As I was monitoring today, I received a phone call from my OB's office saying that my results for my one hour glucose test for gestational diabetes were "slightly elevated". Now I have to arrange to go and sit through the three hour test .
I suppose I really should not complain, after all I don't have an actual diagnosis of gestational diabetes. However, it still sucks that I may and it sucks that I have to get poked four times for my next test!
Anyway, I need to get out of the house right now, so we are taking my portable chaise lounge and going to The Farm At South Mountain for lunch.
I will return later this afternoon and tell you all about my typical day in pictures.
Thursday, November 11, 2004
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Bed rest, television and clothes
11 weeks down, 11 weeks to go...
~sigh~
of bed rest that is...
It is amazing how solitary life is to someone on bed rest. I am so relieved to have finished the eleven weeks, but the thought of eleven more is awful.
Yesterday, I spoke with three people on the phone; in my previous life I would have had many different conversations with many different people. We are social beings, after all. I wonder if there is any way to deal with just how quiet life gets, I know that TV helps, especially shows like Ellen (who saved me during my hospital stay), Oprah and the Jane Pauley Show, where your mind is made to think about issues and process a little. Then there is also the Food Network which is great to watch and I am adding to my 500,000+ recipes I want to try. I hope to get to use some of them when I sign up for the LINKS program at the Junior League of Phoenix when this is over. Many other shows are just mindless by comparison.
Now, I guess I should explain how Ellen saved me in my hospital stay. If there is one thing that can help one when times are unsure it would be having a sense of humor. I saw the Ellen show for the first time my first day in the hospital, and I laughed pretty hard. Now, I love the surgeon and the other doctors in the perinatology group (not my OB, who I really love too, but she is in a regular OB/GYN practice), but each and every one of them gave me a different story, from the one who told me I needed surgery to the one that told me I need two cm to get out of the hospital. Some doctors told me I could maybe go to lunch, others said no lunch, one would say reclining is ok, another would say no, that I had to lay flat the whole time. These conflicting stories were a major source of frustration for me. Ellen reminded me that laughter was important. She still does.
Me watching Ellen, while working on the Ellen portion of this Blog
I also added Old Navy Maternity to my links section. Well, part of being able to survive this is getting up and putting on real clothes every day. There are not a lot of clothes that I can wear anymore, so I had to buy some to at least get through this winter. Living in my husband's pajama bottoms and t-shirts are just not acceptable, as would be living in summer dresses that are blousey in winter. So, I got some ad mail for old navy and it was also something my OB had mentioned to me when I complained about not having much to wear. Well, the nice thing about old navy is that since I am pretty darn sure I won't be going anywhere, I could buy from the bargains sections and was able to buy what I hope will get me through the rest of my pregnancy, and buy some baby/infant clothes for a very reasonable price. The site was also pretty friendly, in respect to sizing too, so I could guess what I would fit into and they have an excellent exchange policy.
~sigh~
of bed rest that is...
It is amazing how solitary life is to someone on bed rest. I am so relieved to have finished the eleven weeks, but the thought of eleven more is awful.
Yesterday, I spoke with three people on the phone; in my previous life I would have had many different conversations with many different people. We are social beings, after all. I wonder if there is any way to deal with just how quiet life gets, I know that TV helps, especially shows like Ellen (who saved me during my hospital stay), Oprah and the Jane Pauley Show, where your mind is made to think about issues and process a little. Then there is also the Food Network which is great to watch and I am adding to my 500,000+ recipes I want to try. I hope to get to use some of them when I sign up for the LINKS program at the Junior League of Phoenix when this is over. Many other shows are just mindless by comparison.
Now, I guess I should explain how Ellen saved me in my hospital stay. If there is one thing that can help one when times are unsure it would be having a sense of humor. I saw the Ellen show for the first time my first day in the hospital, and I laughed pretty hard. Now, I love the surgeon and the other doctors in the perinatology group (not my OB, who I really love too, but she is in a regular OB/GYN practice), but each and every one of them gave me a different story, from the one who told me I needed surgery to the one that told me I need two cm to get out of the hospital. Some doctors told me I could maybe go to lunch, others said no lunch, one would say reclining is ok, another would say no, that I had to lay flat the whole time. These conflicting stories were a major source of frustration for me. Ellen reminded me that laughter was important. She still does.
