On this blustery March Friday, I'm feeling pretty calm. It would be easy to say that this week's freak out was due to realizing how unprepared we still are with only 17 days left until the keiki's Expected Due Date. I don't think we have enough newborn clothes (20 onesies and 2 sleepers), burp rags (exactly 2), or swaddling (1 swaddle sack and 1 blanket). I'm not overly thrilled with the bassinet I chose. I have to pre-wash/disinfect all the pacifiers, rattles, hygiene items that will be going in the baby's mouth. We need to put together the stroller and the bouncer, then figure out how to install the car seat. Oh, figuring out the baby monitor would be a good idea too.
I could blame it on the birthing classes. Did I really need to see the video of a baby's head crowning? Illustrations of how an epidural is given? Did I need to hear that in America babies are delivered an average of NINE days AFTER their due dates? Oh, and I can't remember any of the breathing techniques we went over.
Nope, it couldn't possibly be anything as simple as my state of mind. Are you kidding? Have you been paying attention to this pregnancy at all? Yes, the difficulties of this pregnancy continue to dwell in the physical realm.
Morning Sickness returned about a week or two ago, and is now firmly in residence once again. The first the days of this week it went after me like it had something to prove for all those days it went easy on me during this last trimester. Which I'm pretty much used to, until my blood pressure went up. This week has been all about The Flirt with Pre-Eclampsia.
The flirting seems to be over - all numbers have been consistently good since Wednesday afternoon. But between the violent wretching, backache, stomachache, nausea with hunger, petechial hemorrhages around my face, swollen feet, headache, exhaustion, restless leg symptoms by midday, blood sugar monitoring, and constant checking and re-checking of my blood pressure... I was a breath away from demanding we induce.
I didn't say it, it didn't happen, I feel much better now, and baby seems to be doing just fine with all of this. I know this because when we played hookie yesterday to go see "The Hunger Games", she spent the entire two hours either kicking me or trying to shove herself through my navel.
Of course, this was all great incentive to finally pack my bags for the hospital. I will refrain from listing how many items I was unable to check off the list due to unavailability. *sigh*
As an extra bonus, OBGYN announced that in light of my inability to eat anything, he was lifting the strict parameters of my diet. I went out and bought various forms of fruit and fruit-based products. There has still been nausea, but so far I've kept everything down for over 48 hours. Anyone know what the symptoms of scurvy are? I'm suddenly very curious...
Friday, March 30, 2012
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
34 Days to Go: Spoke Too Soon
So there I was, ready to use my last 7 weeks to put together the nursery, organize the house, clean, blog regularly, get out to see people, and generally re-join the land of the living. Ha! Enter: the return of Morning Sickness. Dun-dun-DUN! Yes, all my lovely plans were done.
By this past Saturday, my weight was back in the negative column. I somehow managed to scrape myself up off the floor, get cleaned up, and head over to Port Orchard for the Baby Shower. When I arrived, I was still wondering how on earth I was going to survive the next few hours, but by the time the games started, I was feeling much better. I actually had a great time, getting to see so many people that the pregnancy and distance had kept from me. Opening presents was fun and eating cupcakes was nice, but the best part was definitely being able to socialize.
In fact, I felt so much better, my neice's suggestion of dinner at the local Chinese buffet was instantly seconded by me, much to my husband's amazement. No one was more surprised by that than me... well, my stomach any way. I paid for that decision later that night and into the next morning.
Sunday and yesterday were just kind of hit-and-miss. Once again, I'm back to enduring my body changing mood hourly. Not fun.
The baby seems to be doing just fine - if you count spending all her time trying to press her entire body against and through my stomach as fine. She certainly doesn't seem too small anymore! Turns out she is in the breach position though, so there is another concern to hope corrects itself in the next few weeks.
More on the baby shower next time, when I have more pictures to share. Here's one with my Mom and my Sister.
By this past Saturday, my weight was back in the negative column. I somehow managed to scrape myself up off the floor, get cleaned up, and head over to Port Orchard for the Baby Shower. When I arrived, I was still wondering how on earth I was going to survive the next few hours, but by the time the games started, I was feeling much better. I actually had a great time, getting to see so many people that the pregnancy and distance had kept from me. Opening presents was fun and eating cupcakes was nice, but the best part was definitely being able to socialize.
