3 hour Glucose Test

Wasn't too bad today.  I didn't like getting stuck four times but the drink was tolerable after the zofran I popped earlier in the morning.

As for the numbers, all I know is the fasting number was 94.

Oh and it took three and three quarter hours for the test.

Weekend Review

Totally missed church this morning.  I was that comatose that I barely heard J open the garage door.

The head cold is in day 6.

I have 3 PIO shots left in this cycle and 2 more patch application days.  1 January is the last day for both.

Bugsy has been official adopted out to J and I.  The guy that adopted him from a pet store came to his senses and realized that our cat would be best with us since we have had him longer.  He came over with all the paperwork he had, not much but still medical history is always nice to have.  I'm very happy to have that situation resolved.

Went shopping yesterday for a baby shower gift.  Bought one item pre-made and some yarn to make a gift.

J and I went to the PX and bought Bugsy 30 tubs of Meow Mix wet food in his two favorite flavors.  Then we bought him more wet food at Petco and a toy.  The toy is one of those soothers that can be heated in the microwave.  I thought maybe he might like this since we are getting his teeth cleaned next month and he hates going to the vet.

We also went to Trader Joes were I purchase my normal monthly supply of unsalted nuts.  I live off of nuts since they are a good source of protein and portable.  I put a quarter cup in a zip lock baggie to take with me when I'll be out for the day.

Last stop of the day was Babies R Us.  I wanted to price browse.  Found only one stroller with an adjustable height handle and they had just sold the last one on the floor earlier.  Read the print out reviews on it and was a little disappointed to find it had a small bag shelf and no cup holder plus gave a really bumpy ride.  I'll keep looking.  J has been looking at some strollers on line and the price point he has been looking at chokes me a bit.  $600-$1000.00 for a stroller.  Crazy amount but since we are going to have just the one child and safety is a big issue for us I want to get the best we can afford.

Back to disappointment at Babies R Us.  I found one crib.  Just one crib made in the USA!  I asked another clerk if she knew if there were more products made in the USA in the store.  She said give her a minute and that yes they had a really small selection she would help me find.  I ended up waiting 10 minutes by the Hello Kitty furniture with no clerk coming back.  Annoyed!

Checked out the cloth diapers.  They had the G diapers which I didn't like or the old fashioned pre folds by Birdseye.  I was hoping they'd have gro-via or something similar.  Well at least J now has an idea of what I'm looking for in cloth diapers.  He'll not be surprised by the price tag or what he'll be diapering his kid with now.

Today we have to get a few perishable items from the Commissary on the installation.

Tomorrow is the 3 hour glucose test.  I've been following the gestational diabetes diet since the 26th and have now lost 2 pounds.  I am not trying to lose weight.  Yesterday, I forgot to mention, we stopped by Jack in the Box for lunch.  I ate my burger but couldn't finish my fries or drink.  Still I ate plenty yesterday with all my snacks and meals.  I'm a bit concerned that I'm losing weight and eating more.  I'm still obese so I'm sure the doctors won't be concerned since they are usually too over burdened with all the pregnancies they have to attend to on the installation.  I swear the women on post breed like rabbits.  Well I know they don't but when I was trying for years and all I saw were swollen bellies around me it felt like that.

If any of my readers have links to more Made in USA products please post them in the comments.  I'm going to try to purchase as much  made in the USA for my baby as possible.  I get so tired of seeing made in China on everything at the PX, Babies R Us and other stores.  My baby was made in the USA and I'd like to proudly have my child wear and use products made in its homeland.

So Far So Good

Yesterday, with a little research, I started on the gestational diabetes diet.  Less nausea was experienced this morning upon waking up.

I got on the scale, yes I still weigh myself daily, and found that I had lost 1.2 pounds.  I'm not trying to lose weight but maintain my weight and eat healthy.

With a bit more research today I found that quite possibly the estrogen patches, progesterone shots and my blood pressure medicine, of which is a combination alpha and beta blocker and beta blockers can cause sugar to rise, might be some of the culprit in failing the one hour glucose test.  However my OB team is aware, geez I hope they are aware with all the paperwork I had to fill out and hand in earlier this month of which they read over, of what medications that I take.

Fingers crossed I get good results on Monday's test.  Probably won't find out the results until the new year.

Gestational Diabetes

You read correctly.  Gestational Diabetes.

