A Sign of Things to Come

Yesterday was my weekly ultrasound.

First things first, my cervix is now 3.2cm, a bit shorter than last week, but the doctor assured us that 3.2cm is perfectly normal. The funneling is gone, which is also very positive.

As the tech was doing her thing (insert wand, stare at screen) she chuckled. Apparently, Baby Pollara was literally, dancing on my cervix. That's right - standing straight up and dancing on my incompetent cervix.

Last week I was convinced that I was having some sort of problem because of all of the movement I felt on my cervix. Tears, panic, rushed in to see the doctor, the whole nine yards. But, it turns out, as confirmed by yesterday's pictures, this kid is just dancing his heart out.

It's fascinating, that at just 23 weeks, this child already knows my weak points and can push my buttons so easily. 16 years from now, I can only imagine what buttons he will know to press to get a reaction from dear old mom. Will it be staying out all night... underage drinking.... joy riding ... who knows??

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On another note, Monday is a big day. I'll be at 24 weeks. This means if BP arrived, he would have a good chance of survival. Monday I go to the doctor for a shot of steroids to help this little guy's lungs develop. My doctor can also do a test which can predict the likelihood that I will go into premature labor within the next two weeks. Hopefully that will come back negative and I will just continue to cook this kid.

My new mantra is 38 weeks, 6 pounds. That's my goal. Deliver a beautiful, healthy child at 38 weeks. 6 pounds sounds totally manageable, just a bit bigger than a bag of flour.

Have a peaceful weekend.

Grow Grow Grow

That has been my silent mantra since the beginning of this pregnancy. Grow baby Grow. Grow. Grow. It is usually accompanied by a few rubs of my stomach.

Now, it applies to both this baby and, how charming, my cervix. Grow Grow Grow. I'm not sure what a "normal" cervix length should be at almost 23 weeks, and I'm certainly not looking for a 20 foot cervix. Just long enough to help keep this kid inside where he can concentrate on growing.

Much like a plant, I am trying to take in as much water and light as possible. I crave fresh air and take huge gulps of it as I collect the mail. (The mailman arrives between 1 and 2 pm daily - it's often the highlight of my day).

So, that's it from the couch. Have a great weekend.

Thanks for all of the emails and calls. Baby Pollara and I definitely appreciate them.

An Incompetent What?

So, there I was, two weeks ago, laid out on the examining table like a beached whale. The lights were dimmed and Nick held my hand while he stared over me to the monitor showing our 20 week baby inside of me.

Given my position, I couldn't see anything but the face of the ultrasound technition and she moved the ultrasound wand over my stomach. All I could hear was the clicks and beeps of the machine.

The tech called in the doctor and they had a brief quiet discussion. The doctor took over the ultrasound reins and made a few swipes across my belly. She smiled and said she could reveal the sex of our baby, if we wanted to know. Of course we wanted to know. She smiled and told us it we were having a boy. Yeay, a boy. It was weird though, because I had said from the beginning that I thought it was a boy. But yeay, it was great to have that confirmation.

Then the doctor told us that they were having trouble seeing my placenta. It seemed low, so they wanted to do an internal ultrasound. Oh joy. So, my pants came off, my feet went up in the stirrupts, and the internal ultrasound began.

The tech and the doctor were huddled shoulder to shoulder, staring at the screen. More quiet discussion.

Finally, I was able to sit up, cover myself and listen to what the doctor had to say. This is the gist of her speech:
"So, while looking for your placenta, we noticed that your cervix is short and the top of it is funneled."

Hmmm... a short cervix... how very interesting.

She explained that this can be caused by urinary tract infections, other vaginal infections. If caused by an infection, once the infection is cleared up, the cervix should go back to regular length.

If it's not caused by an infection, then it could be more serious because it could keep getting shorter and then, fascinatingly enough, your baby can just drop out of you. Given the fact that I was only 20 weeks along, if that happened, the baby would not survive. This condition is called "An Incompetent Cervix"

So, I was sent off for more tests to see if any infections were causing this and an appointment for that Friday for another ultrasound.

Well, I didn't have any infections and I went back on Friday to learn that my cervix had gotten even shorter. Tuesday it had been 2cm. By Friday it was 1.5 cm. The doctor immediately called my ob-gyn and told me that the next day I would have to have surgery to sew up my cervix.

One fascinating thing about this pregnancy is that once I start crying, I can't stop. It's amazing. Needless to say, the tears started and didn't stop until the next morning when they wheeled me out of the operating room.

I won't go into the details of the procedure, but I will say that having a spinal block was not my most favorite thing in the world. But I was cared for by wonderful doctors and nurses and I am just trying to forget that whole experience.

In the recovery room, my doctor gave me some totally unexpected news - after this, I was to be on bedrest. Not for a day or two, but possibly for duration of the pregnancy.

So, here I am, almost 2 weeks after the procedure, laying on the couch, watching reruns of the People's Court.

My mom moved in for a few days and was wonderful. My Dad has schlepped me to numerous doctor's appointments.

Nick has picked up all of the household duties and has shown an understanding and empathy that warms my heart.

The great news is that at today's ultrasound - my cervix is up to 3.8 cm. The hope is that I don't go into premature labor before 24 weeks - the bigger hope is that this Baby Boy Pollara stays inside for 38 weeks (only 16 more weeks).

So, please keep your fingers and toes crossed. Please send emails, good wishes, and book recommendations. Oh, and call. I'll be here. On the couch. Gestating.

xoxo,
Susan