Crazy Busy

I can't believe how long it's been since I last posted. Things have been super busy at work for the last couple of weeks and I've also had a nasty chesty cold for more than a month, but thankfully S and I are now at home for a week on annual leave, which is lovely. I've been incredibly tired, but hopefully I'm now making a dent in my sleep deficit, and with any luck I'll be feeling a bit more human when I return to work next Monday.

When I last wrote I was still battling my thrush, and feeling slightly miserable about the whole thing. I managed to take 6 pessaries before the spotting (this time caused by irritation from the pessaries) became too much. At that point I seemed to be getting better, although I still had the pinky-yellow discharge that was proving so worrisome. In the end I decided to go back to the doctors, and saw the same female locum for a second time. She did an internal examination and told me that she thought the thrush had probably gone now, but that I have a cervical ectropian or erosion. This can also cause yellowish discharge and spotting, and is (thankfully) harmless to the baby. Just to be on the safe side I had a series of swabs for everything else that could possibly be causing the problem (thrush, BV, etc etc) and got the results back today (all clear!) So, no more pessaries for yours truly (much relief) and I can stop worrying.

I had another hospital appointment on 21 October to see the whole team (diabetes, obstetrics) and to have my nuchal translucency scan, which gives an indication of the risk of Downs Syndrome and a couple of the other trisomies. It was a pretty nerve wracking wait, and I'm glad to be on the other side of it now. S and I had decided that we'd have CVS if we came up as high risk, but I'm pleased to say that the results were great and we therefore don't need any diagnostic testing. The results of the scan were as follows:

Crown Rump Length: 68 mm
Nuchal Translucency: 1.8 mm

Estimated risk of Downs (Trisomy 21) -
Background risk: 1:203, revised risk following the scan: 1:897

Estimated risk of Trisomy 13/18 -
Background risk: 1:387, revised risk following the scan: 1:1,231

We also got to get a good look at the littl'un, who was practically turning back flips - lots of jerky movements to be seen. In the end, since the baby wasn't in a good position to do the NT scan transabdominally, I ended up having another transvaginal scan. The midwife had a colleague with her who was learning how to operate the ultrasound equipment, so for her benefit (and ours) she spent quite a lot of time showing different views of my little passenger. We saw all the arms and legs, the umbilical cord, the baby's heart beating, both lobes of the brain, and the bones of the skull.

Here's a picture:



This was also the official dating scan, after the ultrasound midwife refused to date me last time for (allegedly) being less than 10 weeks' pregnant. At that time we were quibbling over three days - I know I was 10 weeks and a day (thanks to the ovulation sticks), whilst the midwife was sure I was 9 weeks and 5 days based on the date of my last period. This time our dates were much closer together - I was maintaining that I was 13 weeks and 1 day pregnant, whilst the scan dated me at 13 weeks. What's a day here or there?

After the scan I saw the obstetrician and diabetes specialists, both of whom thought I was doing really well. My blood pressure was 130/60 at this appointment, so nothing to worry about on that front at present. We talked a little with the obstetrician about travelling, since I have a work trip planned early next year, and S and I had been discussing the possibility of going away for a few days before Christmas. The advice was as follows:

• it's okay to fly until around 34 weeks, with the second trimester being the best time;
• wear flight socks, walk around a lot, keep hydrated, and try to keep flights as short as possible - a couple of hours is the best, long haul not so good;
• any radiation risk is most serious in the first trimester - after that the risk of thrombosis (blood clots) is the greatest worry.

Dr I came in next, and we discussed the fact that I've been struggling a little more with my sugars than I would like, courtesy of my cold/chest infection. However, after a look at my monitoring diary he told me that I'm beating myself up too much, and in fact I look to be doing pretty well. My adjustments have been about right, and I should keep on going in the same vein. Hopefully my insulin requirements will tail off a little once I'm clear of the infection, and then they'll go up slowly in the second trimester, and should only rocket in the third. It's good to have the reassurance that I'm not dropping the ball, even though I wish I was doing better. It's worth noting that in the last few days my meter average has dropped back down to 6.9 mmol/l, which does make me much happier.

I rounded off my appointment by having bloods taken for an HbA1C and Thyroid function, which gave me an opportunity for a gossip with D, the nurse who has diabetes, whilst she tried in vain to find a vein in my arm, before eventually taking the blood from the back of my hand.

I got into work a couple of hours late, but this should be the last appointment where no-one knows my situation. I intend to let my boss and colleagues know our news once I get back from leave on Monday, and that should help with future appointments. I'm next at the hospital on 11 November, just to see the diabetes team, and after than I'll have an appointment when I'm 20 weeks, for a detailed anomoly scan and to see the obstetricians.

After my busy week at work we had a lovely weekend down in Devon visiting friends who live on the edge of Dartmoor. It was the first time we'd seen them since our wedding last year, and we also got to meet their 8 month old daughter for the first time. She's a total sweetie, and we really hit it off. It was lovely to spend some time in 'baby-world' and to pick up some parenting tips. It's also great to be able to inspect some of the paraphernalia that our various friends have bought for their babies too - peeking at prams, high chairs, cots and suchlike. After all, everything's so expensive, so it's nice to be able to learn from people's successes and mistakes.

I'll finish up with the latest size/fruit update. It's fabulous to be into the second trimester, and tomorrow baby will graduate from peach to lemon.