Sugar Issues, Sounds Fun but It's Not!

Since I've last posted I've had a few doctors appointments, I'm at once a week these days. At each appointment I have an ultrasound and an non-stress test. In each visit and test Baby B has tested very well. On the biophysical she scores 8 each time. And in her non-stress test her heartbeat is strong. They said I had a few contractions on the Dec. 23rd NST so they checked my cervix. She said it was softening but no big change, which is about right for how far along I am.

One development in the Dec. 23rd appointment was that Dr. N continues to be concerned that my fasting blood sugars haven't been cooperating. She said she was going to reach out to my endocrinologist (Dr. S) to discuss, and she insinuated that she might want to hospitalize me to get it under control. That feels very drastic to me. It's not like Baby B is measuring very large and my blood sugar is pretty level all the rest of the time. Dr. S called me that night to discuss and asked that I start testing my blood sugar in the middle of the night and earlier in the morning. I suppose lucky for me, my sleeping is so erratic I don't even have to set an alarm to wake up at 2 or 3am because I do it naturally. He wanted to track if I'm high in the middle of the night too. If so, he's going to recommend a get put on an insulin pump to control my levels better. Honestly, I feel like both hospitalization and an insulin pump are a bit drastic considering how close I am to delivery.

I'd be lieing if I didn't say this whole situation has caused me quite a bit of stress, and I've had moments where I've cried because my blood sugar wasn't where I'd want it to be. On top of that, my bedtime insulin had to change because my insurance company won't cover what I'd been taking anymore. The kind I have to take now requires a syringe instead of using a pen. Plus the only needle they carry is twice as long as what I'd been using. I didn't cry about that change, but I was pretty angry about it. I now have been taking about 70 units at bedtime splitting them into two shots with the hopes that my body will take it better. The last few nights my blood sugar has been much better. Although a few times it was really low in the middle of the night so I ate something to be sure I didn't get too severe of low blood sugar.

I suppose we'll see how all that develops. In the meantime, the holidays were nice and relaxing. Johnathan and I had a few days of complete laziness that included watching a lot of Netflix. There have been a few moments of me not feeling well, but that probably just comes along with the late pregnancy territory.

Baby B 35w4days. She's a big fan of having her foot by her face.

Due Date: January 30, 2012. 32 more days! Depending on how things develop, we'll see if it's earlier.

Weight Gain: I've gained about 14 lbs.

Symptoms: Getting tired quicker (had to leave the in laws Christmas party at 11 while everyone else kept partying on), sleeping back pain, and stupid heart burn (this is the worst!) . She's started pushing on me in uncomfortable ways, last night it was the ribs (and just when I had been thinking how lucky I was not to have that issue).

Cravings/Aversions: Still crunching away on ice. There are other cravings that involve things I can't have, so it's not exactly something I indulge in.

Sleep: Not only do I wake up regularly to go to the bathroom and/or test my blood sugar, but I deal with the acid reflux waking me up and/or just not being able to sleep. Anyone who says catch up on your sleep now, must not remember how hard that can be.

I am loving: My current vacation time. Been off since Dec. 21 and won't go back until Jan. 3. Johnathan and I have had great opportunity to spend time together.

I miss: Not thinking about my food so much, putting my shoes on without effort, and rolling over without effort.

I am looking forward to: My next ultrasound on Jan. 3rd. They'll weigh her again then.

Best thing about this week: Relaxing as much as I can.

Milestones: Hmm not sure there has been one.

Movement: Her movements are less kicks and more just moving around. I guess she doesn't have much room to kick or punch.

It's a...: girl!

Heart Burn: Ugh, so much! I'm starting to have favorite Tums flavors (peppermint). I've also started using Gaviscon before bedtime. It does help with the acid, even if it is gross.

Belly button in or out?: Eh, it's a weird hybrid. I will admit to putting bandaids on my belly button to keep the poke out down to a minimum :).

Labor signs?: Nothing serious. I've started having some Braxton Hicks contractions, but they're weird and seem to last longer than I would expect. I'm nervous I won't know the real thing when it starts.

Warning!! The Stretch continues...

Look at how big it's getting!! Oh, and the belly is bigger too :). I guess those two things go hand in hand. They're right, after you've had a baby you won't be the same again. The best we can hope for is to accept it gracefully and realize that the sacrifice has a purpose.

