Another LONG night...but okay this a.m.

Well, I fought the darn headache all day yesterday with no progress of winning it over. Doctor thought I might have caught a virus or something. But then my bloodpressure spiked and they were concerned I was getting preclampsia. So they started running lots of tests, labs, etc. I was looking pretty good on those, but some won't come back til Friday or Saturday. Anyway, when they hooked me up to the monitor last night, I had 11+ contractions...and ended up back over in Labor and Delivery about 10:30pm last night for monitoring and to calm things down again. I think they are trying to let me try out all the Labor and Delivery rooms before the "real thing" so I can pick which I feel best in?? So far I've tried 75, 77, 78, and 71. Anyway, my bloodpressure was high while there. Then I started to run a temperature. But my contractions slowed. So I was sent back around 1am. It feels like musical rooms. I seem to always come back to my room that is starting to feel like "home". It's easier being here with the nurses I know and that know me so well.
My headache has calmed some with help of more meds. (Dang, I hate being on so many meds, but they assure me it does not affect the baby.) But needless to say I have not slept much, so I'm sure I'll be taking my fair share of naps today. Hard to sleep with transports, monitoring, labs, meds, and not to mention a heck of a headache.
A cool update from Wednesday ... at work (CBOCES) my colleagues all threw a baby shower for the 4 psychs that are expecting or had a baby. And I got to participate and see everyone through Skype, a free video conferencing that Kristin recommended we download. What a cool thing. I totally felt like I was on Oprah or something. My nurses thought it was cool too and gave me props to look professional like a scrub hat, mask, and stethoscope to wear so it looked like I had taken a new job as Dr. Shawna. :) It was good to see everyone though.
FYI - for those of you that try to call. My cell does not get reception in my room. And if I don't feel well or have things going on, I have started to take the room phone off the hook. So if you have concerns, you can call the nurses and ask if I'm stable or not. They should tell you. If I'm on Women's Care Unit, I'm stable overall. When I am sent to Labor and Delivery...it has usually been for extra monitoring. But one of these days we'll actually be delivering. But don't get too excited if you hear I've been sent to Labor and Delivery.
Day 39 in the hospital. 32 weeks, 3 days gestation. And doing well ... considering. For those of you that want to guess on McKayle's arrival date, feel free to e-mail me your dates (shawnagilbert@yahoo.com) and we'll get you on the calendar. Don't know what your prize is if you win, but it's fun trying to guess.

Headache today

Today I'm fighting a bad headache again. Not sure what is causing it. Might be a medication they switched to a generic one last night. So I asked for no visitors today and told Brett to stay home. I'm better off trying to sleep it off on days like these. Baby doing fine though. Will update more when feeling better.
Shawna

32 weeks...safe zone

Well, we made it to the "safe zone" which is awesome! Brett and I are really starting to get excited about this baby girl coming now instead of living in fear day to day.
Tuesday was a good day. It was 65 degrees out and Brett and one of my favorite nurses took me out for a wheelchair ride in the sun. It felt so good to get out and feel the sun. I'm starting to feel like a vampire. So that was spirit lifting for me.
Nothing real exciting medically going on yesterday. Just another day to mark off our calendars. I did have fun laughing often with my favorite nurses back on staff though. We played a few practical jokes on one of them last night. I laughed pretty hard which is always a good feeling. When they get me going, they often tell me "Don't start having contractions. Stop." But it is contagious. Makes me feel alive though to laugh that hard after laying here day after day. If McKayle comes along because of my laughing, then I guess she better have a good sense of humor. :) The final practical joke was at my 4am meds when I squirted my nurse with water from a 12cc syringe in the dark. Needless to say, I was up from 4am on because of laughing making me wide awake. Joke was on me a bit this morning, I guess. :)
Last night a couple friends from work came to visit also to bring baby gifts from coworkers. They are throwing a baby shower for the 4 psychs that are pregnant in our office this afternoon. And I get to join them on Skype...just like Oprah's viewers do. So that will be entertaining. I might have to put on my best outfit, do my hair and wear a fancy hat for this party. :) (Remember, it's the small things in life that keep me going...laughing at myself these days.)
Oh, I have also been honored to receive a secret recipe for "anti-constipation fruit paste" that has been passed down from a nun to one of my doctors. It is "foolproof" she says. So if any of you are in need of some "poop paste" as they call it...or your parents...or your grandparents...I will be happy to share my secret recipe that has been bestowed upon me. You just have to ask.
Well, have a happy, hilarious, fun, exciting Wednesday. I'll update later on my happenings.
Shawna

had better weekends...

