Due date is February 20th, and here we are at January 13th. A little over a month away from the birth of our first child, a little boy. I am sitting in the waiting room of my OB and finally they call my name. We go back and they take my weight (which is getting up there by now!) and we get into the room and they take my blood pressure. Why they do this right after they take your weight is beyond me, but such is life!
It's high. Hmmm, let's try a different cuff, a larger cuff. High again. Hmmm. Let's just talk for a while and let me calm down and take it again before the nurse leaves. We chat it up for a little bit and talk about how the pregnancy is going and she does another check. Damn, still high. Ok, could just be worked up over something and not know it. The nurse leaves and the midwife enters.
She checks me over and finds that my legs and feet are really swollen. I just thought it was because of work and because I couldn't keep them propped up as much as I should have. She asks me a few questions and wants to send me for blood work. Ok, no big deal. I go get my blood work and it comes back fine. I am good to go.
I am back in a few days to re-check it. Still high. Crap, what is going on? They send me upstairs to monitor my BP for an hour and more blood work. Blood work comes back normal and the BP goes down every check. They want me to stay home for a few days to see if it stays normal if I am limited to my activity.
I am home for like 5 days and bored out of my mind. I have been told to stay in bed or on the couch and to only get up to use the restroom! I go back to have my BP checked and it's still high. Ok, now we are getting scary close to signs of pre-eclampsia. More blood work is ordered and it's normal. Man, how long am I going to have to deal with this?
My BP gets worse, and so does my grandpa's health. He is in end stage Alzheimer's and isn't doing well. Hospice has informed us that he will pass soon. It's January 26th and I am at the OB's office getting a check-up and asking if it's ok for me to go to my hometown because it's time for my grandpa to pass away. They are leery to let me go, but they do only if I promise to be back early that next week to get checked out. They send me with a copy of my file in case something happens. Did I mention that Baby Boy is still breech?
It's Thursday, January 28th. It's about 5:45 in the evening and I am getting ready to leave the adult care facility where my grandpa is. I have a moment alone with him before I go. I told him that I love him very much and that I have been so lucky to have him in my life for so long, but I know he is tired, and that it's ok to let go. It's ok to go to sleep. I told him it was time for him to go home. I hold his hand and kiss him on the forehead and tell him "See you later." As I walked out of the facility, I knew it was the last time I would see him alive.
It's 6:00 and I just walk in the door at my mom and dad's. The phone rings. Grandpa just passed away.
The visitation and funeral come and I am basically on bedrest by now so I am told that I need to stay seated and keep my feet up. I wished I could have been more physical support for my grandma, but I knew she understood. And I knew my grandpa was watching over me and he would have been so mad had I pushed myself and jeopardized my health or the health of his great-grandson. I can't help but think sometimes that he really listened to what I said and that he didn't want me there when he passed for fear it might upset me so much it would send my BP off the charts.
It's now exactly a week after my grandpa passed away. It's Thursday, February 4th. Nick and I are at my OB appointment and my midwife tells me that pending the results of a test I just did, we might have a baby tomorrow and to not eat breakfast. Nick and I leave the office excited at the idea of having our baby so soon. I know deep down that those test results will not be normal and we will have a baby tomorrow.
We get a call on our way home from the midwife and she says NOT to eat lunch because they are going to get the test results today because I have been battling the BP for so long. She said they would have them by 1 pm and they would call me as soon as they get them. We go home and call our parents to tell them to be on stand-by because Baby Boy might come today.
The phone rings about 1:40 p.m. My results are in...
No comments:
Post a Comment