I had my 1 hour glucose test on Monday.  Just a few minutes ago I thought I had the test on Friday.  Yes, brain fog wins again.  I got a call while in the shower.  I listened to the message and called Labor and Delivery where my medical professional told me to call as she was working there today.

Monday I'll have to go in for the 3-4 hour glucose test.  She doesn't like the fact that Dr. Holland prescribed me Phenergan, nor do I.  So she is prescribing me the Zofran as she doesn't want me to puke during the test on Monday.  I haven't been taking the phenergan because I'm afraid of hurting the fetus.

So this really sucks.  I was just fine sugar wise before the pregnancy.  As a matter of fact I have a tendency to be hypoglycemic as in not enough sugar.  Figures I'd go the opposite end while pregnant.  Still not gaining weight so it isn't from me indulging in every sweet thing I can stuff into my mouth either.

The medical person that called me was truly surprised that I have diabetes this early on.  I did fill her in on the family history with my dad being a diabetic, and my mother being borderline diabetic.

Let the good times roll!

Now I have to figure in sugar and carb restriction into my already low sodium diet.  This is going to suck when I move as we all know convenience foods and fast foods are truly the only available option when driving cross country in the summer with a pet in the car.  I'm not going to leave my cat in the car to roast just because I want a healthy sit down meal.  I'll have to pack a cooler, that is going to be fun fitting that in the car with the crate, yes a crate, for the cat.

The vet suggested I purchase a crate to put the kennel, litter box and dishes in when we travel this summer.  I want Bugsy to have room to move about so I'll do just that.  Now I'm trying to figure out how to fit him, a couple suitcases, a cooler and my husband's gear in the small suv.  Think I'll be doing to pre-packing well before the move to make sure I can fit all that is necessary into the suv.

Oh and any lovely desserts I was still planning on making for my husband before he deploys aren't going to get made as only he will be eating them.  The PAKE, chocolate cake with a cherry pie baked in it, has only had two slices eaten from it.  Though delicious it is way too sweet for my liking.

This morning I finally got around to eating breakfast of two eggs scrambled with mozzarella cheese at 1130 hrs. because I slept in from the terrible cold I received as an extra special Christmas gift.  I am trying to eat healthy.

Battle For Bugsy

Yesterday two teenage girls knocked on my front door.  I answered the door and was immediately accused of stealing their cat.

I said to the girls that I do not have your cat that I have my cat.

They then wanted to see him.  I obliged.  I let them hold him.  Bugsy did  not like to be held by them.  Strange as he loves to be held by most others.  The girls then said that he doesn't like to be held.

They then tried to take the cat from my house.  I said that they were emotionally upsetting me and would have to leave.  They said they would return with their mom and the paperwork to prove it was their cat.

I was fine with that.  The cat is still mine as he is chipped in my husband's name and registered in my husband's name on the installation.  If he had been owned by any one else on the installation legally he would have to have been chipped in their name and registered on post as the installation requires to do so within 10 days of getting a pet.  All the information can be found here: http://www.jblmmwr.com/vet_clinic.html

I followed the rule and tried to find his owner.  I spoke with the lady that owned him and was chipped in her name.  She was fine with me adopting him.  We had her call the microchip company and put my husband's name on the chip as the pet's owner.

So the girls come back with another girl that I swear if she is the mother she must be the step mother and about 14 years of age.  I looked through their paperwork.  Yes, I saw that they had purchased the cat and his chip number matched.  I asked why they didn't register him on post.  They said they did.  I said that he is my cat and not theirs.  They didn't like that and left.

Later the father came by with the paperwork again.  We went over my paperwork and his.  I had to call in the Military Police with the hope that they could set this man straight on the ownership of the pet.  They told us we would have to go to small claims court.

Seriously these folks bought the cat in May and renamed him Mufasa.  It ran away from them twice according to the first owner who was called twice about the cat being missing and found again.  The cat then ended up with another neighbor on another street over in June.  The cat, Mufasa now Garfield, then ran away from the newer owner in July.  He was severely malnourished when I ended up taking him in on 28 September.  I had permission from Garfield's owner to keep him if I found him.

I went online to Craig's list, Lewis McChord yard sales, Facebook, and asked around the neighborhood if anyone was missing an orange tabby.  No one was missing a cat.  Mufasa's owners said that they gave up the cat for dead 6 months ago.  They made no attempt to put out food for him or find him.

