No Stress (Week 35)
My 35th week has been extremely hectic. I've met my new boss at work and she has been trying to spend as much time with me as possible. I don't blame her. She just started and she needs to learn as much as she can about the business--every aspect of it, and I am going on maternity leave in a few weeks.
This week has been all about meetings, conference calls and one-on-ones that when I'm at work, I'd almost totally forget that I'm near-full-term pregnant until such time that I need to get up from my seat and I feel my back hurt and my bladder getting squeezed. Then I'd run to the ladies room! On most days, I couldn't even eat my lunch on time.
Luckily, I have to see my doctor every week now and when it's time to make that visit, I am reminded of the reality that I have to take care of myself and be conscious of this very valuable bundle that I carry with me.
My doctor ordered one more test called Antepartum Testing, which I have to do twice a week. This test takes about 45 minutes and it involves a brief ultrasound to observe the baby and measure the fluid around him. Then it's followed by a Non-Stress Test or NST where two monitor pieces are attached to my belly--one is used to listen to the baby's heartbeat and graph his heart rate and the other to detect contractions. The NST takes about 20-30 minutes and the whole time I'm just listening to my baby's heartbeat.
It's a lot of trips to the doctor's but I can't complain. I love the sight of my baby's silhouette in that monitor and the sound of his heartbeat is music to my ears. It also makes me feel better getting this kind of attention and care from my doctors, especially as I get closer and closer to the big day!
I also had a full-blown ultrasound today, and below is a short clip showing my baby's little heart beating (see between the two yellow broken lines). Unfortunately, I couldn't get the sounds to work. If you look closer, you'll actually see a silhouette of my baby and his ribcage.
6 comments:
You are almost there Liz.. just a bit more.
There are so many test there compared to what we practice here which is the usual ultrasound and if ONLY there are detected abnormalities.
hala excited na pud ko. seeing the baby this way is close to holding him already. so excited for you. hapit na gyud. thank God you are both alright.
you're actually 36wks on the US liz? maybe you're further along, or either your baby is measuring 36wks (it doesn't say much on the US video you posted). why are your seeing perinates biweekly? is your fluid low? hmmm, maybe it's just your OB's routine there, huh. we do normally here, US at 12wks, 20wks, and 34-35wks with NST unless if they see something then they'll have you do more often. Sorry for all the questions [this is i guess what i do --- paki-alamera gyud], i am sure everything is alright.
almost there, yipee we're excited. how's charles handling the nearness of delivery? he seems calm anyway, just make things sure he won't pass out, ok *giggle* or else he's going to miss the delivery.
keep us posted liz (email, call or text me whenever, ok).
oh wow!!! thank you for sharing this! cute kaayo ang socks. And the ultra-sound. Thanks for including us in your journey. =)
Hi Cinds! I was on my 36th week when they did the Ultrasound, but the baby was measuring at 34 weeks--he was smaller than he should be. I guess it's because of my diet to keep my glucose level low. My doctor advised that I see perinates and do NST biweekly to monitor my fluids. She said she just wants to make sure it stays at a good level because I have a history of diabetes and hypertension. She also wants to keep the baby small because she said my birth canal is a bit tight.
I hope labor and delivery won't be too bad. Please pray for me!
Thank you Nette!
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