The pain. My god, the pain. Like I’ve never before experienced in my entire life.
Mind numbing, earth shattering pain that you can’t control. Worse-than-Endo pain.
What I am describing is my evening last night beginning at approx. 7pm.
Let me set the stage.
We have an ungodly amount of snow on the ground here. It’s the #3 storm in the Washington area in history. So I’m trapped, quite literally, in our home. Probably for at least 3-4 days.
As I’m sitting on the couch watching the 16th consecutive hour of local “Snowmageddeon” coverage on the local news, my stomach starts to hurt. But it’s not the lower stomach, it’s my upper stomach, right above my belly button. When I pressed it, the flesh was hard, like it was being pulled or stretched. I just chalked it up to growing pains for my uterus. No biggie, it was uncomfortable but I could deal with it.
Within an hour the pain had moved to my right side and around to my back. Basically it was mid-spine. Holy hell. I couldn’t breathe, move or get comfortable because I was in so much pain. I decided to get my ass upstairs STAT and take a Tylenol PM and try to go to sleep.
No such luck because I was wide awake and in screaming pain at 11pm. With tears rolling down my face I rushed to find my cell phone and place an emergency call to my (new) OB. I left a tearful message about my excruciating pain and he called me back within 2 minutes. (I love that man!)
Before I go any further I will tell you that I have scoliosis. At last x-ray, in 1999, my curvature of the spine was at 63degrees. Pretty severe. But honestly, I haven’t had any problems with controlling my pain for the past decade. I’ve managed to lead a normal life and my growing body overcompensated for my crooked back the best way it could.
Apparently pregnancy is changing all of that.
Because when I tell you that I was in pain last night I was in severe PAIN. Like it was someone repeatedly stabbing me in the back kind of pain. The pain was just laughing at the Tylenol’s attempts to quell the agony.
So when the OB called me back I tearfully explained my problem and begged for advice. He was so patient, so calm and so reassuring to me. He said that the pain was probably not a cause for a miscarriage (how sad that this particular scenario didn’t even cross my mind!) and that because my uterus was expanding as it normally does between week 13-14 I was likely experiencing back pain as a result.
He suggested taking a hot bath and one Advil to help the inflammation. Under “normal” circumstances if that didn’t work he would have me report to the hospital so that he could examine me. BUT, with 2 feet of snow on the ground and NO way to get out of my driveway, let alone my neighborhood, that would prove challenging. Dr.OB also suggested a heating pad which I conveniently couldn’t locate last night during my pain-induced hysteria.
Can I tell you that I was 1/2 a minute away from dialing 911 (which I’ve NEVER done in my life) and having an ambulance come get me?
So I managed to haul myself upstairs where my terrified husband watched me draw a hot bath and pop an Advil and lay in the water for about an hour. While attempting to calm myself while hysterically shaking and fighting bouts of pain induced nausea, the water soothed, though not enough, but it did help the pain enough to calm me down.
Once out of the bath I crawled (quite literally) over to my bed and lay flat on my back for about 2 hours before I must have finally drifted off to sleep. I only had to wake up about 4-5 times to pee during the course of 5 hours that I slept.
I woke this morning to only a dull ache in my back, one that I can and will tolerate compared to the hell I experienced last night.
But can I tell you all how terrified that this is going to happen to me again? These spasms are just more than I physically can manage!
As soon as I become un-trapped from the winter wonderland outside my front door I’m going to a chiropractor. Like ASAP.
I need to get this under control NOW. Because another night like last night isn’t an option.
…. This post is a PSA for anyone who is pregnant and has chronic back pain or Scoliosis ….
First of all, thank you to everyone who commented on my last post and offered support and suggestions! They are all so very appreciated as I try to deal with this mess. I’m still here, still reading, still around but trying to process all of the thoughts that are swirling inside my mind right now.
Since we are dealing with shoveling out of yet another 2 (+) feet of snow in the Washington area I had some time on my hands this afternoon to compose the below diatribe.
I wanted to further explain the Short Term Disability situation so that others are aware that this too can happen to you!
During open enrollment in December 2009, my company switched carriers for their Long Term Disability and Short Term Disability policies. This is separate from my health insurance and it’s a separate benefit that we have to pay for.
Everyone who had a policy with the “old” company had to reapply with the “new” company for the benefit. We went from AFLAC to Standard Insurance company.
