The flip flops I'm referring to are the ones that baby bear is doing in utero ALL the time. And the ones my stomach does when I think about delivery and recovery.
Let's start with the former. For the past few days this little bear has really been familiarizing himself/herself with all space available in the womb. Last night he/she was all the way over on my upper left side just moving away. Kicking, poking, flipping, I don't really know what's going on in there, but I bet its a blast. All day today he/she has been all the way over on my upper right side doing the same thing. This is new to me because up until last night I'd mostly been feeling movement well below my slowly disappearing bellybutton. It's cool and comforting knowing my baby is so active. But I won't lie. It feels so WEIRD sometimes!
Now, for the latter. I have been thinking a lot about delivery lately. And I find myself worrying a lot about it. I'm not one of those women who has a specific birth plan in mind. I'm open to a vaginal delivery or a c-section. I'm DEFINITELY not going all natural. I want as many pain killers as I'm allowed to have and I'm not shy about saying that. But what I worry about are complications, during and after delivery. What if I tear? What if I pass out? What if I go # 2 on the delivery table? What if I need an episiotomy? What if I have a c-section and I end up with an infection? What if recovery takes a really long time? What if I bleed out? I'll stop there, because my list of worries of quite extensive, but you get the idea. Did anyone else have these concerns or am I just over-the-top?
So, I had my second glucose test on Friday. It was AWFUL. I had to fast, so I hadn't eaten since about 8 p.m. on Thursday. I had to have blood drawn four different times over the course of three hours. I thought they'd just do a finger prick each time. NOPE. The first draw happened as soon as I got there. My expectation went from finger prick to catheter in order to avoid poking me four different times. NOPE.
After the first draw I was handed a drink that looked similar to the orange one I posted a photo of in my last post, except this one was the consistency of cough syrup and was twice as sweet. To say it was terrible would be a gross understatement. I spent the first hour doing everything I could to not throw up. Even the thought of getting up and walking to the bathroom made me feel awful. I promise I'm not being melodramatic. I was really struggling. Had my second blood draw exactly an hour after I finished the drink. At that point I was allowed to drink ice water for the next hour. Then I had the third draw. That's when I started feeling better and was looking forward to lunch. I was so glad to leave after that fourth and final blood draw.
And Monday I got the call. I do, in fact, have gestational diabetes. My OB referred me to Northside Hospital, where I will deliver, for all further treatment information. What they do is offer an all-day class where I assume I'll learn how to eat and how to check my blood sugar among other diabetes related things. I get to take that class tomorrow. I'll do what it takes to make sure baby bear and I stay healthy.
Tuesday I had my first chiropractor appointment. It was fantastic. The doctor has been adjusting pregnant women for nine years and was very gentle. It really alleviated SO MUCH of that lumbar SI/hip pain I was having. I'm looking forward to my next appointment.
Oh, also noticing a lot of red spots popping up on my skin. They're not like acne or a rash, more like broken blood vessels, maybe? I'm not sure if I should be concerned or not so I'll add it to my list of concerns to address at my next appointment.
Next week we are taking our babymoon vacation! Our first choice was Asheville, NC, but Marriott will not let us use any rewards points for any hotels even close to Asheville. Same goes for Gatlinburg, TN (our second choice.) So we're going to Nashville, TN instead. I have never been there and Taylor's only gone once. We'll get there Thursday and leave Saturday. So far our definite plans include seeing a show Friday night at the Grand Ole Opry (Joe Diffie, anyone?) and a stop at the Jack Daniels distillery on the way back home Saturday. I'm excited!!
OHHHH yeah! We painted the baby's room green! We used Valspar paint plus primer and the color is called Sunny Dale. You can see a color swatch online here. But that swatch doesn't do it justice AT ALL. It's a lovely, bold shade of green.
Before: tan. After: green!
Weekly photo:
How far along: 26 weeks
Trimester: Second
Total weight gain/loss: According to the scale at work I should be down about 7 pounds now. So, still haven't actually gained any weight.
Maternity clothes: Yes. I love stretchy waistbands.
Sleep: Sleeping great after my chiropractor appointment.
Stretch marks: Haven't seen anything new yet.
Best moment of the week: Realizing my back and hip pain had vastly improved after one chiropractor appointment.
Movement: This is a very active little baby!
Food Cravings: Waffle fries. But I haven't had any.
Anything making you queasy or sick? Not that I can recall lately.
Miss anything? Nope. I'm just enjoying everything.
Other symptoms: Heartburn. And I do need help getting up off the couch and the floor now. Lol. OH and "pregnancy brain," which I honestly thought was a crock of you-know-what that pregnant women used as an excuse for being forgetful. I can now attest that it's real.
Have you started to show yet? Yes.
Sex: It will be a surprise.
Labor Signs: None.
Belly button in or out? In? Out? Not sure. It's stretching out!
Wedding rings on or off? On.
Moody or not moody? Moody - feel like crying a lot. But not because I'm sad.
Looking forward to: Visiting Jody (Taylor's mom) in Locust Grove this weekend.
I thought pregnancy brain was a crock too and my husband and friends (especially at King Green) can tell you IT'S REAL. As far as fears go, that's totally normal. I thought all of the same things. I had a vaginal with epidural. For me the epidural was a piece of cake compared to the pain I felt of my contractions once the doctor broke my water. Prior to him breaking my water they were tolerable period like cramps. He did not do or offer an episiotomy, but I did tear in a couple of places. The pain/healing of that for me lasted about 2 weeks. Ibuprofen helped and these ice pack pads the hospital gives you were nice too. I also recommend Tucks pads and Dermoplast spray...those will help a lot temporarily.
ReplyDeleteYep, Amanda definitely had pregnancy brain!
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