well, i haven;t updated for a few days because i haven;t felt good. thw family birthday dinner was fun and good to see everyone, but after only 20 minutes sitting up in the wheelchair i needed to come back and lay down. my head was spinning. m blloodpressure dropped to 80/60. so needless to say, my wheelchair rides are very limited. then i slept much of saturday. too much partying for me no stamina at all.
Sunday was not a good day either an i ended back over in labor and delivery due to contractions that were not subsiding with meds. they finally calmed late and i was back to my room by midnight after close monitoring and exam. so today i'm just pooped out...but stable again. this little one sure keeps me hopping.
today when monitoring the baby we tested Brett's calmness over her. 3 imes she calmed unde his touch and acted up when he removed his hand...like daddy, where did you go? it was funny. he even calmed her from huge hiccups. he just grinned like a proud daddy.
tomorrow we are 32 weeks. doctor says any additional days/weeks is just icing on the cake. so they are very reassured she has made it to th safe zone.
update more tomorrow...

Day 32 in hospital...taking it day by day...

Well, after a physically and emotionally exhausting start of the week, things have calmed down. Brett and I are feeling more reassured that this baby girl is going to be okay and make it, but need to spend needed time in the NICU when she does arrive. She has been doing very well the last couple days on the nonstress tests and passing criteria of a 32 week gestation baby. So she is still developing and growing nicely.
The doctors have been ordering daily blood draws monitoring a possible infection, glucose levels, sodium levels, white blood cell counts, etc. These counts have been high and off the last few days, so they were worried I might be developing an infection...which worst case scenario would lead to needing to deliver the baby to treat me. But this morning my counts were back down. Doctor on call today said that it was probably due to the steroid shots I took the last couple days to give her another boost to develop her lungs. I guess the steroids can throw everything out of wack for a few days. So it seems that we might be out of that worry zone again...and taking it day by day.
Brett, Eric, Jen, my nephews, Deanna, Jim, Grandma and Grandpa are all coming up this evening to have a belated birthday celebration. So I'm looking forward to seeing all of them for a while and having some of Deanna's delicious ribs.
That's about it here. We are here "indefinitely" though until she decides to arrive. Brett and I feel comfortable with that decision considering the stress and safety concerns we had if I went home.
Taking it day by day...thanks for the continued prayers!

Ultrasound results and update...

Brett and I went to our ultrasound with the perinatalogist yesterday afternoon. Good news is that my fluids are good; baby weighs 3 lbs, 11 oz. and measured 31 weeks, 5 days at only 31 weeks, 0 days. So she is growing and developing very well. Other news (which is good news for safety issues), my funneling is very wide again like when I was admitted to the hospital (not good), and the doctor recommended that I stay in the hospital "indefinitely" until this baby arrives. He did not seem to think that she would make it to 36 weeks. He guessed that she might come within the next few weeks based on the ultrasound. So the NICU nurses came and visited with Brett and I about what to expect, etc. Then they took us on a tour of the NICU. To be honest, it was a lot to take in for one day after not feeling well all weekend. But Brett and talked through it and with friends and nurses and things were put into perspective. This baby is in so much better shape now than she was when we arrived her over a month ago. She will need to spend weeks in the NICU before coming home. But the babies are safe and well taken care of there. And she is well worth it all as Brett put it. :)
Tonight the doctor was called b/c of lots of pressure and I was ordered to take a trip to the jacuzi tub. I was very excited as that is what I have wanted since I got pregnant. So that was nice and relaxing until the jets came on unexpectedly and completely scared the baby and I. We recovered and are doing fine though.
And today a couple of my favorite nurses were on and we ordered pizza and had birthday cake to celebrate my birthday since I was feeling better. They sure keep my spirits up.
Thanks to all my friends and family for thinking of me on my birthday. It was great to get all the e-mails, cards, gifts, and the white "baby" rose and balloons. :)
I'll update more when we have more to tell. For now, we are taking it day by day and week by week. We hope this baby continues to be strong and stubborn and does not want to join us for a few more weeks at least. She will let us know when she is ready, I guess.