So I had to answer a 10 page health questionnaire to re-apply with this new company. Having some forethought, I conveniently left out my Endo dx and our Infertility treatments. I also had *just* found out that I was pregnant when I was completing the application but I left that off the documentation. The “new” company had NO idea that I was expecting. In fact, they still don’t! The only thing I put on the app was that I had the flu in 2008 & 2009 and that I hurt my back 10 years ago. That last one was my BIG mistake. But hindsight is 20/20 and I didn’t realize it was come back to bite me in the ass.
Earlier this week I called my HR company to see what I needed to do for my FMLA leave. I spoke with my HR representative who informed me of my “rights” within the company and she told me that the Standard Ins. Co. had denied me for my STD based on my back problem. She then told me that I could take up to 12 weeks off work but that I would not be paid my salary or commission while I was out. In addition, I could use whatever vacation time I had accrued at that point … which would only be 2 weeks as we have a “use it or lose it” policy and my hire date is May 21. I begged to allow my vacation time to roll-over and she said it would be up to the director of HR but she didn’t think it would be approved because it’s not typical Standard Operating Procedure.
…. my company isn’t very family friendly if you can’t tell …. it’s typical for Sales organizations to not want their profit generating employees to take time off …
I then called Standard Ins. Co. and spoke to the bitch who denied my application. She was incredibly unhelpful and said I could try to appeal but that she highly doubted it would get approved. I asked what documentation they would require and she said they needed attendance records from my employer and my medical chart from my Family Practice Dr. to “prove” that I haven’t been out of work being treated for pain.
No problem! I can do both. I haven’t taken ANY unscheduled leave in the (almost) 3 yrs of employment and I haven’t been seen by my Family Practice Dr. for my back.
But according to the supervisor at the Insurance Company the appeal is a “long shot” – fuckers.
So now we are left with this one option. I hate it. I hate insurance companies and the fact that they will do whatever they can to deny payment. It’s wrong.Wrong.Wrong.Wrong.
Dealing with the hell of IF and Insurance makes me want to change careers and work on advocacy. Seriously! I might as well use my sales persuasion powers for something that I actually give 2 shits about! I live in the vicinity of the Nations Capital so it isn’t totally out of the realm of possibility. I’m mulling this over right now because I think it could be a very viable option for me in the future. I just have to figure out how to make it work.
So there you have it. The lastest and (not) so greatest update on my work situation. It sucks. I’m working on it. I’m going to fight those bastards to the very end, don’t you worry!
There are some other things I want to update you all on but that will have to wait for later posts. I had an appointment with a brand new OB who I just LOVE,LOVE,LOVE and I got another peek at Mavis (who looks just fine!) There is also a (semi) interesting story about my first trip ever to Motherhood Maternity (ick! I do not like that store!) that I think all IF’ers will appreciate. I promise to get to posting more frequently!
I’m writing this post through a fog of tears and immense frustration. I just don’t even know where to begin.
Today, while opening my mail, I received a denial letter from Standard – the company that administers my Short Term Disability policy through my employer group. I nearly keeled over and vomited when I read that I was denied my Short Term Disability for 2010 based on a 11 yr. old back problem. A condition that I haven’t been treated for medically since 1999.
Why is this such a big deal?
Because – MY EMPLOYER DOESN’T OFFER MATERNITY LEAVE OR ANY BENEFITS WHILE I’M OUT AND NOW I WON’T GET PAID ONE RED CENT.
Why is this is a big fucking deal? I bring home 70% of our take home pay per month. Not getting ANY money while I’m out with Mavis means that we can’t pay our mortgage, let alone our ancillary bills. And if we’re talking honestly here, making Mavis and the whole IVF cycle put a huge strain on our savings account. I just did my 2009 taxes and we paid $29,000 CASH for Infertility treatments in just 12 months.
I just feel like curling up into a big ball and crying myself to sleep.
How in the world are we going to make this happen?
I’m *eligible* for 12 weeks leave through FMLA and I’ll only be able to get paid for 1 week out of the 12. What are we going to do?
This is just another way that Insurance has fucked me royally in this process. If I had some sort of Infertility coverage I wouldn’t have to worry about this because I’d have an extra $29k in the bank to pay my bills while out. Instead, Insurance companies just look to screw people in whatever way they can. I mean c’mon? Denying someone Short Term Disability because of an 11 yr. old back problem? How freakin’ petty is that?
