Friday, July 07, 2006

Pregnancy Check-Up

I visited my obstetrician, Dr. Narendran, yesterday for a routine check up. At my last appointment, she decided that I should visit more often than a normal patient. I'd like to think she finds my witty company enjoyable. Reality states that my blood pressure is creeping skyward, and she is concerned about a repeat pre-eclampsia performance. So for now I see her biweekly. At 32 weeks I will start visiting each week until I deliver. Not only do I get to see lovely Dr. N. more frequently, but I also get a glimpse of The Deuce's life each visit. Dr. N. ordered ultrasounds at each visit to ensure our princess is tolerating my pregnancy induced hypertension.

Rhonda, our normal ultrasound technician, led me into the exam room. She helped me onto the table, advised me to adjust my clothing to expose my swollen belly and then squirted molten gel on my bump. I was expecting a cold shock. What I got was a hot shot. She then placed her ultrasound wand directly in the pile of goo and The Deuce appeared on the screen.

The Deuce has always been active, kicking and punching to confirm her existence. She was sleeping when we peeked in on her. She is breech right now, or heads up. Her hands were cradling her face, like a Glamour Shot. One foot was positioned near her chin, while her other foot remained tucked beneath her bum. That's quite a position. She had her lips pooched out as if to kiss someone. It was amazing to see her snuggled up inside of me.

Once I was finished with the ultrasound, I continued down the hall towards my nemesis, the scales. Grrrr. I hate being weighed. At my last appointment, I had packed on 9 pounds. Today I had stayed the same. I sighed with relief. Even my blood pressure cooperated today, with a fairly healthy reading of 112/74. After leaving my standard sample in a cup in the ladies room, I was shown to an exam room to wait for Dr. N.

Dr. N seemed very pleased with my restraint at the plate and encouraged me to keep up the good work. We talked about my headaches and my breech situation. She said not to worry, as nearly 1 in 3 babies are still breech at 30 weeks. She advised me that everything looked great and that The Deuce should be larger than Aveline was at birth. She then shook my hand and bid me farewell.

I'm glad to hear we are progressing normally. During my last pregnancy, my pre-e symptoms surfaced around 32 weeks, so I am still very cautious. I was put on bed rest and medication at that time. Meanwhile, I am monitoring my blood pressure at home and trying to reduce my sodium intake. Hopefully, we can avoid all of these hypertension induced problems altogether.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad to read you had a good check up! See you Sat!!!

Anonymous said...

Glad to hear all is well with you and the little one.

Keep up the good work!!!

Anonymous said...

good to hear everything is good.

otilius said...

good luck and stay healthy!

Christina said...

Good to know that things are mostly good right now. I'll be sending positive thoughts for that baby to turn - if she doesn't, I'd be happy to give her a stern talking to at the July get-together! :)

Oh, and you asked about knitting on my blog. I learned from a friend, but she lives in Oxford, so I don't get to see her often. I've relied on knittinghelp.com to help me beyond her - it has free video instruction!

SMAC said...

So glad to hear your checkover went well for you and baby. :)

Caz said...

You actually have LOW blood pressure, if the reading you gave is correct.

Hope all continues well, with no dramas.

Em said...

Wow, I hope everything goes well, it sounds like you are being extra careful. On the bright side I bet it'd be fun to see your baby via ultrasound every week!