Thursday, April 19, 2007

Decision

Well, back from the ultrasound and surgery consultation. The baby is fine, measuring right on schedule, and, as I suspected, has his feet buried under my pubic bone and is firmly kicking my bladder every time he moves. "A classic footling breech!" the sonographer said, as though this was somehow exciting news. But she said not to worry that he'll stay there; at least half of babies are still in breech position at this point in pregnancy. Phew.
He still has the requisite male genitalia, though it was a little hard to get a shot this time, what with his butt wedged in my pelvic cavity and all. But we got him to give us a nice moon shot, finally. "See that dangling?" asked the sonographer. "Yes!" Jim confirmed with much relief. I was glad he got to see it, since at the last ultrasound he was neither present, nor could he really discern what was going on in the picture I brought home. It was good to get a second opinion. I'll feel a little better about going out and getting boy bedding and clothes.
In other news, my OB was pretty firmly in the surgery now camp, saying that the heavier I get in my pregnancy, the more stress will be on my knee and the more danger I will be in of falling on my belly. He thinks it will be safer to have the surgery now and get recovered before the baby comes. He also said if I have a spinal, the baby will get hardly any of it, and that the effects of just a couple of days of pain killers or an hour of sedatives will be very minimal. Apparently if one has to have a surgical procedure while pregnant, the middle three months are the best time, because the baby is big enough that its organ systems are all done developing and won't be affected by the drugs, but it's also small enough that the chance of triggering premature labor is very small.
So I guess we're going with surgery... I am by no means thrilled about it, but I feel resigned after talking to the OB. He said all things considered, he thought it was safer for the baby, for Adelay, and for me to do it now.
So the surgery will be scheduled for some time next week, probably. Let's get those freezable brownie and casserole recipes pouring in!
P.S. Please forgive my completely arbitrary use of the words "effect" and "affect"- I have literally no idea which is appropriate for any given context, so I just guessed because I didn't feel like digging out my grammar handbook.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm really glad you decided to have the surgery before hand. I'd really hate for anyone to have to recover from surgery while having a newborn and toddler to care for.

I'll see what I can do to whip up a dinner dish for you and Jim to enjoy while you are recovering next week and will be brining it not because I want to see your clean kitchen! After my surgery people did so many helpful things for us this will be my way of giving back to someone else!

Good luck!

Swistle said...

Oh, I wish I had done more brownie research! The one I made today is too rich and chocolatey, I think, and I'd go with the first one I tried: even though it wasn't The Very Most Perfect Brownie Ever, it was a nice basic good brownie. Also, Ranger Cookies are satisfying and feel nutritious. Here's the link to the results I got when I requested good freezer recipes.

Anonymous said...

Well, it must be a relief to have made a decision. I'm also glad Jim got to see a money shot - he has to be so excited.

I'll do one thing better - why don't I bring you guys some meals over? Let em know what you want (remember my limited ability to cook meat).

http://www.grammarbook.com/grammar/effVaff.asp

That should help clear up that rule. I always have to think twice about that one - and for some reason I always have to think twice about then and than.

mamashine said...

I think it's good you decided to get the surgery over with.

You don't live anywhere close to me, I'm guessing, or I would totally bring you dinner. People did that for me after both kids were born and it's SO nice.

jen said...

good luck. I don't envy your decision, but from what you wrote it sounds like the most "right."

hope you have a speedy, pain free recovery! ;)

ttsc said...

I think it's a good decision too, don't worry it will all be fine and then you won't have to worry about the falling issue. Try to get some rest and relax!

CAQuincy said...

Good luck.

When I was 26 wks pregnant with Izzy, I ended up passing a kidney stone (WORSE pain than labor--no question about it). I was in so much pain at the hospital that they gave me MORPHINE. Talk about freaking out. You people won't even let me take an extra-strength Tylenol for a headache while I'm pregnant, and you're giving me MORPHINE?

So...even though your surgery and my little kidney stone incident are COMPLETELY different, I just wanted to reassure you that if your doc says it's OK, it'll be OK. (But it's so hard not to freak out, isn't it?)

As for recipes, Taste of Home always has GREAT casserole recipes in their mags/catalogues/books. LOVE THEM! If I were local, I would SO bring you some food.

Hope all goes well.

Mommy Daisy said...

It sounds like your OB knows what's best. I understand the reasoning, and I think you'll be happy to have it over with. We'll be praying that it all goes smoothly and your recovery is quickly.

Also, I'd love to bring dinner over some night. Let me know when the surgery takes place and what kind of shape you're in and if you need help with anything. I'll try to keep in touch.