Woah!

This month has been crazy. My husband has been off interviewing, as I mentioned in my last post. While it is fun, it sure has been draining on the energy. Last week before our trip to Grand Junction, CO I had noticed that my baby wasn't moving the way she had been. I went in for some monitoring on Saturday morning. They checked her out and said she was moving fine. I wish I had pushed it a bit more than I did, but I thought, "Okay, they said she was okay, she must be." We went on our trip the next day and her movements continued to decline. The thought kept going through my head that something just wasn't quite right. We got back into Akron on Tuesday night and my doctor flew out that night for a conference. I was supposed to have an appointment on Wednesday, but as he was out of town it had been rescheduled for next week.

All Wednesday I had a nagging feeling that something just wasn't right, but I kept putting it off. (Dumb, I know) By Thursday morning I couldn't stand it any longer. I called his office (he is the only doc in the practice) and asked them to please do an ultrasound to check on her. They called the doc that was covering for mine and sent me into the hospital for more monitoring. Now, nurses don't always have the full story right away when you get there, so their understanding was that they would just do more simple movement monitoring  of the baby. I informed them that it was not acceptable and not enough. I needed an ultrasound to check on her.

Now, a little background. When I was pregnant with my second (Kelsi) there was a placental defect which allowed for a lot of her blood to mix with mine. She had an Rh+ blood type and I have an Rh-. So even though I had been given the RhoGam shots to prevent an antibody from forming, due to the volume, the antibody did in deed develop. This is something they have been monitoring closely with this baby and can change quite quickly. In fact, at my appointment just two weeks ago everything looked PERFECT.

So they did an ultrasound and the findings were not good at all. This Rh Antibody causes my red blood cells to attach her red blood cells. This has caused her to become anemic. Not only that, but she has also developed a dangerous condition called Hydrops Fetalis. This is where the baby gets fluid in major cavities in the body. This little one had fluid and swelling in her brain, heart and abdomen. Most of the time this can be reversed and hopefully without lasting effects with blood transfusions for the baby.

As my doctor was out of town he sent me to a "Super" specialist in Columbus, at the Ohio State Medical Center. The blood bank worked all night to get blood ready for my little girl. They have to do a lot to make certain that it is free of antibodies, wash it and remove quite a few things and thicken it up for these little babies. Friday morning they checked the Hemoglobin (Hgb) of the baby. Normally they want people to have a level around 14, they will typically transfuse around 8 and my poor little girl had 1.9. She was VERY sick.

This is an invasive procedure where they take a needle and go in through my stomach and into her cord to transfuse the new blood. The risks of this can cause premature labor, premature rupture (water breaking) and a few other things. So each time we do this they will have the surgical team on stand by ready to do an emergency c-section.

With this procedure her Hgb went up to 8.4. I will be returning to Ohio State Medical Center Monday night. They will do another transfusion on her first thing Tuesday morning. We are no where near out of the woods, but at least she now has a chance. After this last transfusion, her heart rate improved immediately. Throughout the day she has become more active and is getting stronger with her punches, kicks and movements again. It is such a relief to feel her moving around again. Each of these transfusions typically last between 2 - 4 weeks before they will have to be repeated. This almost ensures that I will not have a full term baby. We are just praying that I can make it into the month of January, but it is touch and go. For the next week I am on bed rest and will be taking it easy. After each procedure I will again be on bed rest for a few days.

Needless to say, the classes that I had scheduled and was about to post are now back on hold. UGH.

We are still hopeful that things will go well, we are very appreciative of all the prayers and good thoughts that people have been sending our way. I can easily keep things updated on my facebook page with my cell phone. If you would like to add me to your friend list to keep updated you can find me at: www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/Melissa.w.Muir

Thanks again for your prayers and well wishes.

Melissa

Looking Good

So my appointment on Wednesday started out kind of rough. I started with a blood pressure reading of 148/108. When the nurse told me that I just cried. She was so cute and just gave me a hug. Luckily, after a little bit of quiet time, it did come down to an acceptable level. I think I was just upset about my friend Katie and the fact that I am getting closer to my dates with Kelsi. I was admitted to the hospital with her at 23 weeks 3 days. I am now 23 weeks, so it is a very emotional time for me in the pregnancy.