birthday and recovery

i haven;t posted for a couple days b/c i have not felt well. Docs not sure if it was a GI virus or what. they did lots of bloodwork and most looked good. just came back indicating i was fighting something. so they are doing daily bloodwork to monitor things. i had a couple friends viisit today, but we decided to postpone family dinner for a couple days as i'm just startingi to eat solid foods again...and i want to be able toeat cake. :)
my nurses have helped me celebrate by starting at my 4am med tinme singing happy birthday; then another decorated my room and brought cake, another called to sing onher day off. so i have been sung happy birhday lots today by family and friends calling.
baby still doing well. she did not officially meet criteria on the nonstress tests today, but I have not been eating much so i'm sure she is conserving her energy. she is fine and doctors are not concerned about her.
brett and i are excited about getting to see her again in the ultrasound tomorrow with the perinatologist. i have a feeling we will start planning for me to posibly go home on bedrest sometime next week. brettis concerned about me being so far from the hospital, so i may stay at my in-laws or a wek or so to be only 10 minutes away. each week the baby gets to develop, the more reassured we get. and 32 eeks, our next big milestone, is only a week away!!
i'll update tomorrow after the ultrasound to let you know her estimated weight, etc.

Happy Valentine's Day

Today is day 26 in the hospital and it's Valentine's Day. My nurses came in this morning singing "Happy Valentine's Day" to me. My mom called and woke me up to tell me happy valentine's day. Last night Brett came to see me to have a Valentine's dinner of prime rib. It's all brought smiles to my face, despite the nausea continuing. Talked to the doctor about it this morning, so they added another med to my candy cocktail for acid reflux. Hopefully that will work. We think that it is just because the baby has moved to the right side and is cramping my style, basically. Baby did not pass the nonstress test this morning either. She slept through the whole monitoring which she has never done. So they are doing another nonstress test this afternoon just to double check her. But she was moving the whole time, which is funny. Contractions have continued, but seem to be under control with the meds.
I had lots of visitors on Thursday night: Marie, Lauren, Logan, Kristin, Brigham, Gloria, Julie, Alicia. Thanks to all of you for visiting and the treats you brought. And thank you to EES for the card and thinking of us. It means a lot.
Today I'm just hanging out being visited by my nurses often and watching girl flicks on the TV all day. Brett will be up later to hang out.
Just counting down the days til week 31 and our next ultrasound...3 more days! :)
Shawna

Day 24 in hospital...Lincoln's Birthday

Sorry I haven't updated recently. It is harder for me to update on the hospital TV internet. So I prefer to wait for Brett to bring out laptop up.
Baby and I are still stable. Doctors are pretty optomistic of how stable we have been. We have played with some med time changes to start to prepare for me to possibly go home. I thought it would be difficult to wake up every 2 hours at night to take my meds. So we are moving it to every 4 hours at night. I also started an iron supplement and continue an antibiotic to prevent further bladder infections. Baby is doing well and passing her nonstress tests daily. She will often kick and run from the nurses when they put the cold goo and monitor on my stomach. I laugh at her. She also has the hiccups often which is so cute to hear.
We have had a few visitors this week, but during the week is slower than on the weekend. I have had a few new nurses, but they adjusted to be not being a standard protocol patient that takes lots of meds. I am looking forward to this weekend as several of my favorite nurses are on and will be "fighting" over who gets me. :) I told them we'd have to have a party. I even have a few brewskies in the frig that were left by Karyn last weekend. :) (Don't worry, I'm not consuming them.)
My upper arms are big bruises from my heparin shots. The nurses cringe when they see them. So one of my nurses and I decided to start naming the bruises because some are as big as a softball. (Cute, huh?) So we wrote another favorite nurses name on ALL of the bruises. Got some good laughs out of that one when she denied giving all of them to me. I am getting so much scar tissue on my arms that this morning my nurse kept trying to punch the needle into my arm but it would not go through. She felt bad...so I had to give her a hard time. But I'm use to it. She had to get another needle and change the injection site. Afterward she drew a heart around my ouchie! :) I know this all sounds pathetically gross or bad, but I try to find the humor in most anything.
Hospital food is starting to get old. Had some upset stomachs due to food, so I'm needing to eat more bland. All minor things in the scheme of things.
Brett surprised me by bring Gus, our dog, up the other morning to see me. That was a great surprise that brought big smiles to my face.
That's about it here. Just trying to count down the days til 32 weeks when I might get to go home. We pray the stable days continue. :)
Shawna