Me watching Ellen, while working on the Ellen portion of this Blog
I also added Old Navy Maternity to my links section. Well, part of being able to survive this is getting up and putting on real clothes every day. There are not a lot of clothes that I can wear anymore, so I had to buy some to at least get through this winter. Living in my husband's pajama bottoms and t-shirts are just not acceptable, as would be living in summer dresses that are blousey in winter. So, I got some ad mail for old navy and it was also something my OB had mentioned to me when I complained about not having much to wear. Well, the nice thing about old navy is that since I am pretty darn sure I won't be going anywhere, I could buy from the bargains sections and was able to buy what I hope will get me through the rest of my pregnancy, and buy some baby/infant clothes for a very reasonable price. The site was also pretty friendly, in respect to sizing too, so I could guess what I would fit into and they have an excellent exchange policy.
Saturday, November 06, 2004
10 weeks of bedrest
Hi everyone,
I wanted to wait for a major milestone to write. I reached 28 weeks. I also “celebrate” 10 weeks of bed rest this week too. Baby is doing cartwheels, but seems to love being in breech position most… and is especially active when people are talking to me (which means that it knows that TV voices are different from real people voices, and I think that is so cool).
The surgery has still been a miracle; I am doing better than before the surgery at this point. I am still monitoring for contractions, and they are getting more “painful” though they manage to ebb and flow enough that I have not had to take anything more substantial than ibuprofen… yet.
I will stop taking the ibuprofen on December 2nd; this is because at this point the medicine has been associated with heart problems in the baby… so it is best to stop it at this point. When I told my doctor that this was a great birthday present to me, she said “Don’t thank me yet! You will probably have to take something stronger.”
I managed to get a flu shot when there where still some available. Most people have heard how people love to touch the bellies of pregnant women, and I thought I was going to miss out on the experience of having that happening and knowing if I hated it or not. When I was filling out the forms, a woman reached over and touched my belly, which, truth be told, reduced me to tears… I still don’t know how I feel about it, but in a way, it was one of the coolest experiences, because it somehow was a public acknowledgement of my being pregnant, that I showed and it was recognizable.
I also had a terrible cold, mainly a head cold, but took cough syrup anyway, plus since I am taking ibuprofen, I couldn’t take Nyquil and such because they have Tylenol… so, I took Benadryl which kept me in a fog for a week. Thank goodness it is over, and that it did not really reach my lungs, apparently coughing uses the same muscles as labor… go figure.
I have reached a stage where I can’t see my feet if I look down, though I can still see them if I move a little forward… for some reason this is exciting to me. Bending over is out of the question too. I think that if I were able to move around and interact with people, that I would love being pregnant more than I do (even with the nausea I still have).
I have also had to deal with a wounded pet, my cat Hannibal (picture below), and getting him to a vet and home and taking care of him with all that is happening to him. He had ear mites so bad that he got an abscess from it. For a while I felt my maternal skills were lacking, but he and I are resting comfortably together and I can tell he doesn't hold it against me for letting his ear get so bad that it got an infection and... well, it got gross but I will save you from hearing just how gross.
Hannibal wanting to have bedrest after his ord"ear"al
Bed rest has been the strangest experience of my life. One would think that being resourceful while on bed rest would not be needed, but I can tell you it is. I can’t believe physicians put women in this position and don’t give us coping skills or strategies, not to mention the whole other plethora of things that women on bed rest go through.
Did you know that it took 6 weeks to even receive information about support groups? I was lucky that I had a computer and could research this on my own and managed to get the support group link after only two weeks, but I did this on my own. I have looked at all the pamphlets in the various doctor’s offices I visit and I have not seen a thing. And the shocker, for me at least, was that when I finally received something it was from the folks that do the monitoring service and it was in a book they gave, no one mentioned it. My OB was not aware of it, but she told me of another patient she had that is in a similar situation so I made sure she knew about it. I must admit, that I had a friend who is a nurse that read Prevention magazine that had a section on bed rest and, it appears I did manage to find the few resources out there, plus a couple more that weren’t. I am lucky I have been able to continue working, but I can only imagine all the other issues related to working and legalities that some women may face. With all the information and stuff they hand out in OB offices one would think they could manage to give women on bed rest something other than the bad news… Since we are not all Julia Roberts (who is also now on bed rest) and have her resources (not that this is really any easier for her), I want to see what I can do about this, it would be so easy to work with places like the March of Dimes, Sidelines, hospitals and doctors offices, to tell women what is out there, what they need to think about (everything is just no longer as available as when you could stand, walk and drive), what to tell friends, how to deal with visitors, how to get things done, how to buck up and ask for help (the hardest thing for me, and still is).
