"The best things in life are unexpected because there were no expectations." -Eli Khamavov
WOW! Things are starting to get crazy in there. I just hit 30 weeks today. My uterus is literally getting beat up by elbows, feet and heads that like to push into my ribs. I am now seeing the doctor every 2 weeks and continue to have grown scans to make sure both babes are growing correctly. Last week both babies are weighing around 3.4 lbs. After 32 weeks I have to go to the doctor twice a week for fetal non-stress tests. They put you on a monitor and watch the heart rates. If both babies are doing fine then I keep on cooking. If one or both are in distressed, then we take them out. So things could get interesting here in a few weeks. I am growing very fast and out growing my maternity clothing. I had a meltdown when I had to buy large tops! But I know a growing belly means healthy babies but it is still rough. I had another little meltdown when I noticed the faintest of lines... stretch marks under my belly button. I lost it! I started crying and came down the stairs to Matt so upset. You would have thought that it was the end of the world the way I was acting. He just gave me a hug and said, "I know it must be hard." I got over it and realized this is just part of the deal. I have also been getting dizzy spells. This due to the way the girls are position. I was at the OB getting my ultrasound when I almost passed out. I was lying completely on my back on the ultrasound table and the doctor had started the scan when all of the sudden the room started to spin and I felt like I was going to puke. I started to see black spots. The next thing I knew. The doctor turned me on my left side and put a pillow between my legs. He then said, "Are you Ok?" I said, "What just happened?" He told me that he noticed I was getting agitated which usually happens when some one is about to pass out. He said that he asked me a question and I did not respond. This little episode happened because of the way the girls positioned. They are transverse (like hot dogs) across my abdomen one on top of the other and putting a lot of pressure on my vena cava which is the main venous return. By lying on your left side it gets the weight and pressure of the babies off this vessel and helps circulate blood and oxygen to vital organs including my brain. Now I feel like every time I lay down I'm gonna die. So it is my left side all the time for this girly.
I am learning a lot as I go along with this pregnancy. I thought I knew stuff but I am learning more and more as the weeks go along. I think one of the more difficult things of pregnancy is not just the physical issues but figuring out all the other stuff like, "When do I find a pediatrician?" "When should I set up the nursery?" "When do these more frequent visits begin?" There is no set time-line to all of this. I have just been figuring it out as I go. I thought I would share my little tidbits with people as a guide for their pregnancy. You can take it or leave it, but this is how I went about it.
Stats:
Gestation: 30 weeks (woot)
Wight Gain: 34lbs (oh my GOSH)
Stretch Marks: Sadly yes. very faint lines right under my belly button
Belly button: I have an outie
Positions: both girls are transverse. This means they are positioned length wise like hot dogs across by stomach making it extremely uncomfortable!!!!! One's head is in my upper left side of my abdomen with her feet kicking my right ribs the other's head is in the lower left with her feet kicking me in my lower right.
Cravings: MILK (I hate milk), bananas, cream cheese
So here we go. What should I do and when?:
1. You Missed your Period. What to do?
So there you have it. Some tips as you grow your bun. Hope it helped!
I am learning a lot as I go along with this pregnancy. I thought I knew stuff but I am learning more and more as the weeks go along. I think one of the more difficult things of pregnancy is not just the physical issues but figuring out all the other stuff like, "When do I find a pediatrician?" "When should I set up the nursery?" "When do these more frequent visits begin?" There is no set time-line to all of this. I have just been figuring it out as I go. I thought I would share my little tidbits with people as a guide for their pregnancy. You can take it or leave it, but this is how I went about it.
Stats:
Gestation: 30 weeks (woot)
Wight Gain: 34lbs (oh my GOSH)
Stretch Marks: Sadly yes. very faint lines right under my belly button
Belly button: I have an outie
Positions: both girls are transverse. This means they are positioned length wise like hot dogs across by stomach making it extremely uncomfortable!!!!! One's head is in my upper left side of my abdomen with her feet kicking my right ribs the other's head is in the lower left with her feet kicking me in my lower right.
Cravings: MILK (I hate milk), bananas, cream cheese
So here we go. What should I do and when?:
1. You Missed your Period. What to do?
- So... go pee on a stick. If you come up with a big fat + call your OB as soon as you find out. Tell them you have a positive home pregnancy test and they will guide you what do next. Each OBGYN is different. Mine did not want to see me until I was 8 weeks. If you are unsure about your dates and not sure how far a long, make sure you tell them. They might bring you in earlier to help you figure it out by doing an early ultrasound.
- This is a very personal decision. I know people who tell immediately once there is a positive. Others will literally wait until they are showing. So I will share with you my thought process on this topic. I was not going to announce it to the world until I made it past 12 weeks. From my experience working in healthcare you usually have a sticky bean in the uterus once you hit that mark. I did however tell our parents right away and then a few weeks later told our siblings and some very close friends. Why did I do this? Well, I knew that if something went wrong I would need some support. Plus, I knew that they would be wondering why I was in a funk or so sad if there was something that happened. I would have wanted the support, but I did not want the entire world to know. I made them swear to keep their mouths shut and trusted them. They did not say anything until I gave them the go ahead. So that was my reasoning. I did not tell others such as work and other friends until 12 weeks. I also knew it was twins at 8 weeks but did not tell people until 12 weeks.
