38 Weeks

**Disclaimer - this entry is going to be quite lengthy**

This past week has been quite interesting.  The swelling in my feet and ankles has gotten to the point that by the end of the day my feet look like balloons.  I've narrowed down the swelling in my hands to only happen when I'm lying on my right side or when I'm talking on the phone and holding it up to my ear (strange, I know!).  And my lower back hurts the most when I'm trying to do dishes because of how far I need to lean over the sink to do them since my huge baby belly gets in the way.  But other than those few minor things - I'm feeling great!  Baby Sevigny has been VERY active and I can finally feel him/her on the left side of my belly.  

Regarding my doctor's appointment yesterday, I went in for my routine weekly check-up.  They had me pee in a cup, weighed me and then took my blood pressure.  Well, the second the nurse took my blood pressure she said to me 'I don't like that at all.  Nope. Not one bit.'  So of course, I ask what my BP was and she said 144/100.  I think to myself  'oh crap - that's not good at all' and the nurse tells me I'll most likely get a lot of attention - way more than I'll want - and then leaves the room and has me wait for the doctor.  Dr. Welch comes in shortly thereafter and having already reviewed my chart, let's me know that since this is the third time my blood pressure has been elevated in recent weeks, she's going to have me stay for an observation period.  She also wants the nurses to perform a nonstress test on the baby, have me get blood work done and give a 24-hour urine sample to check for protein, which would be the deciding factor if I was to have preeclampsia.

So after having gone through all of this with me, she then checks the baby's heartbeat which was hovering around 160.  And next, she checked my cervix to see if I have started to dilate, which I definitely have not.  (I think Baby Sevigny likes it in my belly and wants to hang out there for a little bit longer!!)  Dr. Welch then sent me up to the labor and delivery unit to be admitted for observation.  I filled out all the necessary paperwork, got my hospital bracelet and got situated in a bed.  I laid in a bed hooked up to the machines for about an hour to an hour and a half and had my blood pressure monitored, the baby's heartbeat monitored and a lab tech came in to draw my blood.  Once all of those tests were said and done, the nurse and Dr. Welch came in to tell me everything looked good - my blood pressure had lowered and was normal, the nonstress test showed the little one's heartbeat and movements were perfect, and my blood work came back normal.  The only thing left was to collect the 24-hour urine sample, bring it in for testing and then meet with Dr. Brown the next day for the results.

Oh and Dr. Welch informed me that if protein was found in my urine there would be a possibility of me being induced.  Ummm... excuse me, what?!  I'm not ready to be induced and neither is my child.  I haven't even started to dilate yet, nor have I packed my bag for the hospital.  So guess what I did when I got home that afternoon?  Yup.. packed mine and had Michael pack his bag for the hospital.  I must admit though - during all of this I was pretty calm.  Even when I was laying in the hospital bed, it didn't scare me that a baby is coming in the next couple of weeks and I wasn't panicking at all, which I guess is a good thing!  :)  The only thing that got me a little worked up was that I could potentially be induced.  I'm pretty laid back about the whole birthing process and doing whatever it takes to make sure the baby enters this world safely.  But a possible induction when I hadn't even started to dilate yet scared me because I knew that would lead to a long, long labor.  But if the baby was in trouble, I didn't really have a choice so I just had to accept the fact and come to terms with it, which both Michael and my family helped me out with.

So today rolls around and I bring my urine sample to the lab for testing in the morning.  Michael and I then head to the hospital for our 3pm appointment to meet up with Dr. Brown.  I go through the whole process of peeing in a cup (didn't they already get enough of my urine?!), getting weighed, having my BP taken (140/90) and then waiting for Dr. Brown.  He comes in and informs us that there was no protein in my urine (YES!!!) and that even though my BP is a little high, it's within the normal limits for the third trimester so I won't be induced today.  Phew, what a relief!  But he did talk to us about putting me on bed rest and making sure I am relaxing and keeping my feet elevated for the rest of the pregnancy.  He also discussed the fact that I'll probably be induced right when I hit 40 weeks if I don't go into labor before then because of the risk to the baby with my high BP.  But for now, I need to take it easy and have Michael wait on me (yes, those words did come out of his mouth! He even offered to write it down on a prescription pad so I could take it home and put it on our refrigerator! haha) and he'll see me in a week.

So... until next Monday... I'll be on bed rest and anxiously awaiting the arrival of our little one!

Notice the hospital bracelet?!