February Appointments

ruby696 · February 2020

Let us know how your February appointments are going!

ruby696 · February 2020

Started this selfishly because I have my monthly MFM/monitoring appt today. It's booked for two hours, but I'm really hoping it doesn't take that long. Anyway, fx babies are looking good.

soprano19 · February 2020

I have my next OB appointment on the 19th, and before that I need to go to the lab for the 1 hour glucose test. I don't have an hour to sit in the lab during open hours, so not sure when that's going to happen.

afranzen85 · February 2020

Been MIA for a few days because of my appt on 1/31. I'm not sure if this is the right place to put it, but I've searched the high risk forums and came up with nothing...

I went for a recheck sono to check my low lying placenta and baby head circumference. My placenta has moved up so that is no longer a concern, but I was told I'm now considered high risk because of baby's head circumference.

On 1/3 baby's HC was in 9th percentile which they look for 10th-90th to be within normal range. At my recheck on 1/31, HC is now in 5th percentile. I am being referred to Maternal & Fetal Medicine for high risk doctors and the closest one to me is 1.5 hours away. So I'm waiting for a call for that to be scheduled. Dr didn't really give specifics because the cause is unknown since everything else looks great and measuring within normal range.

I had to do a blood test to check for infections so waiting on those results. I'm waiting for insurance to approve a Claritest which will test for chromosomal abnormalities. Waiting and not knowing any info is stressing me out.

I have 2 littles at home and 1 at school, so finding someone to take care of them while traveling 1.5 hours to appts that will take who knows how long and who knows how many times is going to be added stress.

Sorry such a long post...anyone have experience or knowledge in small head circumstance or know any groups with experience or knowledge, please share.

ruby696 · February 2020

No experience @afranzen85, but I'm sorry you're dealing with this and all the added stress. FX baby fine and MFM isn't worried.

pirateduck · February 2020

@afranzen85 I am sorry you are going through this. I don't know if anyone in this group has had your specific issue, however several of us have had health scares for our babies this pregnancy and have been referred to MFMs for extra testing and care. I will say the uncertainty is the hardest part, not knowing if your baby is ok is terrible, and waiting for test results and not knowing what to do are emotionally draining. You just have to remind yourself that nothing you did could have caused this and that nothing you do between now and your appointment can change this. Continue to take good care of yourself and eat and sleep well as best you can, and for now, that's all you can do. I had to see an MFM that was about 2 hours away, so I know the additional strain of that, however I will say, as stressful as my situation was, I felt sooooo much better once I met the MFM and was able to talk to and ask questions to someone who is highly knowledgeable. It can certainly be emotional and I highly recommend starting a written list of questions for your MFM before you go, especially since she is so far away. It will be good to know that everything you were wondering about was covered during your appointment. Also, something good to ask, is if there is any further testing or monitoring required if it's possible for you to have this done at your local OB or lab and have the results to sent to the MFM. I found I did not always have to travel for appointments and could often have blood tests and sometimes ultrasounds done locally and have results shared with the specialist. I found I did not ask this soon enough and made more long trips to the city than was necessary. I hope you have answers soon and can stay calm until then.

There is a high risk group on this board, though I'm not sure how active they've been. Since it's a new month you could start a new thread and call it High Risk Check in February or something, or scroll back through and try and revive an old thread.

heyybritt · February 2020

@afranzen85 I'm sorry to hear about this additional stress for you. Hoping that you get some answers quick and everything turns out alright.

afranzen85 · February 2020

@pirateduck thank you, those are great suggestions and I will definitely start making a list and make sure to ask about using my local OB for what I can.

heyybritt · February 2020

I had my first of two regular prenatal appointments this morning for this month. Can't believe we are already at the point where I have to start coming in twice a month! Heartbeat sounds great and she measured fundal height for the first time and said that was on track as well. Did my 1 hour glucose screening, they gave me the drink last time so I had it on my way in and only waited about 30 minutes for the blood draw. Hopefuly that comes back ok and I can skip the 3 hour, we will see.

pirateduck · February 2020

I just realized my glucose screening is at my appointment this week. I have never done this before as a FTM, but based on all you ladies have said on here, I'm not excited about it. Also I don't want to watch what I eat that day or wait until 2:30 pm to have a legit lunch. Ugh.

heyybritt · February 2020

@pirateduck it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be actually. Mine tasted like hawiian punch with extra sugar in it. I was mainly mad at myself for not waking up early enough to have a legitimate breakfast, ended up just having a couple spoonfuls of yogurt since they told me not to eat the hour before and I woke up an hour and 15 minutes before my appointment.

pirateduck · February 2020

@heyybritt lunch is usually my big meal for the day so I can deal with any indigestion before bedtime, but my appointment is at 1:30, so that kills that.