All I keep thinking about over and over again in my mind is that I don’t know how I’m going to manage. I know I’m having a C-Section. I know that it’s a minimum 6-7 week recovery period. I know that I’m not going to want to leave Mavis sooner than 6-7 weeks. I know that daycare won’t accept newborns sooner than 6 weeks.
What if we can’t get Mavis on a sleep schedule and I have to be back at work? What are we going to do then? How will I function to actually produce an income and pay my bills?
Welcome to the world of pregnancy after infertility. Where no matter what, you are still getting screwed because IF steals all your money and then when you DO finally manage to get knocked up, your Insurance company decides to bail out on you and leave you high and dry.
I can’t deal with this stress. It’s too much for any one person to handle.
For the second time in two months the Northeast has been blanketed with snow on a weekend. And nothing pisses me off more than being stuck inside and held captive because of a weekend snow storm!
Yesterday we got 9″ in snow in my little corner of Virgina. Suffice to say anything over a few inches shuts down the state and so we’re stuck at home – hopefully with enough toilet paper and bread.
Our road still hasn’t been plowed as of 5pm on Sunday, which is equally annoying if you have plans on leaving in the morning for work. Plus, temps are expected to go into the single digits tonight which will freeze whatever snow attempted to melt today.
To add to my list of annoyances I’m attempting to pre-plan for another work trip to Florida in 2 weeks. This trip is for our annual sales meeting where all 100 (+) sales people get together. All of our executive staff attends and we have an awards ceremony one of the nights. Why is all of this an annoyance to me?
Well, it requires A LOT of pre-planning for packing. Normally I find shopping for these trips fun but right now it’s somewhat frustrating.
I’ll warn you that the below is a summary of me bitching about clothes and I also realize that 8 out 10 of my bloggy reader friends will want to slap me for being in this predicament. But for those of you who are in my shoes, lets share in the “early pregnancy and nothing fits” dilemma.
Even though I haven’t gained any weight my body has morphed into a different proportion. ALL of my pants are now tight on my hips, thighs and ass which makes them shorter in length and regulates me to flat shoes instead of my high heels. My shirts are tight around the mid-section but instead of any cute bump or rounded pudge shape, I have a newfound fat roll right at my waist where my pants are cutting off the circulation.
Maternity pants are still too big, even with a bella band. Maternity tops took just plain stupid unless I buy a size too small, which I will likely outgrow in a month or two. I can’t buy pants off the rack without having them altered as I’m too tall for a short or petite and I’m too short for a regular fit.
Why do I tell you all of this?
Because I have NO idea what I’m going to wear to this meeting!
I need 3 business casual outfits, 3 casual (probably jeans) outfits and a formal night dress.
I have NOTHING and nowhere to even start! In addition, shopping in my town is impossible so I drive 50 miles north to Northern Virginia for a better selection.
By this point I’m usually 1/2 way done with my sales meeting shopping. I would normally have all of my base layers picked out and I’d be working on accessories.
I have no idea where to even begin this monumental task and I just feel so overwhelmed. I wish my body would sprout a little bit of a bump and make this easier for me! Right now I’m just forced with buying bigger non-maternity pants and tops vs. spending my money on stuff I will need in a few months.
Who knew being pregnant at (almost) 13 weeks could be so frustrating when it comes to getting dressed?
Ugh, it’s times like these that I wish I hated fashion!
Well, I finally reached a huge mile-marker in this long-awaited IVF pregnancy – the 12 week mark.
I woke up this morning with the thought swimming around in my head that I did it. I made it.
To celebrate our 12 week mark, I had scheduled our NT scan (first trimester scan) at a Genetics clinic in NoVa. So both the Mr. and I took the day off work and decided to make a day of it.
We made the trek up to NoVA in the morning rush hour traffic and I only allowed myself to think negative thoughts for just a brief second. Mostly those thoughts circled around what if Mavis wasn’t still with us when the tech did the scan. But I concentrated hard on finding the positive energy and tried to think happy thoughts.
