Bit of a Scare

36 Weeks, 3 Days

Here I am! Just days away from being considered full term (which is 37 weeks)! Can you believe it? I certainly can't. I feel like I've been pregnant FOREVER, while at the same time, it seems as if it was just yesterday I got a positive pregnancy test.

Looking puffy in the hospital...

We had a bit of a scare last Thursday. It all started when I went in for my weekly baby appointment at 8:30 am. All was pretty normal. My doctor finally "checked" me for the first time. Not exactly comfortable, but I'm anxious to learn whether or not I'm showing signs of impending labor. She could feel the baby's head; I wasn't dilated or effaced yet. Baby V is sitting really low and his head is pressed right on my bladder, which is the reason for the pain I've been experiencing these past few weeks. We listened to his heartbeat and it was right on target in the 140s. They also tested me for Group B Strep, which is standard procedure for all pregnant women between 35-37 weeks. If you test positive, you have to be on IV antibiotics during labor to make sure you don't pass it on to the baby.* Dr. H estimated that he's around 6 to 6.5 lbs by now. Everything about my check-up was normal, except for my blood pressure. It was abnormally high at 140/90. It was enough for Dr. H to be concerned so she ordered some tests to rule out a dangerous pregnancy condition called preeclampsia.  She also wanted to see me for a follow up appointment on Monday, rather than wait another week to see me so that she could check my blood pressure. So, after scheduling another appointment, Vicente and I waddled down to the diagnostic center to get my blood drawn. After that, I decided it was best to take the rest of the day off from work. I was feeling very anxious from the doctor's warnings, and we both thought it would be a good day to get some rest and get me off my feet. I'm glad we did. Around 3 pm, Dr. H called me with the lab results. She said that while my liver enzymes were normal, my platelet count was low (94,000). When paired with high blood pressure, that could indicate preeclampsia, so she asked that I come into the hospital right away for further testing and monitoring of me and the baby.

Vicente and I packed up the remainder of our hospital bag and drove back up to GBMC for the second time that day. I was pretty overwhelmed. Mostly, I was worried for the baby's sake. It was scary to think that I could be induced that day if something had been wrong. Long story short, I turned out to be fine. I was at the hospital for a couple of hours, during which time the nurses took serial blood pressure readings and monitored the baby's heartbeat. Oddly enough, all my BP readings were normal, and thankfully Baby V's heart rate was fantastic. Dr. H. popped in to tell me she did not think I had preeclampsia, but she thinks I have thrombocytopenia (aka: low platelets), a fairly benign condition that many women develop in pregnancy. She ordered a fetal growth sonogram for the following Tuesday (which is tomorrow) just to make sure the baby is growing as he should, but she has no reason to believe he isn't. I'm just happy I get to see my sweet babe one more time before he's here!

*Update, I found out this morning that I tested positive for Strep B, so I'll have to get IV antibiotics to protect baby V during birth. It's very common...one in four pregnant women have it. Luckily, being on IV antibiotics greatly reduces the chance of passing it on to your little one during delivery, so God willing, everything should be OK. I guess this is one of those reasons why prenatal care is so important!

Saturday walk in Patterson Park

Trying to walk this baby right out!
Like how my jacket still  fits?