Appointment Update - 9/9

Yesterday I had another doctor's appointment, I pretty much go every Tuesday now in the early afternoon. Baby's heartbeat was 140 bpm and I'm measuring 33.5 weeks...right on target! Luckily my blood pressure has gone down a little, but is still not back to normal. Unfortunately I gained 3 lbs. since my last visit though which caused my doctor some concern since my weight gain has been really steady up until now. Sudden weight gain is also another symptom of Preeclampsia and is usually caused by all the extra fluid due to swelling. So, next Tuesday I'll be having more blood work done to check again for any signs something could be wrong. We're still keeping our fingers crossed that everything is fine and I'm really watching what I eat this week to make sure that's not what's causing the sudden jump in weight!!

In other news, I've been having a few painful contractions but nothing steady. They're called Braxton-Hicks contractions and are basically just your body's way of preparing for childbirth. I've been having them for several weeks now but they have just recently been coming about every day and have been much more painful than the earlier ones. I've also been having a lot of pressure on my pubic bone which has been causing a lot of discomfort and making it hard to stand and walk around a lot. When I told Dr. Keith this she was a little alarmed that I'm having so much pressure this early and attributes it to my petite size. She said that she is getting a bit worried that I may not be able to vaginally deliver this little guy much to my dismay. Eventhough he is measuring right on schedule, my small size could cause some complications and we'll probably end up having another ultrasound in a few weeks to see just how big he's gotten and access the situation then. Of course I'm still hoping for a vaginal delivery, but will do whatever is best for me and baby Harris. It's much better to have a planned c-section than an emergency one after you've been pushing for 2 hours with no progress and have exhausted yourself to no end. My dear friend Keri knows that feeling all too well!!