When we arrived at the clinic I was floored at how swanky it was. This clinic also has an IVF program and the Mr. and I had visited an information session back in April 2009 at a local hotel for their program. We had never actually visited the office. But wow!!! The waiting rooms were all decked out with great, comfy, non-Dr.’s office furniture. There was this awesome fresh water fish tank which the Mr. was captivated by. They even had free wi-fi and a coffee/tea bar with bottled water! Nothing like SCFG! I was impressed. Plus, honestly? The staff seemed a lot more professional. This is also the office of one of the largest cryobanks in the country (Fair.fax Cryobank) which I know alot of bloggers use to get Donor Sperm and Donor Eggs.
Anyway, we were lead back to another separate waiting room where they took a vial of blood and then straight back to the ultrasound table. Again, I was totally impressed. The ultrasound room was huge compared to what I was used to at SG. There was even a 27″ flat screen TV mounted on the wall projecting the ultrasound image. So the Mr. and I didn’t need to look at the grainy screen on the machine, we just looked up at the TV! Very cool!
When the tech put the warm gel on my tummy (no more transvag u/s!!!! I was ready to drop trou!) we immediately saw Mavis, who was sleeping on his tummy all curled up in a ball. At the time I couldn’t see a heartbeat so I just held my breath and the tech quickly found the h/b so I could relax. She took some measurements and then Mavis started moving around waving his arms and legs. The tech needed him to flip on his back to take more measurements so she had me cough and laugh and move around and then Mavis finally moved! And in the process of him moving we got this shot (which you might find a little freaky so I’m giving a fair warning!):
Again, it’s a crappy picture of a picture but it’s a full frontal view of Mavis with his hands up waving at us!
Here is another photo of the profile:
All in all, I’m glad that we went and had this done. It was a cool experience and it was covered by insurance (yay!). We won’t have the full results from the genetics portion of the scan for another week but we assume all will be well.
After the ultrasound we hightailed it back to our hometown and decided to use the precious time off to take a tour of a local daycare. I’ve heard and read that it’s best to put yourself on a waitlist because infant daycare fills up fast. So we went to the local Children of America daycare to take a tour. I’ve always known that I never could afford to stay at home with my baby. The cost of living in our area is just too high and I make more than my husband so it wouldn’t be feasible. But when we were in that infant daycare room my heart just broke. It was a perfectly clean place but I felt so depressed. I can’t imagine dropping my baby off everyday with his/her blankets, bottles, diapers, etc. and leaving him/her with some random stranger.
And yet, I know that I don’t really have any other options. I’ve always figured that I would just deal with it when the time came. Not that this time is right now, but I just never allowed myself to face this reality. And holy moly, infant daycare is expensive! We’ll have to pay $875/month! Yikes!
The center kept asking questions about when the baby was due, the sex of the baby, etc and I felt kind of foolish about being there so early. This center isn’t full and doesn’t have a wait list so I guess that’s why they were so concerned with Mavis’ specifics.
Being that this was my first tour I think we’ll keep looking. But this will probably be the hardest part of the journey with Mavis … sending him/her to daycare. Ugh. Needing money sucks! I need to play the lotto.
Is it me, or is anyone else just gorded by the overwhelming reporting of the one year birthday of the Octomom babies? Seriously, the news of the Octomom last year was one of the singlemost upsetting public IVF announcements and it’s like the story that just keeps on giving. It would be one thing if Nadia Suleman wasn’t a toal wack-job but c’mon? she’s clearly missing a screw. Who in their right mind would transfer (NOT IMPLANT for those morons who don’t know the difference) 6 embies for a second IVF cycle when the first time around all 6 took?
Ugh, just reliving this all in the news makes my blood boil all over again. It’s just such negative press for the world of ART.
What frustrates me the most? When we were starting our IVF cycle the stupid comments that I would get from people. They’d ask stupid shit like you’re not going to end up like Octomom are you? Sometimes they’d add Kate Gosslin in there for good measure. And all you want to do is scream “No! I’m not a moron!” It really makes me sick.
Now, the people I do tell always ask “so how many are you having?” because I always make a point to tell them we’re pregnant via IVF. I hate not telling that part of the journey because I need people to know how important this is to us. But saying that it’s due to IVF just opens it all up to stupid assvice comments.
Thanks Octomom. You’ve done the ART community such a disservice.
First off, thank you to all of my loyal readers who commented on my last post. It’s nice to know that I can always have a friend in the blogosphere when times are tough. You all really help me more than I could ever explain.