 “Great achievement is usually born of great sacrifice, and is never the result of selfishness.” -Napoleon Hill

This, That, and the Baby

I think I'm going to dedicate this post to a few random thoughts I've had lately and a few doctors appointments that I've had.

• I know people mean well when they tell a pregnant woman that her and her husband will have a beautiful baby, but what does it mean?! Of course you're not going to look at a pregnant woman and say, "You're going to have such an ugly baby." Oh, people don't have a problem knocking your baby's name, that's within bounds, but I don't think anyone would be so bold as to insult how your child will look. I'm not worried, of course we'll have a beautiful baby :) but it was just a thought I had.
• In the quiet times, when I'm reading or watching tv or just being I sometimes have small moments of panic. I'm so excited for Baby B and really can't wait to meet her but those moments really bring home the fact that my life will never be the same. When I get those quiet moments again, they'll be few and far between. The era of ME will be over. Everyone goes through this, I'm sure. And I know that my love of her will take over any feeling of "loss" that, right now, I think I'll feel. But I will miss those times, a little :).
• Most women don't plan to deliver until their due date or after. Because of my diabetes I know I won't go past my due date, but I know that going early is a real possibility too. That's causing me a bit of stress, not really knowing when I'll deliver. It makes me write off all of January and makes me feel so much pressure to get things ready before then. Baby B has been developing perfectly, and isn't even too big so I don't know why I think I'll go early. But one thing I've learned from this gestational diabetes process is I can't control what will happen. If you know me at all, I like control. Losing it is hard on me.
• I had my monthly appointment with my endocrinologist on Thursday. As you know, I've been having issues with my fasting blood sugars being too high so we mostly discussed that. My a1c is 5 which is still non-diabetic so that's good. It means my fasting blood sugars aren't high for very long. He thinks my bedtime insulin just isn't holding it's own for long enough. So he's asked me to test earlier and eat breakfast earlier. He casually mentioned that if I was high for longer the next step would be an insulin pump, which I can say scared me. With only 7 more weeks to go, I think I'd have to fight that. Especially since I won't have to take insulin after I deliver. Anyway, we're just keeping on with the normal process. Insulin at the meals and bedtime, just increasing at bedtime as necessary. He said I'm not perfect, but I'm as close as can be expected.
• I had my weekly visit to the OB on Friday for an ultrasound and non-stress test. I was 10 minutes late which was pretty stressful for me. I think that contributed to my blood pressure being higher than normal. Luckily it wasn't outside of the accepted range. The ultrasound included measuring her for size and doing a biophysical profile. The biophysical is when the sonographer watches the baby for certain movement and scores her from 1-8. If she scores below a 6 I'd have to go to the hospital for more observation. Baby B scored an 8. Her measurements were about a week and a half ahead which is fine and honestly I'm not surprised. Before we visited the doctor for the first time we thought we were a week ahead of what they settled on anyway. Baby B weighed 5 lbs 9 oz! But the best reveal at the ultrasound was that she has HAIR! The NST took longer than normal because Baby B was asleep and didn't seem to want to wake up. They like to see higher heart rates and more movement. They buzzed her three times and it took the last one to get her going a little bit. Next week I'll make sure and have some caffeine before I go in. 

It's hard to see, but it's the hair proof!

33 weeks (8.5 months)

Due Date: January 30, 2012. 44 more days!

Weight Gain: I've gained about 12 lbs. I weighed 2 lbs more than my last appointment. However, the baby also gained 2 lbs so I'm thinking it's all her.

Symptoms: Starting to get tired quicker, sleeping back pain, and stupid heart burn (this is the worst!) . The bathroom is my BFF what with all the visits I've been making to it.

Cravings/Aversions: Still crunching away on ice. There are other cravings that involve things I can't have, so it's not exactly something I indulge in.

Sleep: Starting to get worse. I wake up far more often especially around 1am. It's weird that I find I wake up around the same times every night.

I am loving: Knowing that Baby B is growing and developing as she should.

I miss: Not thinking about my food so much, putting my shoes on without effort, and rolling over without effort.

I am looking forward to: The hospital tour tomorrow.

Best thing about this week: Learning about Baby B's hair! It was long enough to be floating in the amniotic fluid. Also, we found the pack and play we registered for on sale.

Milestones: We picked up the crib yesterday. Now if only we (Johnathan) can get motivated enough to put it together. They tend to be a pain!

Movement: Her movements are less kicks and more just moving around. I guess she doesn't have much room to kick or punch.