In fact, I felt so much better, my neice's suggestion of dinner at the local Chinese buffet was instantly seconded by me, much to my husband's amazement. No one was more surprised by that than me... well, my stomach any way. I paid for that decision later that night and into the next morning.
Sunday and yesterday were just kind of hit-and-miss. Once again, I'm back to enduring my body changing mood hourly. Not fun.
The baby seems to be doing just fine - if you count spending all her time trying to press her entire body against and through my stomach as fine. She certainly doesn't seem too small anymore! Turns out she is in the breach position though, so there is another concern to hope corrects itself in the next few weeks.
More on the baby shower next time, when I have more pictures to share. Here's one with my Mom and my Sister.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
41 Days to Go: Picture Day
Since there haven't been many pictures taken of me during the pregnancy, I thought it was time to take a few before it was too late! But first, take a look at the new "trick" Nikka has taught Eric. And she's currently training me. Funny part is, Eric likes to claim he taught her this trick. Ha!
Monday, March 5, 2012
42 Days to Go and Pregnancy Sucks
With 42 days left until my Expected Due Date, I'm pleased to report I can't recall the last time I vomited. Hurray! There has still been the occasional bout of nausea over the past few weeks, I'm still (impossibly) more of a picky eater than I was before I got pregnant, and eggs are still a big no-no. My appetite comes and goes, but in general I am hungry more often, and eating on a regular basis. About two weeks ago I finally gained back all of the weight I had lost in the First Trimester, and for about a week I have been holding steady at +2.5 pounds over my Positive Pregnancy Test Day weight. Woo-hoo!
Today I read an article about morning sickness over at Pregnancy and Newborn magazine online entitled I hate food, and it really struck a chord. I've had a love/hate relationship with food for all of my life. I've been overweight my entire life due to poor diet and a steady intake of junk food. My mother swears I adored raw tomatoes as a toddler, but my memory tells me I have always loathed them. I remember as a child fighting with my mother regularly over her forcing us to have milk at meals, but by the time I was in high school I was a bona fide milk lover. As an adult I eat a lot more foods than I did as a child, but I still refuse to eat seafood, can't tolerate spicy foods, detest cheesecake and sour cream, and think coffee is just nasty. But as an adult, I have frequently found myself complaining too loudly and too often about my own fussy eating habits - I have been known to utter the phrase "I hate food" quite often. Because loving some food, hating some food, and having low tolerance for most everything in between has led to quite a boring diet. Not to mention bad for me! One of my greatest fears is being diagnosed with Diabetes, at which point I will be forced to give up the few foods I enjoy, and somehow survive on foods I can merely tolerate, while possibly having to choke down some foods I hate.
Being diagnosed with gestational diabetes was a real kick in the pants. But so far, nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be. Now that I've fallen into a rhythm of avoiding too many carbs at a time while eating protein and veggies more regularly, it's become quite tolerable. Unfortunately, food is still on my brain much too often, as I'm constantly worrying about what I'm going to eat at my next meal that won't bring back the nausea while still being appetizing enough to actually have the meal instead of skipping it. So I am extra thankful that the vomiting and nausea are on the way out, or all this thinking about food would be just intolerable!
So now that I'm finally enjoying a healthier pregnancy, I think I'm ready to start writing seriously about my favorite topic: Pregnancy Sucks. Because it really, really has been a sucky pregnancy. I have experienced so much bad luck, I've questioned how the human race has possibly survived this long - surely "survival of the fittest" should have eliminated a species that has as much trouble during pregnancy as we do. Nine months is a long gestational period in the animal kingdom. Nine months of being incapacitated by ailment after ailment? It seriously boggles my mind. I've experienced so much, not expecting most of it (not even being aware of even the possibilities for much of it), that I have time and again wondered the age old question "If I had known then what I know now, would I have done this?" Would I have gotten pregnant knowing how miserable I was going to be? Right now, I'm still convinced this whole thing is going to be worth it. But I have no idea what would happen if my present self went back in time to tell my about-to-get-pregnant self all of the hardships I've had to endure. I'm not sure I would still think it would be worth it if I knew about all of it ahead of time. I find that a bit disturbing. I'm seriously considering consoling myself with a bit of chocolate. I really, really hate chocolate. It's deliciousness only marginally outweighs its insidiousness. Only just. Problem is, that just adds to the innate evil. And don't even get me started on all the Girl Scout cookie stations I encountered this weekend. Surely steering clear of all of them like a good girl has earned me some small, chocolatey reward? Right?