Yesterday, the situation of telling people when I am not ready reared it’s ugly head again. My mother has been chomping at the bit to tell everyone on her FB page. I’ve been telling her no and to hold off until 12 weeks. I personally don’t plan on making any grand announcements on FB or any other place for that matter. But she feels the need and desire to tell the world for some reason. Anyway, since I’ll be 12 weeks on Wednesday she called yesterday to confirm she could make the announcement and I freaked out. Like, major meltdown freakout session. I tried my best to explain why I didn’t want to share the news. I tried to share what it was like living in an IF’ers pregnancy but I don’t think she understood. All she could say to me was “why don’t you just enjoy and be happy?” and no matter what I said, she just couldn’t comprehend that I was happy but that I didn’t want to share my joy with the world.
I begged her to keep a lid on the news for another week or so. We are going in for our NT / 1st Trimester screening / ultrasound on Wednesday. It’s the first peek we’ve had of Mavis since 9w5d. I have no reason to suspect anything is wrong but I’d at least like to see what the results are of this scan before I make any announcements.
In other pregnancy related stuff, this weekend we bought our crib and dresser/changing table. I’ve been reading in Baby Bargins that it’s a good idea to order the furniture sooner rather than later as a lot of the manufacturers have a long lead time. And boy, I’m sure glad we did! Even though 12 weeks seems early to be placing an order for furniture our estimated delivery time isn’t until I hit 28-30 weeks!!! I was hoping to have my nursery done by the beginning of the third trimester for a multitude of reasons. I know that I’ll have limited energy going into the 3rd tri and it will also be the dead of summer here which will make me more lethargic and miserable. So if everything was done by the end of April I’d be a happy girl. Oh well. We’ll make due!
Here are a couple of pics of the crib and dresser we ordered:
These are the first purchases that we’ve made for Mavis and it feels SO weird!
In other news, I’ve been promising a belly shot so without further adieu. The one on the left is from 5w4d and the one on the right is today at 11w4d. Honestly? I don’t think there is that much of a difference. In fact, I’m down 4lbs from my post IVF weight at 5w4d. It’s weird! I’m getting to that point where I’m starting to hope for a little bit of a belly so that I don’t just feel fat anymore. Regular clothes don’t fit, despite the loss of weight. I guess it’s mainly the extra pudge in the belly. Maternity clothes are huge. Bella Bands suck. So I’ve been struggling with work attire.
So there you have it! Updates consist of furniture shopping and my stomach. Riveting, I know! I realize that some of you asked for an update on my conversation with the VP at my job and I promise I’ll get to that. It’s a somewhat interesting story!
Lastly, I have some requests for my dear bloggy readers. If you haven’t already, can you please send some love to my friend Lara over at Peanut Noodle. Lara has experienced 2 previous losses and she is pregnant again and had some very scary bleeding with clotting today. She’s getting an ultrasound tomorrow morning but could use your love, hugs and prayers right now.
Secondly, please go over and hold Julie’s hand at Hoping for a Baby. Julie is in her 1ww from IVF #1 and transferred one day 3 embie and it was a very traumatic experience for her. Her POAS this morning revealed 2 lines and she could use a friend while she waits for her beta.
And I know this is asking a lot, but for those of you who are IVF veterans, could you please pop over to see Trinity at Three is a Magic Number? Trinity received the news in early January at her first RE visit that IVF is their best option for dealing with MFI. She could use some IVF vets support right now.
I realize that these type of requests are best served in LFCA but in case you don’t catch them in the latest issue I wanted to make sure these great bloggers have your support!
Thank you!
I’m back from the depths of hell (i.e, my company corporate office in Florida) and all I can say is T.G.I.F.
In the process of being swamped and completely overwhelmed with work this week I forgot to set up a post for ICLW welcome. If you are new to the blog a more recent link to my IF history is here.
Let me start by saying I am 110% exhausted both mentally and physically. When this trip was planned back in November I had NO idea that the same week I was visiting corporate would be the same day that a parade of potential Wall Street investment banking firms would be touring and visiting our offices to potentially buy out our company. The company I work for has been in Chapter 11 since July 9, 2009 and as a part of the bankruptcy we are trying for a debt restructure. It’s taking much, much longer than we all originally anticipated.
