I worried that I would inflate to the size of a hippo by the time I have Emma and I'm pretty sure that, unless I deliver soon, that will absolutely happen. The combination of lying around doing nothing all day and eating french fries will likely thrust me directly into obesity. *shrug* but I guess I don't have much of a choice at this point... you can't put a menu complete with a burger, chicken fingers, and fries in front of me and expect me to order a salad every day. I curse genetics for my high blood pressure and German hairiness, yet I also rejoice in the fact that I've had a reasonable metabolism and have only had to mildly diet while on birth control (don't kill me for saying it out loud!). One thing I hadn't anticipated was how quickly the effects of minimal activity would set in- my calf muscles are already sore and spasm frequently from not being used... I can just sense them beginning to atrophy already and they get sore when I get up to walk around, which really only consists of walking to the bathroom and back or walking around for a few minutes to tidy up and reorganize things. I watched a riveting video today about exercises I can do while on bed rest to preserve some of my mobility and muscle tone. My poor legs, though- all of this rest and non-usage on top of the fact that they have to carry around an extra 24 pounds. I can only imagine how immobile I'll be as I rapidly gain weight from this awesome diet of french fries.
My little Emma was such a stinker today! She spent the last few days being lazy and refusing to move enough during monitoring but she definitely made up for all of it today. In fact, she was so squirrelly today that the day shift nurse had to keep chasing her down with the monitor to get a consistent heartbeat. We could hear her swishing and rolling around in there and she punched the monitor a few times... hehehe, that's my fiesty little girl! But finally she gave up and cooperated and had a PERFECT monitoring session. Tonight went exactly the same: the nurses (yes, it took two this time) had to chase her down forever but once she hunkered down, she did just fine and I made it off the monitor in 20 minutes. Hooray! I also had no major contractions during my sessions today... just a couple little ones.
And- my IV line was removed today! Hallelujah! I had asked to have it removed the other night, but the nurse said it needed to stay in case I needed any meds via IV. But last night's nurse said any meds I would get wouldn't be through my IV and suggested I ask my doctor to put in an order to have it removed. So the doctor agreed and out it came after my morning monitoring session! Since it was in my left arm in the crease of my elbow, I couldn't bend it, which made it so uncomfortable to sleep at night. I'm supposed to sleep on my left side as much as possible but my shoulder got really sore from not being able to bend my arm into a comfortable position. And it was also a royal pain to shower because my line had to be covered so it wouldn't get wet, on top of not being able to bend my arm. So washing my hair was no bueno. Needless to say, my shower this afternoon was absolutely splendid but it was unfortunately cut short because my meds were late and I started having contractions again.
Then another amazing thing happened: my nurse brought me a big bag of goodies from High Risk Hope, a local non-profit organization that does some really awesome things for the long-term women on the high risk OB unit. Apparently it was started by a woman who spent a good chunk of time here on this unit last year, so she wanted to give back to those going through this ordeal. The care package was a God-send... it has everything I could possibly need or want and it really made my whole day! There were two really soft blankets- one crocheted blanket and one really soft fleece one. So now I have some comfy blankets instead of these silly hospital ones. And there were tons of toiletries, slippers, socks... everything. It really brightened my day, and I'm hopeful that I can volunteer some of my time with them in the future. Getting the bag was another reminder, though, that I'm a long-term patient here. I mean I obviously knew that, but I guess they don't give the bags to everyone who comes here as some get to leave after a day or two like I thought I was. Oh well, there's no changing it!
There was one really low spot today... I had planned on working until I deliver and had arranged with my supervisor and director for me to do paperwork and such from bed so I wouldn't have to use my PTO time or short term disability yet. Since I've been with the company for less than a year, I don't qualify for FMLA yet and only have about two weeks of PTO time, a good portion of which was already used for last week. BUT. That wonderful plan was a no-go and I'm not allowed to work from
Emma is going nuts right now- my belly is just rolling around and jumping all over the place!
And to close, I have to give a huge thanks to my amazing friends and family that have reached out to me during this trying time. It has definitely helped me stay positive... from my wonderful relatives in North Carolina, whom I miss so much, to my local family and friends who have been praying for me and checking in. And to those who have sent me funny texts and posted pictures and such on my facebook to cheer me up- you all know who you are, and you're the best! I owe you all big time :)
And I just remembered my pie... om nom nom...
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