Today I read an article about morning sickness over at Pregnancy and Newborn magazine online entitled I hate food, and it really struck a chord. I've had a love/hate relationship with food for all of my life. I've been overweight my entire life due to poor diet and a steady intake of junk food. My mother swears I adored raw tomatoes as a toddler, but my memory tells me I have always loathed them. I remember as a child fighting with my mother regularly over her forcing us to have milk at meals, but by the time I was in high school I was a bona fide milk lover. As an adult I eat a lot more foods than I did as a child, but I still refuse to eat seafood, can't tolerate spicy foods, detest cheesecake and sour cream, and think coffee is just nasty. But as an adult, I have frequently found myself complaining too loudly and too often about my own fussy eating habits - I have been known to utter the phrase "I hate food" quite often. Because loving some food, hating some food, and having low tolerance for most everything in between has led to quite a boring diet. Not to mention bad for me! One of my greatest fears is being diagnosed with Diabetes, at which point I will be forced to give up the few foods I enjoy, and somehow survive on foods I can merely tolerate, while possibly having to choke down some foods I hate.
Being diagnosed with gestational diabetes was a real kick in the pants. But so far, nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be. Now that I've fallen into a rhythm of avoiding too many carbs at a time while eating protein and veggies more regularly, it's become quite tolerable. Unfortunately, food is still on my brain much too often, as I'm constantly worrying about what I'm going to eat at my next meal that won't bring back the nausea while still being appetizing enough to actually have the meal instead of skipping it. So I am extra thankful that the vomiting and nausea are on the way out, or all this thinking about food would be just intolerable!
So now that I'm finally enjoying a healthier pregnancy, I think I'm ready to start writing seriously about my favorite topic: Pregnancy Sucks. Because it really, really has been a sucky pregnancy. I have experienced so much bad luck, I've questioned how the human race has possibly survived this long - surely "survival of the fittest" should have eliminated a species that has as much trouble during pregnancy as we do. Nine months is a long gestational period in the animal kingdom. Nine months of being incapacitated by ailment after ailment? It seriously boggles my mind. I've experienced so much, not expecting most of it (not even being aware of even the possibilities for much of it), that I have time and again wondered the age old question "If I had known then what I know now, would I have done this?" Would I have gotten pregnant knowing how miserable I was going to be? Right now, I'm still convinced this whole thing is going to be worth it. But I have no idea what would happen if my present self went back in time to tell my about-to-get-pregnant self all of the hardships I've had to endure. I'm not sure I would still think it would be worth it if I knew about all of it ahead of time. I find that a bit disturbing. I'm seriously considering consoling myself with a bit of chocolate. I really, really hate chocolate. It's deliciousness only marginally outweighs its insidiousness. Only just. Problem is, that just adds to the innate evil. And don't even get me started on all the Girl Scout cookie stations I encountered this weekend. Surely steering clear of all of them like a good girl has earned me some small, chocolatey reward? Right?
Sunday, March 4, 2012
43 Days to go and Parents Behaving Badly
With 43 days to go until we greet baby Kailea, the flurry of activity in the Cairns household pauses for no sickness! With huge thanks for my sister- and brother-in-law, we finally have the beginnings of a nursery taking shape - the four of us spent the better part of yesterday putting together all the baby furniture. Afterwards, we were so amazed that it hadn't occurred to us to ask anyone for help with such tasks, because the time and drama saved by adding just two more people is just immeasurable, I'm sure. One of the rules for keeping this marriage on track is that we do not play Pictionary on the same team, and if we had any sense, there would also be rules against us assembling furniture alone together or sitting down in front of a computer together.
Yesterday we also attended our first parenting class, on breast feeding and newborn care. The highlight of my day was the race to the nearest bathroom by a bunch of waddling pregnant women for the last potty break. That's not to imply the class wasn't any good though. The second half on newborn care was very informative, the hands-on coaching time for swaddling and using a sling especially. The breast feeding segment I found to be just much too generalized without enough specifics.
