False Alarm

I just got back from the hospital not too long ago. I didn't even want to go. Bethany, you dish guilt like the best of the Jewish moms.

Little B has been very active this pregnancy. There are only a few times during a 24 hour period that she doesn't move. At night, when I wake up in the wee hours of the morning is one of those times. It is nice to lay there for a minute just to feel... well... nothing. I finally have to get up to pee or to get a drink or usually both. Not too long after that, she starts her wiggling again. It really is as if she is as uncomfortable as I am and just shifts to find a better position.

I woke up at 5am this morning and got up and got a big glass of orange juice. MMMMM. Laid back down and... nothing. No wiggle worms in my guts. That was a little disconcerting. When I got up with Linus around 8am, still, nothing. Just faint, very faint movements and not very many of them. This girl makes me think I am going to have a "Spaceballs" moment and an alien is going to jump out of my belly and start singing and dancing. So, this faint movement was not normal. I ate more today, drank more juice today, even chugged a soda trying to see if I could get her moving. Nothing. I took a bath which gets her going after and I took a shower. The water hitting my belly makes her kick back. Nothing. I mean, she was moving. I can usually just sit and look at my belly and count 10 movements in 5 minutes. Easy. I had to actually put my hand on my belly and it was 10 movements in 30-45 minutes. So, well within normal parameters, but not for my little girl.

I text my sister and asked if I should call my doc and she said that yes I should. I told her I felt stupid doing it. What if I drive all the way to Ogden to the hospital and it's nothing. I'm going to feel dumb. Her response, "You don't want to be responsible for your baby having cerebral palsy, brain damage, or even to die. You don't know what's going on. It's better to be safe than sorry." Nope, no guilt trip there. I called my doc's office and talked to one of the nurses. I explained that Little B was moving much more than the 10 per 2 hour timeframe, but it was a LOT less than normal. I also explained that I understand that babies have normal sleep and wake cycles by now, but really, she wasn't responding to anything. She told me to go on in to labor and delivery and they'd monitor to make sure everything was a-ok.

Called Matt, called my mom, called Matt's mom and headed to Ogden. Sigh. Why did I have to choose a hospital and doctor so far away? Oh ya, right, customer service.

Got to Ogden and it was a giant monsoon. I am pretty sure Linus and I almost got swept away trying to get into the women's center. I must say, the ladies at the women's center at Ogden Regional, nurses and others, were all very pleasant and nice to me. I could tell there was a little tension going on and that it had been a stressful day for a few of them, but I have to really give them props, not one of them took it out on the crazy lady who came in for monitoring with her 1 year old. =D Luckily my mom was there to help me out with Terrible #1. Especially with all of the electrical plugs and buttons to push, I needed the help with him.

My nurse got me situated and on the monitoring machine and gave me juice and water to drink to get her to perk up. I tried not to be a know it all and tell her that I'd already done that. I figured she was going by protocol and I just sat back and did what she asked. The heart rate sounded good. My blood pressure was a little high, but it has been most of this pregnancy. Higher than it was with Linus anyway and quite a bit higher than it usually is. I am not retaining any water at all though, and don't have any edema, so I think they ruled out toxemia pretty quickly. She got me to lay down on my left side and then left to monitor me. I ended up having a round ligament pain and couldn't breath real well. I have a hard time figuring out what to do to ease that pain. It's pretty much like a charley horse in my lower abdomen and it just gets worse and worse until I find a position that eases it. Right now, I can just roll over off my bed onto the floor and get onto all fours till it passes. Not in a hospital bed. After what felt like forever, it finally eased down and I sat back for the 30 minute monitoring period.

The nurse came back and reassured us all that everything was fine. Now came for the part to make me feel like a complete idiot for going in. I got the lecture about how when babies get a little bit bigger, they run out of room and so the movements are going to get less. I just nodded my head and said yes ma'am, but #1 I'm not so stupid that I couldn't figure that out even if I wasn't reading it everywhere. #2 Linus's movements changed but didn't get any less. He was just as active at 38 weeks as he was at 20. Then she gave me the lecture about what real labor is vs false labor. I tried to explain that I never did think I was in labor, I just went in on the advice of the doctor's nurse. I still got that lecture 3 times though. I understand, I pretty much wasted my time, and she did reassure me that it's better to be safe than sorry, so I did appreciate that. She gave me the number to labor and deliver so I could call them directly and they could tell me if they wanted me in or not.

So, all in all, everything is fine. I had my first panic mom moment which is pretty good considering I have a 14 month old also. (I actually had a panic mom moment which I shared with Matt, and almost went to the ER for, but it turned out to be a hickey Linus had given himself)

Although I am done being pregnant, my belly skin is going numb from the stretching, and I don't think I can stretch anymore, I am glad that everything is ok and B can cook in the oven for a little longer. As much as I talk that she can come now, I really would rather her be safe and healthy. I don't want to have to deal with NICU's or incubators and would like to take her home with me when I go.