Tuesday, July 7, 2009

33 Week Check-Up

Well I had my 33wk check-up with the midwife this morning. I was anxious to see what she had to say, since I had a rough weekend. I hadn’t really been up doing any walking, actually less than normal probably, but I did do a bit more sitting up. I made it to church Saturday morning with the use of a wheelchair and sat up on the front porch to watch the fireworks that night, plus I ate all 3 meals at the table with the family. By the time I went to bed that night I was in quite a bit of pain. The cramping continued to get worse Sunday, even though the only sitting up I did that day was for meals. By Sunday evening I was having contractions 15-20 minutes apart and woke up several times that night in pain. By Monday morning the contractions had stopped, but I was having constant cramping and all my back and abdominal muscles were in pain from the contractions the night before. The cramping had significantly lessened by this morning, but after being up all morning to go to the Dr’s office the cramping has once again increased, though fortunately no more contractions yet.

After I told her all this she decided she needed to check my cervix again. I have now progressed to 2cm and my cervix is very soft. She said that sitting up probably pushes Owen’s head down onto my cervix, causing the contractions to have an effect. She said the bed rest does seem to be helping though, because if I had actually been up and active I would quite likely have progressed much further already. However, since simply sitting up is now causing contractions, I am to lie down/recline as much as possible. And to help combat the contractions she gave me a prescription for Terbutaline.

The other discovery made at this appointment is that I am once again measuring 3wks ahead, so she ordered another ultrasound to check my fluid levels again. The technician said the levels look good, but Owen is a larger than average baby, though not overly huge. She took several different measurements, but the ones that I remember were that his head measures at 35wks and his body at 36wks (again, I’m only 33wks). She told me at the end that he currently weighs in at about 5lbs 6oz. (Average for a fetus at this stage is 4.5lbs). We also confirmed that he is indeed a boy, as he gave us a nice clear shot between his legs.

I am of course a little disappointed in losing the privilege to sit up, but am reassured that Owen would be okay if he were to come at anytime now. The midwife said that by 34wks they don’t worry too much about lung development, and that at that point it’s just a matter of letting the baby put on weight, and since the little guy’s already over the 5lb threshold, I feel a lot better.

I did finally ask what the chances would be of being on bed rest again if we decide to have another baby in the future. She said she doesn’t know any specific percentages, but that I would have a slightly increased chance, but that all pregnancies are different. She did note though that this has been a healthy pregnancy and they haven’t actually had to stop premature labor yet, so the prospect of bed rest alone shouldn’t be a deterrent. As usual I go back in 2wks. At that visit I will be seeing the Dr, instead of my midwife, to do a c-section consultation and actually schedule the delivery. Fingers crossed I make it ‘til then without any extra appointments.

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