Weekly Pregnancy Calendar: Week 39

July 1, 2009 at 5:55 AM by Cafe Cynthia - Comments (5)

Photo by bam61907

On Friday and Monday I had appointments for fetal monitoring -- an non-stress test for the heartbeat (NST) and fetal ultrasound to measure amniotic fluid (AFI). My blood pressure is still really high, but since we scheduled the induction, the doctors weren't too worried. They believe that once I have the baby, my blood pressure will go back to normal.

On Friday I was contracting a minute apart, and the nurse asked if I was in any pain or uncomfortable, and if I was even feeling the contractions. I felt some, but not every minute and it wasn't painful.

On Monday I wasn't contracting as frequently, about every five minutes or so. Most of the time when the contractions were showing up on the monitor, I wasn't even feeling them. The nurse wonders if I have a high tolerance for pain, but I think the reason is that I'm not even halfway dilated (as of Monday I was only 1 cm) and Aubrey wasn't in the birth canal yet.

I am sure when she is on the way down the canal, I will be begging for the epidural.

The AFI showed that I had a good amount of amniotic fluid, and the nurse said, "If your water breaks, you will definitely know it, Hon."

So one way or another, finally she will be here!

I won't get to talk to you till after the birth, but I'll give you the play-by-play of the delivery as soon as I can!

What's Happening with Baby:

It's crowded in here. I want out. The umbilical cord that's my lifeline to you, Mom, is about 20 inches long and about a half-inch thick. BTW, it doesn't have any nerve endings, so you and I won't feel pain when the doc cuts it. All of my organs, including my lungs, are fully developed now, and my immune system is gaining strength every day. See you in a few!

Question of the Week from Answers:

Did you have an epidural? -- whispers2005

longonevs: "I asked for mine the minute I walked into the hospital. I asked for an attending physician, though, and not a resident. It took a little longer for him to get there, but it was a good thing because it took him three tries to get it right. It was the best thing I did. I had no side effects and no other drugs."

gdiamante: "Oh, yeah. It worked. But I wouldn't do one again. I wouldn't do any of the interventions again; they set us up for a sleepy baby who would not eat. Relief from a brief period of pain was NOT worth the weeks of struggles we had after birth. Plus, I actually remember next to nothing of the birth."

Past weeks:

Week 38

Week 37

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