The Update of the Century

My bellybutton is about to pop out.

Problematic Pancreas

I do have Gestational Diabetes.  Dang it.  Out of the 4 blood tests 2 were normal, 1 was borderline, and 1 was high.  I don't have to take insulin, I just have to go on a diabetic diet and check my blood 4 times a day.  I also have two appointments set up to meet with a nurse and doctor about Gestational DIabetes and everything I need to be doing/avoiding.  Not the worst thing in the world, but still a bummer.  When I first found out I might have it I blamed myself, but my nurse said it's really nothing I did- it's just how my body is responding to all the extra hormones from my placenta.  Normally, a pregnant woman's pancreas triples the amount of insulin it puts out to counteract the placenta hormones that block insulin, but apparently my pancreas is stubborn and doesn't like to do extra work.  Danged pancreas!  This puts me at high risk for Gestational Diabetes for the rest of my pregnancies, and also significantly increases my chances of developing Type 2 Diabetes later in life.  I pretty much was already used to the fact that I was doomed to suffer from Diabetes later in life, considering it runs heavily in my family on both sides.  *sigh*  Still kinda depressing, though.  Diabetes sucks.

Thanks SO MUCH to the ladies who've been reading my LiveJournal and messaging me/talking to me about their personal experiences (or the experiences of people they know) concerning my worries or the things I am going through.  It really does make me feel better, so I appreciate it.  I know I'm not alone, and I'll keep my chin up and try not to worry too much.  Also, thanks to those who've dropped by with warm fuzzy comments and encouragement- I like thinking about happy, hopeful things :-).

Okie Dokie Artichokie

Gestational Diabetes Screening- What an aweful test!  

8:30 am: Got my blood drawn (left arm) after fasting for about 13 hours, then had to drink a glass of sugar within 5 minutes, which sat in my empty stomache for the next 3 hours.

9:40 am: My left arm was stuck again, but the nurse couldn't get any blood.  She checked my left hand, right hand, right arm. No veins.  Nurse Brenda, "the nurse who can get blood from ANYONE", was called in and she got blood from my right hand.  Total Sticks (at this point): 3.

10:40 am: Nurse Brenda sticks my right hand. No blood.  She tries my right hand again.  No blood.  She tries my right arm and finally gets some. Total Sticks: 6

11:40 am: Nurse Brenda sticks my right arm.  No blood.  She says she has never had to stick someone so many times. (I have terrible veins.  simply terrible.)  She finally gets some blood from my left arm.  I got to take home the stress ball bull that I had to squeeze.  The nurses said I could take it home as a momento, but I think it was because by the time the whole fiasco was finished the poor guy was absolutely drenched in my hand sweat. Grand Total Sticks: 8!!

I told Adry he better appreciate everything I've had to go through (and will go through) to bring him into this world, but I'm not so sure he ever will.  Afterall, I am nearly 23 years old and I am only beginning to appreciate what my mother went through.

What is even worse than 8 needle sticks on an upset stomache is the constant WORRY I have.  Adry was a pretty active little guy for a few weeks- he was constantly kicking, and really hard!  I saw him and felt him ALL THE TIME.  For about a week he just hasn't been moving that much AT ALL.  I mean, every once in a while I feel him but it is only a tiny flutter.  I miss seeing the tummy ripples.  Yesterday I tried to drink juice and lay still to get him to move and I got nothing.  I shook him around a little bit and got a few very tiny movements.  Then these aweful thoughts started flooding into my brain: "What if something is wrong in there? What if he is in some sort of distress?  Can the cord get wrapped around his neck at this point or is that only during delivery?"  So I got online and googled "decreased fetal movement" and the SCARIEST, FREAKIEST sites popped up telling me it was a sign of impending stillbirth, etc.  Yeah, I flipped out and had a panic attack.  Today, while I was at the office for my Diabetes test, I talked to my nurse (who is actually Brenda, the super sticker.  but she really is a fantastic nurse, I like her a lot) who wasn't really concerned at all.  She said it's ok as long as I feel him at least once a day, and I don't have to start doing fetal movement counts until the 28th week.  She also checked his heartbeat and pushed him around a little to get him to move.  I did feel better after that, but I can't get that stupid google site out of my mind that told me Adry's decrease of movement is a sign he will die in a few days :-/.  That's so freakin scary and I don't know what to do to feel better about it.  I HATE WORRYING ALL THE TIME LIKE THIS!!! 