So what the heck are they doing now trying to take Bugsy away from me.  I found out his first name from his first owner who had him from the age of 5 weeks.  I found out his food likes, dislikes and toy likes.  I made sure his shots were up to date.  I made sure the veterinary clinic on the installation was away that he was a possible stray/runaway.  They kept me alerted and were even thinking this past week of placing a kitten with me to foster to adopt until I told them I'd be PCSing and was pregnant.  Pregnant women have to be extra careful when taking in new pets because of things like ring worm and scabies.

I spent my entire afternoon crying.  Yes, even when the father of the girls was here.  He told me I needed to calm down.  Well and good but you are trying to take away my fur baby.

He said to J and I that he doesn't think it will come to a court date.  To him the cat is just a cat and he said that too.  The man owns a large breed dog, a mastiff.  He fed the cat fish food that he gives to the fish in the tank.  He has four children that Bugsy obviously does not like.  That family abandoned him and left him for dead.  In my opinion they have no legal claim.  I offered the man the $25 he most likely paid for Bugsy since he was over 2 years of age at the time of adoption.  The ASPCA has a $70 charge to adopt a kitten and this past spring it was $25 to adopt a mature cat.  The man declared he paid more than that.  I looked at J and told him to go to the ATM and get $100 to give to the man.  The man shook his head to that too.

So court it is.  If he calls and tries to take MY CAT away from me I'll tell him to take me to court.  He violated the military installation policy.  I did nothing wrong.  The cat is legally mine or I should say legally my husband's cat.

There was a lot more dialogue that went on.  I didn't swear.  I did cry a lot to the point that my eyes are swollen and feeling like they are full of sand this morning.  I didn't sleep well either.  Maybe an hour or two of sleep.  Fun considering I have to get all my pregnancy blood work done this morning which will be about 10 vials of blood.

I'm going to say it again:  HE IS MY CAT!

**** Update at 1000 hrs****

My husband called the veterinary clinic on post.  We own the cat.  The man who is trying to take our cat from us does have a cat and a dog registered on post.  He has a mastiff listed for the dog.  For the cat it is a black and white cat.  NO ORANGE TABBY.  The man lied to us about registering his Mufasa.

J is going to chat with legal about what we can do to protect our cat.  Our cat is not just a piece of property as the other man called it when he spoke to the military police at our house.  Our cat is family!

Happy Yule

I celebrate the blessings of the season.  J and I handfasted 10 years ago on Yule and will be celebrating together tomorrow.

Now for those you that don't want to see an ultrasound photo then I suggest you not read any further.

Much to my delight I'm still pregnant.  With the cramping and spotting I've had I did begin to wonder.  Though the progesterone does work wonders to stave off bleeding I'm very frightened that I'll lose this pregnancy.

In a few weeks I'll be further along in pregnancy than I ever have before.  I'm scared.  I'm happy.  But I'm very afraid that I'll be smitted for being happy and lose the baby.

J tried to take some photos of the ultrasound.  I got the old machine today.  How old?  Well it is so old that it doesn't list CRL or the Yolk sac or anything else pertaining to gestational age or heart beat on the machine's screen.   So yes, that old.  Now if only the Army budget could include some much needed money for medical we'd be all set.  Maybe some forget but not all soldiers are male.  I saw quite a few pregnant females in uniform today.

Oh and don't get me started on the condition of the treatment rooms.  Small, dirty, and I think the newest item in there was the table.  I could see via the permanent stains on the floor where the old table sat.  The fabric on the seats were badly stained too.

Well to the point of the post.  Look away now if it hurts to see a pregnancy photo because I'm going to post a photo and details.

Heart beat was on track at 158 for the gestational age of 8 weeks and 4 days.  Next ultrasound will in all likelihood be in late January when I meet my new OB team.  J could see a lot more than I could while the OB was doing the transuterine ultrasound. Yes, I finally made it to a transuterine ultrasound that wasn't looking for cysts.  Milestone there!  The OB did notice, without us telling him, that I have a cyst on my left ovary.  I told him the RE office knows it is there and it is a sac of scar tissue.

J saw that that baby is facing my right hip right now.  I guess he also got to see it waving its limbs.  Wish I could have seen that one.  Maybe next ultrasound.

J won't get to see the next ultrasound because he'll be deployed but I can always get a picture for him.

