Medical Dispatch
The Preeclampsia Puzzle
Making sense of a mysterious pregnancy disorder.
by Jerome Groopman
July 24, 2006
http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/07/24/060724fa_fact
Read more: http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/07/24/060724fa_fact#ixzz0njz2WE4x
May 12, 2010
Celebrities with Preeclampsia
Laura Bush
Angelina Jolie (with the twins)
Ann Curry
Adriana Lima --Victoria's Secret model
Britney Spears (rumored)
Julia Roberts (rumored with her twins)
Faith Hill
Marcia Cross
Jennifer Lopez
Debi Mazar
Lisa Marie Presley
Jenna Jameson
Debra Messing
Sherri Shepherd
Leah Remini
Trista Sutter (of the Bachelorette)
Jane Seymour
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Michelle Duggar
Disappointed that they never spoke out...especially Laura Bush! She definitely had the platform to do so.... Mariah Carey and of course, well documented, Kim Kardashian
Angelina Jolie (with the twins)
Ann Curry
Adriana Lima --Victoria's Secret model
Britney Spears (rumored)
Julia Roberts (rumored with her twins)
Faith Hill
Marcia Cross
Jennifer Lopez
Debi Mazar
Lisa Marie Presley
Jenna Jameson
Debra Messing
Sherri Shepherd
Leah Remini
Trista Sutter (of the Bachelorette)
Jane Seymour
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Michelle Duggar
Disappointed that they never spoke out...especially Laura Bush! She definitely had the platform to do so.... Mariah Carey and of course, well documented, Kim Kardashian
May 11, 2010
PUPPPS Rash
Oh and did I mention I also had a PUPPPS rash?
Pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy (PUPPP), also known as polymorphic eruption of pregnancy, is the most common rash in pregnant women. It normally occurs in first pregnancies during the third trimester with an average onset of 35 weeks. Thankfully, PUPPP does not usually affect subsequent pregnancies
This is NOT my stomach, the picture was taken from a website online, but I want to share it because I too had a rash like this....
The rash started at 36 weeks, and lasted 10 L-O-N-G weeks post-partum. Is that not inSANE? I tried everything to get rid of it. I did one full week of antibiotic steroid to get rid of it. That didn't work. It stayed on. They wouldn't give me another week of antibiotic prednisone, because it's bad for your system, so I decided to go to a dermatologist.
She, too, was hesitant to prescribe me another round of meds, also I was breastfeeding, so she recommended a cream.
I used that for about 2 weeks and then begged for more prednisone. I had literally not had any relief. She decided to put me on a 30 day taper of prednisone. It was literally hell! The only relief I got was when I would shower. I would use a product called oatmeal bath, and that would work wonders to temporarily stop the itching. The rash was anywhere from my neck to my ankles, but mostly on my tummy, boobs and thighs.
The 30 day taper worked extremely well, until the last maybe 10 days, when the rash CAME BACK! I never heard of such a terrible thing. I don't know anyone who went through this, and honestly, cannot imagine anything worse! I wouldn't wish PUPPPS on my worst enemy. It is like the chicken pox that lingers and you can't do a thing about it.
I also was a brand new mommy with it, and sleep deprivation!! You cannot imagine! I was already low on sleep ANYWAY, the only way I could get to sleep was to take Benadryl, or to get to the point of total exhaustion and fall into bed that way.
I can't even say why the rash finally went away. Just one day, it inexplicably left as strangely as it came.
This is not my stomach, but this is exactly what PUPPPS looks like. It starts on your stretch marks---if you get any. The crappy part, for me, is I only got stretch marks the last week or two of my pregnancy. And I chalk that up to the pre-e and all the swelling that happened.
This is the hilarious part. Towards the end of going to the dermatologist, she had me do a skin allergy patch test.
She wanted to see if it was a contact reaction. She put about 200 allergens on my back and then made a graph with a marker around all of the substances. I looked like a walking science experiment, and essentially I was!
Two days later (you keep this on your back), I returned to the derm, and she removed the dressing on the back to reveal what was reacting in the little boxes. Mind you, this is mid-February. She said out loud "oh that's weird, do you sneeze a lot in the spring when the dandelions come out?" I said "yeah, why?" she said, "well all that's really showing up is dandelion. But that wouldn't be causing it, right?"
I said deadpan: "So I should stop taking dandelion root then?"
She said, why are you taking that? And I said "because it is a homeopathic cure for PUPPPS rash!"
According to American Pregnancy "dandelion root has been reported to be beneficial to women with PUPPP, it is rich in Vitamin A, calcium, and iron. Dandelion Root has been known to help relieve mild edema and help provide nourishment to the liver."
Read more at Suite101: PUPPPs - Pregnancy Skin Rash: Pruritic Uticarial Papules and Plaques of Pregnancy http://pregnancychildbirth.suite101.com/article.cfm/puppps_pregnancy_skin_rash#ixzz0njbHcq2u
Pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy (PUPPP), also known as polymorphic eruption of pregnancy, is the most common rash in pregnant women. It normally occurs in first pregnancies during the third trimester with an average onset of 35 weeks. Thankfully, PUPPP does not usually affect subsequent pregnancies
This is NOT my stomach, the picture was taken from a website online, but I want to share it because I too had a rash like this....
