Isaac, meet Elliot

Today was another great day. We got to the south shore a lot sooner than yesterday, so I was able to be there for two feedings. When I spoke with his nurse in the morning, she said that he drank all 35 ml at 9:00! When we fed  him at 12, he took 20 ml of his 35. I think he was just super comfy in daddy's arms. They've also upped the calories in the breastmilk from 22 cal/oz to 24 cal/oz. He's been gaining weight well.

Now that he is in an open bed, he is so much more accessible. I can pick him up and hold him as long as I want, and I've been changing all his diapers while I'm there. In fact, today I was there for 4 hours and changed 5 poop diapers! Guess it's safe to say that his GI tract is working well. Haha. They've also started putting little shirts on him so today I brought some of Isaac's smallest looking newborn onesies. I tried looking for preemie onesies everywhere but it wasn't until tonight that I found some at Carter's. They are TOO cute...can't wait to see him in them! I took a picture of one of them next to Andrew's flip flop for size comparison. Haha.

 

When I put him to breast today, he was more interested. He latched on a few times but it wasn't a good strong latch. He was able to get some milk though-the nurse checked his belly to see if any milk made it in and it did :).

And as you may tell from the title, the best part about today was that Isaac was able to see Elliot! Our nurse set it up so that he can see him through a window. He was waving and blowing kisses at his brother. It was a very sweet moment.

Tomorrow is my follow up appointment with my OB for my blood pressure. My readings have been good on my medication, so hopefully we won't need to make any changes. Just wanted to say thank you all again for all the prayers for our family. We couldn't ask for a better support system during this time. We're just saying our prayers that he's home before Christmas.

Happy Early Birthday, Elliot!

Hi all :). I'm sure everyone has heard by now that Elliot has graced us with his presence earlier than planned. I wanted to share the story here. Also with him in the NICU, I'll be updating everyone on how he's doing on the blog.

So on Monday, I followed up with my OB and handed in my urine for another 24 hr urine eval. My blood pressure readings at home had been great while on bedrest. They had been running 120s-130s/80-90s for the most part. However when I went in to see Dr. Dutreil, it was the highest it's been. The first reading was somewhere around 170/115. They did my nonstress test in hopes that by lying still for 20-30 minutes, it would get better. When they retook it, it was 210/124. He couldn't believe how high it was, especially considering I had no symptoms and my home readings had been great. We brought in my monitor and took my bp to see if maybe there was something wrong with my machine. It also registered high. He sent me to labor and delivery to be monitored again. I could tell right away we were a little more serious than last time. They actually admitted me this time and he also wanted me to get started on an IV. My bps were still high.

When my doc came up there to see me, he was really unsure about what we should do (as was I). I had no symptoms...I was 32 weeks pregnant...I had gotten the betamethasone to help mature baby's lungs. In the end, he decided that we couldn't take the chance of something severe happening-from placental abruption to a stroke. As they put me in a labor and delivery room and started getting things prepped for the induction, he got my urine protein results: 349. Anything greater than 300 + high blood pressure is considered preeclampsia. So we were sure at that point that we made the right decision.

The first med I was given through IV was hydralazine. It's a fast acting high blood pressure med. I got quite a few doses of this. Next, I was given penicillin. Normally around 35 weeks, pregnant women are tested to see if they have Group B Strep. Without having this done, they gave me antibiotics just in case. Next, I was started on magnesium sulfate. This was rough! This is given with preeclampsia during the whole labor/delivery and 24 hrs after to prevent seizures. While receiving it, I was on bed rest and had to have a catheter the entire time. Also, they had to draw my blood every 6 hours to make sure the magnesium level in my blood wasn't too high. 

