We have made it to 32 weeks! I will be having Oreo pie from Baker's Square to celebrate!!!
I got the results of my 24 hour collection from Sunday, and the protein level went down again. I'm currently at 280, which is back in normal limits (<300). My bp is ok, although when I look at my notebook, since Thursday each day it's crept up a bit. Thursday we had 4 top number readings in the 120s, 1 in the 130s, and 1 in the 140s. Today I've had 2 in the 130s and 2 in the 140s so far. Clearly, there's a slight trend, but I showed my ob my book, he made copies of my pages, and didn't seem too concerned at this point. Each day that the babies are inside babies is a blessing. While I am certainly taking it one day at a time and am thankful for each day, I want a bigger goal to aim for, not just "get through tonight". That being said, it has been repeated to me numerous times that for each day the babies stay in, it's about 3 less days in the nicu. So, I figure on the conservative side, 3 days in is about 1 week less in the nicu, and while I want to make it through tonight, then tomorrow, then Thursday, and so on... I'll be doing a happy dance every 3 days. I've got my sight set on Friday (32w3d).
Despite having a growth ultrasound last Monday in the hospital, our regularly scheduled one is for Thursday, after my nst and bpp. I'm so excited to see how much my SnuggleBugs will have grown in 10 days. Baby A was 3lbs13oz and B was 3lbs7oz. Baby A should certainly be over 4 pounds by then, and I'm hopeful that B is closing in on the 4 pound mark.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
Greta update
So while I was in the hospital, Greta had another appointment for her cancer treatment last Monday. It absolutely broke my heart that I couldn't go with and be there for her, but Jamie and my mom took good care of her. We were halfway through chemo, and before they did round 4, they had to do a chest xray to see if the cancer had gotten to her lungs. They also xrayed her right front arm (sight of origin) to see how things were looking there.
Greta's chest and lungs are still crystal clear! Her arm has not changed since the original xrays in March! (This is a good thing- what's there is there and will not go away. We just wanted to stop it from getting any bigger or spreading elsewhere.) So, that being said, Gretty had her fourth round of chemo. She goes back on July 5 for her last bone strengthening treatment (pomidronate) and round five of chemo. Studies are showing that there may be a difference in pets that get 5 or 6 chemo sessions, so we are going for 6.
My understanding is that once we are done with all treatments, we'd basically do a follow-up in a few months, unless we notice any changes before that. While the radiation does "kill off" some cells, it is primarily for pain management. If Greta started to really hurt and her pain pills just weren't cutting it, we could at some point do more radiation. The catch there is that the second round only seems effective for half the time as the first round. So, if Greta went 4 months before showing us she was hurting, the next round of radiation would likely only get her about 2 more months pain free. It's a lot to consider, but for now we're celebrating her success!
Greta's chest and lungs are still crystal clear! Her arm has not changed since the original xrays in March! (This is a good thing- what's there is there and will not go away. We just wanted to stop it from getting any bigger or spreading elsewhere.) So, that being said, Gretty had her fourth round of chemo. She goes back on July 5 for her last bone strengthening treatment (pomidronate) and round five of chemo. Studies are showing that there may be a difference in pets that get 5 or 6 chemo sessions, so we are going for 6.
My understanding is that once we are done with all treatments, we'd basically do a follow-up in a few months, unless we notice any changes before that. While the radiation does "kill off" some cells, it is primarily for pain management. If Greta started to really hurt and her pain pills just weren't cutting it, we could at some point do more radiation. The catch there is that the second round only seems effective for half the time as the first round. So, if Greta went 4 months before showing us she was hurting, the next round of radiation would likely only get her about 2 more months pain free. It's a lot to consider, but for now we're celebrating her success!
Friday, June 17, 2011
6 nights in lock up
Where do I begin?
I'm going to try my best to give the Cliff Notes version of my last week. I may go back and add details later, but a week's worth of life is hard to completely relive.
Rewind to last Thursday, June 9. At my nst and bpp, everything was going along fine, until they took my blood pressure. It was up pretty high. (might I add that it was elevated a bit at Monday's appt and at my md appt on Tues?) We waited a bit and rechecked. Still up. The MFM got a hold of my OB and decided I should go to the hospital to have labs done and be monitored. I cried. I went home to meet up with Jamie and grab jammies and a few things "just in case". I left it all in the car, though, as I didn't want to give them any ideas!