The rash started at 36 weeks, and lasted 10 L-O-N-G weeks post-partum. Is that not inSANE? I tried everything to get rid of it. I did one full week of antibiotic steroid to get rid of it. That didn't work. It stayed on. They wouldn't give me another week of antibiotic prednisone, because it's bad for your system, so I decided to go to a dermatologist.
She, too, was hesitant to prescribe me another round of meds, also I was breastfeeding, so she recommended a cream.
I used that for about 2 weeks and then begged for more prednisone. I had literally not had any relief. She decided to put me on a 30 day taper of prednisone. It was literally hell! The only relief I got was when I would shower. I would use a product called oatmeal bath, and that would work wonders to temporarily stop the itching. The rash was anywhere from my neck to my ankles, but mostly on my tummy, boobs and thighs.
The 30 day taper worked extremely well, until the last maybe 10 days, when the rash CAME BACK! I never heard of such a terrible thing. I don't know anyone who went through this, and honestly, cannot imagine anything worse! I wouldn't wish PUPPPS on my worst enemy. It is like the chicken pox that lingers and you can't do a thing about it.
I also was a brand new mommy with it, and sleep deprivation!! You cannot imagine! I was already low on sleep ANYWAY, the only way I could get to sleep was to take Benadryl, or to get to the point of total exhaustion and fall into bed that way.
I can't even say why the rash finally went away. Just one day, it inexplicably left as strangely as it came.
This is not my stomach, but this is exactly what PUPPPS looks like. It starts on your stretch marks---if you get any. The crappy part, for me, is I only got stretch marks the last week or two of my pregnancy. And I chalk that up to the pre-e and all the swelling that happened.
This is the hilarious part. Towards the end of going to the dermatologist, she had me do a skin allergy patch test.
She wanted to see if it was a contact reaction. She put about 200 allergens on my back and then made a graph with a marker around all of the substances. I looked like a walking science experiment, and essentially I was!
Two days later (you keep this on your back), I returned to the derm, and she removed the dressing on the back to reveal what was reacting in the little boxes. Mind you, this is mid-February. She said out loud "oh that's weird, do you sneeze a lot in the spring when the dandelions come out?" I said "yeah, why?" she said, "well all that's really showing up is dandelion. But that wouldn't be causing it, right?"
I said deadpan: "So I should stop taking dandelion root then?"
She said, why are you taking that? And I said "because it is a homeopathic cure for PUPPPS rash!"
According to American Pregnancy "dandelion root has been reported to be beneficial to women with PUPPP, it is rich in Vitamin A, calcium, and iron. Dandelion Root has been known to help relieve mild edema and help provide nourishment to the liver."
Read more at Suite101: PUPPPs - Pregnancy Skin Rash: Pruritic Uticarial Papules and Plaques of Pregnancy http://pregnancychildbirth.suite101.com/article.cfm/puppps_pregnancy_skin_rash#ixzz0njbHcq2u
May 10, 2010
Six days postpartum....Emergency Room
I went to the emergency room on December 26, 2009, (six days postpartum) the day after Christmas. I had been swelling terribly to the point that it hurt to walk. There were rolls where the fat of my legs met my ankle and foot. It was not even "cankles", it was much worse. I thought my legs looked like tree trunks, thick from thigh to foot. It looked like two legs made up one, that's how bloated and fluid-retentioned they were.
My doctor told me "all pregnant and post partum women swell". Riiiight.
My husband and I took the baby to her pediatrician appointment that day. We had taken her on Christmas Eve, and they were concerned that she had dropped weight (which now, everyone tells me, is normal.) She had been six pounds four ounces at birth, and then 4 days later, was 5lb 10oz. So the visit on the 26th was to make sure she was gaining. They had us supplementing breastmilk with formula to ensure the weight gain. Sure enough, she had gained 4 ounces, making her 5lb 14oz. At the end of the visit, I asked the ped to take my blood pressure, if he didn't mind, because I wasn't feeling well. He obliged, and looked concerned. He said it was 160/110. He told me to call my OBGYN immediately.
I did just that.
My OBGYN seemed thoroughly annoyed when he called me back. (Day after Christmas, maybe sick of hearing from me???)
He asked why did I even have that doctor check me at all? (I was shocked!) I said, because I wasn't feeling well, and I wanted to see if that had anything to do with blood pressure (I was induced for pre-eclampsia, remember doc???)
He said that that reading was IMPOSSIBLE, and that I would be in a hospital had it really been that high. He wondered what kind of blood pressure cuff they used because perhaps it was skewed because they were using a pediatric cuff...(??!!) He seemed annoyed and then stated, if I really thought it was that high, the only place to go would be the emergency room. He told me I ought to head there.
