate new, healthier cells. A LEEP can sometimes cause complications with pregnant women and I guess I can be thrown in that group. My cervix was only 2 cm long and the doctor was scared that I might go into preterm labor. I'm not dilating so that's very good news. They put me on bedrest for a week and I have to go back next Monday to see if the situation gets any better. Something tells me that I'll be on bedrest until I reach full term, and if that's the case then so be it. I'll do whatever is best for my baby.

To think, in my last post I was complaining about not being able to go out and have fun, now I can't even go to work. I guess this is a good lesson to remain grateful for the things that you can do because now I can't even leave the bed lol.

On a happier note, the baby is going great! As long as I can keep him/her in there everything will be fine so the baby can have more time to develop. At 24.5 weeks babies have a good chance of survival but I want to make sure mine makes it far past that.

Here's the lastest picture! The little one was wiggling the whole time during the ultrasound :-)

Never Gonna Be the Same

It's a Saturday night and I can't find anything to do or anyone to do anything with. My husband is going out with his friends and I feel like a prisoner in my own home because we only have one car and out of the friends he has, he's the only one that has a car. So here I am, depressed once again because the pregnant chick can't go anywhere or do anything that I want. Sometimes I even feel like my friends don't want to hang out with me because I'm pregnant and they probably see me as a man repellant. I just want to enjoy my time a little more before the baby comes and then I really won't be going anywhere then, and probably won't even feel like it. I'm at the end of my second trimester and I feel like time has flown since I first found out I was pregnant. I can't wait to meet the little one but while he/she is still baking I want to enjoy these last few months I have left.