The babies continued to look great on the monitor, but my bp was climbing so they gave me a 100mg dose of Labetalol (I was currently taking 100mg in the morning and 100mg at night). They drew blood, and we waited. The labs came back normal. My bp wouldn't budge though. They told be I could get dressed and go home around 8:30pm, so I got dressed and waited. And waited. And when the resident came in she informed us that I was going to be given betamethosone (a 2 round steroid shot to help speed up the babies' lung development). The second shot would have to be given at the same time on Friday night. I sort of sheepishly said, "No problem, I'll come back for the second one tomorrow night," as I smiled at her. Oh, no, no. I was being admitted because of my blood pressure. They gave me yet another 100mg of Labetalol. Jamie called our families and then went to get food for me. I got the shot in my arm, and lemme tell ya- it hurt like hell. It was a 22 gauge intramuscular deal, and you'd think that a girl who underwent 2 ivfs and a total of 5 transfers would be an old pro with shots, but that wasn't quite the case. It hurt and it burned long after it was administered. But with the 'roids now in my system, perhaps we'll have some sort of SUPER BABIES! =)
So, I was admitted on Thursday night and didn't get discharged until Wednesday afternoon. I did a 24 hour urine collection to check for protein on Friday, which came back at 302. Below 300 is normal. 300-5,000 is abnormal. Above 5,000 is severe and dangerous. I repeated the collection on Sunday, and the protein went up to 336. They were looking for a trend to see how quickly it was accelerating. My ob wanted a repeat on Tuesday. When I got the results on Wednesday, that was one of the deciding factors that I could go home, it dropped to 305. I cried every single day I was there. I had a lot of incredible nurses and only one crappy one who I demanded not be assigned to me again. I got so many mixed signals from residents and doctors it made my head spin. They explained to us how very important it would be to keep my little ones inside until 32 weeks (which is this upcoming Tuesday). Many of the complications with preemies drop a great deal at this gestational age. One of my obs said on Sunday that he was hoping I could keep them in for 1 maybe 2 more weeks before we'd have to get them out. Now that my bp is under control (thanks to 900mg of Labetalol!!! 300mg, 3x a day) and my protein appears to be ok (at least for right now) and I I have no swelling or pain, maybe, just maybe I can carry my babies a little bit closer to term.
On Saturday, we had gotten a tour of the nicu and were pointed out babies at different gestationsl ages because "it can be a bit alarming". Seeing the nicu was very reassuring, but it made me pretty sad to thin how long my babies *could/ might* be in there. But I know that that would be the very best place for them if being inside of me was no longer an option. I get it. It was just overwhelming and difficult to swallow.
Ok, so for now I'm at home. I have my list of IF __________, THEN YOU COME BACK. IF _______, CALL YOUR OB. I check my bp every few hours and it has held steady and been pretty good. I realize that the medicine is just masking the problem and buying us some time, but that's ok. I was also told not to panic if I end up having to come back, even if it's just for a night or two. I started repacking my bag so this time I'll be ready, and not ahve to give Jamie lists every single day of what I need. We're even throwing stuff for him inthe bag, because I'm hoping that the next time we go, in like 2 or 3 or 4 more weeks!!!, it'll be to have babies.
I know that there is so much more I want to share about my experience, but a lot of it is a blur in the aftermath. If anything else meaningful pops into my head, I'll add it as a separate, add on post, otherwise, this is the gist of it.
For every one day I can keep my SnuggleBugs inside, it's about 3 days less that they'll need in the nicu. So, here I am at 31w3d and going strong, just taking it one day at a time. While 32 weeks is a big milestone and goal for us, I'm already so much better off today than I was at this time last Friday. Each day is it's own goal that I'm thankful for and a celebration!
I'm going to try my best to give the Cliff Notes version of my last week. I may go back and add details later, but a week's worth of life is hard to completely relive.
Rewind to last Thursday, June 9. At my nst and bpp, everything was going along fine, until they took my blood pressure. It was up pretty high. (might I add that it was elevated a bit at Monday's appt and at my md appt on Tues?) We waited a bit and rechecked. Still up. The MFM got a hold of my OB and decided I should go to the hospital to have labs done and be monitored. I cried. I went home to meet up with Jamie and grab jammies and a few things "just in case". I left it all in the car, though, as I didn't want to give them any ideas!
