Tuesday, September 26, 2006

I might need to start eating iron railings!!!

Had my 28th week checkup on last sat. Unlike the previous visits this one was fairly quick. Had my urine glucose, BP & haemoglobin levels tested. All came out normal except my H level which were still at 10g/dl (normal is 11.6-15.5g/dl). I'm out of my wits on what to do with my H levels anymore. I have upped my intake of my iron tabs and made sure I do not forget to eat everyday but still to no avail. Dr Yang insists I must get my level up so that I do not feel breathless and easily tired She says I might not feel it now but when I hit 8,9mths, the low H levels might cause headaches & dizzy spells for me. Ok ok I hear you Doc! I will eat more green veg & legumes & red meat!!!

Other than that, everything is A-OK!! I haven't had much weight gain, gaining less than 1kg at every checkup (I already have a lot to start with so the less I gain the better!) Baby Muhammad is currently in a breech position although Dr Yang that's normal at this stage and he will turn soon. My placenta although anterior is not low-lying so no danger of placenta praevia and Baby Muhammad's weight currently is estimated to be 1.3kg. A very good weight, according to Dr Yang. She showed us the graph for baby weight intra-uterine and apparently Baby Muhammad is slightly above average. I have this fear that my baby will be huge and my delivery will be a nightmare but the doc assured me that from my current weight gain, there is no sign of that happening. Although she did add that anything can happen anytime so I should take care of my diet and my overall general health. She commented that I seem to have one of the easier pregnancies and the baby is growing beautifully (and hopefully my delivery will be as easy, Insyallah)

I have started feeling tightening in my belly esp around the navel. Sometimes there are hard spots probably baby's fist or head or feet. But it's only for a while and will go away within 2-3 mins. Dr yang asked me to monitor these tightenings and call her should they be consistent over a period of time. Could it be that these are what you call Braxton Hicks?

Anyway I was curious how Dr Yang came up with the estimated weight of the baby. A quick search on the net showed there is some sort of formulae they use. Here's my overall estimated weight gain throughout my preganancy. I must say it's fairly accurate so far (the gaining of 2 lbs (0.9kg) every 4 weeks. So Baby Muhammad at full term should be about 3.4Kg or so. (according to this estimator)

Pregnancy weight gain estimator
You should gain roughly 15 lbs. during your pregnancy.
Over the last two trimesters you should gain about 2 lbs. every 4
weeks. If you gained the average of the range above, this is where
the weight would go (totals are rounded):

Maternal:
Uterus 0.79 lbs.
Breasts 0.33
Blood 1.03
Water 1.38
Fat 2.75
Subtotal 6.28

Fetal:
Fetus 7.5
Placenta 0.53
Amniotic Fluid 0.65
Subtotal 8.68

Total 14.96


Source: ACOG. The formula is based on your current size and weight
and whether you are underweight, overweight, or normal weight.
This is only an estimate. Please consult your healthcare provider
for a more detailed description of your recommended weight gain.
SOURCE: BABY CENTRE

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Thursday, September 14, 2006

ABCs OF MY PREGNANCY PART DUEX

M - MILK FACTORY
How come nobody warned me that my boobs were gonna feel like 2 huge missiles and my nipples like they were on the grinding stone? I can't begin to imagine how they they will feel once my milk has come in. And sore nursing breasts? I don't even wanna think about it yet!!


N - NAMES
This is one major headache for us. We can't seem to decide on a name. Actually I have shortlisted a few but none of them seem to be good enough for the fussy hubby although he doesn't quite come forward to give any suggestions of his own. In the end he says if we still can't decide on any name we'll just name our son Ahmad Albab. Very Funny!!!

O - OBSTETRICIAN
I first saw my gynae Dr Mary Yang at a marriage & parenting seminar 2 months after our wedding. I was instantly attracted to her straight forwardness, her matter-of fact way of speaking and she was very reassuring when I confided that I had dysmenorrehea (painfuul periods) and fear it will afect my chances of conceiving. I instantly decided that should I be pregnant I will go to her. So when I found out I was expecting last April, I looked her up and meanwhile made enquiries about her from other doctors and her previous patients. She came highly recommended. And I haven't regretted my decision since. Every visit is a visit we look forward to not just because we will get to see our baby on the scanning machine (yes! every visit!) but also because Dr Yang will regale us with extra information and stories about her other patients and even her own birth experience.