I got off the phone and cried. WTF??!! I didn't want to go to the ER! I didn't want to leave my six day old baby! I didn't want to take her and expose her to God-knows-what! My husband and I hemmed and hawed on how to handle this crisis. Meanwhile, our baby was crying! She hated the car! We decided to have Phil and the baby stay home, and my mom pick me up and take me to the ER.
Fast forward an hour or two later, my blood pressure WAS sky high!! They tested my urine too, but since a woman postpartum those few days, there was no chance of me not splling protein. They determined I had postpartum pre-eclampsia. And they checked the rash. Turns out, they thought it looked pretty serious. They gaave me a intravenous shot of Benadryl and an IV of fluids and labatelol. I was on labatelol for the next 6 weeks. They did not admit me.
....
My doctor told me "all pregnant and post partum women swell". Riiiight.
My husband and I took the baby to her pediatrician appointment that day. We had taken her on Christmas Eve, and they were concerned that she had dropped weight (which now, everyone tells me, is normal.) She had been six pounds four ounces at birth, and then 4 days later, was 5lb 10oz. So the visit on the 26th was to make sure she was gaining. They had us supplementing breastmilk with formula to ensure the weight gain. Sure enough, she had gained 4 ounces, making her 5lb 14oz. At the end of the visit, I asked the ped to take my blood pressure, if he didn't mind, because I wasn't feeling well. He obliged, and looked concerned. He said it was 160/110. He told me to call my OBGYN immediately.
I did just that.
My OBGYN seemed thoroughly annoyed when he called me back. (Day after Christmas, maybe sick of hearing from me???)
He asked why did I even have that doctor check me at all? (I was shocked!) I said, because I wasn't feeling well, and I wanted to see if that had anything to do with blood pressure (I was induced for pre-eclampsia, remember doc???)
He said that that reading was IMPOSSIBLE, and that I would be in a hospital had it really been that high. He wondered what kind of blood pressure cuff they used because perhaps it was skewed because they were using a pediatric cuff...(??!!) He seemed annoyed and then stated, if I really thought it was that high, the only place to go would be the emergency room. He told me I ought to head there.
I got off the phone and cried. WTF??!! I didn't want to go to the ER! I didn't want to leave my six day old baby! I didn't want to take her and expose her to God-knows-what! My husband and I hemmed and hawed on how to handle this crisis. Meanwhile, our baby was crying! She hated the car! We decided to have Phil and the baby stay home, and my mom pick me up and take me to the ER.
Fast forward an hour or two later, my blood pressure WAS sky high!! They tested my urine too, but since a woman postpartum those few days, there was no chance of me not splling protein. They determined I had postpartum pre-eclampsia. And they checked the rash. Turns out, they thought it looked pretty serious. They gaave me a intravenous shot of Benadryl and an IV of fluids and labatelol. I was on labatelol for the next 6 weeks. They did not admit me.
....
Labor & Delivery
They hooked me up to the pitocin and labor started right away. It was like bad menstrual cramps, and I told my mom that I could handle this--no problem, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Dumb statement. My process started at 1:30p.m. My husband and mom were there and really helped me to focus, get excited, and stay calm. My husband rubbed my hands with lotion, brought me tons of ice chips, my mom bought me every flavor of gum they had in the gift shop, since I was allowed to have that at least. I surprised myself that I was handling everything well. Then the contractions really picked up in intensity. I started to really break down and didn't know how to deal. They kept reminding me to breathe deeply and slowly, but it was so hard to do. I would forget to breathe, and it just made it that much harder. I started asking about the epidural, and they said within the hour. That guy could not come fast enough with it. I begged for nubane, or whatever it's called, because it was so intense and bad. Finally the anesthesiologist came, and I again surprised myself at how calmly and relaxed I was in order to get the epidural. I just wanted relief. I would have done jumping jacks if that's what was required to get the relief.
It didn't kick in right away, but it did soon enough. It didn't take away all feeling like I worried it would. I felt pressure down in my bottom, the feeling of needing to go to the bathroom, but that was all I really felt. That never went away, and just got stronger. They checked my dilation after this, and I thought my doctor was joking when he said I was at 7 centimeters!! Unbelievable! I had been at 3 cm only 45 minutes prior. All of the sudden, the c-section talk ended, and it seemed like I was going to go faster than anyone had originally thought. I was thrilled! We called the family and told everyone, and Phil and Mom started getting really excited. My baby was doing her part, moving her way down the birth canal. Amazing!
It was around 6 o'clock, I think when they checked me again and I was 9cm. They said I would be pushing soon. After this, the pressure got more intense and I was hoping to get more drugs to deal. No such luck. When Phil was out in the hallway asking the nurse to up my dosage on the epidural, I looked at my mom and said "I think I need to push". All of the sudden, she went in the hall to announce this to Phil and the docs, and the room was suddenly filled with people, my doc, the resident, my labor nurse, and Phil and Mom were at my sides. I tried to be calm, but again it was really hard to breathe. I was hyperventilating a little bit, but trying to focus. Everyone was helping to calm me down and have me focus on the task at hand. I had four contractions and four rounds of pushing. I had no idea how effective my attempts at pushing were, but I didn't think I was "doing it right" I kept my eyes closed the whole time. Then after 20 minutes of pushing, everyone got excited and said "she's here, she's here!", and my husband was overcome with emotion and happiness. I was so relieved and so full of awe of this little being that they lay on my chest. She was so warm and sweet. I couldn't believe how big she looked, and how much hair, and how good her coloring was. I was expecting her to look gray, but she was pink. My doc and the other people said how great I did and how perfect she was. The one issue they had was that the cord was wrapped around her neck 3 TIMES! They said, she's wearing necklaces! They said it was unusual for it to wrap that many times. But it wasn't tight around her neck, so she was okay.
