I had my long overdue visit with Dr. Nerdy Professor. Aside from his confusion about far along I am, we covered some good ground. He is not worried about my low blood sugar, or the paperwork for Tricare, or my scientific version of a birth plan. Come to think of it, that guy doesn't seem to worry about much of anything.
However, Dr. Nerdy Professor did order up a biophysical profile and non-stress test for Gabe. On the biophysical profile our wee boy passed at 4lbs, 12ozs with good amniotic fluid levels and adequate movements. And, the stern matter-of-fact nurse proclaimed that he is still very much a boy. They seem obsessed with telling us this at each and every ultrasound.
The non-stress test was fine except for the fact that it was stressful for me. They put me in a small room and hooked me up to the monitor to listen to Gabe's heartbeat. I also received my Jeopardy-style buzzer to click when I felt him move. It seemed so simple, right?
As soon as the nurse left, I began wondering what actually constituted a movement and a push of the button. Does a mere tap of the foot count or only real head bobbing and body rotations? I decided to be liberal with my buzzer and then worried that he would not show adequate heart rate variations to back up my input.
The nurse soon returned and took a glance at the print out. I decided to remain quiet. She said, "he's trying" and then left the room. Trying what? I pondered that various outcomes of that sentence (trying to be normal/abnormal, busy/sleepy, productive/non-productive etc.) Not a good unfinished sentence to ponder in the silence.
I finally decided that I was going to relax and not worry so much. Then, just as I started my Zen moments, Gabe started to really move and even moved away from the probe so that I couldn't hear the heartbeat so well. I immediately worried that they would think that he had experienced heart decelerations or some other awful phenomenon. Instead, when the nurse returned and saw the gap on the printout, she simply asked if I had coughed. I don't know why, but I just answered "yes."
By the time it was over, they declared him quite normal. My sanity, on the other hand, remains in doubt. Welcome to motherhood in all its demented glory...
4 comments:
Oh Joy! With my high risk problems, I had more NSTs than I could count, and although over time I became less anxious, I always thought they should be called Stress Tests because I'd overthink the entire thing and just freak out. Simon hated the doppler and would squirm the entire 20 minutes, causing us to occasionally lose the hb and have to start all over. Now that he's here and I "know" him, I know for sure he loathed that monitor!
I can't wait to finally see Gabe! It's soon! He's almost here! And I'm so happy your doc isn't worried about you. That means we won't have to either.
PS the nursery looks amazing! Gabe is going to be one happy little guy in there!
Thanks, Day! Gabe does hate the doppler monitors and check-ins. He did fairly well with the first NST because I think he was pretty well asleep. But, here at home, when I check in on him with the doppler, he kicks at it immediately and moves away. My boy the rebel...
What a beautiful nursery, Joy - your baby is going to be so happy there.
Thank you for your ongoing support - much appreciated. I hope all continues to go well with you!
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