To start the induction, they gave me cytotec-just as I got with Isaac. It's a pill inserted vaginally and then they check me 4 hours later to see if I was dilated. I got 3 rounds of this and got up to 2 cm. My doc was hoping for more so we then had to do a bulb foley (same as with Isaac)-its a little balloon that's inserted and puts pressure on the cervix to dilate. They also started pitocin at this point. Not long after, I got the epidural. After waiting a few hours, they checked to see if it had to be adjusted...the bulb came out which meant I was now 3-4 cm. With 6 cm left to go, they told me an estimated one hour per cm to go.

A few hours later, the doctor came to check me and was surprised to see that baby was ready to come out. NOW. haha. Doc's face was pretty funny. They prepped and within10-15 minutes and 2 pushes, Elliot was out. We were happy to hear him crying, which meant his lungs were working. His apgar scores were 9 and 9, which is perfect. We got a quick pic before the NICU staff whisked him away.

I then had to wait until I was off the magnesium to go visit him. That was hard, especially when other people were going to see him. Elliot has been doing great in the NICU so far...I will make a whole separate post about the NICU experience and will keep ya'll updated. People have been asking about exactly what happened...so here it is :).

My blood pressure is now normal while on my regular medication. I am following up with my OB next week for blood pressure and then again in 6 weeks for postpartum checkup. Physically, I am feeling great other than a very sore back which I'm attributing to bedrest and a very uncomfortable hospital bed. I'm so glad to be out of the fog that is the magnesium sulfate. I'm now focusing on getting my breastmilk supply up for my baby boy. As I said before, check the blog regularly for updates on Elliot's progress.

Thank you so much for all the kind thoughts and prayers, as well as for everyone who helped us through this process. With him in the NICU, we're continuing to get great support. Thank you :)

Bedrest Update

Just wanted to update everyone since my last bed rest post. After five days on bed rest last time, I was able to return to work. My labs were good and blood pressures were stable. This past week I saw the dr. on Monday for my 32 week checkup. He told me I had some protein in my urine...and my blood pressure readings were running higher again. I did my first nonstress test, which was normal. And then he made me stay home the next day for another 24 hour urine. He told me that I can go to work on Wednesday but that they would call with the results - if there was protein in that urine, then I would be put on bed rest for good.

I felt fine at work the next day then went in to do my ultrasound. Baby Elliot is looking great. He weighs about 4 lbs 7oz and is measuring 32-33 weeks. My fluid is good and he is a wiggly little boy. However, my blood pressure readings were 160-170's/112-117. Super high! They were very concerned. When they checked the 24 hour urine, they told me that the protein was right under the "pre eclampsia diagnosis" mark, but I also didn't give them as much urine as they would have thought. So, if I would have...the protein would probably hit the mark. My dr. had me go to labor and delivery to get my blood pressure routinely monitored for hours.

While there, the blood pressures were originally high and then made their way back down after adding a new bp med to my regimen. I'll now be taking another med twice a day. He let me go home on bed rest and wants to buy some time to let baby cook :). I have gotten two shots of betamethasone...this is a steroid given in situations like this in case baby has to come early. It helps to mature the lungs. It appears that Elliot will most likely be coming early, but after these shots and if we can buy a couple more weeks, all should be fine. I think more than anything at this point, is the high bp effect on me.

Since I've been home, my bps have been good. Surprisingly, they tend to be higher when I'm sitting home alone. Apparently boredom stresses me out. haha. I've started my online Christmas shopping and have been patiently learning to lay back and not take control of things. This is my biggest challenge, but Andrew is doing a great job taking over the reins :). Isaac has been so good about everything. He has become my little helper, and is actually spending the weekend with Tat and Omi right now. I miss him, but I know he's having fun.

We are blessed to have family and friends helping us during this difficult time- with Isaac, or cooking food, or keeping me company. Thank you for that. I'll be doing regular updates on here from now on while I can :). From now on I'll be seeing my dr. twice and week and doing nonstress tests. I'll also be doing weekly 24 hour urines to test for protein. My next appt is Monday so wish me luck!