I had an episiotomy which was not too bad. I was aware of it, but still numb from the epidural. Delivering the placenta was a little painful, but a big relief when it was over. Overall, I felt very blessed with the way the delivery worked out. I thought I got extremely lucky that it went fast and that she was ready to come, even though she was 3 weeks early. She did amazingly well and scored 9s on the Apgar test. Her name is Julia Marie, and I am absolutely in love. Phil and I both never imagined how in love we would feel and how magical this really is. I am grateful to the docs and nurses who all helped me through. I had total faith in them, and I was so glad my actual doctor was there and not someone else. My labor nurse was no-nonsense and I appreciated that. She wasn't going to lie to me or butter me up. She always let me know what to expect. Overall it was the absolute best day of my life, and I will never forget it.
It didn't kick in right away, but it did soon enough. It didn't take away all feeling like I worried it would. I felt pressure down in my bottom, the feeling of needing to go to the bathroom, but that was all I really felt. That never went away, and just got stronger. They checked my dilation after this, and I thought my doctor was joking when he said I was at 7 centimeters!! Unbelievable! I had been at 3 cm only 45 minutes prior. All of the sudden, the c-section talk ended, and it seemed like I was going to go faster than anyone had originally thought. I was thrilled! We called the family and told everyone, and Phil and Mom started getting really excited. My baby was doing her part, moving her way down the birth canal. Amazing!
It was around 6 o'clock, I think when they checked me again and I was 9cm. They said I would be pushing soon. After this, the pressure got more intense and I was hoping to get more drugs to deal. No such luck. When Phil was out in the hallway asking the nurse to up my dosage on the epidural, I looked at my mom and said "I think I need to push". All of the sudden, she went in the hall to announce this to Phil and the docs, and the room was suddenly filled with people, my doc, the resident, my labor nurse, and Phil and Mom were at my sides. I tried to be calm, but again it was really hard to breathe. I was hyperventilating a little bit, but trying to focus. Everyone was helping to calm me down and have me focus on the task at hand. I had four contractions and four rounds of pushing. I had no idea how effective my attempts at pushing were, but I didn't think I was "doing it right" I kept my eyes closed the whole time. Then after 20 minutes of pushing, everyone got excited and said "she's here, she's here!", and my husband was overcome with emotion and happiness. I was so relieved and so full of awe of this little being that they lay on my chest. She was so warm and sweet. I couldn't believe how big she looked, and how much hair, and how good her coloring was. I was expecting her to look gray, but she was pink. My doc and the other people said how great I did and how perfect she was. The one issue they had was that the cord was wrapped around her neck 3 TIMES! They said, she's wearing necklaces! They said it was unusual for it to wrap that many times. But it wasn't tight around her neck, so she was okay.
I had an episiotomy which was not too bad. I was aware of it, but still numb from the epidural. Delivering the placenta was a little painful, but a big relief when it was over. Overall, I felt very blessed with the way the delivery worked out. I thought I got extremely lucky that it went fast and that she was ready to come, even though she was 3 weeks early. She did amazingly well and scored 9s on the Apgar test. Her name is Julia Marie, and I am absolutely in love. Phil and I both never imagined how in love we would feel and how magical this really is. I am grateful to the docs and nurses who all helped me through. I had total faith in them, and I was so glad my actual doctor was there and not someone else. My labor nurse was no-nonsense and I appreciated that. She wasn't going to lie to me or butter me up. She always let me know what to expect. Overall it was the absolute best day of my life, and I will never forget it.
You have pre-eclampsia, will be induced....
At 37 weeks, I was induced. My doctor's appointment at 37 weeks, I was very excited, because I was having what I thought, was early labor. I had timed contractions about 6 minutes apart. I thought for sure, the doctor was going to say, "yup, let's head over to the hospital." Instead he took my blood pressure and called over to L&D and told them that I had "pre-eclamptic labs again" I remember being very confused. He hadn't told me I had pre-eclamptic symptoms to begin with. So this was news to me! Anyway, he said he'd like me to go home and begin what would be only 24 hours of bedrest. He wanted me to do little to nothing and keep my ***verrrry*** swollen feet elevated.
I only had one pair of shoes that were fitting me at this point, and even still, my hubby had to help me into them, and my feet were painful to the touch they were so swollen. I was crestfallen. Not only were my contractions not ***good enough*** but now I had some new issue to deal with!! I was annoyed, but hopeful that maybe this meant I was almost ready for labor. I was right. The doc wanted to see me again in 48 hours, on that Sunday, back in L&D. I wasn't sure why not just at his office? But before he sent me home on bedrest, he had me go to the hospital to do some labwork, and they monitored me for the 15th and final time to monitor contractions. I felt somewhat like I was making progress!