Oh I was prescribe a stool softener but I already had that particular one on hand so I didn't pick it up at the pharmacy.  However I did pick up the phenergan as that might come in handy.  I'm allowed to take Tylenol for the ligament, pelvic and back pain.  J asked me if I had another question for the doctor.  I couldn't think of any.  I swear he was turning red with embarrassment.  Then I realized.  Oh yes, "doctor are we now allowed to have sex?".  Yes was the OB's answer to J's relief.  Poor man gets so embarrassed.  I'm just absentminded and seeing the ultrasound of the baby blanked my mind.  I did tell my husband that sex will depend on my pain level and puking.  He understands.  I do miss the closeness that sex brings since we didn't get the fun of conceiving this baby with the "normal" fun most couples get.

Phone Silence on My End

My brother is now at my parents house.  He'll be there a week.  I won't be calling my parents during that week.  Mom said she'll call me.  My brother has yet to accept the fact that I'm pregnant.  What is there to accept?  It isn't his kid!

Mom is saddened by the fact that I'm choosing not to call until he leaves.  The reason being is that if Brian is near the phone and he sees that it is me calling he'll refuse to pick up.  So why should I bother to call if it will just be ignored?

Plus I don't want to deal with the added stress.

Mind you when I move back East this is going to make the holidays very interesting.  Brian likes to come home for all of the holidays when possible.  Does this mean with my spouse's schedule our child may never spend a holiday with my parents?  Quite possible.

Brian is annoying at his best.  He is immature.  He still likes to be the center of attention.  Is it any wonder he is still single?

Discussing the Digestive Issues

Friday I have my 8 week ultrasound.  I'll be a bit over 8 weeks but I'm not keeping actual track of how long as the baby is going to grow at its own pace.

I'll be asking for zofran and miralax.  I'm sure those of you that are pregnant or have children can guess why.  It doesn't matter how much fiber I eat right now.  Oh and at night before bed I start puking up.  I wake up with a hard stomach full of gas where upon I start belching from 0410 hrs until 0600 hrs when I lie back down.  I get up that early to get the injection done before J leaves for work and take my other morning meds without food as they have to be taken without food.

At around 0900 hrs when I finally drag my dizzy head out of bed and attempt to stand without blacking out I make my way to the bathroom.  Mind you I've been going every hour any way but by 0900 hrs my back hurts so bad.  I had major back issues before I got pregnant.

Breakfast has been consisting of 8 to 10 ounce of V8 Fusion juice and either a Zone Perfect bar or granola bar of which has so far the past two mornings been staying down.  Just a lot of belching after.

Lunch time meal is usually an organic frozen dinner that I pop into the oven for 35-50 minutes to bake.  I've been staying clear of the microwave.

Later in the day I'll have various protein snacks, some dairy or veggies.  Peanuts or peanut butter just makes me vomit.  I'm afraid to open the jar of almond butter I have on hand for fear of it doing similar.

I've been skipping dinner as the nausea usually gets too bad around 1700 hrs.  J ends up eating a meals I've directed him on how to cook while I work on a jigsaw puzzle at the dining room table.  Sometimes I need to leave the room if something is too pungent.  Last week the smell of the  Lemongrass chicken organic frozen meal I cooked for myself was too overwhelming.  J loved it.  I couldn't eat it.

At this point it seems to be rice and crackers with a bit of fruit.  I lost half a pound this week.  We'll see what the OB says on Friday.  Fingers crossed we can get some zofran because the pepcid AC I have to take to replace the prilosec I used to have prescribed is not enough.  GERD and an ulcer suck when pregnant.

Oh and I never said I wouldn't complain about being ill during my pregnancy.  While I am very thankful I am pregnant I could do without the morning sickness that is  making my other issues worse.

Lady Catherine, the Earl and the Real Downton Abbey

While reading this book I had to sympathize with Lady Catherine.  My first marriage was a total disaster.

Though I am by no means royalty there was scandal and a police record which dragged my good name through the mud.  The divorce was public knowledge.  My spouse was openly having an affair with another woman.

Oh I didn't get charged with any criminal misconduct but my spouse did.  My spouse was charged with domestic abuse.  It still boggles my mind how he can now hold a job with the state and own a firearm after beating the snot out of me.

From the hospital I called my parents and asked them to get me a lawyer.  My mother showed up right away and cried with me.  We weren't mourning the end of a happy marriage.  We were crying because my face was bruised and swollen.  I had a cut on my knee and bruise on the back of the leg of the same abraded knee.  I was a mess.