Feb. 8, 2009

I had lots of visitors this weekend. My friend Karyn from college came to visit from Ohio for the weekend. She even camped out at the hospital with me...what a trooper. Other visitors included: brother and sister-in-laws, nephews, Dalene and Jerry, Kristin, Ross and Brigham., my mother and father-in-law,..and of course Brett every day. I got lasagna brought to me one night and pizza and fudge yesterday...so I'm getting foods I crave too.
Dr. James, my regular OBGYN was here on call all weekend. I had to tease him for being such a stranger. One of my favorite nurses was on all weekend too and hung with us often to entertain and chat. My heparin levels were reduced back to what they were a few days ago after a blooddraw. Other meds and contraction/baby monitoring are the same.
Doctor was optimistic about me carrying this baby for quite a while, but he didn;t want to reduce contraction meds b/c it is working for now.
I have had a few mental down times the last few days, but I think that is to be expected. As my brother says, this is a mental game now like a triathalon and I'm half way through the bike portion. When I hit the end of Feb. and 32 weeks, I'll be transitioning to the run and final legs. Then he laughed and said the finish line is laying a basketball. That's a brother for ya. She will be a prize or light at the end of the tunnel...and well worth the sacrifice. I have always been the competitive type that loves challenges, so I know this little girl and I can handle it. She has her mother;s stubborness and strength...we can tell already.

oh, my Iowa family and grandma Melva sent a gorgeous quilt that they made for the baby. And pictures of Grandma tying the quiilt. Grandma, you look great for 92 years old!! Thank you! We are blessed to have such wonderful family anf friends!

not much news

today there is not much news. doctor increased heparin to compensate for placenta growth. baby passed nonstress test today. labs came back to confirm uti so on meds for that again. did not go outside today, but may go for a ride later when brett or auntie julie come visit. i also was approved to order fancy meal 1 time every 2 weeks. :)

Dogs visit hospital

Yes, this afternoon Brett brought Gus and Bear to visit me at the hospital. My nurse rolled me outside in the sun and blue skies...and there were Brett and the dogs. It brought me to tears I was so excited to see them. It was good for my soul. :) We wanted to try them out outside before we brought them up to my room. When we returned and Brett left with the dogs, the other nurses asked where the dogs were because they wanted to meet them. So maybe next time one will come visit me in my room. But for today it was great to get out in the sun and fresh air. :) Big smiles on my face!!
Shawna

Happy Birthday to My Dad!!

Today is my dad's birthday...he's a whopping 65 years old and awnry as ever. :) I have yet to get ahold of him to harrass him yet, but that is my goal today. :)
Last night my bladder infection came back, but thankfully without the spasms which can start contractions. So I'm back on meds for that infection and doing fine. Guess this is just my time to be highly medicated. :/ Whatever it takes!!
As I posted yesterday, I have wheelchair privileges for 30 minutes a day...so I am totally excited about that. I think Brett is going to bring Gus, our dog, up to the hospital and I'm going to go outside to see him this afternoon. It is suppose to be in the 60s and 70s today, so I'm truly looking forward to getting outside in the fresh air and sunshine. So that is the big news today!!
Oh, here's a funny though...my Iowa family (grandma, aunt, cousins) sent a care package and some of the contents included Vicks because Grandpa Newell always said it would fix what ails you, Chocolate because Grandma Melva says it WILL fix anything that ails you, treats because that's what our family does is eat sweets, etc. Oh, and thanks for the oil that cures headaches...I used that the other night and it did help. (I thought I'd be tough and not take my tylenol, but the headache kicked in for the rest of the day. No more being tough...I take my tylenol with my procardia every time.)
Have a great day!
Shawna

