The Scoop

I have gestational hypertension. Click HERE for details on this condition. The description at that website describes exactly what I have gone through and pretty much exactly how they are treating me from here on out. All of the symptoms I have experienced and the monitoring they are doing is because of the gestational hypertension.

Yesterday we had an appointment at 2:15 in the afternoon, and with the exception of a short dinner break, we didn't get back home until 10:00 PM. I am soooo sick of being poked, prodded, monitored, questioned, evaluated, and stared at. I bet the nurses could identify my prego belly in a lineup, they have seen it so much! Jason is pretty sick of sitting in hard plastic chairs just waiting and waiting! We started off the appointment with a non-stress test. They could NOT get Brady to stay on the monitor. At one time we had four people in that tiny little room trying to get him to stay put long enough to record his heart rate. They gave up, and instead gave me another bio-physical profile (ultrasound) which is exactly what happened on Friday. 30 minutes later, he scored a 6 out of 10 again, which is not good enough. When a 6 of 10 result is recorded, the protocol is that the test has to be repeated within the next 24 hours.

So, we went and grabbed some dinner with Lee, which was already part of our plans. Afterwards we went back to our home away from home, the hospital, for another non-stress test. This time our little guy behaved and he stayed on the monitor like a pro. His activity looked great. After a stressful 2 hours, during which I desperately (and repeatedly) whispered to Jason, "They are going to make me stay. Yes they are! Yes they are! They are going to make me stay! They took my blood! Why would they do that unless they were going to make me stay? They are going to make me stay!" the doctor came and told me that I could go home! But after telling me initially that she didn't need me back for a week, I found out just before leaving that I had to be seen again by Thursday. So it is quite possible that this will all have to be repeated again on Thursday. SIGH...!

One thing we found out for sure; we won't be making it to our due date. The doctor told us that the latest they will let me go with hypertension is seven days before our due date. And there is nothing wrong with Brady - we asked flat out if there appears to be any problems with his brain or his development. No.

But...poor kid. He's been called so many names...stinker, rascal, naughty boy, you name it...mostly by his parents, but also by the medical staff, which is hilarious to us! The nurses and midwives at the office are literally stumped over Brady and his mysterious activity. The ultrasound tech knows him by name and has several of his personality traits figured out. Our doctor actually said that if I was 37 weeks along, he probably would induce me and get him out of there just because Brady is a pain in the butt! Haha! (He said that jokingly...really!) I think we will have our hands full with this child. He is grounded as soon as he arrives, that is for sure.

Thanks for reading all of this; if you made it to the end! And thanks for keeping up with our situation. I realize that you all probably don't need every single detail, but this is also a great way for me to "journal" my way through the end of this pregnancy. Some day I will force Brady to read through all of this and apologize profusely.

We are thankful for a terrific doctor and medical staff and feel we are in good hands. Of course the real "hands" we are in belong to the Lord, the great physician, who loves us and hears our prayers. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed and exhausted and have moments of panic about Brady's little life, but I know that the Lord hears my prayers and He almost immediately provides comfort. It is by His grace that we are mostly able to laugh our way through this!

And yes, I am writing this at 2:35 AM. If none of it makes sense, that would be why! I am preparing myself for late night feedings by waking up every couple hours. I wish I hadn't thrown away Jason's birthday cake, I could really use a slice right now...