William and I were able to visit with 13 of our family members, ride 4 wheelers (don't worry, I didn't take it out of first gear), go fishing in the dark, make s'mores by the riverside (I finally got to try my pregnancy craving for a s'more made out of Reeses instead of plain old Hershey's....GO TRY IT NOW!), sleep in late, eat some of the most delicious and fresh veggies I've ever had, and recharge our quickly draining batteries. Needless to say, a good time was had by all.
Today I had my 16 week Midwifery appointment and it probably could not have come at a better time. Since my teenage years, I've had hyperglycemia (managed by diet). During my pregnancy with William I never had any problems with my blood sugar (aside from the dangerously low levels I had during the blood-glucose test) and this pregnancy was proving to be the same until today. Sheesh, my body is falling apart quickly! Basically what happened was that I laid down to take a nap with William and when I woke up, I was extremely jittery and light-headed. Usually eating a couple spoonfuls of peanut butter takes care of the shakes, but this time was different. I was shaky the whole time I was getting ready, during the drive over (where I had to pull over to get sick), and was on the verge of passing out when I got to the Birthing Center. It was so embarrassing to meet the third midwife in the practice (for the first time) with clammy, sweaty skin, and jittery muscle spasms. Basically what we found out was that my blood sugar and pressure were both low, thus my headaches and dizziness. I was sent home with the orders to rest and drink plenty of fluids (I am sipping on my Mickey Dee's sweet tea now), so William had to fend for himself this afternoon (I know, I win Mother of the Year).
On the up side, the baby's heartbeat was great- in the 140's, and we have an appointment on September 8th to find out our sweet baby's sex (ahem, a girl). This was also the appointment where we were offered the Maternal Serum Triple Screen Test. Sean and I have given this test a lot of thought and prayer over the past month, and we decided that we did not want to go ahead with it (unless our Midwife advised otherwise). Our reasoning behind this decision (because we did get it with William) is that the statistics just aren't good enough, for us, to merit the test. Basically, if the test came back with a low risk of our baby having a neural tube defect, Trisomy 18, or Downs, it doesn't mean that our child does not have one of these defects- it just means the chances are low. If it came back with a high risk, that too is not a sure fit. Our baby could be perfectly fine, thus causing us unnecessary stress and worry (you know how I am with worry). We would not do anything different if our baby was sick, so we decided the test would be unnecessary. Furthermore, the Midwife I met with today told me that she, personally, did not like the test. I asked her what percentage of the practice's patients got the screening. Are you ready for this? Her answer was 20%. Seriously?! Enough said, for me. I did not get the test.
Please pray that our baby continues to grow normally and beautifully. I am trying ever so hard to not worry, but I can't help to think about all the "what-ifs". I'll keep you posted with our updates and thank you for keeping up with our family's story. G'night, all!
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