More pre-term labor

Last night as I was being a good girl and just laying in bed and watching tv I started having some heavy duty contractions. They really came out of no where. We were about an hour out of Bret getting home from work, but that gave me time to alert the calvary (THANK YOU Becca and Mark for practically spending the night at our house). We got to IMC's labor and delivery around 10:30 and it took until 3:00 to get my labor under control. I had to take A LOT of drugs to stop things. Some that made me feel pretty crummy. I did enjoy whatever it was they gave me for pain. Poor Bret had just worked a 10 hour day, and we didn't get home and to bed until 4:30AM. And he got up, got the kids fed and ready, and worked another 10 hour day. I am now dilated 4 cm, 70% effaced, and a -2 station. The drs want me to go, at the very least, until this weekend. My OB would really like me to make it about 10 more days (if not more). Some days I just want her to stay in as long as possible. Others I just want her out of me. But I DO NOT want a baby in the newborn ICU. So, I will continue to stay in bed and try to find things to occupy my time. It's boring and it is mostly uncomfortable (hanging out at 4cms and trying to stave off contractions isn't what nature inteded). And the drugs are yucky. But I will do this for Eliza and pray she is a VERY good baby :)

I hate hospitals

I never used to, but I've seen my share of them lately. I went into labor late Saturday (March 14th) and was put on hospital bedrest. Today (March 18) they have let me come home on strict bedrest. So, this will be a very short post. We need Eliza to hold out another 2-4 weeks. I need to get back in bed. I'm very open to phone calls and visitors as bedrest is incredibly boring.

My Hero!!

How is it possible that a 2 year old little girl is my hero?

The fact is that Darci has been and is stronger than both Bret and I during this trial in our life. She is only a week into her type-1 diabetes diagnosis and she has proven to have so much strength and endurance. She already sits still for her finger pokes and insulin shots. At this point in her treatment there are a lot. I think the most we counted one day was 13 finger pokes. When we pull out the glucose meter she starts looking at her fingers and then offers the one she would like us to use. Yesterday at breakfast I was preparing her insulin and she pulled up the leg on her pants and pointed to where she wanted her shot. She sometimes whimpers a little, but she never fights it or cries much. We always give her praise and love when we are done and let her know we love her.

Darci, thank you for being the sweet and special little girl you are. You give me the strength to put one foot in front of the other and keep moving forward.

So many misconceptions

I've been amazed at how many questions and statements people have made to me since Darci got diagnosed. Things that are misunderstood or just completely wrong about Type-1 Diabetes.

So, I'm going to clear a few things up as I understand them so far.

* Type-1 and Type-2 diabetes are completely different. With Type-2 your pancreas produces insulin, but your body doesn't use it and so you build up too many blood sugars in your body. With Type-1 your pancreas doesn't work. You don't produce the insulin that your body needs at all.

* Because your pancreas doesn't produce insulin in Type-1 you are completely insulin dependant. There isn't a pill form of insulin. You recieve insulin through injections or a special pump that injects it for you.

* There is currently no cure for Type-1. If diagnosed you will have it and insulin needs the rest of your life. There are no miracle diets or pills that work.

* There are no food restrictions. It's a balancing act of carbs, blood sugars, and insulin. If Darci goes to a birthday party she can have a piece of cake. She will just have insulin needs when eating it depending on her blood sugars.

I'm sure I'll think of more as more people approach me with questions and good intentioned advice.

Audra, correct me if I'm wrong on anything.

http://www.jdrf.org/

Where Do I Even Begin?

For several weeks now Darci has been exhibiting some of the signs and symptoms of diabetes. Extreme thirst, frequent urination, and irritability (more than is normal for a 2 year old). We were kind of beating around the bush getting her checked, because she was just checked several months ago and it was negative. Then, I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes... a type of diabetes you only get in pregnancy. I have to control this type with diet and close monitoring of my blood glucose with a meter. On Monday, March 2nd I finally decided that we couldn't hold off on Darci anymore and scheduled her an appointment. But her pediatrician was out of town and couldn't see her for a week. Being the impatient person I am and having this new gadget to check blood glucose, I decided to check her fasting glucose the next morning. When I checked her on Tuesday her blood glucose levels were 322. A child her age should never be above 170. We were off to Primary Children's Medical Center.