I should be getting the Diabetes test results within the next few hours.

boredom is for boring people

I've been stuck home alone all day!  :-(.  Benny took my car to work, so I have no car (which is my fault, actually, because him and I both drove seperately to Hilliard yesterday and I was so incredibly tired last night that I didn't feel like driving home, so Ben drove us both home in my car...). 
Soooo, I am bored.  bored. bored. bored.

I wish I had ink for my printer!  I have a big huge picture frame I want to fill with a collage for Adry's nursery, but alas, my printer is Out of Order.

...so, I am sitting here, chomping on Bazooka gum, waiting impatiently for Ben to get home so we can do some shopping.

I also wish I had more to write about, but my brain hasn't been doing much thinking.

blank.

OH, I got most of my gift registering finished yesterday.  I forgot about a few things so I need to go touch it up...  I registered at Target.  I was going to register at BabiesRUs as well, but I found everything I needed at Target.  Is it ok to only register at one store? 

............and I JUST spilled a full glass of water ALL over myself and my floor.  Way to go, Jessica!
geeeeez!



 

Adry Ellwood

I had my 3D Ultrasound on Saturday!  It was AMAZING!  I've never been anywhere else, but I do recommend Envision Imaging because we had a really good experience there.  In the Ultrasound room they played sappy music, perfect for making women cry (haha ;-)) and they projected the Ultrasound on a GIANT screen that covered a whole wall.  First, the technician took some 2D pics, and told me FOR SURE that I was indeed having a BOY!!  She said, "There is no doubt.  You can go home and paint your walls blue!" :-).  As soon as she switched from the 2D to the 3D and I saw my baby's face I got all choked up and teary.  I was just watching him move his little fingers and blink his eyes and all I could think was, "That's MY baby boy!"  And soon after that I thought, "My gosh, he has some chubby cheeks!"  (Side Note: I went home that evening and found some newborn pictures of me, and I probably had the biggest cheeks and the roundest face of any newborn baby EVER.)  He was very entertained by his face!  No part went untouched.  He examined his eyes, his nose, his forehead, and sucked on his fingers for a while.  I got to see him scrunch his face, kick, open his mouth, and turn around.  I loved every minute of it, as did my mother and Les who went with me.

Well, after paying a pretty penny they sent me home with a 19 minute DVD of the session, a CD with 25 "color" pictures, and about 6 or 7 black and white photos.  Mom and I went immediately to Target to make a thousand prints.
**By the way- I posted all of the "color" photos on my MySpace (myspace.com/strawberryteardrop) in the album "Adry in 3D".**





Benjamin Adryel Ellwood
(Adry)
Due March 27, 2008
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yesterday I started AND tried to finish all of my Christmas shopping but I was not very successful at all.  I think I only got my mom completely finished!  Jamie and I hit up Target, Best Buy, Starbucks, Tuttle mall, and we attempted some other places that were already closed :-(.  I wanted to register for gifts AND dye my hair, but by the time that was over I was really worn out.  I came home, fell asleep, and then later that night we went to go see I am Legend, which for the most part I really enjoyed.  I was entertained the whole way through, but I wasn't altogether impressed with the ending.  I still really want to see Atonement and Juno.  (Yeah, I am a nerd.  I LOVE movies.  I love everything about movies.  I could spend every night at a movie theater.  Maybe I get it from my dad?- he DID graduate from college with some sort of film production degree and he really enjoys it so I do hear a lot about it.  For instance, just the other night he told me all about why Orson Wells's Citizen Kane was such a breakthrough and influential movie, and it actually really interested me.) 

I start my tutoring job today!  I'm kind of upset that I didn't get my hair dyed so that it looked decent for today, but OH WELL, what can ya do?
I do need to go eat something and shower myself, so...
goodbye!

Gestational Diabetes?

In my last entry I talked about having a phobia of needles, so getting my blood drawn really freaks me out.  Yeah, well... speaking of that, I guess I am really going to have to face my fears next Thursday :-(

My nurse called me today and said that my glucose test from yesterday did not come back "normal".  My blood sugar should have been 135 or lower, and mine was 180.  This means I have to have a 3-4 hour Gestational Diabetes screening during which my blood will be drawn 3 or 4 times, I'm not exactly sure how many times, but I think it's drawn every hour that I'm there.

