Sudden Turn of Events: A Scheduled C-Section for Me!

Isn't it ironic that after my mental, physical and emotional preparation for a natural birth, my doctor said that she needs to do a Hysteroscopic removal of my uterine septum?

10 Weeks 3 Days Ultrasound showing a Septum

Yes, a septum can be resected with surgery. In this way, I'm being prepared for the next baby. We need to do this procedure to avoid any other problems in my next pregnancy (should we decide to get pregnant again). It is known that a septum is associated with a higher risk for miscarriage, premature birth, and malpresentation. According to the classical study by Buttram there is a 60% risk of a spontaneous abortion, this being more common in the second than in the first trimester. There are a lot of cases that a septum has not caused any problems and thus may not be removed but since I experienced a miscarriage before, my doctor would want to avoid that next time. Also, it's for our own peace of mind.

This pregnancy is truly a miracle for us. Having a lot of issues and risks from first to the last trimester, we are so thankful every single day for giving us the opportunity to carry Baby Xav for 32 weeks now. I don't mind whether it'll be natural or c-section, what's important for me is to bring him out safely and be able to embrace him alive. I'm so excited!

We will be choosing a date soon, but doctor said it can be from February 8-20. I think we'll choose February 8 since we are so excited to see him in person already.

On Cord Knots

I've been hearing horror stories about Umbilical Cord Complications and it's seriously making me very very nervous. I'm so glad to have reached 31 weeks of pregnancy and I thought I would only worry during my first trimester. After my advised bed rest during the first trimester I worried about my Septum on my second then now I'm worrying about any other third trimester complications such as Cord Knots! 

Last night I even woke up in the middle of the night and was so paranoid that my baby wasn't moving at all. I grabbed my phone and played a music in my tummy and was so happy the baby kicked then I went back to sleeping. I know I shouldn't be doing this to myself but seriously - I can't help it! I haven't told my hubby about this yet because I know he'll tell me to stop making it hard on myself. I don't want him to worry about me too much. 

So anyway, to reassure myself, aside from praying to our dear God, I Googled some info about Cord Knots. Here are the things I found out:

1. Umbilical cord knots occur in about one in every hundred pregnancies, but only one in 2,000 deliveries will have a true tight knot that could present problems for the baby. 

2. It is more common than knots are nuchal loops, the technical term for when the cord wraps around a baby's neck. Nuchal loops — also known as nuchal cords — occur in as many as a quarter of all pregnancies but rarely pose risks to the baby.

3. The most common sign of a cord knot is decreased fetal activity after week 37. 

4. There is nothing you can do to prevent a knotted umbilical cord. 

BUT I CAN, HOWEVER,:

1. Do a regular kick counts.

2. Call my practitioner if I notice any change in the fetal activity. 

I pray for the very best every day. May God continue to bless this pregnancy. 

My wish for Christmas is a good night sleep...

I’m already on my 30^th week and it’s getting harder and harder to sleep at night! I’m a light sleeper and with all the discomforts I’m experiencing now, it’s worse than ever! I wake up every hour from 2AM just to go to the comfort room and pee! My OB told me to limit my fluid intake from 7PM but it still didn’t help at all. Not to mention all the emotions that you’ll go through during your last trimester like excitement, worries and all that. I sometimes wake up in the wee hours and think about nursery decorations, hospital bag, baby shopping etc.! I also dream about a lot of stuff now, like last night we watched “August Rush” before sleeping and was so moved by the movie that I dreamt about our son – he’s already 11 years old! There are a lot of things that make me restless at night even though I was so tired during the day too like sometimes I wake up because the baby moves a lot, or the sudden leg cramps and all!

I told Nash last night that it’ll probably take one more year before I can have a good night sleep again.

Can you really feel the hiccups of your baby?

It's just so weird because I've been feeling this frequent patterned throbbing movements in my belly. It lasts for a minute or two and I'm just curious because it happens very frequent nowadays - starting from my 24th week. I know it's normal but I also know the feeling of having it and seriously I don't like hiccups. I always say "Kawawa naman si Baby, hiccups nanaman!".

Oh well, I just hope my baby's all good inside.

Well hello there, dark armpits!

There are a whole lot of skin changes during pregnancy, especially the darkening of your underarms. Even before I got pregnant I already know that it can happen to me. Sure I was prepared for this but I still scream now every time I look at my armpits in the mirror after shower. My eyes can’t believe how dark they are! I even spent around 50K years back for a laser treatment at Facial Care Center plus Skin Master at Belo only to find out it’ll be so freakin’ bad during pregnancy! Goodbye $$$, goodbye white armpits! People say it usually … USUALLY… disappears on their own after delivery, so I’m crossing all fingers for that. 

(Okay, move along... no picture for this post!)

7 months and still driving…

When I got pregnant I first thought I couldn’t drive at all. I was thinking maybe it’ll be too stressful for me and since my pregnancy is considered “high risk”, I thought I will be bound to stay at home for the most part. I gave a timeline for myself that I will only drive until December but I’m surprised that my pregnancy isn’t affected by driving, especially if you’re driving an automatic car. The key is to not overdo it, consult your OB first and wear your seat belt all the time!

I’m happy that I can still go out and have some fun shopping, watching movies, driving around the city, going to places, parties etc. Although it’s so true that you feel tired all the time! A little walking feels very tiring already plus the dilemma of going to the restroom every 30 minutes is really exhausting! I’m planning that on January - 8^th month, I’ll start to take things easy. I should be relaxing more and preparing for the coming of Baby G! I hope to finish my checklist before December! Weee! Exciting!