Yes, I'm happy to be at the end of this pregnancy. Yes, I can't wait to see my feet again or put my shoes without taking breaks between putting them on and tying them. Yes, I can't wait to meet her!! BUT I can wait on certain things... I can wait on the labor and delivery part. To me labor and delivery = major pain. No, I don't like pain. So, no I'm not looking forward to that. I can wait on sleepless nights. I can wait on having a person that I am responsible to keep alive for the rest of their life!
Are we going to be "good" at this? How can we afford this?? How do we travel with her? Why do they need so much stuff? They go through how many diapers in a day???
Since our return to America, my doctors (in Washington and Texas) have been concerned about the levels of glucose in my urine tests. The doctor in Washington said NO Dr. Pepper and NO sweet tea... that was painful and resulted in some tearful experiences for this Texan of dumping out those precious things. The doctor in Texas said my sugar levels were still high and needed to be monitored more closely for a few weeks to see any trends. My dear friend had this same thing happen to her during her pregnancy. She shared with me the plan she and her doctor developed to help regulate the glucose levels. This meant no sweets, no fried foods, more fruits and veggies, and a more restricted diet which required me to actually read the nutritional labels on the back of all foods. This has been SO hard. Josh is great, truly, I am so blessed to have a loving and supportive partner who can handle this monster of a person when she goes through Dr. Pepper/Sweet Tea/and ice cream withdraws. Eventually, after a few weeks of poking myself randomly throughout the day to check sugar levels, it was determined that "this is just how your body is".
At another appointment there were traces of protein in my urine. This was a new one for us... The doctor said this could be a symptom of preeclampsia. (Pre- what??? Preeclampsia is when your body recognizes there is something foreign and tries to get rid of it. Getting rid of it here could mean premature labor.) Once again another test was needed. This one required a 24 hour collection of all urine. That's right, folks. (** Note I write this blog for myself as well as others to know about our adventures, but I want to look back on these life events and remember these feelings and emotions so... be warned.) I'm proud of myself! I filled up a 3 liter sterile container in a 24 hour period and then some! There was a mixture of pride and embarrassment bringing in my sample (which consisted of a brown 3 liter jug and a clear plastic water bottle). Now there's no longer an embarrassment, there's just pride! The results came back from that test, and once again all was well.
The appointment I had while Josh was gone was my first one to go to alone. I put on my big girl boots. The doctor tested what she normally does and said to me," You're about as perfect as you can be pregnant." After I picked my mouth up off the floor I said ," What?!" and then... you guessed it...
started to cry!
That's all I have wanted to hear since we've moved to Texas. I stopped drinking my favorite drinks. I stopped eating my favorite foods. I started eating things I tried to avoid. Each week it wasn't good enough. Each week I felt defeated, like I wasn't providing the best for my Little One.
But this week, this week I was "about as perfect as I could be pregnant".
This past Tuesday I went again and had another great appointment with another first- no glucose in my urine! There was a bit of protein, but my doctor wasn't worried.
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