P - NO PERIOD
One of the best things about my pregnancy is no period for the whole 9 months!! YAY!!! My periods are excrutiating painful and every month I writhe and suffer for the first 2 days. And since I will be breastfeeding our son, it will be some months before my period makes a return. YAHOO!!!!


Q - I'M THE QUEEN
I lovvveeee being the queen of the house! Since I've been preggers, I haven't had to think about cooking, mopping, laundry and other household chores. And it seems my every wish is my hubby's command. All I have to do is say I feel like eating seafood and off he whisks me to our favourite seafood restaurant. Or if I say I wanna eat ice-cream and hey presto! we're at Haagen Daaz. Maybe thats why I haven't had cravings cause I get what I mention almost immediately there is hardly enough time for me to long for it. Let's just hope this queen status stays till after the delivery. *hopes and prays*

R - REASONS GO OUT OF THE WINDOW
When you are pregnant, nothing seems to make sense anymore. And if you try to find a logical explanation, you'll just end up even more perplexed. I suddenly can't stand the smell of my own perfume and resort to using my mom's. I love milk normally but suddenly milk just makes me puke. But apparently all that's not too bad. I once heard my mother's friend can't even stand the smell of her own husband and he had to sleep on the floor while she was pregnant. hehe

S - SIMPUL BIAWAKS (LEG CRAMPS)
These are the absolute bane of my pregnancy. At least one night every week, in the middle of the night I will wake up screaming when my leg muscles suddenly cramp up and I getthis acute pain in my calf. Lucky for me, hubby will always be ever ready with that jar of vicks and he will soothe away the pain till I fall asleep again. It seems there is no cure for this and its just something I have to bear with till the baby pops out.


T - TOILET BREAKS
I am the sort who don't need toilet breaks in the day and only look for one when I reach home. But since I ventured into the 6th month of my pregnancy, I have been going to the loo twice every hour. It certainly doesn't help that the toilet is quite far away from my office. And when I feel the urge, I need immediate relief a.s.a.p!!! Maybe I should carry a urinal bag so I don't have to make the trip so many times in a day.

U - ULTRASOUNDS
I still can remember the very first time we saw our baby on the screen and heard his heartbeat. The feeling was outta this world. And we still feel that way at every single visit to the Obs/Gyn. Seeing our baby move in the womb, seeing him suck his fingers and seeing him covering his face like playing peek-a-boo makes us feel so close to him and we can't wait till we can hold him in our arms. And the 3D scanning is just a miracle. To see his face so clearly is so magical indeed.

V - VAGINAL EXAMS
I am certainly not looking forward to the visits during the last few weeks of my pregnancy when the doc will check for signs of cervix dilation and will do the hand in vagina thing. *shudder*

W - WORK
Work is certainly not at the top of my list nowadays. Productivity has gone to a new low level. I am seriously contemplating taking some time off work after my maternity leave so that I can spend more time with our baby.

X - X Chromosomes
Apparently my X chromosomes are not as strong as hubby's Y. In fact I have this lingering idea that it's gonna be quite diff for us to get a girl. I hope the next one will be a girl. Till then, all I can do is look longingly at all those pretty dresses and hair accessories.

Y - YAWN
My absolute favourite activity of the season. All I need is 5 quiet minutes and I will start yawning. Even if I slept at 8pm the previous night, I will still be yawning the day away in the office.


Z - ZIPS
UURRGGHH!!! I screamed out loud the day the zipper on my favourite pants just refused to budge no matter how hard I tried. Its like a slow nightmare the way one by one of my outfits started not fitting me anymore. At 5 months, I had no choice but go shopping for clothes and boy did I go crazy!! hehe but soon I think I won't be able to wear most of them too and have toresort to long dresses like some makciks. AArrggghh!!!!