Something mentioned in the class that I've been wanting to write about for some time now is all the controversy surrounding almost every topic of parenting. I shouldn't be surprised really, since at our core humans are like most every other animal in our capacity to go above-and-beyond when protecting our young is at stake. It's the really crazy stuff that is, well, driving me crazy. Yes, parents can have strong opinions about vaccinations and breastfeeding and baby carriers and sleep regimens and... ok, just about everything. But too often lines are crossed, and the personal opinions are suddenly public and over-reaching. I recently mentioned not having any run-ins with "breast-feeding nazis, pregnancy worshippers, parenting saints, or tummy-rubbing personal-space invaders." Not personally anyway. So before I do have an encounter that leaves me a fire-breathing maniac of righteous indignation, I'd like to calmly introduce the topic of "Parents Behaving Badly" (P.B.B), something I'd like to talk about on a semi-regular basis here.
Yes, I am the first person to see the hypocrisy of pointing out parents judging other parents and then passing my own judgement on the judgers. In my defense, I hope to remain calm and rational, to merely point out the over-the-top antics of others and plead for a little sensitivity and thoughtfulness to be remembered. Also, I don't want to get up on a soap-box and declare for one side or the other. There are plenty of topics that I am insanely passionate about, but when it comes to talking about other "Parents Behaving Badly", I'd just like to point out the scary behavior in hopes people can remember to take a breath before speaking angrily against each other.
I'll start with an easy one: an online posting about the safety of Sudafed during pregnancy, and the responses it generated. Can Sudafed really be controversial? Apparently the answer is yes, oh boy it can!
Worried about taking Sudafed during pregnancy.
That sounds simple enough - if you do a search online, you'd be amazed (or not) at just how often doctor's advice leaves people scratching their heads and turning to others for re-interpretation. But very rarely does the internet allow you to merely get your answer and move on. If you're lucky, you'll get some good advice. If you're not-so-lucky, you'll get judgements, questions to your intelligence, and flame-wars. Here are some examples of P.B.B.
This one definitely started some commenter-to-commenter conversation! This person just likened a pregnant woman taking Sudafed to the act of giving an unborn child methamphetamine. How is that helpful exactly? Is it even true? No, the fact that Sudafed can be used in the making of meth does not automatically make it meth. To top it all off, Mellcamp then belittled the suffering of another mother. Was that really necessary? It is never kind to judge another person's suffering against your own or someone else's in order to judge its worthiness. Suffering is suffering. Each person is unique, with their own tolerance levels, their own complications and other problems in their life to compound matters. There is just nothing helpful about telling someone with a migraine that "at least you don't have cancer", and there's nothing helpful in telling a pregnant women with sinus pain that she should suck it up because birthing is going to be worse. The remark is callous, the topics unrelated, and the pain events months apart. I certainly wouldn't want a dentist to tell me that he couldn't get to my emergency root canal for a week and that he wouldn't recommend any pain relievers because my pain today would be nothing compared to what it will be after the procedure - I'm still in pain right now!
This one left me scratching my head, wondering about the veracity of a single word. Sudafed got someones baby taken away by CPS? Really? This is a frustrating one, because it just sounds so ridiculously out of the realm of possibilities to me, but honestly, without any proof to the contrary, what can I say? This woman is recounting a personally horrifying experience that doesn't answer the original question, but is to topic, so... I guess I could ask for proof? Really, the reasonable thing here is to quietly move on - either the story is true, or it's not, and that's that. But nope, someone thought it was important to respond, and not kindly. Oh boy.