Emotionally I had hit my lowest point.  I couldn't go any lower.  Mom took me back to my apartment where I called my landlord to have the locks changed.  My spouse had tried to break in already once.  My mom then took me to the police station where I filed a request for an order of protection.  I needed to feel safe.  I didn't feel safe.

The police came and allowed my spouse to remove his personal possessions from the house.  He asked for his gun.  I told the police that I didn't want him having it as I felt as though he was a threat to me with it in his possession.  They made my parents turn over the weapon to my spouse.  I felt even less safe.  How was my spouse allowed to have a weapon when he had an order of protection out on him?

The system in place to protect family members in the state in which I used to live is flawed.  More often than not the men go free.  Oh I realize that it is "innocent until proven guilty"  but the marks on my body should have been more than enough proof.  His violent history of which our former neighbors could attest to should have been enough.  But it wasn't and he was allowed to have his gun.

I guess the reason why I felt more threatened with him being allowed to have a weapon was because years before he had turned a loaded shot gun on me.  I should have left back then.  But I chalked it up to his jealous rages and a mix of alcohol.

I now look back on that horrible period in my life and often wonder how I escaped.  Somehow I found the strength to move on.  I'm glad that I did.  I have a wonderful life with second husband and we are expecting our first child in July next year.

This post was inspired by Lady Catherine, the Earl, and the Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon. Learn more about the family who lived in Highclere Castle, where the popular British series Downton Abbey is filmed. Join From Left to Write on December 17 we discuss  Lady Catherine, the Earl, and the Real Downton Abbey.  As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.

You Know it is One of THOSE Days

....when you open up your box of crackers and the whiff you get sours your stomach.  You opened said box to stave off the nausea.

That is all I'm going to say today.

Odd Dreams

Early this morning I had the oddest dream.  I was holding a conversation with the baby within me.  I couldn't yet see my baby kind of like those dreams where you know you are talking to another person but their face is blurred out.

My baby told me it was a boy and his name.  His name began with an "M".  I can't remember his name.  Wish I could.  I haven't even considered boy names or even names that begin with an "M".  I've been good at picking out girl names for years but I've always left the names for boys up to my husband.  I suppose I'll soon hopefully have a dream where the baby tells me it is a girl and her name as well.  I mean fair is fair and one must mess with my unconscious mind!

In other news, the lab results for my TSH came in yesterday afternoon.  Finally it looks as though my thyroid is getting under control.  TSH was 2.2 and I'm to stay on the 75 mcg of synthroid.  No clue when the next  lab test for that will be.

In January I'll be doing my intake appointment with OB.  For now they are just doing the job of the RE office because of the issue I had with a doctor next door.

Oh and Chris at the RE office was wonderful on getting the TSH report right over to PNW yesterday.  However, Jennifer Frye never did get the ultrasound report sent to PNW yesterday after Dr. Curlin was done with it.

I had to call the RE office this morning and ask Jennifer Frye to send over the ultrasound report.  She was fine with doing that but there was no apology for her forgetting to do it yesterday.  This RE office at Madigan is horrible about sending lab requests to the lab, faxing results to another department let alone an outside clinic or working with their clients on a plan to get pregnant.  More often than not with my treatments I would get the "you know what to do" from them even when I was on bed rest or trying for timed intercourse.  If I knew what to do would I be asking for their help?  If I knew what to do I'd be walking around with a stethoscope and script pad dispensing advice and getting paid for it.  I went to the RE office with the hope that THEY knew what they were doing.

Oh don't mind me.  I'm a bit cranky today as my computer when turned on decided it wanted to do updates today and didn't want to be its normal work horse.  I ended up using my tablet for my Etsy shop, email and initially blogger too.  Not that the tablet isn't handy but I prefer using a full keyboard and not the single finger method when I have a lot of typing to do.  In order for me to use the keyboard that is near full sized with the tablet I have to remove its outer case (otter box) and connect it to a keyboard that then plugs into a wall outlet.  Major pain in the ass when I'm not in the mood to monkey with things.  I would use my husband's laptop if he didn't take it with him to work.  So this is me being a whiny bitch today.  Mostly likely due to a headache and the fact that my first meal of the day was lunch because I was doing laundry and fighting with technology.  Excuses, excuses.