On Tuesday, March 2, 2009 my sweet Darci was diagnosed with Type-1 (or Juvenile) Diabetes. We were admitted to the hospital for 3 days of intense education on how to care for this disease. There are so many misconceptions about it. Darci hates all the pokes and needles, but she's getting better. We have a wonderful sister-in-law (Audra) and nephew (Brady, 4 years old)... you, too, Nate and Elise... who did this 2 years ago. Audra has been such a source of support, love, and information. She also referred us to Brady's pediatric endocrinologist, who we have already developed a good rapport with.

I'm sure there is a lot more info for us to share, but we're a little on info overload at the moment. We're home now and adjusting. This is an extremely hard trial, but there have been many, MANY blessings along the way.

First Milestone!!!

My first milestone that I was determined to make it to without bedrest I hit today. I am 30 weeks pregnant!!! 1 week more than I was with Darci. My next milestone is in 2 days. I've been telling myself, "If I can just get to March." After that will be 32 weeks. That's when I went on bedrest with Xander. There is a tiny light at the end of the tunnel.

Let's add on one more thing

I got the call from my OB's office today. Only it was worse than I anticipated. Not only did I fail my one hour glucose screening, but it was so high they aren't going to test again. I have Gestational Diabetes. I know it is common and I know it is managable, but it still scares the crap out of me. Lots of people have their vices for coping with stress and emotion. Unfortunately my vice is generally sweets and now I have to give them up. A certain percentage of women that get gestational diabetes go on to have regular type 2 diabetes and with my genetic history I'm realizing that I'm a huge possiblity for that. So, these changes I have to make will probably be lifelong ones. But really my biggest concern is Eliza. There could be complications for her if I can't get this under control and I feel like I have less time than most to do it all. My first appointment with the nutritionist is Monday.

These kinds of scares ARE NOT allowed

With all the crap that has gone on with this pregnancy the last thing we needed was a scare. This last week I was feeling slightly under the weather and I woke up Friday morning (20th) feeling absolutely horrible. I went to my primary dr and was diagnosed with bronchitis and the beginnings of strep throat. My throat was on fire and I have been coughing incredibly hard... which can bring on contractions. I'm taking all kinds of prescribed medicines. Anyway, it's been a rough weekend. So, I'm resting after some lunch today and realize that I haven't really felt Eliza move much. She definately hasn't been my most active child in-utero, but I know her little movements and her patterns. So, I grabbed a sweet drink and laid down on my left side to do kick counts. According to all the literature you should feel 6-10 counts in an hour. NOTHING!!! I couldn't believe that I didn't get a single squirm or hiccup. So, I really freaked out and we got a babysitter for the kids and headed up to the hospital. After a few seconds they found a faint heartbeat. Then, with the help of something called an accoustic stimulator, they were able to get her moving. The accoustic stimulator makes a noise and vibrates on the belly. I think it may have startled her, because it gave her hiccups. But then she settled right back down. It took 30 minutes and several more tries with the stimulator to really get her going like they wanted. I was so relieved!!! The dr thinks with all the medication I have been on it made Eliza very sleepy. They reassured me that it was a GOOD thing I had come in and never hesitate if it should ever happen again. My little Eliza, I'm sorry for all the meds and coughing fits. Please squirm arround every now and then just to ease your Momma's mind.

Latest OB Appointment

Today I had my regular OB check-up. I'm proud to say there were no extra visits to him or the hospital in between the last one and this one. Today I had my Glucose Tolerance Test. This is where they check you for pregnancy induced or Gestational Diabetes. I have actually felt really lucky that I haven't had this condition in any previous pregnancies. With the genetic predisposition for diabetes and the fact that I have been overweight through most of my pregnancies I probably should have had this. For the test you have to drink a glucose drink... it tastes like an overly sweet orange soda. Then, exactly an hour after you finish the drink they take your blood and look for how well you use the gluclose. At every OB appointment the dr has you do a urine test that checks for high protein or high sugars. Today my urine test was very high in glucose. I've never made the little litmus paper change colors before today. Dr. Barton said it could very well be the glucose drink that spilled into my urine, but he's anxious to get my blood test back. I may have failed my 1-hr glucose test. If I did I have to do a 3-hr fasting test. So, I'm praying and crossing my fingers that I haven't developed this tough condition in my last pregnancy. It can cause lots of complications for the mom and baby. As for everything else. Eliza checks out great and the Dr is going to start seeing me every two weeks now. I'll be 29 weeks tomorrow and right now 30 weeks is a goal for us. I just wanted to make it to 30 weeks without any major problems.

Here you are...

So, here you go. I let Bret take a preggo pic of me. I'm 28 weeks here.