I applaud the fact-finding, I really do. But did it go far enough? Nope. Amphetamine is not Sudafed, Sudafed is not amphetamine, true. But we're talking about drug testing, and if you look that up online, you will find people claiming that they have had false-positives for amphetamines from taking Sudafed. How true are those stories? I can't say, I'm not a doctor, a scientist, or a tech in a drug-testing lab. I'm guessing that dawnmarc isn't one of those professionals either, otherwise they should have stated so in order to settle the matter. But the worst part is the comment about the previous poster's daughter. It wasn't enough to go out and list the ingredients on the back of a box as scientific proof of how blood testing should work, but then a moral conclusion had to be drawn and then stated publicly in order to shame this woman. The use of the word "stupidity" should have been a red flag that maybe the statement should have been thought over before shared publicly, but what is a small insult like that when your point is in declaring this woman's daughter a liar and a drug user? Please, if you can't confirm another person's story, try to refrain from publicly shouting "liar". And while you're at it, you're going from unhelpful to mean when you add on the moral judgement of jumping to the conclusion of actual drug usage. I sincerely hope that dawnmarc never finds her/himself accidentally on the wrong side of the law and then faced with cries of shaming instead of hands of support.
To "P.B.B." online and in public: please, take a step back, take a breath, and think about what you're saying before you say it out loud. When you're online, it's so much easier to speak your first thoughts because you're not looking into the face of the person you're talking to. But it's also so much easier to take a moment and really think about the ramifications of what you're about to post before you actually send it out for the entire world to see.
Yesterday we also attended our first parenting class, on breast feeding and newborn care. The highlight of my day was the race to the nearest bathroom by a bunch of waddling pregnant women for the last potty break. That's not to imply the class wasn't any good though. The second half on newborn care was very informative, the hands-on coaching time for swaddling and using a sling especially. The breast feeding segment I found to be just much too generalized without enough specifics.
Something mentioned in the class that I've been wanting to write about for some time now is all the controversy surrounding almost every topic of parenting. I shouldn't be surprised really, since at our core humans are like most every other animal in our capacity to go above-and-beyond when protecting our young is at stake. It's the really crazy stuff that is, well, driving me crazy. Yes, parents can have strong opinions about vaccinations and breastfeeding and baby carriers and sleep regimens and... ok, just about everything. But too often lines are crossed, and the personal opinions are suddenly public and over-reaching. I recently mentioned not having any run-ins with "breast-feeding nazis, pregnancy worshippers, parenting saints, or tummy-rubbing personal-space invaders." Not personally anyway. So before I do have an encounter that leaves me a fire-breathing maniac of righteous indignation, I'd like to calmly introduce the topic of "Parents Behaving Badly" (P.B.B), something I'd like to talk about on a semi-regular basis here.
Yes, I am the first person to see the hypocrisy of pointing out parents judging other parents and then passing my own judgement on the judgers. In my defense, I hope to remain calm and rational, to merely point out the over-the-top antics of others and plead for a little sensitivity and thoughtfulness to be remembered. Also, I don't want to get up on a soap-box and declare for one side or the other. There are plenty of topics that I am insanely passionate about, but when it comes to talking about other "Parents Behaving Badly", I'd just like to point out the scary behavior in hopes people can remember to take a breath before speaking angrily against each other.
I'll start with an easy one: an online posting about the safety of Sudafed during pregnancy, and the responses it generated. Can Sudafed really be controversial? Apparently the answer is yes, oh boy it can!
Worried about taking Sudafed during pregnancy.
I have had troubles with my sinuses and my doctor told me it was safe to take sudafed. I am six weeks and went to a different dr the other day and he told me NOT to take sudafed. So I looked up online and come to find out sudafed is harmful to the fetus. I am so scared! I only took one at night for about a week. Please any light on this would be helpful. I am just worried my baby will not develop right.
Posted: 11/27/2007 by BetsyG
That sounds simple enough - if you do a search online, you'd be amazed (or not) at just how often doctor's advice leaves people scratching their heads and turning to others for re-interpretation. But very rarely does the internet allow you to merely get your answer and move on. If you're lucky, you'll get some good advice. If you're not-so-lucky, you'll get judgements, questions to your intelligence, and flame-wars. Here are some examples of P.B.B.