They did an ultrasound and checked all of the measurements and she is looking perfect. It was so fun to watch her as she moved around. we even saw her yawning. That was so cool. We did verify that it is a GIRL and believe me, there was NO mistaking it. She is a girl. Even I could see that pretty clearly. ;) YAY!

They estimate her weight to be approximately 1 pound 4 ounces. So she is growing very well, measuring a couple of days ahead even. I like it when they are a bit ahead rather than weeks behind. She is such a mover. It is annoying and comforting all at the same time. But I am certainly glad for every little kick, even the ones that are attempts to empty my bladder.

My next appointment isn't for three more weeks as I will be traveling and my doctor will be out of town when my normal 2 week appointment is. Let's hope I don't loose my mind before then. I just need to get through the next week and a half.

Did you know that October 15th  is National/World Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day? Today I remember all of the angels that never got to stay or stayed to short of a time. Sending hugs and love to all of my angel mothers.

Almost a month

I just looked at the date of my last post and it was September 14. Things are crazy around here. My hubby finishes up his training here in Akron in April, so we have been jet setting around the western states as he interviews for prospective employment. It has been a lot of fun as they have all flown me out with him while he interviews. They are very wise people, for they understand that if the wife doesn't approve of a location, there is no way in HELL that the hubby is going to be able to accept their offer. ;) Smart people!

But I do have to say that flying is rather..... um.... not fun when you are pregnant. I don't think my little baby in the tummy enjoys it either. She kicks and moves almost the entire flight. While that is fun and I enjoy it, it isn't exactly comfortable. I feel that if I have even a drop or two of fluid in my bladder, it is open season for kicking it. Not so good. And I won't even talk about the swelling that happens in my feet, ankles and legs. I am not one to really swell in those areas, but DANG,  they sure can get thick.

Things are progressing rather well. My mom called me the other day and was asking why I hadn't posted anything in a long time. Those of you that have been through this before will probably understand a little better than those that haven't, but it is almost as if I am trying not to think about the pregnancy. If I don't think about it, then I can't freak out over every little thing. Especially right now. I am currently 22 weeks 4 days. I was admitted to the hospital with Kelsi at 23 weeks 3 days. I am so close. My blood pressure is riding a little higher than we like, but not so high that they are overly concerned about it. My Rh Antibody doesn't seem to be causing any issues at this point. The numbers are staying nice and low so far. That doesn't mean that it won't change, just that we are starting nice and low and that buys time if it is going to change.

I was actually starting to feel rather good about things and even ventured into the baby department at one of the local stores here. It was so fun to look at the furniture, accessories and such. We don't currently have ANYTHING baby as I had gotten rid of everything thinking we were done. My little sister is sending a few things back to me as I type this, but I will still have a lot to get. I felt pretty good about checking things out...until I got home.

One of my online friends is due just a week after me and has gone into preterm labor. She is already dilated to a 5 and has bulging waters. This is not a good thing as it is already too late to do any surgery to prevent further dilation or labor. It is heartbreaking to watch her go through this. She is already the mother to an angel baby born still at 36 weeks and a miscarriage 2 months prior to this pregnancy. It is hitting rather close to home as I near my first milestone of 24 weeks. I read her posts on FB as she sits and feels her little girl swimming and kicking around not knowing when it will all end. I remember that all too well with Kelsi. I know exactly what she is feeling. :( It is simply heartbreaking.

I had decided, before I found out about my sweet friend Katie, that I would double check the gender at today's appointment and if it really was a girl, I was going to go back and buy the bedding set I had found at the store. But now, I think I will wait until about 34 weeks to buy anything. I am just too nervous. Stupid, I know, but it is how I cope. And it isn't one bit different from how I coped with my pregnancy with Kate. I didn't buy anything until I was 34 weeks and even then it was only things I knew I would need immediately, like diapers, wipes and such.

Well, It is 10:00. I have an appointment today at 10:30 so I am off. I will update soon.