Anyway, I only go down to the office once or twice a year. All of the support staff that I work with on a daily basis work out of this location so it’s like a constant tour to see everyone that I speak with in order to accomplish my daily job functions. Honestly? Not working with these people and having to see them daily is probably the best thing I could ever ask for. I’m not a politicky kind of girl and office drama just gords me to no end. So making nicy-nice with everyone while I was there was just more than I could take.
Since I’m in the revenue generating part of our organization (there are only 104 sales reps) and I’m usually ranked somewhere in the Top 10, most everyone that works in the corporate office knows who I am. Including the President, VP and all the Executive staff. So when, on my first day in town, I was called into the VP’s office for a “chat” I secretly panicked.
I knew what the conversation would be centered around my career path with the organization. Truth be told? The company doesn’t have any positions that I am interested in pursuing. I like the training component of my position and helping out new sales reps but outside of that, I’m more of a troubleshooter/analysis and we don’t have those roles available. So I was pretty frank and told the VP my thoughts. I have never been the kind of girl to hold back.
The class I was teaching to our group of 4 new hires was exhausting as well. We had one “problem-child” in the class which was disrupting the general flow of the class. I was being pulled out of the classroom every 15 minutes to meet people. My cell phone was overloaded with voicemail from my clients back home in the D.C. area who needed me. It was overwhelming.
Over dinner on Wednesday night I shared with 2 of the new hires that I was pregnant after declining a bottle of wine. Why I chose to share my news with these 2 random girls is beyond me. I hadn’t told anyone I worked with at my corporate office during the entire trip. As they asked questions with excitement and glee for my current state, I answered that I had completed IVF which brought about even more questions about the IVF process and emotional upheaval surrounding the procedures. At one point one of the girls said “well it’s not like your IF was YOUR fault!” and I had to answer that Yes, it was. It was ALL my fault. My husband is perfectly fine. I’m the flawed one. There was stunned silence at the table and then the girl said “but you look so normal!” and I just laughed.
Yes. I look normal. But I am infertile. Our lack of fertility was my fault.
One of the girls asked me a very thought-provoking question. She asked me if the news set in yet and I said no. Then she asked me if I was having fun sharing the news. And again, the answer is no. It was at that exact moment I realized that I’m only sharing my news with complete strangers. I’m too afraid to tell people that I see or talk to on a daily basis that I am pregnant. I don’t want people to ask me questions about my pregnancy. I don’t want to be asked so how are you feeling every 5 seconds. I don’t want to talk about my pregnancy with reckless abandon like a fertile mom. It’s like talking about it would make it go away. If I openly share my emotions about Mavis that God would take him/her away from me for being foolish to even think I’m going to be a mother.
I don’t want to share my news with anyone. Period. Ever.
When my belly starts to pop, I don’t want to be asked so are you pregnant? When are you due? Oh! How exciting! I bet you are thrilled!!!
I don’t want to hear other people’s stories on their pregnancies. I don’t want to hear about how easy it was for you to deliver little Johnny. I don’t care. My pregnancy isn’t normal. It’s not like yours. It’s fraught with emotional bitterness that hasn’t gone away and I’m not sure it ever will.
So that it why I will not share my news with anyone. Because, even as I close in on the end of my first trimester in less than 5 days, I don’t want to jinx this.
Today is Day 6. Yes, 6 days of being sick. 6 days of a sore throat, sinus drainage that could gross out a Dr., coughing fits that prompt me peeing my panties on more than one occasion daily.
And oh? Did I mention my (second) trip to the OB?
Yeah.
Well, I took the 20 comments that said I should ditch my OB to heart and spent the majority of the weekend crying on my couch at the injustice of having to deal with a shitty Dr. Most people would just get over it and move on (counting the “old” me) but the newly pregnant Mic didn’t want to exert the energy to start the search again. That, coupled with the unrealistic feelings of failure on my part, due to the fact that I was feeling like I had already failed Mavis as his/her mother, and general increased hormonal instability led me to just mope for days.
This morning I woke up and promptly made an appointment with another OB in a town 40 miles away and resigned myself to having one hell of a commute for my pregnancy. I think a lot of the emotional upheaval stemmed from the fact that I spent the past year of my life commuting monthly (and sometimes 5-10 times a month) to my RE’s office that was almost 50 miles from my home. I figured pregnancy would afford me a break of sorts and allow me to actually live my pregnancy like a normal woman. Yeah, apparently not.
But getting back to my second visit to the (old) OB because I don’t see the new one until February 3rd.