Bedrest :(

Hi everyone! You may have heard by now but on Wednesday I got placed on bed rest. For now, it's at least until I see the dr. on Monday. Hopefully I'll be able to work after that. On Wednesday, I felt really flushed all day-just very hot and I had a headache, nausea, and seriously swollen feet. I usually don't have any symptoms when my blood pressure is high but decided to have a nurse check it out anyway. And it was high. The highest we got was 147/109 and the lowest it got (after sitting in the dark, staying still, and turning the lights off) was 142/102. I have seen numbers higher than that but I knew that I had taken my meds and it shouldn't be that high. What also concerned me was that I had actual symptoms.

I decided to call Dr. Dutreil's office (my OB), who then told me that I needed to do bed rest. My next check up was originally set for Wednesday but since I have a cardiology follow up on Monday, we moved it to Monday as well. I'm guessing his hopes are that taking it easy for a few days will lower my bp. I've been doing my best following doctor's orders, and I've been routinely monitoring my blood pressure. It runs a little high in the morning (right after I take my meds). After that, it's been really good. No swelling in the feet and no symptoms.

I guess if I have to do bed rest, this is a good weekend to do it (hoping that it'll only be a weekend). Isaac is going camping with Nanny and Poppy until Sunday afternoon. I'm really sad about it, but it works out. In the meantime, I guess I'll just be watching Netflix and trying to come up with a baby name. I'll also be going through baby's 0-3 month clothes collection to see if there's anything else that I'll need. I've been blessed with tons of hand me downs (including Isaac's), so I'm sure he'll be covered.

Please send prayers our way in hopes that the check up goes well and I'll be able to return to work! And I leave you with a pic of my bed rest buddy...

Progress?

Nope, not yet. We had a dr. appointment today and I had my first internal exam. On a side note, it was not as bad as I was planning. Anyway, no dilation yet. In fact, he hasn't even dropped yet. It's still early though so I'm not worried. I'm hoping that by next week's visit I'll be 1-2 cm. It's just a game at this point. The thing is that my blood pressure is going up a little bit now, which means that they may have to induce (which was expected) before things get dangerous. But they don't want to induce if I have no progress on my own...that will most likely result in a c-section and I really REALLY don't want one. I'm terrified of getting a c-section. I know they're safe and all but it's just a personal preference. Of course, if there is any danger to the baby I'll do what I have to do. That being said, I don't want to progress too fast because I want him to wait for my mom to get here. 

*sigh* This is one stubborn little baby...I'll tell you that much. But it's still early. Progression at this point really means nothing. A woman can walk around stuck at 3 cm for 2 weeks, where as another woman may go from 0-4 cm in a day. So, hopefully he'll come on his own but not too soon. In the meantime, I'll be patient and continue to get my 3-4 hours/sleep a night =)

PS-I find it so weird to talk about my progress with someone I'm not close to. And if you're ready this, then we're close so it's cool. HAHA. It's just weird. Like, "so...how is your vagina doing today?"  "It's all good...and yours?" Like we're talking about the weather or something! 

This is only a test...

Baby Isaac at 34 weeks 2 days-his hand is next to his check making it look super chubby =)

So I decided that I would take the time to explain all these doctor's visits/appointments that I have to go to all the time. Just in case someone is interested. So, every Monday and Thursday I have to do a nonstress test (NST). This is actually pretty fun and relaxing. The purpose of the NST is to monitor the baby's heartbeat and movements and to see if he's in distress. These are done for most high risk women. I say they're relaxing because all I do is lie down in a recliner with my belly exposed. There are 2 belts around me-one to monitor his heartbeat and one to monitor my contractions. The nurse also takes my BP and the monitor keeps track of the readings on paper. So, the problem is that Isaac is apparently not a morning person and he never wants to wake up to do them. When a baby is sleeping, they take this thing to buzz my belly. It doesn't hurt but when he starts bouncing around back and forth, it does hurt. Most people only get buzzed once or twice (there are 4 of us to a room), but no, not me. I have to get buzzed about 3-4 times because he never wants to wake up. Apparently, I have a very cozy uterus. After being buzzed, the heartbeat should jump between 150-160. Overall, I am monitored for about 30 minutes.

