Holy Cow, the 2nd Trimester! (aka 13 weeks)

I have had a very busy several days.  My appointment with the endocrinologist last Wednesday was uneventful.  She explained the medicine change (from something that crosses the placenta to something that doesn't... makes sense), and the request for frequent blood draws, and that was about it.  Though, I did get a call from her office a few minutes ago.  The rest of my results came back from the last draw.  My levels are a little high, so they want me to increase my dose.

Last Friday was my first appointment with high risk.  JP and his mother were both able to come with me.  We were there for FOUR HOURS.  After the standard "pee in the cup", I went over my history and medications with the nurse practitioner.

Next came the NT scan/ultrasound, with an extremely quiet technician.  She barely said a peep to explain what she was doing.  She did, though, fairly quickly point out the beating heart, which immediately put me at ease.  My baby is starting to look like a little person, and not just a blob on the screen!

Next we waited for what seemed like ages to talk to the doctor, only to be greeted by his partner.  She was very nice and thorough.  We discussed my CAH (which I explain a little here), how it is very much the "non classic" form, and therefore very rare, and seems to rather stump people on what to do about it.  Amniocentesis was offered, as I'm already too far along for CVS.  In the end, we decided to have JP tested to see if he is a carrier, rather than jump to what I consider to be a somewhat scary option (the amnio).  We also talked about the surgery, my vitamin levels, etc.

We were ushered off to have blood collected.  Mine for whatever little-dots-of-blood-on-a-card test accompanies the NT scan, and JP for a vial of blood for the genetic stuff.  The geneticist came in to speak with us at this time.  My non-classic form of CAH apparently seems to stump her as well.  She contacted some expert at some university for consult on what is normally done for people like me during pregnancy.  Personally, I'm willing to trust my endocrinologist and here once-every-three-weeks blood draws to check my hormone levels.  I'm still anxious to find out the results, and whatever she finds out from this expert.

Monday I had an appointment with my regular OB.  The nurse was able to find the heartbeat on the doppler this time, rather easily.  Yay!  Once the doctor came in, all we did was discuss my appointment with high risk.  At least I'm getting my money's worth on my health insurance lately.  Yeesh.

And now for the weekly stats.  Feel free to skip!

* Belly - I'm definitely starting to pop out now, but it's still likely only visible to me.

* Weight gain - I've gained back the pound I lost, plus two more.  I'm not sure if I can attribute this to the pregnancy, the change in meds, or what.

* Symptoms - Occasional round ligament pain.  Very frequent trips to the potty, fatigue, heightened sense of smell, tender breasts, constipation, and oh the hormones and mood swings!  I don't think there was anything new this week.

* Cravings/Aversions -  I still have a terrible sweet tooth!

* Clothes - I have had to put away any of my pants that had been slightly snug before.

* Movement - I saw plenty of movement at my scan on Friday!  It was beautiful!

* Feelings on gender - I don't know anymore!  My anatomy scan is scheduled for October 8th!

* Meds - My hydr.ocor.tisone was increased from 20 mg to 30 mg, due to slightly high hormone levels.

* Mood - I feel like I'm turning in to a crazy woman!  My poor husband has the patience of the saint.

* What I miss - Sleeping through the night, caffeine, and wine.  But only a tiny bit!

* Appointments - I get a bit of a reprieve.  I don't go back to the OB for 4 weeks, 6 weeks for high risk, and December for the endocrinologist.

* Medical concerns - Nutrition/calories, and possible passing on my CAH.

* Coming up - I want to get a jump on some home repairs while I still have the energy to do so!

August ICLW, Updates, and 12 Weeks

Hello folks visiting from ICLW!  I'm sorry that I'm a day late getting a new post up.

I'm Jamie, I'm 32 years old, married to JP (recently turned 38) for almost 2 years (but together for 6).  I am 13 months post-op, roux-en-y (RNY) gastric bypass surgery.  Since beginning my weight-loss journey, I have lost 146 pounds.  As of today, I am 12 weeks pregnant with my first child.  More of my IF history, and more details about RNY can be found in the tabs toward the top of the page.

I've had a couple of developments over the last week and a half or so.  My regular OB, not surprisingly, decided to go ahead and refer me to a high-risk doctor.  This is due to both my post-op status and the presence of genetic adrenal problems.  I have my first appointment and ultrasound on Friday morning.  It is the same perinatologist (MFM) that I had a consultation with several months ago, at the suggestion of my previous OBGYN.  He seems like a good guy, and I really like his staff.  My regular OB also wants to continue seeing me.

I also called and updated my adult endocrinologist's office of my pregnancy (not to be confused with an RE).  The nurse passed the info on to the doctor, who wanted to see me as soon as possible (which happens to be this afternoon), and also wants me to have my blood drawn to check my hormone levels every three weeks for the remainder of my pregnancy.  So, I seem to be under the care of three different doctors throughout this process.  My bosses at work are thrilled, let me tell you.

In unrelated goings-on, JP and I are semi-freshly back from a short vacation.  We attended GenCon (links to wikipedia entry, if you're curious) in Indianapolis Thursday through Sunday.  We had an absolute blast!  I survived tons of activity and walking with minimal pain, though not a minimal amount of fatigue.  So far, no more spotting.  After my episode last week, I was really scared that it would happen again.  I'll feel a lot better after my ultrasound on Friday, hopefully.

** I also still have a box of unopened ClearBlue digital monitor test sticks that expire in September, that I would love to GIVE away.  Please let me know if you could make use of them! **

And now for the weekly (though I haven't been so good about it) stats.  Feel free to skip!

* Belly - Mostly still just weight-loss extra skin, though my pants are starting to feel tighter, and I can feel the underlying areas start to firm up when I lay on my back.

