Today I am 29 weeks 3 days. The anxiety that I felt leading in to viability has subsided, although I did find myself googling "29 week old preemies" last night after some intestinal distress yesterday.
I had a growth scan almost two weeks ago. At first everything seemed great. The baby measured on the smaller side, but still in the normal range (30th percentile overall), which is not unusual for me, but her head was small. The doctor came in to confirm the tech's measurements and confirmed that everything looked good...but then out of nowhere, she asked me if anyone had suggested that I do a fetal MRI to confirm that everything is okay with the baby's brain. Say what?!
It turns out that the head circumference was measuring 2 1/2 weeks behind and she thought it would be best "for peace of mind" to do an MRI with my next scan to confirm that the brain looks normal. Initially I was totally against it because if there is a problem, there is really nothing that can be done (and the thought of being in a long metal tube scared me), but as we talked more, it seemed to make more sense. First, we would get an answer as to whether everything is okay. Second, it's better to do it now while the baby is in utero since if a scan was needed after birth, she would need to be put under anesthesia. That's certainly not something I want.
So I agreed and received confirmation yesterday that my appointment is two weeks from today for an ultrasound first thing in the morning followed by the MRI a few hours later. They suggested that I take valium to relax the baby, but I'm not exactly hot on that idea. We'll see how things pan out. My ultrasound is scheduled for 8AM, so there's no way my husband can drive me (kids need to be dropped off). They say it's voluntary so hopefully not eating for a couple of hours will keep everything quiet and still inside.
ANYWAY. That's the latest worry in this saga. I am hoping against hope to make it another 4 1/2 weeks to the 34 week milestone my OB and I targeted two years ago when we first discussed whether trying for another baby was even something worth considering. So far so good. I have been off my blood pressure medication for two weeks now and it's currently holding steady between 120s/70s and low 130s/80s.
Will post an update after that appointment....
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I had small measurement on my son's head starting at week 34 (I believe). He measured less than the 5th percentile. He turned out all right, but as I learned from my experience losing my son Mackenzie, it is never safe to assume that everything will be alright. I hope that the MRI turns out to be just precautionary and absolutely unnecessary. But, research as much as you can so that you can be informed. This was my biggest regret with Mackenzie. I didn't want to "stress" myself out by doing internet research, but in the end I really thought I would have been better served to be a more informed patient. I guess my experience with my first son taught me not to stress out and the experience with my second son taught me that stressing out isn't the worst thing that can happen. Best wishes to you and the babe.
ReplyDeleteThat doesn't seem right that the doctor said everything looked good and then threw that at you! I wouldn't want to take a valium either. It's too easy to say not to worry until you know if you have reason too, but that's just not how we are equipped as mothers. I pray that everything is okay. Hugs!
ReplyDeleteAny update? Hope the MRI went okay!
ReplyDelete