Now if the readings don't come out good, or if his heartbeat is not good enough, I am sent for a biophysical profile (bpp). A bpp is basically an ultrasound, but it looks for specific movements by baby. He is then scored for each thing and he has 30 min. to do this. So far, I have had to get a bpp once a week because his heartbeat won't get up high enough during the NST. Some of the things they look for-small movements (like sucking), breathing, large movements, tone, etc. So far, he has passed his bpp's. They told me that everything is fine...but that he's just sleepy in the morning and doesn't like to move. If the bpp is not passed, I would have to go to L&D for further monitoring.

So far, that's 2 NSTs a week and possibly 2 bpps. Now, once a week after my NST I have to get a fluid check. This is basically another ultrasound but they measure the pockets of fluid around baby. We've gotten some cute pics by doing these. They are looking for the fluid to be between 5-25 cm. And they use about 3 places and then take an average. So far, mine have been great. My last one was 16.8.

Aside from these visits, I have a growth scan every 4 weeks (starting at 32 weeks). My next one is next week. And hopefully will be my last. This is basically another ultrasound and they measure all his body parts and organs to make sure that he is growing accurately. Again, this is done due to me being high risk.

I also go to the dr. every 2 weeks. Starting next week, it'll be every week. They triage me, check the heartbeat, measure my fundal height. For those that don't know what that is...the body is such a cool thing. By taking a tape measure and measure from the top of my pubic bone to the top of my uterus (in cm), it should be equal to the amount of weeks that I'm pregnant. (At this point it's +/- 4 weeks due to the baby's position). And then they basically see if I have questions. Every now and again I have to do a specific test. Next week, I have to test for Strep B.

So, that's about it. Interesting, eh? So at this point, I am always at the hospital. On a good note, gas prices just dropped to $4.25 =)

Houston...we have a heartbeat!

Ok, Andrew and I went to the dr. last Friday and we finally got to hear the heartbeat. Wow, there's nothing like it!! The dr. found baby right away, just tucked away in a little corner. On another good note, seems like my blood pressure has leveled off for now. He said it's pretty common and that we should be on the lookout during the third trimester.

So, our next appt. is May 2, with our ultrasound...THE ultrasound on May 6. It's first thing in the morning and of course we'll be finding out the sex!! We are so excited to find out. And yes, that it the morning that I leave for New Orleans. The dr. wanted to wait until the last possible day just to make sure. Time is going by so fast!

PS-We think it's a boy ;)

12 Week Visit

We went to the dr. on Friday for the first time. I really didn't know what to expect, but in the end it was awesome!! They just did a regular exam and then when they tried to find the heartbeat, they couldn't. It was pretty scary because they were looking for about 5 minutes and no one warned me that it's still kind of early to hear the heartbeat through the doppler! That was the longest 5 minutes of my life...in fact, it was probably only 2 minutes. Honestly, it was the scariest silence I've ever heard. We were both pretty upset, but then they decided to do an ultrasound. We got to see baby...and yes, only one baby...HAHA. It was amazing. I never though I would cry, but I did. A lot. We could see the baby clearly on the screen. We could also see the flicker of the heartbeat and see the baby kick! The only regret is not getting a picture! I guess I didn't think to ask...I assumed it was understood. Plus, I was just so excited to know that everything is ok =).

One thing that they are worried about is my high blood pressure. I am on my medication still, and it's not too high...but they don't want it to spike or get any higher. I'm taking a couple more tests for baseline labs and then they need to have me go in every 3 weeks to make sure it doesn't turn into preeclampsia. *crosses fingers* So, we'll be back on April 4th. If we get another ultrasound, I'll ask for a pic this time =)