So after the longest day in the world.....Sunday finally arrived. We went to L&D hopeful but unsure. My husband and I were never sure one way or another what to expect. Contractions became meaningless signs at this point, and I had never seen anyone more swollen in my life, but that too didn't seem to bother my doc.
After about an hour or two after I did my bloodwork on Sunday, the doc came in and said I was going towards induction. The reason not being my blood pressure, which was 140/90, but rather the protein in the urine of +3. He said it was enough of a sign that I was headed in the wrong direction, pre-eclampsia. He said that when the mother gets this, it doesn't get better, it only gets worse. So I was going to be induced~!!
I was maybe the first woman ever to hear she was pre-e, going to be induced, and was overwhelmingly excited. I was just beyond miserable with my contractions and swelling, discomfort and pain, and it just felt like time.
My doctor warned me I would more than 50% likely be a C-Section, and to this day, I don't know how I avoided this. He said for someone who had all those contractions, I never really dilated...only a fingertip. So that means that they were never really considered pre-term labor, because if it had been real labor, I would have delivered around 26 weeks~!!
Therefore they weren't sure that my body would respond to pitocin, or if the baby would want that kind of measure.
Also, because I was not dilated or full-term, they were going to break my waters for me. Greaaaaat...I thought. They would not be giving me my epidural untl I labored and had my waters broken and dilate enough to make significant progress....
I only had one pair of shoes that were fitting me at this point, and even still, my hubby had to help me into them, and my feet were painful to the touch they were so swollen. I was crestfallen. Not only were my contractions not ***good enough*** but now I had some new issue to deal with!! I was annoyed, but hopeful that maybe this meant I was almost ready for labor. I was right. The doc wanted to see me again in 48 hours, on that Sunday, back in L&D. I wasn't sure why not just at his office? But before he sent me home on bedrest, he had me go to the hospital to do some labwork, and they monitored me for the 15th and final time to monitor contractions. I felt somewhat like I was making progress!
So after the longest day in the world.....Sunday finally arrived. We went to L&D hopeful but unsure. My husband and I were never sure one way or another what to expect. Contractions became meaningless signs at this point, and I had never seen anyone more swollen in my life, but that too didn't seem to bother my doc.
After about an hour or two after I did my bloodwork on Sunday, the doc came in and said I was going towards induction. The reason not being my blood pressure, which was 140/90, but rather the protein in the urine of +3. He said it was enough of a sign that I was headed in the wrong direction, pre-eclampsia. He said that when the mother gets this, it doesn't get better, it only gets worse. So I was going to be induced~!!
I was maybe the first woman ever to hear she was pre-e, going to be induced, and was overwhelmingly excited. I was just beyond miserable with my contractions and swelling, discomfort and pain, and it just felt like time.
My doctor warned me I would more than 50% likely be a C-Section, and to this day, I don't know how I avoided this. He said for someone who had all those contractions, I never really dilated...only a fingertip. So that means that they were never really considered pre-term labor, because if it had been real labor, I would have delivered around 26 weeks~!!
Therefore they weren't sure that my body would respond to pitocin, or if the baby would want that kind of measure.
Also, because I was not dilated or full-term, they were going to break my waters for me. Greaaaaat...I thought. They would not be giving me my epidural untl I labored and had my waters broken and dilate enough to make significant progress....
Pics of crazy swelling...
I think about this a lot, and I don't want to seem vain. But this is a picture of me at my baby shower, which was at 32 weeks.
I looked pregnant, for sure. But my face looks normal. This is a picture of me less than 2 weeks later,
and then right after delivery, at 37 weeks.
I looked pregnant, for sure. But my face looks normal. This is a picture of me less than 2 weeks later,
and then right after delivery, at 37 weeks.
May 3, 2010
32 weeks to Inducement; Pre-eclampsia
SO from 32 weeks on, I was on terbutaline, 2.5mg 4x a day. They had me increase my dosage towards the end. At 35 weeks, I was told to stop taking it because at that point they do not intervene to stop contractions. Or so I thought.... They gave me the terb shot in the hospital, L&D at 35 weeks. It was awful! I was so done.
Here I was at 30 weeks. U can really tell now, without a doubt. And I am super excited!
Don't get me wrong, though. I loved being pregnant, because I was so excited to have my baby. I had been with my husband for almost 9 years at this point. We knew we always wanted a baby. We took our time in our relationship though. I graduated college before we got engaged, and moved home to NJ and he moved cross-country before proposing. We were married over 3 years when we got pregnant. We were elated! I loved feeling her kicks. She'd kick whenever I ate, but especially when I ate chocolate! Even if I had hot chocolate :) We knew we were naming her Julia. I absolutely could not wait to meet her. Every time they hooked me up on monitors at labor & delivery, they told me how great she "looked". No problems with her heart rate, no problems with her activity level. She kicked a LOT! I loved shopping for her, obsessing over my baby registry, decorating her nursery...all of that. I had her on my mind at ALL times. You never met a pregnant girl who talked more about her pregnancy. Even I annoyed myself!