The babies continued to look great on the monitor, but my bp was climbing so they gave me a 100mg dose of Labetalol (I was currently taking 100mg in the morning and 100mg at night). They drew blood, and we waited. The labs came back normal. My bp wouldn't budge though. They told be I could get dressed and go home around 8:30pm, so I got dressed and waited. And waited. And when the resident came in she informed us that I was going to be given betamethosone (a 2 round steroid shot to help speed up the babies' lung development). The second shot would have to be given at the same time on Friday night. I sort of sheepishly said, "No problem, I'll come back for the second one tomorrow night," as I smiled at her. Oh, no, no. I was being admitted because of my blood pressure. They gave me yet another 100mg of Labetalol. Jamie called our families and then went to get food for me. I got the shot in my arm, and lemme tell ya- it hurt like hell. It was a 22 gauge intramuscular deal, and you'd think that a girl who underwent 2 ivfs and a total of 5 transfers would be an old pro with shots, but that wasn't quite the case. It hurt and it burned long after it was administered. But with the 'roids now in my system, perhaps we'll have some sort of SUPER BABIES! =)
So, I was admitted on Thursday night and didn't get discharged until Wednesday afternoon. I did a 24 hour urine collection to check for protein on Friday, which came back at 302. Below 300 is normal. 300-5,000 is abnormal. Above 5,000 is severe and dangerous. I repeated the collection on Sunday, and the protein went up to 336. They were looking for a trend to see how quickly it was accelerating. My ob wanted a repeat on Tuesday. When I got the results on Wednesday, that was one of the deciding factors that I could go home, it dropped to 305. I cried every single day I was there. I had a lot of incredible nurses and only one crappy one who I demanded not be assigned to me again. I got so many mixed signals from residents and doctors it made my head spin. They explained to us how very important it would be to keep my little ones inside until 32 weeks (which is this upcoming Tuesday). Many of the complications with preemies drop a great deal at this gestational age. One of my obs said on Sunday that he was hoping I could keep them in for 1 maybe 2 more weeks before we'd have to get them out. Now that my bp is under control (thanks to 900mg of Labetalol!!! 300mg, 3x a day) and my protein appears to be ok (at least for right now) and I I have no swelling or pain, maybe, just maybe I can carry my babies a little bit closer to term.
On Saturday, we had gotten a tour of the nicu and were pointed out babies at different gestationsl ages because "it can be a bit alarming". Seeing the nicu was very reassuring, but it made me pretty sad to thin how long my babies *could/ might* be in there. But I know that that would be the very best place for them if being inside of me was no longer an option. I get it. It was just overwhelming and difficult to swallow.
Ok, so for now I'm at home. I have my list of IF __________, THEN YOU COME BACK. IF _______, CALL YOUR OB. I check my bp every few hours and it has held steady and been pretty good. I realize that the medicine is just masking the problem and buying us some time, but that's ok. I was also told not to panic if I end up having to come back, even if it's just for a night or two. I started repacking my bag so this time I'll be ready, and not ahve to give Jamie lists every single day of what I need. We're even throwing stuff for him inthe bag, because I'm hoping that the next time we go, in like 2 or 3 or 4 more weeks!!!, it'll be to have babies.
I know that there is so much more I want to share about my experience, but a lot of it is a blur in the aftermath. If anything else meaningful pops into my head, I'll add it as a separate, add on post, otherwise, this is the gist of it.
For every one day I can keep my SnuggleBugs inside, it's about 3 days less that they'll need in the nicu. So, here I am at 31w3d and going strong, just taking it one day at a time. While 32 weeks is a big milestone and goal for us, I'm already so much better off today than I was at this time last Friday. Each day is it's own goal that I'm thankful for and a celebration!
Thursday, June 2, 2011
tummy shot: 29w2d
A new tummy shot has been a long time coming, so here we are:
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How far along? 29 weeks and 2 days
Weight gain: 13 pounds- I somehow lost a pound at the ob office from my 27 week appointment
Weight gain: 13 pounds- I somehow lost a pound at the ob office from my 27 week appointment
Maternity clothes? all the time
Stretch marks? I think there might be the beginning of a small one...
Sleep? Umm, not so much. About 45-60 minutes at a time each night, sometimes just waking up for 19 pee breaks, other times I'll be up anywhere from 1-2 hours a couple of times
Belly button in or out? still in, but it's more shallow and maybe smaller than before
Movement? Oh yeah, all of the time. Especially at night, when I'm hungry, or about 20 minutes after ice cream or a slushy
Cravings? slushies/slurpees - blue is the best!
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