m6agua · February 2020

@pirateduck Check with your provider, if it is just the screening (1 hour) you usually are aloud to eat normally. They typically advise you not to have a carb heavy meal though since you are going to be ingesting 50 grams of straight glucose/carbs. My provider has you drink the whole thing within 5 minutes and then sit there (trying not to move or walk too much) for an hour, eating nothing and only taking sips of water until they draw blood exactly an hour from ingesting the drink. When I did my screening at 9 weeks I had eggs and sausage (a typical meal for me) for breakfast probably 30 minutes to an hour before my appointment.

bananapanda · February 2020

@afranzen85 I have no advice, but sorry you are going through this and hope you can get answers quickly to help ease your mind.

+1 to what @m6agua said. My OB sent me home with the drink last appointment and said I could eat before drinking it but was advised against carb heavy. It was suggested to have some protein or something in my belly (mine is at 8AM) because that much sugar on an empty belly can make some people nauseous. I plan to have eggs with bacon and/or sausage before drinking it and going in.

chewie5990 · February 2020

I had my 24W appointment today and nothing excited - but everything checked out normal. I still feel like I’m not getting the same level of care with Kaiser as I was at my previous OB which just bums me out. I also found out I can’t get my breast pump until after baby is born and the only option is the almeda pump which I’ve only heard bad review about. So now I think I’m just going to shell out the money to buy my own.

mamaj1220 · February 2020

@afranzen85 I haven't had personal experience with head circumfrence but I was high risk my last pregnancy and know the pain of the long drives but I will say it definetly made me feel better to talk with the specialist and hear what he thought, I would write down things as they come to you because it is such a stressful wait, I know when I got there and he asked me if I had questions I stared blankly until DF reminded me that I had wrote them down.
As far as support groups go, check on facebook as well, I doubt they have given a diagnosis to you but I would search out there if you do. I know when I worked EI that was how I connected a lot of people who had been there with newer families and often they are more than willing to share experiences as well as break down information for you. Did they say anything about if they think this is something like microcephaly?

afranzen85 · February 2020

@mamaj1220 They haven't given any diagnosis and didn't mention microcephaly. I'm sure they won't diagnose anything until all tests are done and reviewed.

I'm just hoping for a quick turn around for an appt to get scheduled. Waiting to get a call is like torture. The referral was supposed to go today so hopefully I hear from their office within the next couple of days.

ruby696 · February 2020

So I had my 25 week growth scan with my MFM today. Everything is fine, but baby girl has more amniotic fluid than she should, which could mean GD or hydramnios. So now I get to spend 3 weeks worrying about both. Also, growth discordance is 15%, which is normal, but a month ago it was 10%. So something else to watch and stress about. Ugh. On the plus side, baby girl was practicing her breathing and had the hiccups. Baby boy was just hanging out, being mellow as usual.

afranzen85 · February 2020

@ruby696 sorry you came away from your appt with more things to stress about.

randic22 · February 2020

I had my 27 week appt today and was already informed due to me being high risk they want to induce me at 39 weeks. Tentatively they scheduled me for April 26th.

rachelg777 · February 2020

I'm sorry @afranzen85 and @ruby696 for the potentially stressful news. I hope your waiting times for your next appointments aren't too brutal.

thepretzelchick · February 2020

24w appt this morning. I had u/s first to get the few measurements we couldn't get last time. He's measuring in the 75th percentile, which isn't a surprise since DH's family tends toward big babies with big heads. It did lead to another lecture about my weight, to which I didn't bother hiding my rolling eyes. I'm only up 12lbs; I gained 9lbs with DS and he was 10lbs at birth. He did agree to forego the 1hr glucose test again since I failed it the first time and we're going right to the 3hr next time. I'm cool with that. I'm beginning to think he may be an A.I. though. He's totally monotone and emotionless. I welcome our robot overlords, but can we at least program one joke per appointment?

afranzen85 · February 2020

@thepretzelchick I wish I was only up 12 lbs...I'm surprised they commented on 12 lbs. That seems great for 24 weeks.

Update...I got a call from MFM and they can get me in this Friday! Only 3 more days to stress due to no information. Now, I'm hoping we don't get the 3-6" of snow forecasted for the next two days or traveling an hour and a half might be tricky and much longer.

thepretzelchick · February 2020

@afranzen85 Because I'm already plus size, there's a limit to "healthy" weight gain in most doctors' eyes. There are risks and I fully understand that, as I did the last two times, and I know that no matter his lack of bedside manner, I am in good hands with a doctor who genuinely has mine and baby's health as a priority. I just had to roll my eyes because gaining a few extra pounds than I intended after Super Bowl weekend doesn't automatically mean I'll have another 10lber

It just means Pretzel's gotta lay off the potato chips.

allie456 · February 2020

@thepretzelchick I lol'd at your robot doctor comment. I do wish people would chill about the absolute terror of pregnant women eating too much.