The other side of things was I couldn't go too far from home, the slightest task would cause worse contractions, even taking my dog out.
I started swelling around Thanksgiving, 34 weeks. My feet started to look a little marshmallow-y. I know this, because I took a picture of them. I was in L&D two days before Thanksgiving. Awful! Anyway, I just hung in there, I guess. Then at the very end, at 37 weeks, I went with my husband to the doctor. The contractions were from 5-8 minutes apart. I wondered if this was it!
............
Here I was at 30 weeks. U can really tell now, without a doubt. And I am super excited!
Don't get me wrong, though. I loved being pregnant, because I was so excited to have my baby. I had been with my husband for almost 9 years at this point. We knew we always wanted a baby. We took our time in our relationship though. I graduated college before we got engaged, and moved home to NJ and he moved cross-country before proposing. We were married over 3 years when we got pregnant. We were elated! I loved feeling her kicks. She'd kick whenever I ate, but especially when I ate chocolate! Even if I had hot chocolate :) We knew we were naming her Julia. I absolutely could not wait to meet her. Every time they hooked me up on monitors at labor & delivery, they told me how great she "looked". No problems with her heart rate, no problems with her activity level. She kicked a LOT! I loved shopping for her, obsessing over my baby registry, decorating her nursery...all of that. I had her on my mind at ALL times. You never met a pregnant girl who talked more about her pregnancy. Even I annoyed myself!
The other side of things was I couldn't go too far from home, the slightest task would cause worse contractions, even taking my dog out.
I started swelling around Thanksgiving, 34 weeks. My feet started to look a little marshmallow-y. I know this, because I took a picture of them. I was in L&D two days before Thanksgiving. Awful! Anyway, I just hung in there, I guess. Then at the very end, at 37 weeks, I went with my husband to the doctor. The contractions were from 5-8 minutes apart. I wondered if this was it!
............
Pre-term contractions and terbutaline; 17 weeks on...
Nothing really changed from 17 to 23 weeks. I felt pretty great actually, and this was the BEST sleep of the whole pregnancy. We went to Disney World at 23 weeks. I swam, I ate well, I went on rides (most are okay for pregnant women, with some exceptions)
At 26 weeks, I began getting contractions. My belly would just involuntarily seize up, as if I was doing crunches or something, without warning, out of nowhere. The contractions would last about a minute each, and stop me in my tracks. If I was walking, I would stop and just breathe into the pain. It was a scary feeling, although everyone said "oh it's braxton hicks" (braxton hicks are known as non-painful, practice-like contractions before a woman goes into labor. they happen for everyone at different times, but usually are only handful of times a day.) My contractions though, were typically 4-5 an hour, and almost with no break were every day, to every other day, from week 23 to 37!!!!
This went on til the end of the pregnancy.
I went to Labor & Delivery on October 2nd and contractions were stopped for the FIRST time, with terbutaline, a shot in my leg. I have some old blogs on this that I will figure out how to post.
All in all, I went to Labor &Delivery 15 TIMES between the last week of October, 25 weeks to 37 weeks when I was finally induced.
I say "finally", even though I KNEW it was WAY too early to deliver, and how important it was for her to stay in there and get bigger and full-term and healthy. I prayed every day that she would be okay, and thank God, she is!!
But it was awful! I could barely go anywhere or do anything because the contractions would start again. All I had to do was stand up, and they would start again. Sometimes they were 10 minutes apart.
I never REALLY knew if I was in labor or not. Sometimes it would be so bad, I would cry myself to sleep. I would try not to wake up my husband and "bother" him, even though he was always wonderful. I think even my doctor was a little like --what's with this girl? Sometimes the on-call doctor was a jerk over the phone. For all the times that I called asking for advice or if I should go to L&D, there would be twice as many times that I didn't call or do anything.
I was put on terbutaline as a pill, at 32 weeks. I was ordered to take 2.5mg every six hours 4x a day. It worked at first, but the side effects were terrible!
I had a racing heart, the back of my head would itch strangely, and I felt like absolute hell! The contractions would ease though, so it was mostly worth it. I think I developed an immunity to it though, because it eventually stopped working and I dealt with awful contractions again. The following is a blog I wrote at 26 weeks after they stopped contractions for the first time....
This is me at 24 weeks....just before this next blog...
went to the doctor, the hospital, actually for the 3rd time, last night. I called my doctor because I was having contractions; my belly was tightening up all day, every 10-20 minutes, even if I was sitting doing nothing. It was very concerning to me. I was also having a low backache, and was winded very easily. I walked around Target to get some things, and felt like absolute crap afterwards. I had been having contractions every day for at least a week. I had gone the previous Monday to the hospital, where they did a lot of steps; they tested my urine, gave me a pelvic exam, with something called an ffn (fetal fibronectin, swab of the cervix). They monitored me for contractions, my blood pressure, and the baby's heart rate. Last week, the ffn came back negative, which was very good news, but I did have at least 4 contractions while I was hooked up there, about an hour's time.
