Friday, July 31, 2009

In Other News



Today's newscast is brought to you by 10 tiny, cute (albeit crooked) toes.

Sometimes I feel like my life is a 9pm newcast. Goofy weather man included. If you've met my husband you know what I mean.

In the endless barrage of doctor's appointments and specialist vists I feel like I'm in a constant state of "Extra" editions or "Investigative" reports. You know all the stuff you really want to see after they cover the pitiful economy, who robbed a bank, who got bailed out this week and the fact Obama, in all his esteem prefers Bud Light.

So Today's Top Story:
Yesterday David and I went to my regular OB for a scheduled checkup and a follow-up on Little Angel.

The first thing OB covered were the results of my last ultrasound on June 30th. Turns out Little Angel's head measures in the 45th percentile but the limbs only measure in the 5th percentile. It isn't awkwardly noticeable on the ultrasound and may or may not be in real life. Little Angel's body is developing what's most necessary, which happens to be the brain. My regular doctor stated hands and feet will catch up with time as an infant but brain development won't, justifying why the body is focused on that now. Either way, this is definitely a positive sign.

With the new ultrasound yesterday, nothing new or suscipicious has developed. Everything looks pretty much the same. Baby measures about a week behind, but still falls into chart range. Little Angel gained a pound in the last month bringing his weight to 2 pounds exactly.

Baby measures in the 10th percentile all around. My regular OB told me the specialists were probably going to diagnose growth restriction, but I shouldn't let it bother me. To quote the doctor directly:

"They'll diagnose growth restriction so they can have a medical code for repeat ultrasounds. As long as Baby keeps growing consistently it's not so much of a concern. Further more having a small baby is partially due to the chromosome issue, and mainly because 5'2" 120 pound moms and 5"7' 150 pound fathers do not have 8 pound babies. Also, some babies have to make up the bottom of the growth chart."

David and I also questioned brain function because while we can handle anything physical, we do need to prepare ourselves for mental delays as well. The OB just like the specialists admitted we won't know for sure until October, but there are no signs of brain malformations or unusual activity. All of the lobes are there and all of the necessary nerves are attached in physiologically appropriate places.

Lastly, our OB went on to explain my feeling good is a positive indication. He said usually babies with chromosome issues affect not only their systems but the systems of mom as well. I have no signs of preterm labor, no signs of pre-eclampsia, no unusual pain, I'm not sick etc. In fact, if it wasn't for my belly prohibiting me from crawling through the gates in the barn (and the never ending stress), I'd never know I was pregnant.

David and I also found out we will need to deliver this baby at Children's Hospital. Our regular hospital while great, does not have a high level NICU unit and because of liability issues they will not deliver a baby with known complications. The only way I could deliver in my regular hospital is if we have explicit after-care instructions for Little Angel. However, that's not a decision I'm willing to make until delivery. How can we tell doctors what I want done to help our child, if we don't know what's wrong to start with? It's an emotional battle neither of us are willing to fight until we can see Baby and make a rational decision.

So basically, after two hours of in-depth investigataive reporting, we here at BabyTV have uncovered no news is good news. Little Angel is still growing and kicking around more than ever. At the moment, that's all we ask for.

We'll be the first to keep you informed of the latest updates. Stay tuned.
































1 comment:

  1. I've been following your story, so I thank you for your updates. Keep being positive-your baby needs it! I'll keep praying for you!

    ReplyDelete