It's a...: girl!

Heart Burn: Ugh, so much! I'm starting to have favorite Tums flavors (peppermint).

Belly button in or out?: In still. But the edge is poking out in a funny way, which almost gives the appearance of an outtie. I gotta say, it's rare to get such an in depth look at the bottom of your belly button.

Labor signs?: Nope, not even Braxton Hicks contractions

When It Showers It Pours...

This has been a big week for me! Sunday I finally had my baby shower and today I had my first non-stress test at the OB (I have to get another on Thursday but I'll get into that later).

My aunt, mother-in-law, and 2 friends pooled their resources to throw the baby shower for me at my aunt's house. There was food, and games, and presents. An all around good time. I had the biggest slice of cake imaginable, which I'm sure wasn't good for my diabetes but it sure was delicious! We got a lot of things that we needed and some things we didn't need but love all the more. Of course, being the type A personality that I am I came home and made a list of all the things we still need and will buy ourselves, along with prices listed. It never hurts to be prepared! I feel like the baby shower was my last big hurdle before the baby comes, now I'm feeling all kinds of pressure to get everything done before she comes. I'll share pictures of the event once I get my hands on them.

Today's non-stress test was the first for me. Basically they hook some things to your belly and track the baby's heartbeat and any contractions for 20 minutes. I push a button every time I feel her move. They just want to be sure things are ticking along with her. When we started her heartbeat was between 140 - 145 and she wasn't really moving. I warned the nurse that she doesn't move a whole lot in the morning. The nurse came in after a few minutes and said, "Yep, she's sleeping" and pulled out a vibrating buzzer thing. She put it to my belly for a few seconds and Baby B jolted awake! Her heartbeat jumped to 165 and she started moving a lot. I felt kinda bad for her. Who wants to be woken up that way!? Her results over the 20 minute period were good, with no concerns.

Unfortunately, I made the mistake of being honest with my OB about my fasting blood sugars. They haven't been cooperating for months now. They're supposed to be below 90 and I'm lucky if I get that result twice a week. Generally it's in the 90s and sometimes in the low hundreds. My endocrinologist and I have been trying our best to get it under control with my bedtime insulin (I'm up to 54 units right now), but it's just not working. My overall blood sugar is good, but the fasting is an issue.

Dr. N heard that and decided we need to monitor the baby more closely. She wants me to have 2 non-stress tests a week, unless I have an ultrasound then I'll only need one non-stress test that week. So we've scheduled another NST for this week, and ultrasound and NST for next week and the week after that. She said they usually don't schedule NSTs on Friday's in case they have to admit the patient to the hospital, which opens up a whole other can of worms in my mind. I'm not worried about Baby B, she's been healthy this whole time. And I don't think she'll have to be delivered in 2011 but what if!? We're totally not prepared for that! I know it's better safe then sorry, but it's just a little overwhelming so early in my third trimester.

THANK GOD for my work. If I didn't work for such a good company I'd be stressed about all the time out of work I have to take. But they are so easy-going and flexible with my schedule. I cannot imagine what women do when they don't have that kind of support.



32 weeks and smaller than the Christmas tree!

Due Date: January 30, 2012. 55 more days!

Weight Gain: I've gained about 10 lbs. I weighed 2 lbs more than on Nov. 25th but I was wearing high heel boots this time, so I'm thinking no weight gain.

Symptoms: Starting to get tired quicker, sleeping back pain, and stupid heart burn. The bathroom is my BFF what with all the visits I've been making to it.

Cravings/Aversions: I'm starting to crave bad foods. It's becoming harder and harder to resist. Also, ice! I can crunch on ice all day long!

Sleep: Starting to get worse. I wake up far more often.

I am loving: All the love I got at the baby shower!

I miss: Not thinking about my food so much.

I am looking forward to: Having this beautiful baby.

Best thing about this week: BABY SHOWER!!!!

Milestones: Being a little bit more prepared then we were last week.

Movement: We felt hiccups last week! It was fun and she didn't stop when Johnathan tried to feel.

It's a...: girl!

Heart Burn: Ugh, so much! I'm starting to have favorite Tums flavors. Really, that shouldn't happen!

Belly button in or out?: In still. But the edge is poking out in a funny way, which almost gives the appearance of an outtie. I gotta say, it's rare to get such an in depth look at the bottom of your belly button.

Labor signs?: Nope.