This time, I am not sure how many contractions I was having. They turned the monitor away from me. My belly was very tight and stressed. The nurse came in almost immediately after I got hooked up, asked me a lot of questions, especially about how much I had been eating and drinking, etc. I really liked her.
My wonderful husband came, even though I told him he didn't have to. He really calmed me down. I was extremely nervous about what was going on. It was a good thing he came, because that's when they decided to give me an IV of fluids to hydrate me, and a shot in my leg of terbutaline to stop the contractions. The shot made me nervous, but didn't hurt much at all. The IV freaked me out completely. I had never had one before (that I can recall, although I am sure I did to get my tonsils and wisdom teeth out). It was so weird to feel this cool liquid go into my arm.
I read that this is pre-term contractions, and not pre-term labor. Pre-term labor means there are changes in the cervix, where there has absolutely not been any. Thank God! The most important thing in all of this is that the baby looks great! Her heart rate is wonderful and she is not in any stress at all. Yay! My little pumpkin. She has a lot of time left to cook, so my plan is to do anything I need to do to keep her in there for as long as possible. If I need to drink a gallon of water a day, that's what I will do. anyway, I am a couple days away from the 3rd trimester, yay! The homestretch is coming up.... I am 26 weeks, 5 days....
At 26 weeks, I began getting contractions. My belly would just involuntarily seize up, as if I was doing crunches or something, without warning, out of nowhere. The contractions would last about a minute each, and stop me in my tracks. If I was walking, I would stop and just breathe into the pain. It was a scary feeling, although everyone said "oh it's braxton hicks" (braxton hicks are known as non-painful, practice-like contractions before a woman goes into labor. they happen for everyone at different times, but usually are only handful of times a day.) My contractions though, were typically 4-5 an hour, and almost with no break were every day, to every other day, from week 23 to 37!!!!
This went on til the end of the pregnancy.
I went to Labor & Delivery on October 2nd and contractions were stopped for the FIRST time, with terbutaline, a shot in my leg. I have some old blogs on this that I will figure out how to post.
All in all, I went to Labor &Delivery 15 TIMES between the last week of October, 25 weeks to 37 weeks when I was finally induced.
I say "finally", even though I KNEW it was WAY too early to deliver, and how important it was for her to stay in there and get bigger and full-term and healthy. I prayed every day that she would be okay, and thank God, she is!!
But it was awful! I could barely go anywhere or do anything because the contractions would start again. All I had to do was stand up, and they would start again. Sometimes they were 10 minutes apart.
I never REALLY knew if I was in labor or not. Sometimes it would be so bad, I would cry myself to sleep. I would try not to wake up my husband and "bother" him, even though he was always wonderful. I think even my doctor was a little like --what's with this girl? Sometimes the on-call doctor was a jerk over the phone. For all the times that I called asking for advice or if I should go to L&D, there would be twice as many times that I didn't call or do anything.
I was put on terbutaline as a pill, at 32 weeks. I was ordered to take 2.5mg every six hours 4x a day. It worked at first, but the side effects were terrible!
I had a racing heart, the back of my head would itch strangely, and I felt like absolute hell! The contractions would ease though, so it was mostly worth it. I think I developed an immunity to it though, because it eventually stopped working and I dealt with awful contractions again. The following is a blog I wrote at 26 weeks after they stopped contractions for the first time....
This is me at 24 weeks....just before this next blog...
went to the doctor, the hospital, actually for the 3rd time, last night. I called my doctor because I was having contractions; my belly was tightening up all day, every 10-20 minutes, even if I was sitting doing nothing. It was very concerning to me. I was also having a low backache, and was winded very easily. I walked around Target to get some things, and felt like absolute crap afterwards. I had been having contractions every day for at least a week. I had gone the previous Monday to the hospital, where they did a lot of steps; they tested my urine, gave me a pelvic exam, with something called an ffn (fetal fibronectin, swab of the cervix). They monitored me for contractions, my blood pressure, and the baby's heart rate. Last week, the ffn came back negative, which was very good news, but I did have at least 4 contractions while I was hooked up there, about an hour's time.
This time, I am not sure how many contractions I was having. They turned the monitor away from me. My belly was very tight and stressed. The nurse came in almost immediately after I got hooked up, asked me a lot of questions, especially about how much I had been eating and drinking, etc. I really liked her.
My wonderful husband came, even though I told him he didn't have to. He really calmed me down. I was extremely nervous about what was going on. It was a good thing he came, because that's when they decided to give me an IV of fluids to hydrate me, and a shot in my leg of terbutaline to stop the contractions. The shot made me nervous, but didn't hurt much at all. The IV freaked me out completely. I had never had one before (that I can recall, although I am sure I did to get my tonsils and wisdom teeth out). It was so weird to feel this cool liquid go into my arm.