29 Weeks Gestation Today!!!

Today we reached our 29 week gestation goal. Now we are shooting for 30 weeks and beyond. :) We had our ultrasound with the high risk doctor today. My cervix has not thinned out anymore and the funneling of amniotic fluid is not as wide of a funnel. So this was great news. I did have a small contraction during the ultrasound that I couldn't feel, but the change in the funneling was not nearly as obvious as 2 weeks ago when we were admitted to the hospital. It was obvious to Brett and I right away that things looked better. The doctor was happy with how I have stabilized and even gave me wheelchair privileges to get out of my room for 30 minutes a day if I continue not to have many contractions. :) Yippeee!! I feel like I got a "get out of jail" ticket. :)
So it was a good day to celebrate for Brett and I. Brett was so excited that as I was getting wheeled back to my room he detoured to find our favorite nurses to tell them I got wheelchair privileges. It's the small things in life that make it exciting and rewarding. So make sure all of you go outside and enjoy the sun and weather...because some people can't. :)
They did not do a growth estimate today. Doctor wanted to wait until I was at 31 weeks (every 4 weeks) to do that, but he said she looked great and my fluid levels were looking good. So all positive stuff. Our baby girl was sleeping during the ultrasound so the doctor gave her a little nudge to wake her up so she would move...and she did. In fact, she gave us a thumbs up...she had her hand in a fist with her thumb up...working its way to her mouth. Too cute. At least it was a thumbs up this time and not the middle finger like she has done in the past. :)
When we asked the doctor what our goal was...he said to carry her as long as I could. He said 32 weeks is our next goal...then beyond.
That's about all for an update today...but a great day with good news for us.

Two weeks already!?

Today I have been hospitalized two weeks already. Crazy, but thankful, that the time is going by quickly. We are having another stable day. Contractions picked up to 5 in an hour last night, but slowed when they hooked the monitor to me. So hopefully it was just the excitement of the SuperBowl. :) That was a good, close game to watch. My favorite commercials were the Budweiser Clydesdales playing fetch, rescuing his girlfriend from the circus, and the laughing my ass off one.
I have lost 7 pounds since being in the hospital...so I guess this is my new diet plan, huh? I'm sure it is the portion sizes of meals and losing muscle, but whatever. As long as baby girl keeps gaining I'm fine with it.
Tomorrow we will be at week 29 which was our next goal! We have a scheduled ultrasound and appt. with the perinatalogist that sent us to the hospital 2 weeks ago. I am anxious to see how much my cervix has changed, if I'm still having contractions I can't feel, and how much the baby has grown...as well as answering questions. So we will have a more informational update tomorrow.
Brett is on his way up to the hospital now to have lunch with me.

SuperBowl Sunday

Today we are going on "stable" day 5 which is awesome. Brett came to visit and brought me some SuperBowl goodies. His mother and step-father and grandparents also came to visit, as well as a friend from work. On Saturday our aunt and uncle came to visit. Jen (my sister-in-law) came up for a couple hours and painted my toenails. And Brett came up and brought clean laundry and had dinner with me again. It was good to see them all.
I forget what I last posted, so if I repeat myself, I apologize.
We have an NST (Non-stress test) done daily, sometimes more than once to check for the baby's heartbeat escalating appropriately. But our little one has been napping or moving off radar, so we had not been able to meet criteria to pass the tests. So Friday night when Brett was up here having pizza with me, we had an BPP (BioPhysical Profile) ultrasound done for 30 minutes where they check the baby's fine motor movements, gross motor movements, fluid levels, and breathing movements. She passed the fine, gross and fluid levels right away. Then we waited around waiting for her to practice breathing movements for a half hour. Finally, in the last minute she got the hickups which passes as a breathing movement. So she passed that test. This was reassuring to Brett and I. It confirmed that she is doing well and just following doctor's orders for us to take it easy and have boring days. :)
I still have some contractions, but much fewer than in the past. I only have 2-3 a few hours a day, so doctors are not concerned. The key was the right level of medication and to take them on the dot when they are due. So I take my meds often (2am, 4am, 8am, 12noon, 2pm, 4pm, 8pm, 10pm, 12midnight). My most restful time is between 4am and 8am. :)
Well, I'm going to watch the SuperBowl so I don't miss any good commercials. Update you more later.