So in the spirit of my new skill set… Anyone want to help me with this next year? It is pretty much a matter getting a group of people together and seeing what we need to put into a resource manual, finding physicians and hospitals willing to work with us… any one have connections that could help?
Another thing is that if you have called or stopped by and I have just talked and talked, please know that I know I am doing this on some level (usually after the fact), and it is OK to tell me you have to leave, I won’t hold it against you, I promise.
Now, for the most exciting news… I have a new nephew... Jacob Ellis was born on October 15th. See the pictures of the precious angel below. I have been able to see him twice, and I hope that dotcom is as good as he is. pictures removed per second party request
I hope that everyone is doing well!
Blair
I wanted to wait for a major milestone to write. I reached 28 weeks. I also “celebrate” 10 weeks of bed rest this week too. Baby is doing cartwheels, but seems to love being in breech position most… and is especially active when people are talking to me (which means that it knows that TV voices are different from real people voices, and I think that is so cool).
The surgery has still been a miracle; I am doing better than before the surgery at this point. I am still monitoring for contractions, and they are getting more “painful” though they manage to ebb and flow enough that I have not had to take anything more substantial than ibuprofen… yet.
I will stop taking the ibuprofen on December 2nd; this is because at this point the medicine has been associated with heart problems in the baby… so it is best to stop it at this point. When I told my doctor that this was a great birthday present to me, she said “Don’t thank me yet! You will probably have to take something stronger.”
I managed to get a flu shot when there where still some available. Most people have heard how people love to touch the bellies of pregnant women, and I thought I was going to miss out on the experience of having that happening and knowing if I hated it or not. When I was filling out the forms, a woman reached over and touched my belly, which, truth be told, reduced me to tears… I still don’t know how I feel about it, but in a way, it was one of the coolest experiences, because it somehow was a public acknowledgement of my being pregnant, that I showed and it was recognizable.
I also had a terrible cold, mainly a head cold, but took cough syrup anyway, plus since I am taking ibuprofen, I couldn’t take Nyquil and such because they have Tylenol… so, I took Benadryl which kept me in a fog for a week. Thank goodness it is over, and that it did not really reach my lungs, apparently coughing uses the same muscles as labor… go figure.
I have reached a stage where I can’t see my feet if I look down, though I can still see them if I move a little forward… for some reason this is exciting to me. Bending over is out of the question too. I think that if I were able to move around and interact with people, that I would love being pregnant more than I do (even with the nausea I still have).
I have also had to deal with a wounded pet, my cat Hannibal (picture below), and getting him to a vet and home and taking care of him with all that is happening to him. He had ear mites so bad that he got an abscess from it. For a while I felt my maternal skills were lacking, but he and I are resting comfortably together and I can tell he doesn't hold it against me for letting his ear get so bad that it got an infection and... well, it got gross but I will save you from hearing just how gross.
Hannibal wanting to have bedrest after his ord"ear"al
Bed rest has been the strangest experience of my life. One would think that being resourceful while on bed rest would not be needed, but I can tell you it is. I can’t believe physicians put women in this position and don’t give us coping skills or strategies, not to mention the whole other plethora of things that women on bed rest go through.
Did you know that it took 6 weeks to even receive information about support groups? I was lucky that I had a computer and could research this on my own and managed to get the support group link after only two weeks, but I did this on my own. I have looked at all the pamphlets in the various doctor’s offices I visit and I have not seen a thing. And the shocker, for me at least, was that when I finally received something it was from the folks that do the monitoring service and it was in a book they gave, no one mentioned it. My OB was not aware of it, but she told me of another patient she had that is in a similar situation so I made sure she knew about it. I must admit, that I had a friend who is a nurse that read Prevention magazine that had a section on bed rest and, it appears I did manage to find the few resources out there, plus a couple more that weren’t. I am lucky I have been able to continue working, but I can only imagine all the other issues related to working and legalities that some women may face. With all the information and stuff they hand out in OB offices one would think they could manage to give women on bed rest something other than the bad news… Since we are not all Julia Roberts (who is also now on bed rest) and have her resources (not that this is really any easier for her), I want to see what I can do about this, it would be so easy to work with places like the March of Dimes, Sidelines, hospitals and doctors offices, to tell women what is out there, what they need to think about (everything is just no longer as available as when you could stand, walk and drive), what to tell friends, how to deal with visitors, how to get things done, how to buck up and ask for help (the hardest thing for me, and still is).
So in the spirit of my new skill set… Anyone want to help me with this next year? It is pretty much a matter getting a group of people together and seeing what we need to put into a resource manual, finding physicians and hospitals willing to work with us… any one have connections that could help?