I read that this is pre-term contractions, and not pre-term labor. Pre-term labor means there are changes in the cervix, where there has absolutely not been any. Thank God! The most important thing in all of this is that the baby looks great! Her heart rate is wonderful and she is not in any stress at all. Yay! My little pumpkin. She has a lot of time left to cook, so my plan is to do anything I need to do to keep her in there for as long as possible. If I need to drink a gallon of water a day, that's what I will do. anyway, I am a couple days away from the 3rd trimester, yay! The homestretch is coming up.... I am 26 weeks, 5 days....
First blog; first 17 weeks of pregnancy
I had always been pretty healthy. I am 5'3, fairly active, and almost always had weighed about 125. I was at my heaviest, 140, when I found out I was pregnant. Not sure if this is relevant, but I am now wondering if this played a part at all...
I was laid off from my job when I was six weeks along. I had only known I was pregnant for the two weeks prior to that!
Here I am at 14 weeks pregnant....
In retrospect, I have no idea how I would have handled my difficult pregnancy with that stressful job. Pretty much as soon as I found out I was pregnant, the morning sickness started. It was an overall nausea that is hard to even describe, but other pg women have been there. I was extremely sensitive to smells. Everything smelled like rotting garbage, including yummy food and perfume that I loved! (and I had worked at a perfume bottle manufacturer)
I had ordered the Gwen Stefani fragrance: "Harajuku Lovers Gwen" right before I was laid off. When it arrived in the mail, I was so excited, I put it on, but then had to run to the bathroom immediately to heave. By the way, if you've ever smelled it, you would know that that is not a typical reaction. It smells amazing, like coconuts and summertime :) After this, I couldn't wear perfume for the rest of my pregnancy.
I couldn't walk by the Abercrombie & Fitch store because of the smell of their men's fragrance. I couldn't walk BY my favorite store, Sephora. I hated the smell of coffee, and I was previously a caffeine addict.
So yeah, the nausea was no fun. At about 13 weeks, I pretty much stopped getting sick. There was a reprieve. Up through then, it was a pretty typical pregnancy.
Also at 13 weeks, I had a voluntary blood test at this point called a nuchal lucency test (sometimes called nuchal translucency or NST) It was a finger prick test. I also had an ultrasound then. They said everything came back fine, except I had one small issue. I was borderline the lowest amount for HCG, my level was a 1. To this day, I still don't really understand what that means. They said everything with the baby looked fine, but my uterus was giving this reading. It could lead to something called IUGR, which is when the baby stops growing in utero at a late point in the pregnancy. This totally scared me, but the doc assured me this was extremely unlikely and I would get extra ultrasounds just to make sure.
At about 17 weeks, I started getting something called RLP, round ligament pain. This is when your uterus is basically stretching and pulling the muscles in the abdomen. I went to the doctor twice with this pain, because I worried something was wrong. Turns out, this is pretty common. The RLP is not unusual, but once again, my pregnancy was very tough. For the most part though, pretty typical aches and pains that all moms-to-be go through, though....
I was laid off from my job when I was six weeks along. I had only known I was pregnant for the two weeks prior to that!
Here I am at 14 weeks pregnant....
In retrospect, I have no idea how I would have handled my difficult pregnancy with that stressful job. Pretty much as soon as I found out I was pregnant, the morning sickness started. It was an overall nausea that is hard to even describe, but other pg women have been there. I was extremely sensitive to smells. Everything smelled like rotting garbage, including yummy food and perfume that I loved! (and I had worked at a perfume bottle manufacturer)
I had ordered the Gwen Stefani fragrance: "Harajuku Lovers Gwen" right before I was laid off. When it arrived in the mail, I was so excited, I put it on, but then had to run to the bathroom immediately to heave. By the way, if you've ever smelled it, you would know that that is not a typical reaction. It smells amazing, like coconuts and summertime :) After this, I couldn't wear perfume for the rest of my pregnancy.
I couldn't walk by the Abercrombie & Fitch store because of the smell of their men's fragrance. I couldn't walk BY my favorite store, Sephora. I hated the smell of coffee, and I was previously a caffeine addict.
So yeah, the nausea was no fun. At about 13 weeks, I pretty much stopped getting sick. There was a reprieve. Up through then, it was a pretty typical pregnancy.
Also at 13 weeks, I had a voluntary blood test at this point called a nuchal lucency test (sometimes called nuchal translucency or NST) It was a finger prick test. I also had an ultrasound then. They said everything came back fine, except I had one small issue. I was borderline the lowest amount for HCG, my level was a 1. To this day, I still don't really understand what that means. They said everything with the baby looked fine, but my uterus was giving this reading. It could lead to something called IUGR, which is when the baby stops growing in utero at a late point in the pregnancy. This totally scared me, but the doc assured me this was extremely unlikely and I would get extra ultrasounds just to make sure.
At about 17 weeks, I started getting something called RLP, round ligament pain. This is when your uterus is basically stretching and pulling the muscles in the abdomen. I went to the doctor twice with this pain, because I worried something was wrong. Turns out, this is pretty common. The RLP is not unusual, but once again, my pregnancy was very tough. For the most part though, pretty typical aches and pains that all moms-to-be go through, though....
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