* Weight gain - I've lost a pound, actually.

* Symptoms - Occasional round ligament pain.  I am in the bathroom more than I am out of it, including 2 to 4 trips during the night.  I am very fatigued and tired.  The smell aversions have eased a little bit, though are not yet absent.  My breasts are still rather tender.  New this week:  the constipation that has been ever-present since my surgery is getting a little worse.

* Cravings/Aversions - Sweets, which is odd for me, and troublesome as sugar makes me ill.  I've generally always been a bigger fan of savory, though not lately.

* Clothes - Feeling slightly tighter.  I broke down and bought a couple of Bella Bands so that I can wear some of my pants a little longer, without feeling restricted.

* Movement - I've still got some time before this one will have a response, though I hope to SEE some movement on Friday's ultrasound.

* Feelings on gender - I had been thinking boy, but last night I had a very vivid dream about having a girl with very dark hair.

* Meds - The OB had me increase my Folic Acid supplement, from one 800 mcg tablet above my prenatal, to three tablets.  My endocrinologist switched my dexa.met.hasone to hydr.ocor.tisone.  I'm not sure why, I'm sure she'll fill me in today.

* Mood - I had a complete gasping-sobs breakdown yesterday over work stresses.  I also cried through a significant part of Deathly Hallow part 2, even though I've seen it half a dozen times, as I watched it while putting away laundry yesterday evening.

* What I miss - Sleeping through the night, caffeine, and wine.  But only a tiny bit!

* Appointments - I'm seeing my adult endocrinologist this afternoon, MFM on Friday morning, and regular OB on Monday afternoon.  Busy busy.

* Medical concerns - Nutrition/calories, and some spotting last week.  Sigh.

* Coming up - Hopefully some rest and relaxation, and soon, the 2nd trimester!

A Wedding, Fear, and Bullets

My brain is still a little jumbled, so I'm going to do bullet points today.

*  I had a terrible day yesterday.  I started spotting at about 11 am.  It wasn't bright red, and I wasn't cramping, so the the OB nurse told me not to worry unless either of those things changed.  I walked a lot over the weekend, and that was likely the cause.  It finally stopped around 4 pm or so.  I was completely terrified.  I still am.

*  The terror is compounded by the fact that the OB nurse could not find the heartbeat on the doppler at my appointment last Friday.  I know that 10 weeks is really early to hear it on one of those things, so I had been trying to not let it bother me.  Combined with yesteray, though...

*  I missed my 10 week post.  I will do my best to do 11 weeks, but I'm having a very busy week.

*  Speaking of busy week...  JP and I are heading to GenCon in Indianapolis tomorrow evening.  It's a 4-day gaming convention.  Think non-electronic, like our business.  It should be an awesome time, but I need to remember to take it easy, so I don't have a repeat of yesterday.

*  This last weekend we were also in Indianapolis for my cousin's wedding.  It was absolutely gorgeous.  We did a lot of walking downtown, and I went swimming in the hotel pool.  Lots of activity and excitement.  Too much, I guess.

*  I have a longtime, good friend that, despite being privy to my entire IF and RNY journey, heartaches, troubles, etc, is being remarkably insensitive and clueless.  I don't think he's doing it on purpose, but it's a presence in my life that I just do not need right now.  I feel forced to distance myself, though it pains me.

I hope everyone is well.  See you tomorrow for 11 weeks, hopefully spot-free.

Does Anyone?

Does anyone use the ClearBlue digital fertility monitor?

I have some test sticks that expire in September that I would hate to see go to waste.  I'm not asking anything for them, since the expiration date is so close.  You can drop me an email if you're interested.

n3bul4@gmail.com

Thanks

Short Update

My OB's office just called to let me know that all of my labs came back normal, and my doctor said the ultrasound images looked good.

Woohoo!

9 Weeks

Shortly after I made my last post, my OB's office called me to let me know that one of the cultures came back showing a bacterial infection in my lady bits, so they put me on an antibiotic.  I'm doing my best to not be paranoid about this, despite what Dr. Google says about the potential risks.


I've mentioned my congenital adrenal disorder in a past post.  I recently started wondering if I should consider genetic testing to find out if I've passed it on.  Does anyone have any experience or advice on that kind of thing?


Here's comes the weekly stats, feel free to tune out.

* Belly - Still just weight-loss extra skin, though my pants are starting to feel tighter.

* Weight gain - Holding steady, loss seems to have stalled for the moment.

* Symptoms - Occasional round ligament pain.  I am in the bathroom more than I am out of it, including 2 to 4 trips during the night.  I'm tired a lot, which could be a symptom in itself, or a result of getting up to go to the bathroom all night.  I'm also having some wonderful smell aversions, closely associated with nausea.  New this week - Breast tenderness.

* Cravings/Aversions - Swiss oatmeal, which I had never had before, just had seen a recipe.  The aversion to bell peppers remains, I need to find a new veggie afternoon snack.

* Clothes - Feeling slightly tighter.  When I shrank out of my last size, I didn't get rid of my pants, which I think I will soon be glad for.

* Movement - I've still got some time before this one will have a response.

* Feelings on gender - I'm thinking boy, even though most of my family thinks girl.

* Meds - The OB had me increase my Folic Acid supplement, from one 800 mcg tablet above my prenatal, to three tablets.  I also started a 7-day antibiotic for the infection.

* Mood - Month-end stress at work has turned me in to a complete grouch.

* What I miss - Sleeping through the night.  I guess I had better get used to it!

* Appointments - My next OB appointment is a week from Friday, on 8/10.

* Medical concerns - Nutrition/calories and a bacterial infection.  Bleh.

* Coming up - One of my cousins is getting married on 8/11, and my ENTIRE family will be there.  I was looking forward to it before, but now I can't wait!