On Tuesday, we went to our weekly ultrasound in Maple Grove. It was our last scheduled appointment there as our next ones are all at the U of M. We've had so many ultrasounds that we know what normal is so when the tech was doing the heart rate readings and they came out at 175 or higher, we knew something wasn't right. At this point in the pregnancy, her heart rate has been around 150. It would be okay if it was spiking and going back to normal, but they were concerned that it had been high for a prolonged period of time. Plus, the amniotic fluid was lower than normal (still in the normal range, but lower than it has been).
After the ultrasound, they hooked me up to a fetal non-stress monitor. They put two belts around my belly. One belt measures the baby's heart rate and the other belt measures contractions. (I wasn't having any!) Her heart rate continued to run high so they decided to send us to the labor and delivery at the U of M to be monitored further and to have blood tests run. They wanted to be sure that I didn't have an infection that was affecting her heart rate. Everything during the ultrasound looked good so they were concerned that there was no explanation as to why her heart rate was running high.
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| Fetal Non-Stress Monitor |
We spent the day watching this monitor. By the time we got to the hospital and were hooked up, her heart rate was back in the 150s. It was normal nearly all day. There was another 20 minute period where it was running high, but then went down again. Dr. Prosen said her heart rate was text book and exactly what they would expect. She discharged us around 6:30 pm and wanted us to go back to the Maple Grove clinic on Wednesday to have things checked again. They are being extra cautious because of everything else that this little one has been through.
Today, everything was back to normal. The heart rate was in the 150s again and she scored an 8/8 on the biophysical profile. This looks at her heart rate, muscle tone, movement, breathing, and amniotic fluid. Dr. Nyholm said that when she watched the clips from Tuesday's ultrasound, she noticed that the baby was doing a lot of practice breathing. That could have been part of the reason for her increased heart rate. We'll never know for sure!
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| Scott was freezing all day! |
Scott refers to the day as our practice run to the hospital. He got to see some ladies in labor that were waiting to be admitted to a room. He left our room to find himself some food. When he came back, he told me how there was this lady out there who did not look like she was doing well. ; ) Labor will do that to a gal! We also know what we should bring with us to be more comfortable. Hopefully, we will not return to the hospital until the big day.
A few people to thank...
**My co-workers! They have been so supportive through all of this. Yesterday, I was not planning on being gone and they took over my class and planned the day for me. THANK YOU!
**The staff at the Maple Grove clinic. It takes special people to work with families that have high risk pregnancies. Thank you for always being so kind and caring.
Thanks for reading and thinking of us. We hope this girl decides to stay put for a few more weeks and quits giving us scares!
Scott & Sarah
PS: The Zins' family hosted a shower on Sunday. It was full of fun and laughter. They were so generous to baby Zins. She's lucky to be joining such a great family. Jane (Scott's aunt) blogged about it if you're interested in seeing some pictures. She's so crafty and creative!!
Check it out at:
http://pathleadinghome.blogspot.com/