This morning I wake up parched like I just trekked through the Sahara Desert. I couldn’t get enough water in my throat to even make the dry coughing stop. My lips were chapped beyond all belief. It was scary, and miserable.
So I called a friend who is a Pharma Rep and used to sell antibiotics. I asked her about the side effects of antibiotics and if dehydration is a commonly reported problem. She confirmed that yes, it could be.
I decided to take that information and call my OB. I explained my symptoms to the nurse (and the fact that I had drank 64oz. of water by lunch and only pee’d once) and they asked for me to come in immediately.
Fast forward to the appointment where I learned the following:
1.) I DID NOT have a UTI last week, I had something called a “Strep B” infection (stupid nurse that called me on Thursday got it wrong, although the treatment option is the same)
2.) I was advised to discontinue the antibiotics
3.) It takes about 3 bags of IV fluid to re-hydrate a pregnant lady who is parched
So yeah, more on all of this later. I just wanted to fill ya’ll in and give a brief overview.
I’m heading out tomorrow for a work meeting in Florida and I hope to have some free blogging time while I’m there (if I’m lucky!) to give you more of the nitty gritty details. And for crying out loud, I need like 5 uninterrupted hours to comb through my Goog.le reader – It’s now up to 201 unread blog posts – yikes!
So yeah, about my post yesterday? I spoke too soon. Apparently my first OB appointment on Tuesday was not boring. It did have an outcome, but I didn’t find out about it until last night.
Let me tell you a little about the Tuesday OB appointment. Honestly? I was underwhelmed.
The Mr. asked for me to stay local (despite my protests) because it’s convenient for him to dash over to the OB office on his lunch break and be a present father at all the visits. Now you and I know that he doesn’t really *need* to be there, but he feels like he *should* be there. Unfortunately he missed the first appointment on Tuesday but vows to be at every appointment from this point forward.
Anyway, back to why I was underwhelmed. So I get there, right? And the nurse takes me back to the exam room. She asks me a bunch of questions and then of course, I get the “so when was your LMP” and I have to re-explain (for the 5th time, mind you!) that I had IVF, and my pregnancy is dated off my Egg retrieval date, and that the 3 ultrasounds I’ve had so far are confirming this. LMP be dammed. But she wouldn’t let it go! SO annoying.
Then the Dr. comes in and we have to do a Pap which I was confused about because I just had a Pap done 6 months ago and my insurance isn’t going to pay for one this soon. I mentioned this but no one seemed to care. Then, the OB says that we aren’t going to hear the heartbeat on the doppler this soon (bullshit!) and so we’re going to “skip” the doppler until my next visit next month. I was almost in tears by this point. Seriously? You people tell me! How in the world does she even know something in living in my uterus by doing a Pap and feeling my boobs?
SHE DOESN’T!
Then I get some blood drawn, they try to get me to re-do my HIV and Cystic Fibrosis testing (already done, thank you! read my chart, you have the results) and I give a urine sample and am sent on my way and told to come back Feb.10th.
Um yeah.
Not what I was expecting.
So Wednesday morning I wake up with a little pain when I pee and I think – well maybe it’s from the Pap. And so I call the OB’s office and ask to speak with the nurse and tell her that I think I have a UTI and that I have pain when I pee and what should I do?
She tells me that they tested my urine sample and there is no UTI and if I have a problem then to call my GP.
WHAT?
You are my OB!
Again, SO annoyed.
So I let it go and then low and behold I get a phone call yesterday from the OB’s office. Mind you this is a full 24 hours after my call, and it’s another nurse saying that my urine culture showed that I have a SEVERE UTI and I need to go on antibiotics immediately. Could I please go to the pharmacy and pick up the 1500 mg RX of Amoxicillan immediately that will need to be taken for 10 days, 3 times a day?
And again, I’m all kinds of annoyed.
Because didn’t I just call you guys the day before and ask if my culture showed a UTI and you said no?!!
Just wondering …
Apparently UTI’s are pretty common in pregnancy but the nurse that called me yesterday said that mine is so severe that I will need to be treated with antibiotics during labor due to possible infections.
Lovely.
You do realize that this could have been caught a day earlier if your incompetent nurse had bothered to answer my question when I called on Wednesday?
Ah, the joys of dealing with Dr.’s offices. I can tell they already hate me.
Whatever.