Another thing is that if you have called or stopped by and I have just talked and talked, please know that I know I am doing this on some level (usually after the fact), and it is OK to tell me you have to leave, I won’t hold it against you, I promise.
Now, for the most exciting news… I have a new nephew... Jacob Ellis was born on October 15th. See the pictures of the precious angel below. I have been able to see him twice, and I hope that dotcom is as good as he is. pictures removed per second party request
I hope that everyone is doing well!
Blair
Wednesday, September 29, 2004
5 weeks of bedrest
Hello, just thought I would update all and discuss if you reply or post a comment (see the comment section below this post). Since I did not mail out the last email, I hope this is not something new to some of you, and if you are wondering who dotcom is, let me know and I will tell you the story (or see the previous entry), but essentially, it is the generic (we aren’t finding out the sex) name we have given to the baby I should have in January. Well my surgery is over and done with, it was on August 27th, and not the date that got typed in the email, my error, so sorry.
The good news is that everything seems stable and I go to a doctor’s office every week. I have been on bedrest for 5 weeks now. I see a doctor every week, one week I get an ultrasound, where they measure me to see if everything is looking good, and most importantly to check to see how the baby is doing. I am on Ibuprofen and it seems that that reduces amniotic fluid, but it helps prevent or reduce contractions. The next week I see my OB where they do a physical exam and probably another ultrasound. I will probably continue with these alternating appointments until November where I may see my doctor every week and continue to get digital ultrasounds every other week.
Now for the good news, I can shower everyday now, I can drive to my doctor appointments if needed (not much more driving though both offices are very close), I can go visit people in their homes on occasion if I get a ride. This makes me so happy! Small blessings count for so much in times like these. I am still supposed to recline all the time, no cooking, no cleaning, no clothes washing… which has created a bad lower back pain, but it is related to sciatica and not contractions. I have a whole bunch of ultrasound pictures, but no scanner at home, so I will email some as soon as I get the chance. Anyway, the news is good; I will take stable any day! Plus, I am working from home, and it is such a pleasure to have something to do everyday. I have women from the Junior League of Phoenix visit and help out by bringing meals and spending a few moments chatting, which makes life so much easier and really makes a day go by faster. We hired a cleaning service to come and help keep up the house, I don’t think I realized how much the little housekeeping I did do before helped, they start today and I am so excited to have a clean kitchen and bathrooms, and a tidier house.
I lay on my couch during the day and am glad I have a picture window, even if it needs washing. The birds like our lawn and I have noticed that at different times we get different birds hanging out.
Interesting things I have learned…. Those new pillows you can get that have itty bitty foam balls in them are great, so are the Swedish foam pillows… Learning to take your time with things is tough when one is a do it type person, but it can be oh so valuable a lesson. Doing nothing is exhausting work. People want to help, and it is OK to ask (a tough lesson to learn, still working on it as a matter of fact). Gestures of kindness and support mean a lot, and even more so in times of trouble.
Well, that is all I have to say for now…
thanks for reading!
Blair
The good news is that everything seems stable and I go to a doctor’s office every week. I have been on bedrest for 5 weeks now. I see a doctor every week, one week I get an ultrasound, where they measure me to see if everything is looking good, and most importantly to check to see how the baby is doing. I am on Ibuprofen and it seems that that reduces amniotic fluid, but it helps prevent or reduce contractions. The next week I see my OB where they do a physical exam and probably another ultrasound. I will probably continue with these alternating appointments until November where I may see my doctor every week and continue to get digital ultrasounds every other week.
Now for the good news, I can shower everyday now, I can drive to my doctor appointments if needed (not much more driving though both offices are very close), I can go visit people in their homes on occasion if I get a ride. This makes me so happy! Small blessings count for so much in times like these. I am still supposed to recline all the time, no cooking, no cleaning, no clothes washing… which has created a bad lower back pain, but it is related to sciatica and not contractions. I have a whole bunch of ultrasound pictures, but no scanner at home, so I will email some as soon as I get the chance. Anyway, the news is good; I will take stable any day! Plus, I am working from home, and it is such a pleasure to have something to do everyday. I have women from the Junior League of Phoenix visit and help out by bringing meals and spending a few moments chatting, which makes life so much easier and really makes a day go by faster. We hired a cleaning service to come and help keep up the house, I don’t think I realized how much the little housekeeping I did do before helped, they start today and I am so excited to have a clean kitchen and bathrooms, and a tidier house.