New Clinic

Today was my first time going to an OB.  I have to say I was pleasantly surprised at how I was treated by the staff.  I already knew the receptionist as she used to work for the RE office and she was happy to see me.

My nurse was friendly and happy to see that I was type to joke around a bit.  My doctor was wonderful and looks an awful lot like Dr. Burney.  Dr. Curlin has stated that even in the OR he has been mistaken for Dr. Burney.  Great personality and from what I've googled about him not a bad doctor either.

Next appointment has been bumped up to December 20th as they didn't have any openings available on the 23rd in the OB clinic.  So I won't actually have a 9 week appointment but close enough I guess and I won't complain.  I'll be seeing a civilian doctor R. Holland that is on temporary contract to the Army hospital here.

Chris, the receptionist over at the RE office, is still going to help me out as much as possible.  Today as soon as my TSH lab results were in he faxed them out to PNW.  I should be hearing back from PNW later this afternoon.  I have no clue about the number on the results.  Earlier this summer my husband bought Chris three transformers for his desk space since someone had walked off with the one he had there.

In the exam room the nurse wheeled in a machine that I swear was the mutant baby of ED 209.  Instead of firing bullets it would of course use its wands to attack.  That machine was huge.

Even though the machine was huge the screen was turned away from me the whole time.  My husband got to see the action.  I guess I should have asked to see a bit.

One sac was found.  So no it is not twins.  I am a bit saddened that one didn't make it but twins would have been an awful burden on my body and PCSing next summer to the next duty station a month before my due date with twins would have been just plain hell with a cross country trek!

We heard the heart beat.  125 bpm.

The fetus is measuring 6 weeks 3 days to 6 weeks 6 days depending on the angle/view of the wand.  So basically right on track.

I have no clue as to which embryo took. I'm betting it was the one that looked like it had a smiling face in it in the transfer photo.  The only way I'll know if it was the donor egg with J's sperm or the donor embryo will be simple DNA testing later on.  I'm sure that will be an out-of-pocket expense too.  I'm not worried but knowing would help with future medical issues that might crop up over the years.

Transferred to OB Early

While this isn't a perfect solution it is a solution that hopefully will work.  Dr. Beasley called my home phone while I was out yesterday getting a tree to let me know that they are going to open an investigation up on Dr. Saunders.  In the meanwhile since she will be the only doctor in the clinic on Monday and my appointment is on Monday Dr. Beasley has moved me over to the OB clinic.

I will be seeing Dr. Curlin at 1030 hrs on Monday for an ultrasound.  He is actually Dr. Beasley's boss or so he said.  I still have a bit of anxiety in moving over to OB this soon as J and I were discussing actually picking an OB off post since the OB on post is crowded with patients that it is hard to get seen, especially if you have a possible high risk pregnancy.

I might not be considered high risk.
Why?  I'm not sure.  After looking over all the guidelines I thought for sure I'd fall into the high risk category under the weight (200 lbs or more) , age (over 35) , asthma, thyroid, and hypertension (long standing at 4+ years of being on meds) issues.  Seems that because they are so over crowded I'd be only considered high risk if I were also carrying twins, of which we don't know if I am or not as of yet for sure.

I am hoping that my pregnancy will get the much needed care it deserves as I'd hate to lose a pregnancy due to hypertension because they can't fit me into their busy schedules.  Yes that is a big scare to me.  I spoke with Maternal Fetal Medicine two years back and they said I had a 50-50 chance of surviving a pregnancy.  A risk I'm willing to take.  So to not be considered high risk just blows my mind.  I'd love to have an uncomplicated pregnancy where I only had to be seen maybe four times!

I am hoping that Dr. Curlin will be willing to send over the results from the ultrasound and TSH blood draw to PNW.  I do have a fax number to give him and have called over to PNW to let them know about the change of time and change of doctor.  They are glad that I'll be seen by a different doctor as they know I've had problems, so have they, with Dr. Saunders in the past.

TGIF

I'm so glad it is Friday.  I can't even write about how glad I am it is Friday.

I'm not looking forward to Monday's ultrasound and I should be.  I'm afraid to go and end up with Dr. Saunders again.  That is sad because I should be looking forward to seeing the ultrasounds of my baby.

I managed to lose a pound this week.  I vomited only once but have been very nauseated. I'm actively trying to keep my weight gain to a minimum because I am fat.  The less I gain the better for the pregnancy.