@ruby696 I'm sorry about the extra fluid around your baby girl! I hope you get an answer about that soon.

@afranzen85 I'm glad you got an appointment soon and I hope more information is reassuring.

I guess I'm at the point of seeing my OB every two weeks too, although my next appointment (tomorrow) is about my hemorrhoids 😂

catem07 · February 2020

I had a 25 week appointment today. BP is good, fundal height is just right. Nothing really to report. I scheduled out my appointments through the end. At my next appointment at 28 weeks they'll give me the drink and then I'll go over to the lab to get blood drawn for GD.

chewie5990 I've heard that about Ameda and Kaiser

You can get an S2 on Amazon for $160. They're also FSA-store approved if you have FSA money.

@pirateduck My doctor says to eat normally before the glucose test. Did yours tell you to fast or eat lightly?

pirateduck · February 2020

@catem07 just to watch the carbs and sugary drinks. I feel like juice is my life blood these days because nothing sounds good to eat and then ultimately I eat carbs because they are easy to digest, sooooo, there's that. Also don't have a huge meal right before the test, which with my test time, it means shifting my eating schedule. I know none of these are crazy requests, but asking a pregnant woman to change anything about eating habits, even for a day, is dangerous business! Test is in a few short hours now.

afranzen85 · February 2020

Update on my high risk appt on baby's head size...

Just as many of you said, I feel a lot better after this appt. They said while baby is measuring small, they don't see concern with microcephaly or IUGR at this time. They will continue to monitor me to watch baby's growth and I will also continue to see my regular provider as well. While worry is still there, I am no longer thinking about all of the worst case scenarios. I was finally able to sleep well for the first time in a week last night!!

Another positive is that they have an office a little bit closer than the one we went to yesterday, so will only have to travel 45 min to an hour instead of 1.5 hours for the next ultrasound.

pirateduck · February 2020

@afranzen85 I am so glad your MFM appointment went well and you have someone that can answer questions and follow up with you. I feel that one of the trademarks of a good doctor is that you feel better (emotionally) after meeting with him/her instead of worse, regardless the situation. I’m glad they were able to set you up with a closer clinic as well. How often do you need to go back for scans? Hopefully baby just keeps growing well the next few weeks and it’s not too much of a strain on your schedule.

chewie5990 · February 2020

@afranzen85 I'm so happy you are able to get some relief after your appointment! Hopefully things will continue to run smoothly for you and baby.

ruby696 · February 2020

Great news @afranzen85!! Please keep us updated after your next appt. ❤

lisush · February 2020

@afranzen85 glad to hear you got good news both about the baby and the option for closer appointments!

pourmeanothermocktail · February 2020

@afranzen85 Hooray, glad for good news!

pirateduck · February 2020

I guess I never updated, but had my glucose test at my appointment, no choice in flavors, all they had was the lemon lime. It was not as bad as I’d anticipated and I passed! Next appointment includes our hospital tour and talking about labor/delivery towards the end of Feb.!

afranzen85 · February 2020

Thank you all for the support!

@pirateduck I will see my regular OB 2/28 and will get a call next week to schedule with MFM at the new office for an appt in 4-6 weeks. Seems like a long time, but they said there's not enough growth weekly to give a good idea of growth trend.

And hooray for passing the glucose @pirateduck. I will do mine on 2/28 then start appts every 2 weeks with my OB.

jkr2019 · February 2020

I had my 24 week visit on 2/3 and we had another uneventful scan. Had to wear a heart monitor for 48 hours due to high heart rate which was very annoying. I go back on 2/17 for another scan, glucose test and the NICU tour. They told me I have a super high chance of GD with a triplet pregnancy, so I’m eating sweets while they are still on the menu.

ruby696 · February 2020

@jkr2019 Love that and not gonna lie - I haven't taken my GD test (it's also on the 17th), but my last urine test was negative for proteins, so I celebrated with cookies.

jkr2019 · February 2020

Cookies are calories too, seems silly to neglect an opportunity for calories in a multiples pregnancy. And if you dip a cookie in peanut butter that’s a protein rich snack!

ruby696 · February 2020

Or ice cream! I mean, calcium and calories, so I consider that a win.

m6agua · February 2020

@ruby696 Don't forget that ice cream includes all of your macro nutrients, protein, fat and carbs! That was actually a snack I was able to do when I had GD!

@pirateduck I'm glad you passed!

@afranzen85 I'm glad the appointment went well and they will continue to monitor you!

ruby696 · February 2020

@m6agua

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