So this week we had 4 appointments and so far, Lyla and I are 4 for 4 :)
Tuesday Update
On Tuesday we had an OB appointment and Lyla had her first echocardiogram. At the OB office my BP was pretty good and Lyla's heart rate was at a steady 135, whew! I didn't have a headache that day and felt better. They drew blood, set me up on the monitor for about 15 minutes and we were on our way out the door....in a car :)
A couple hours later we had to go to the Children's Levine Hospital for the fetal echo. Worst experience ever. Really because of the whole appointment thing (I'll explain later) but also I could NEVER work with sick children. The hospital is beautiful and very bright and colorful but there is just something about walking in there that makes you sad....I just couldn't do it. I have SO much respect for the special people that can help those sweet, sick babies, I seriously don't know how they do it. I just feel like I would probably "take work with me" every time I left and be an emotional wreck when something didn't quite turn out the way I wanted it to. It made me realize how lucky Erik and I are to have a healthy child....well make that 2.
Anyways, I was very nervous about the appointment because I had no idea what to expect. Well, my nerves got worse. So the fetal echo is basically an ultrasound of the heart. Seriously, they didn't even show us her head, feet...nothing. I had to lie on my back on a very uncomfortable table for 30 minutes (lying on my back is SO uncomfortable at this point). The tech zoomed in on her heart (Erik and I could see it on the big screen) and just started taking film/pictures. Blue and red colors were flashing (now I know to detect the flow of the blood but didn't at that time), you can see the 4 chambers in her heart pumping, and nothing is said, NOT.A.WORD. I felt like I was going to throw up. Here they are looking at our daughters heart and saying nothing. You know we were thinking the worse, is something wrong? Is she ok? Does her heart function properly? SAY SOMETHING. So finally I said, "Um, is someone going to explain what's going on?" The tech said that the doctor would when she was done. Great lady, we appreciate that. So let's just sit here in silence until then. I had to ask to sit up and get water, it was HORRIBLE. After 30 minutes the tech said she would go get the doctor, he would come in (he was in another room watching the ultrasound as it was going on) and probably take some more pictures. He did. He had as much personality as she did, ha. After he took more pictures, we met him in the "reading room". The doctor showed us this picture:
He said Lyla had atrial tachycardia which is a rapid pulse rate...makes sense. Since her heart rate had been in the 230's that weekend before (when I went to the hospital) and was actually in the 230's during the fetal echo, that diagnosis made total sense. Thankfully, it was nothing major and the doctor said he felt like if it got worse, we could treat it with oral medication. If her heart rate continued to beat rapidly after birth, they could treat her as well. Whew....what a relief. We felt much better when we left. He did want us to come back weekly to monitor her heart and wanted us to come back Thursday.
Thursday Update
On Thursday we had another OB appointment and another fetal echo scheduled. Lyla and I passed with flying colors at the OB :) Her heart rate was great and my blood pressure was 110/80....much better! They did get all my blood work back from Tuesday and so many good things happened :) Thank you for your prayers. My thyroid had dropped from 4.08 to 2, my platelet levels had increased from 108 to 138 (yay.......epidural!!!), and no other issues were found. Please continue to pray that my platelets continue to increase because although they have since the hospital, they are still "out of range". If they are below 100 and I can deliver her without a c-section, I cannot get an epidural, ugh...I don't want to even think about that. I felt contractions with Gage without an epidural, horrible. Back to the visit.
After being hooked up to the monitor for 15 minutes (I have to do that everytime now to check Lyla's heart rate), we got to leave.....again, in a car :) I have to go back Monday and they are going to do an ultrasound to see how Lyla is growing. This girl has had probably 6 or more ultrasounds....can you say high maintenance? Ya'll know I'm not high maintenance so her and I have some work to do when she gets here :)
On to the fetal echo. This experience was not nearly as miserable! The tech and doctor were awesome and we left feeling comfortable (not physically for me obviously) and more informed about what was going on. So I did have to sit on the uncomfortable table again but I made sure to ask for water before they started :) I secretly asked for water because they have crushed ice :) The tech did let me lay on my side for some of is so that was good and get this....she actually TALKED. It was still more silent than I would like it to be (ya'll know I'll talk to anybody) but I guess they are supposed to let the doctor explain everything. So the doctor came in after about 25 minutes and he was awesome. He said "Her (the tech) and I are going to use a bunch of "doctor" terms, but don't worry, I will explain it all". So they talked to each other and us (about normal stuff- not the fetal echo) and I could feel myself relaxing. At that point I knew everything was going to be ok. Anyways, it was a much better experience and the doctor was awesome. We told him we appreciated how much he explained to us and we felt much better about the whole situation. So...here is the picture he showed us:
Just by looking at this picture, you can tell he is way more awesomer :)
Ok, so he explained things much better. Your heart has four chambers (that's the only part I knew, ha): Right and Left atrium and Right and left ventricles. The right side helps pump blood to your lungs and the left side helps pump blood to your body. All looks good there for Lyla's heart! Keep in mind that her heart rate was at a steady 130ish during this fetal echo (not at 230 like the last one) so the doctors didn't necessarily see the same things. Ok so looking at the picture (second heart) he drew a faint dotted line. This is a membrane he found. It is very flimsy and has holes all in it. He said all the blood is able to flow through it right now and he has "a very low level of concern" that it will change BUT when babies are born, obviously things change. However, if it became an issue and blocks the flow of the blood then she would have to have surgery. He said of course no one wants their child to have open heart surgery (please pray this is not necessary), this is the one you would want. Its very minimal (I know no surgery is but....) and she would live a normal, healthy life afterwards. He did not feel it was necessary for us to come back until she was born (unless her heart rate continuously goes back up). He wants her to have an ECG to check for rate/rhythm and another echo to check the anatomy when she is born.
He said, "So in a nutshell I want to let you know, do not worry". That's all we needed to hear :) Now you can tell why we loved him, he could definitely relate and we were thankful for that.
Although the fetal echoes went well and no real issues were found, we still ask for your prayers. Pray that her heart rate does not go back up. Pray that there is NO need for surgery....it makes me sick to think about that part. Pray that outside of the womb, she is a perfectly healthy baby and when she is born, the echo solidifies that.
It has been a long week but a reassuring one. I have been taken out of work and told to "lay low". I know rest is the best thing to keep both of us healthy so thats what I am doing. If you know me well, you know I am not a "sit still and rest" sorta person (thanks Dad). I DO NOT like to sit around so this has been hard for me. As a teacher, its hard to be out of work too but I know everything will be just fine without me. Pray that I do ok with the whole rest thing :)
From now on, we go to the doctor twice a week to monitor both Lyla and I until she decides to make her debut. After this past weekend I have packed our bags, made the check list, and washed her clothes. So we are ready whenever she is.
Again, thank you for your prayers. We love you all and appreciate your concerns!
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