Today we doubled the PIO injection to 2cc/ml.   The injection was done at 0430 hrs as per usual.  I went back to bed at 0530 hrs and had the dickens of a time getting out of bed at 1000 hrs.  I got up tried to make the bed, felt dizzy and laid back down.  30 minutes later I got back up and felt an overwhelming wave of fatigue hit me.  I said to heck with this and got under the covers this time for a one hour nap.

I'm now behind on my water intake for the day because of my extra sleep time this morning.  I'll blame the boost in progesterone.

Did I mention how scared I am of going to the ultrasound and having Saunders?  I know I did.  To make things worse my husband might not be able to go with me.  He did make the appointment for us.  But now his job is taking priorities.  I had a tiff with him about it last night at dinner.  I threatened to leave him.  I'm so sick of this crap where they know he has scheduled appointments and the fact that we are having troubles with one doctors but the Army comes first and family last.  What really sucks is that I have to get lab work done at 0700 hrs and the appointment isn't until 1120 hrs.  No car either if he needs it.  Going to be fun if I have to walk to the blasted appointment in the cold because somehow they can't give him an  hour off to go with me to an appointment.  I'm reasonable.  I told him to drop me off at 0530 hrs at the hospital and I'll get the labs done.  I'll go to the pharmacy and get my meds.  Then he can come back at the appointment time.  He still doesn't think it will work.

Did I tell you I'm a big fat chicken with the thought of having to deal with Dr. Saunders?  Especially since I not only filed an ICE report on her but went to patient advocacy and filed a complaint there yesterday.  I found out that because Saunders is chief of the REI department the ICE report would go across her desk and most likely get ignored.  I mean would you censure yourself or throw out the report if you were in charge and it came across your desk?  Yeah, exactly.

Just waiting for Monday and her to let into me again.  Just what I needed an anxiety filled weekend with my high blood pressure.

Finally the Lab Results are in

E2 462
P4 15
HCG 23619


I'm to double the dose of the PIO to 2cc starting tomorrow.

Madigan only forwarded a copy of the report and not the photo of the ultrasound.  PNW can't tell without the ultrasound photo if it is possible to have twins.  However, we are hoping  that Monday's appointment will be able to show things a bit more clearly.

I'm really hoping that I don't end up with Dr. Saunders on Monday or on the 23rd which will be my last appointment with the Madigan RE clinic.  The Army needs less of doctors like Saunders and more of the type of doctor that Dr. Burney is and can be.  At least Dr. Burney, when in clinic, is caring and compassionate along with being knowledgeable.

Okay I need to get some small meal into my stomach to prevent nausea.

I AM NOT YOUR DUMPING GROUND

I cannot say it enough to all that will listen.  Find some place else to drop your load of woes.  Give it to God as I try to do daily.  Give it to your best friend, lover, parent or shrink but don't take it out on me.  I'm pregnant and I have hypertension.

Last week I had a bleeding scare.  Last week I called PNW to find out what should be done because they told me any bleeding was to be reported to them.  They contacted Madigan requesting an ultrasound that day.  It took a week to get me in.  That week was up today.  I was seen today.  However, I need to back track a bit.  Maureen at Madigan's REI clinic called me last week to schedule the ultrasound and said she was putting in a third beta for me as well.  Today the beta was not in the computer.  I'll get back to that in a bit.  I will be filing an ICE report ASAP but this CPU keeps saying the site has a possible virus on it.  I'll try to file the report from a different device by the end of the day.

Yesterday I had my appointment with Neurology at Madigan.  It seems as though they are curious why I hadn't been referred by my PCM to their clinic sooner and why it took the ENT clinic to do the referring.  I know I've mentioned just how competent my PCM is in the past on my blog.  The man refuses to refer
 me out like a insurance doctor refuses to see something obviously wrong with a patient like a broken bone sticking out of a leg!

Neurology determined that my carpal tunnel and tendinitis are becoming aggravated by my moderate spinal stenosis and they'd like to get a new set of EMG testing and MRI done on me to see just how worse it has gotten.  As for the dizzy spells, well it is recorded that I have mild Meniere's disease and migraine headaches.  I found out a new thing, I am one of those types of people that can get migraines without the headache too.  Just plain odd.