- Typically you will see the doctor starting at 8 weeks and then every 4 weeks until you hit your third trimester around 28 weeks. Then you will be going every 2 weeks. Then once you hit 36 weeks you will be going weekly until due date. Of course with a high risk pregnancy like mine you will be seen more frequently in your third trimester I am going to go 2 times a week after 32 weeks.
- My opinion on this is to start looking after your first doctor visit at 8 weeks. I say this because when I lived in DC the market for daycares was limited. I called one place and there happened to be 300 kids on the wait list. I also wanted to see how much this stuff was going to cost so we could start saving. I suggest looking the earlier the better. Take some tours, get some prices, and put your name on a list if you need to!! Since we moved to Ohio I am actually able to stay home with the girls for a bit. I did look into some more daycares once I moved and have one picked out and will put my name in once I do go back to work.
- I vote do it earlier than later. You are so darn tired the further along you get and you never know if you could deliver early. We had mine when I was 28 weeks and I think that is just a perfect time. You will need some time after the shower to organize the nursery and such and you don't want to be doing that right before the baby is due. You want to be chilling at that point. So my vote is the start of your third trimester.
- Once again I did this early just in case I go early. I went around 6 months but I would say to other preggers to start about 2 months before delivery. I highly recommend this! You will get a free tour of the maternity and postpartum units. It was great because if you did go into labor you know exactly where to go and the process of checking in. So many hospitals are such mazes these days and you really want to where to go and what to do. I also wanted to take a look at hospitals to ask questions such as, "Where is your NICU?" What level is it?" I suggest that you deliver in a hospital that actually has a NICU. A NICU is an intensive care unit and it is very different from a special care nursery! I also ask other questions such as: how many people can be in the room when you are pushing? What are the visiting hours? Does the baby stay with mom or go to the newborn nursery? Carrying twins I wanted to know about vaginal births process. I was so happy to hear that they do them in the operating room just in case the second baby gets stuck and there needs to be a stat c-section. These are all things you find out on tours... SO DO ONE! Plus you can get some of your paperwork filled out before hand such as insurance info!
- So I was on one of these tours and heard a few mom's saying they got a breast pump through insurance. I think "WHAT?!!! Ok hold the phone... gotta check into this." With most insurance these days breast pumps are covered. They are considered a preventative care. So I called and the number on the back of my insurance card and talked to member services. Indeed my insurance will cover this cost. Each insurance is different, some will want a script from your doctor for the pump to be issued. Others will want you to order the pump within 30 days of birth, and others just don't seem to care when you do it. What I did was ask for a list of approved medical equipment suppliers from Anthem who is my insurance. They sent me a list and I started calling around. You have to order from the approved list so make sure you know what that is. I then asked the suppliers to send me catalog or online brochure of the products that they have available and then did some research on-line before I place my order. My insurance makes me wait to order within 30 days of birth. I suggest that you call you insurance once you hit around 30 weeks and find out your process just so you can figure out how your plan works!
- This is a personal decision. I know lots of people who want to decorate and set it up ASAP. Other's won't bring anything into the house until the baby is born. For example in the Jewish Tradition they do not bring any baby stuff into the house until the baby is born, they say it could bring bad luck. I kind of agree with the Jewish mentality about this. I am afraid to jinx anything so we have not set up the nursery yet. We have painted and and hung up curtains, but there are no cribs or changing table. I am thinking we will start this process after 32 weeks. There is really no good recommendation for this just something interesting to think about.
- YES! After the baby is born they typically see the pediatrician within 3 days of discharge from the hospital so you need to have picked one! If you don't have one in mind ask you OB for a list. Almost all OB office have a list of pediatricians in the area. You can also ask a friend if they have one that they like. You want to look for ones with good hours, an emergency line to call with questions and one that is close to your home, work, daycare whichever is more convenient. I would also look at the actually office and take a look at the waiting room. Some office have separate waiting rooms for sick kids and well kids. This can be good because if your baby is there just for shots you don't want them sitting next to the snotty nose coughing sick kid. If they don't have a completely separate waiting room that is Ok. Just keep an eye on the 4 year old who had the snotty nose who wants to touch your 6 week old baby and make sure they don't touch or cough on the babe. I would call about 1-2 months before delivery and ask if they take your insurance and if they are taking new patients. Some practices actually have "open houses" where they showcase the practice. That is also a great time to go and meet the nurses and doctors. So just call around!
- When I worked in the maternity clinic for the department of health we got this question a lot. Here is the answer: until there is a medical need for you to stop working, you can work up until your due date. However there are so many women who are so tired, HUGE, and uncomfortable that they will take sometime off around 2 weeks before delivery just to rest and relax. It is a person decision. But there is no medical need to stop working unless the doctor tells you such. Reasons that could cause you to stop working are: contractions, dilation, or if your blood pressure is elevated.
So there you have it. Some tips as you grow your bun. Hope it helped!