Nov
29

Happily Boring.

When I woke up yesterday morning, the clenchy feelings I had been having the night before had disappeared, but the pressure had not. Now, I have had various sorts of pressure off and on for weeks now. This pressure, however, was localized to my Lady Parts, was rather more intense, and made me waddle. It felt, quite simply, like I had a billiard ball in my vagina. I know—poetic, aren’t I?
So, I waddled through my day. I meant to call from work and ask a nurse about the pressure, but I never managed to find a private phone that was free, and I figured they would tell me it was a normal pregnancy symptom, as all the other bizarre sensations I have had in the past weeks have turned out to be. But when I got home, I called my OB. So sure was I that they would reassure me that while I was waiting for a call back I changed into my housepants and started making myself a snack. When the nurse got on the phone and heard my symptoms, however, she told me to go to the nearest Labor & Delivery triage.

I spent three hours on the monitors and eventually saw the doctor on call from my new perinatology practice. He seemed nice enough, but when he put the ultrasound wand between my legs he didn’t seem to realize it was nowhere near where it needed to be, and there was a tense moment or two while he looked at the screen, rummaging in my pubic hair while I wondered whether I ought to reach down and help him. Luckily, his seven years of medical school eventually triumphed, and my uterus wavered onto the screen. The scan quality was low—the ultrasound machine equivalent of a bong made out of a potato—so I had trouble understanding what I was seeing. I could see Baby A’s head, right near my cervix, and Baby B stacked on top. The doctor said it was possible that what I was feeling was caused by the position of my bony-headed baby, and measured my cervix at 3.4 cm. He measured it differently than I have had it measured before, in a straight line rather than in pieces to follow the curve, so perhaps it was actually even longer. Anyhow, he seemed pleased that it was over 3 cm, and then had me press on my stomach while he measured it again, to check for funneling. I did notice that the measurement went down to 2.7 with the stomach pressing, but the doctor didn’t seem to think that was a problem, as my cervix stayed admirably closed with no funnel. They took a urine sample to send for culture, some lovely nurses gave me a list of things to watch for and told me to call anytime, and Scott and I went home.

I still have the billiard ball feeling, but I feel better knowing my cervix is long and closed. I have my first peri appointment a week from tomorrow, and I think I will get another ultrasound then (they told me to allow an hour and a half for the appointment, and surely that means an ultrasound?). Perhaps they will take a nice, long look at my cervix to make certain nothing has changed.

So there you are—I told you it was tedious. Thankfully so.

By Alexa | Posted in Ceci N'est Pas Une Ecrivaine |