So I got home late in the afternoon yesterday after a 1.5 hour exam in Neurology to find that a former on line friend had gone rabid on me.  I was removed from her facebook group.  No loss as a few of the women didn't like my last post about how "WE" are not pregnant but I am in relation to my husband's use of the word over the holiday weekend.  They felt that he earned the right to say "we" even when I'm not present because he is my spouse and even more so because he is a soldier.  UM, no!  Sorry but he isn't a royal.

Anyway the rabid woman left me a message on facebook that I transferred on to the other administrator of the group.  I refused to reply to the message as I didn't want to cause more stress.

Today things just got worse in the dumping ground.  Seriously does no one care that I could have a stroke? Before the exam my bp was 139/70 and that is with me being on Labetalol 200 mg twice daily.  Dr. Saunders at Madigan RE clinic went down my throat and was looking straight at me accusing me of rapping on her back door office to gain access.  I did not.  I was at the lab the whole time.  If the RE office would stop shopping online for a few minutes and actually answer their phones especially when the Lab manager is calling them they wouldn't have my husband knock politely with one knuckle on their door.

So she chews me out.  Then she goes into how their office, I'm Tricare Prime, doesn't have to give me care since I'm using an infertility clinic outside of their network.  Um, hate to tell you doc but you do.  I have verbal agreement with Chow, Beasely, and Burney along with Jennifer that you will give me care and make available to me appointments during your clinic hours.

I told Saunders to stop.  She continued on.  I told her she was going to make me cry and to stop.  She didn't stop and I started to cry and then hyperventilate.  I asked her to leave the room.  She didn't.  My husband had to then ask her to leave.

When she came back in the room she started in on me AGAIN!  I told her to stop.  She said she was trying to apologize.  That wasn't an apology that was her blaming me yet again.  I told her that she scares me and every time, think back to 13 February where she hurt me during the SIS, she does an ultrasound she hurts me.  She has been told to not exam me again by her superiors.

Well enough of that.  You get the drift by now.  Crappy past few days.

*****WARNING*****
Ultrasound photos below

Good news is that I have at  least one baby in utero.  Saunders said there could very well be another one in there but she can't see it just yet.  I know they can develop at different rates considering the two embryos weren't genetically related to one another.

The sac with fetal pole was measuring 5 wk 5 days Yolk sac was .47 cm, CRL 0.24 cm.  Heart could be seen flickering away.  Dr. Saunders didn't see it when I saw it flickering.  She went back to it and saw it the second time around.  Yup J and I have some real hope.  I just need to keep the stress down and this pregnancy might just make it.

A Little Miffed on Syntax

I am an Army Wife.  I'm very proud of being an Army Wife.  But I don't need others telling me what I should and shouldn't be feeling.

Oh you know who you are.  And yes I'm going to step on some unnamed toes here.

You who aren't military spouses have a different sort of life from mine right down to your pregnancies.  You would probably love to use the now PC "we" when stating pregnancy.  I am not a royal and in no way will I use the third person when describing my pregnancy.  My husband is not pregnant.  I am pregnant.  Kudos to you for wanting to use the "we" with your pregnancy.

I won't state "we" and I do correct my husband when he tries to use it.  He can most definitely state that his wife is due to deliver in (insert month here) when he talking to others and I am not there.  He is more than welcome to in my presence to use the "we" are going to be parents.  But in no way is he carrying the child/ren within him.  No he shouldn't be getting special concessions for the pregnancy.  He is a soldier and his job is the Army with family second.

Case in point.  I was too tired to attend church this Sunday.  1100 hrs the phone rings.  I pick it up.  His soldier called to tell me she is looking for my husband.  I tell her he is at church and unavailable until 1130 hrs.  She gives me a message to pass on to him.  He had to report into work for a problem.  Would I have loved to have spent all of Sunday with my spouse?  Yes.  But that doesn't happen often.

I don't claim that "we" are in the Army!  I don't make claims to any of my husband's accolades.  He has earned what he has by doing his job and at times doing even more.

We will hopefully be parents next summer.  We are having a baby.  But in no way is he pregnant.  He doesn't get injected. He doesn't have to apply patches to his body.  He doesn't vomit from the hormones.  He doesn't have the cravings.

I do think he deserves some credit for donating his gametes, driving me to the appointments when he was able to make a few of them, and for listening to me talk about my fears.  But folks you do need to remember "we" is the third person and I'm not a royal.  When he and I are together and discussing the pregnancy with others "we" is just fine.