Web MD's Definition of Gestational Diabetes:
Gestational diabetes is the result of some hormonal changes that occur in all women during pregnancy. Increased levels of certain hormones made in the placenta (the organ that connects the baby by the umbilical cord to the uterus and transfers nutrients from the mother to the baby) interfere with the ability of insulin to manage glucose. This condition is called "insulin resistance." As the placenta grows larger during pregnancy, it produces more hormones and increases this insulin resistance.

Usually the mother's pancreas is able to produce more insulin (about three times the normal amount) to overcome the insulin resistance. If, however, the pancreas cannot produce enough insulin to overcome the effect of the increased hormones during pregnancy, sugar levels will rise, resulting in gestational diabetes.

Gestational Diabetes can cause BIG BABIES (go figure) and some delivery risks.  Also, baby might be born with low blood sugar and/or jaundice.
What REALLY scares me is that if I had high blood sugar during my first trimester, the baby could have some serious birth defects :-/.  How do I know that I didn't have high blood sugar during my first trimester?  I don't remember being tested.  Does Gestational Diabetes almost always develop in the second or third trimesters?  IF ANYONE KNOWS ANYTHING ABOUT THIS, PLEASE LET ME KNOW!!!  Another scary risk is stillbirth, which is very rare if the diabetes is controlled, but still scary! :-(

SO... I'm scared.  I'm freakin' scared and worried.  Like I said, I find out Thursday if I have Gestational Diabetes, so if you pray I COULD REALLY USE YOUR PRAYERS, and if you think, I wouldn't mind your thoughts and good wishes :-)---
-for my comfort
-that I DON'T have it and my tests are normal
-but MOSTLY for the baby's health, whether I have it or not...
-and lastly, for my strength to handel whatever comes my way

...thanks

an update

1) I quit my job.  
I so needed to.  I needed to forever ago.  It's not where I belonged at all.  I know what I was thinking when I accepted the job.  I was thinking, "Oh, this will be good!  I am pregnant and this little store sells loads of baby things, and I can get things real cheap!"  OK, so I accepted the job, and didn't find out what I got paid until THREE weeks later (and not for lack of asking, either), and it turns out the pay was so little that I couldn't afford to buy anything anyways.  ...So WHY, with a degree in Education, was I there?  I have no clue...  other than the fact that I am compulsive and have trouble quitting things, so that's probably why.

2) I got a new job!
The day after I quit Tots I e-mailed my resume to four tutoring centers (a total of five including the one I sent to Sylvan when I still worked at Tots) and got a response that very day from Kumon in Mill Run.  Today I went in, and was offered the job! HOORAY!  This surprised and pleased me, considering my very very pregnant condition, lol.  It was obviously PERFECT timing, though, because the owner/head instructor of the center kept saying, "We've really been praying for you." and someone else who worked there said the same thing- apparently one of the assistant instructors, whose place I'll be taking, is leaving at the end of next week and they really needed someone.  Anyways, the lady who hired me= SUPER NICE.  I felt really comfortable right away...  she's just a genuinely sweet person.  The center is only open two days a week so I won't have many hours at all, but I don't mind, A) because I am pregnant and don't want to over work myself anyways; B) the experience is worth just as much as the money, to be honest- it's actually in my field; and C) this job fits right in with my future dreams/plans/goals I've already set for myself (tutoring and substituting while I finish my Endorsement, and then getting a full time teaching position).  In other words, I finally feel like I am headed in the right direction!

3) I had a Baby Checkup Today.
I didn't find out anything new or interesting... other than my belly measures 26 inches, the baby's heart rate is in the 158-160 range as it always is, and I am convinced that I will NEVER get over my phobia of needles no matter how much exposure I have to them.  I had to have blood drawn today for the diabetes test (OH, and by the way, that orange drink made me sick. yuck.) and I FREAKED out. AGAIN.  I've had my blood drawn about 1,749 times by now- you would think I would be used to it, but no.  I panic every time.  I mean, like, really panic.  I break out in this terrified sweat, and I have no clue why.  It doesn't make any sense at all-- I can sit through an hour and a half of painful chest tattoo BY CHOICE (not that I didn't freak out for that. I did, but I still went through with it), AND several 14 guage piercings, and I still freak out from a little butterfly needle that doesn't even hurt?  ??  

Well, that's the end of my update for tonight.  I think I am going to go to bed, or try to at least.
Goodnight, LivJ!
~Jess