Three Weeks on the Inside

I have now been enjoy the luxurious accommodations of Strong Memorial for three weeks. I sometimes wonder why we decided to admit so early when things have proven to be uneventful. Steve then reminds me that if I had been at home all this time things probably would not have gone so smoothly. If only we had a crystal ball (or heck-even a Magic 8 Ball) to predict the future and know the best course of action to take.

Today Baby Girl had her regularly scheduled NST. The nurse stayed for the first few minutes to see how she was doing and of course there were a few variable decels right off the bat. She explained again how these are to be expected, especially in our situation. They do not worry unless it is a "deep decel." As if on cue Baby Girl then gave a very deep decel. Her heart rate dropped from the 140s down to 80 and stayed for about 10 seconds. The doctors on rounds were visiting my roommate and quickly ran over. Once I changed position her rate popped right back up but it gave us all a good scare. The doctors decided to leave me on the monitor for another full hour to see how she did. If there was a pattern of deep decels I would be moved to the high risk floor for a longer period of monitoring. Luckily Baby Girl was very active the next hour and gave a great heart rate strip.

The reality is that with such low fluid she is more vulnerable to cord compression and we have an increased risk of a stillbirth. They assure me this is not a common outcome but it is a very real possibility. The hospital policy in my condition is to monitor twice a week. They do not see value in constant monitoring as long as everything else looks good. For about the millionth time in this pregnancy I am wishing there was a window into my uterus so I could always know what it going on.

Other than that things are going well physically. I can still answer "no" to the numerous questions that would signal a problem. No contractions, bleeding, chills, abdominal pain etc. Well, Baby Girl has been sticking a very cute appendage out my lower right side so I have some soreness there but nothing that would indicate chorioamnionitis, an infection of the amniotic sac.

The doctors seem to feel that since I have lasted this long with ruptured membranes I will not likely go into labor on my own in the near future(but no promises). The biggest risk for early delivery is still infection. They still can not give us reassurance regarding if she has lungs or not. I know intellectually that there is no way for them to predict but I still resent being left in the dark. It must be some sort of "kill the messenger" issue I'm having.

My blood sugars have been so good I have been downgraded to testing only three days a week. I am a master of carb counting.

Anneliese is learning hospital lingo. As we passed the nurses station last night she asked me "Mommy, do you need your blood sugar?" She gets a special thrill out of witnessing my finger sticks and heparin injections. The nurses were afraid it would scare her but I see it as an opportunity to show her how to be brave with needles. So far she's learned to be brave as long as the needle is not intended for her.

Thank you as always for the good thoughts and prayers. We are so grateful for everyone's support!