I'm sorry if I sound flippant, but please consider it this way: In most states, Sudafed and related products are no longer available OTC, you must provide your driver's license and have your purchase recorded. The reason for this? Pseudoephedrine is the main ingredient in street-made methamphetamine. Personally, I would not give my unborn child meth. I stick to my doctor's advice and either wait out the malady or take Benadryl/Tylenol. I'm giving birth in a few months; if I can't suffer through a migraine or a cold, I'm in serious trouble when it comes to labor and delivery.
posted 12/18/2009 by Mellcamp
This one definitely started some commenter-to-commenter conversation! This person just likened a pregnant woman taking Sudafed to the act of giving an unborn child methamphetamine. How is that helpful exactly? Is it even true? No, the fact that Sudafed can be used in the making of meth does not automatically make it meth. To top it all off, Mellcamp then belittled the suffering of another mother. Was that really necessary? It is never kind to judge another person's suffering against your own or someone else's in order to judge its worthiness. Suffering is suffering. Each person is unique, with their own tolerance levels, their own complications and other problems in their life to compound matters. There is just nothing helpful about telling someone with a migraine that "at least you don't have cancer", and there's nothing helpful in telling a pregnant women with sinus pain that she should suck it up because birthing is going to be worse. The remark is callous, the topics unrelated, and the pain events months apart. I certainly wouldn't want a dentist to tell me that he couldn't get to my emergency root canal for a week and that he wouldn't recommend any pain relievers because my pain today would be nothing compared to what it will be after the procedure - I'm still in pain right now!
Don't take Sudafed while pregnant. My daughters clinic told her it was OK to take when she got sick. She took it 4 days before her baby was born. Her daughter was born perfectly healthly. But in the state of Alabama if a baby has amethamine in there blood from from the mother it is automatically deemed the mother has a drug problem. When her daughter was four weeks old the local services took the baby away from her for 6 mos. She has had to pay fines and takes random drug screens. She has to attend recovery classes. She has had to pay a high price for this over the counter medication. She has no drug history and is passing all tests. It is taking a year and half to convince the court she does not have a drug problem. Don't even think about taking this one.
posted 02/03/2012 by a BabyCenter Member
This one left me scratching my head, wondering about the veracity of a single word. Sudafed got someones baby taken away by CPS? Really? This is a frustrating one, because it just sounds so ridiculously out of the realm of possibilities to me, but honestly, without any proof to the contrary, what can I say? This woman is recounting a personally horrifying experience that doesn't answer the original question, but is to topic, so... I guess I could ask for proof? Really, the reasonable thing here is to quietly move on - either the story is true, or it's not, and that's that. But nope, someone thought it was important to respond, and not kindly. Oh boy.
To the previous poster, there is no such thing as methamphetamine or amphetamine in Sudafed. If your daughter's doctor did a blood screen at birth, they had reason to. Active ingredient in sudafed is pseudoephedrine HCI, inactive is candelilla wax, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, microcrystalline cellulose, polyethylene glycol, povidone, and titanium dioxide. Printed with edible blue ink. Stop scaring other mom's with your daughter's stupidity in doing drugs while pregnant.
posted 02/13/2012 by dawnmarc
I applaud the fact-finding, I really do. But did it go far enough? Nope. Amphetamine is not Sudafed, Sudafed is not amphetamine, true. But we're talking about drug testing, and if you look that up online, you will find people claiming that they have had false-positives for amphetamines from taking Sudafed. How true are those stories? I can't say, I'm not a doctor, a scientist, or a tech in a drug-testing lab. I'm guessing that dawnmarc isn't one of those professionals either, otherwise they should have stated so in order to settle the matter. But the worst part is the comment about the previous poster's daughter. It wasn't enough to go out and list the ingredients on the back of a box as scientific proof of how blood testing should work, but then a moral conclusion had to be drawn and then stated publicly in order to shame this woman. The use of the word "stupidity" should have been a red flag that maybe the statement should have been thought over before shared publicly, but what is a small insult like that when your point is in declaring this woman's daughter a liar and a drug user? Please, if you can't confirm another person's story, try to refrain from publicly shouting "liar". And while you're at it, you're going from unhelpful to mean when you add on the moral judgement of jumping to the conclusion of actual drug usage. I sincerely hope that dawnmarc never finds her/himself accidentally on the wrong side of the law and then faced with cries of shaming instead of hands of support.
To "P.B.B." online and in public: please, take a step back, take a breath, and think about what you're saying before you say it out loud. When you're online, it's so much easier to speak your first thoughts because you're not looking into the face of the person you're talking to. But it's also so much easier to take a moment and really think about the ramifications of what you're about to post before you actually send it out for the entire world to see.
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