I lay on my couch during the day and am glad I have a picture window, even if it needs washing. The birds like our lawn and I have noticed that at different times we get different birds hanging out.
Interesting things I have learned…. Those new pillows you can get that have itty bitty foam balls in them are great, so are the Swedish foam pillows… Learning to take your time with things is tough when one is a do it type person, but it can be oh so valuable a lesson. Doing nothing is exhausting work. People want to help, and it is OK to ask (a tough lesson to learn, still working on it as a matter of fact). Gestures of kindness and support mean a lot, and even more so in times of trouble.
Well, that is all I have to say for now…
thanks for reading!
Blair
Friday, August 27, 2004
Dotcom news 1
Dear Family and Friends,
This may be news to some and some of you have asked how my pregnancy is going.I have been waiting for some key doctor’s appointments to occur, before I let everyone know.
I had an amniocentesis and a level 2 ultrasound this week. Last week I had a 16-week visit.
Now for the tough part
But first…the baby is fine!
There is some not so good news. My ultrasound has indicated that I have an“incompetent cervix.” What this means is that the cervix is not as strong as itshould be for now —I am on bed rest for an indeterminate amount of time, so my Mom is typing and sending this out.
If you want more details, please call…but the good news is that the baby and I are going in for surgery on 6/29 to have a “cerclage.” This means that they will tie my cervix shut to help keep “dotcom” where it is supposed to be.
Now, you may ask what “dotcom” is. Well, it is a pet name. When Cristoph and I saw the ultrasosund at 8 weeks, Chris said it looked like a dot. So, we started calling the baby “dot.” Now, one day I was talking to my brother about all my appointments when my 4-year-old nephew, Sam, who must have heard me refer to the baby as dot, asked me, “B, why do you call the baby dotcom?” I guess it is a sign of the times. Anyway, Dot is now “Dotcom.”
So, now for the better news. My amniocentesis was uneventful although that is mainly due to three women, two of whom I have never met, that took time to help me get some questions I had answered and who made the experience much more bearable (thank Annie, Monica, and Jen). I should get the results in a few weeks. All other tests have been normal, so far, although we are still waiting on some results. This morning, Chris and I went for our ultrasound. The baby is beautiful. Everything is fine as far as the ultrasound goes. I have a great video—where Dotcom seems to be waving. I also have one printout that I will have scanned and sent out as soon as I get off of bed rest. It is a cute one of Dotcom waving its foot (must take after my side). I will make sure to update you after the surgery and in regard to the follow up visit. I will have a doctor visit every week after this, so I’ll send updates when there is news.
Prayers welcome,
Blair
This may be news to some and some of you have asked how my pregnancy is going.I have been waiting for some key doctor’s appointments to occur, before I let everyone know.
I had an amniocentesis and a level 2 ultrasound this week. Last week I had a 16-week visit.
Now for the tough part
But first…the baby is fine!
There is some not so good news. My ultrasound has indicated that I have an“incompetent cervix.” What this means is that the cervix is not as strong as itshould be for now —I am on bed rest for an indeterminate amount of time, so my Mom is typing and sending this out.
If you want more details, please call…but the good news is that the baby and I are going in for surgery on 6/29 to have a “cerclage.” This means that they will tie my cervix shut to help keep “dotcom” where it is supposed to be.
Now, you may ask what “dotcom” is. Well, it is a pet name. When Cristoph and I saw the ultrasosund at 8 weeks, Chris said it looked like a dot. So, we started calling the baby “dot.” Now, one day I was talking to my brother about all my appointments when my 4-year-old nephew, Sam, who must have heard me refer to the baby as dot, asked me, “B, why do you call the baby dotcom?” I guess it is a sign of the times. Anyway, Dot is now “Dotcom.”
So, now for the better news. My amniocentesis was uneventful although that is mainly due to three women, two of whom I have never met, that took time to help me get some questions I had answered and who made the experience much more bearable (thank Annie, Monica, and Jen). I should get the results in a few weeks. All other tests have been normal, so far, although we are still waiting on some results. This morning, Chris and I went for our ultrasound. The baby is beautiful. Everything is fine as far as the ultrasound goes. I have a great video—where Dotcom seems to be waving. I also have one printout that I will have scanned and sent out as soon as I get off of bed rest. It is a cute one of Dotcom waving its foot (must take after my side). I will make sure to update you after the surgery and in regard to the follow up visit. I will have a doctor visit every week after this, so I’ll send updates when there is news.
Prayers welcome,
Blair
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