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Wednesday, September 13, 2006

ABCs OF MY PREGNANCY

I know I haven't been the most diligent of bloggers to update my stages of pregnancy. Let's just say there is too much going on in the real world that there is never ever any time to sit and chronicle every detail hehe. Still here's my feeble attempt at summarising my pregnancy joys and woes for the past 6 mths

A - ANXIETY
Every now and then I get this little panic attacks that my baby is doing well inside and that nothing ever comes to harm it. I fear going down stairs in case I tumble and I fear walking on wet surfaces in case I trip.

B - BUY! BUY! BUY!
I started this pregnancy with the vow not to start buying things too early but once we knew the sex I just couldn't help myself. My baby cabinet hasn't arrived yet but my wardrobe is starting to get full from all the baby stuff I have been stocking up.

C - CAESARIAN
My worst fear. I hope I can give birth naturally so I won't have to go under the knife. And I heard it takes a lot longer to heal too if I have to go thru the big C.

D - DRINKING WATER
I have to drink the equivalent of 7 glasses a day. So far I think I have only averaged 5. Plain water that is. Other types of water I have been gurgling non-stop since I tend to feel thirsty all the time.

E - EXHAUSTION
I never knew the meaning of exhaustion till I got pregnant. I could sleep from 8pm till 8 am the next day and still yawn the whole day long. It was worst in my 1st trimester when all I could think of was sleep sleep sleep. Some pople start feeling energetic in their 2nd trimester but the situation has only improved a little for me.

F - FUTURE
One constant thing on our minds is the future. What will our life be like with a kid ? What does the future hold for our kid in this country ? So many questions and no answers. The only way we deal with it is to do our best and hope for the best.



G - GAS
I didn't have nausea, I didn't have cravings but what I did have was lotsa lotsa lotsa gas! I think i could have filled in a hot air balloon with all the burpings I get in a day. Hehehe. Sometimes I get pain on my upper back and a tiny rub will result in a loud belch, sending my ever-"sensitive" hubby in guffaws of laughter. I don't just look like a cow I sound like one too *sigh*

H - HUNGRY
Despite being chubby (its my genes ok!) I have never been a big eater. But since I've been pregnant I need to eat every 3 hours or so, otherwise I will vomit due to hunger or get this immense headaches. So my drawer in the office looks like a grocery store and even the car is stocked with munchies for me.

I - IRON
Instead of the usual Obimin given to preggers, my gynae has given me Fluoron tabs instead. It has all the necessary vits and minerals (high iron content) + it doesn't cause constipation like Obimin apparently does. Despite the high Iron content, my Iron level was still too low for my doc's liking (prob the reason for my non-ending exhaustion) so she prescribed me double dosage of those fluoron tabs. But I keep forgeting to take the one after dinner. In the end, I improvised and swallowed 2 at a go. Hehehe

J - JOYAH
Otherwise known as LizaNoor, my friend, neighbour, mother mentor & big sister all rolled into one. She has given me invaluable advice and shared with me numerous stories & anecdotes from her own experiences and from her friends & relatives. She has been there every day of the week to listen to my woes and my pains and is truly the greatest pregnancy companion I could ever ask for. The only thing better was if she was pregnant too with me at the same time. hehehe

K - KICKS
I have been feeling the movement of my baby since 24th week but I haven't been able to share them much with the people around me simply because of the baby's position. My placenta is anteriorly located so that somewhat cushions me from those violent kicks and belly movements (ala the movie Aliens hehe) Although at nights and early mornings the baby will kick at my sides (usually just before the time my alarm is suppose to go off) and I will hurriedly grab hubby's hand and place it on my belly. And that usually does the trick in getting hubby out of bed. Thank you baby for the morning wake-up calls.


L - Labour
The one thing that fills my mind every second of the day. I wonder what my labour will be like. I have heard horror stories of 20 hour labours and I have heard stories of baby slipping out effortlessly. I think I can bear the pain (if its what I tink it is like) but I dunno if I can bear the long hours. I imagine myself screaming to the gynae "GET THE BABY OUT OF ME NOW!!!!!!" *shudders!!!!*

TO BE CONTINUED...........

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