Some weeks can be good even when they are bad. I guess that is how it goes. Personally my week has been hell at work. The amount of stress I was feeling was ridiculous along with anticipation for my regular OB appointment and our cardiac consult just added to it. Work is still stressful, however, yesterday I think I breathed my first sigh of relief in a long time about the pregnancy.
At my Wednesday OB appointment, I had a great discussion with my OB about my health and care of the pregnancy. She is fully supportive of me as her patient and feels that the pregnancy is going well and the baby (Nicolas) is also doing well. His heart rate was a steady 138. My blood pressure is excellent and all other signs point to a healthy pregnancy. All very good things for both me and Nicolas.
Yesterday, Bryan and I had the cardiac consultation with the MN Perinatal Physicians and Dr. Sutton. The ultrasound tech started off by looking in general at Nicolas. He has definitely grown since the last time we saw him on the screen. She also didn't find anything new that we were not aware of. We have images of his little feet and were able to see both hands. One was clenched in a typical T18 manner, but the other was not. The cysts on the brain still exist, but everyone has assured us that they are very normal for any baby.
Dr. Sutton greeted us and started to review Nicolas' heart. They were concentrating on his VSD (Ventricular septal defect). A VSD is one or more holes in the wall that separates the right and left ventricles of the heart. Ventricular septal defect is one of the most common congenital (present from birth) heart defects. It may occur by itself or with other congenital diseases. With Trsiomy 18 (T18) babies, this is quite common. Dr. Sutton examined the VSD and found that the hole is relatively small on the scale of things and should not cause any complications for Nicolas. He said it would not likely require surgery, but we will only know definitely when he is born and can be examined further. The size was estimated to be somewhere around 2-3mm. If 0 is the smallest and they can see the defects much larger (7-8mm), I feel pretty good about things. Dr. Sutton said that most of the issues we may face will be around respiratory or breathing issues and possible need for intervention at birth. He indicated we will still have many tough decisions to make as parents. Bryan and I were introduced to a perinatologist, Dr. Calvin. He also warmly welcomed us and helped clarify some of the findings. Again, we felt he brought good news indicating that on the scale of difficulties or issues that may effect Nicolas, they not as bad as what has been seen with other T18 babies. Dr. Calvin was very supportive of our decision to continue with the pregnancy and to give Nicolas every chance he deserves.
As the pregnancy progresses things will change, but I am confident that we are getting the support for myself and for Nicolas. We have the start of a plan which for now is to proceed as if things are normal. For me that is a great relief because I can concentrate on other things for the time being rather than squeezing in doctor appointments in on a weekly basis. I will be checked in 4 weeks and we will have another level II ultrasound in about 6 weeks to check Nicolas' growth. Nicolas, without doubt, will be small. We know that. We just want to make sure that I can continue to grow him and bring him as close to term as possible. Currently he weighs 15 oz. I was happy because he has almost doubled in size since the previous ultrasound in September.
We will continue to say our prayers and be very thankful for what God has given us. Nicolas is truly a gift. Even in utero he continues to let his presence be known. He gave the ultrasound tech a run for her money because he couldn't sit still. Hmmmmm who does that sound like....maybe some older sisters....He sometimes rolls around rampant at night or gives me some gentle nudging in the morning to get me going. I am hopeful we will get a 3D/4D ultrasound soon so others can experience what an incredible baby he is.
Even though we don't have any appointments until mid-November, I will continue to post other types of updates. We are organizing a prayer shower for November 14th at the church and will be getting invites together very soon.
We are thankful for all of the continued thoughts and prayers for our family.
With much love ~Natalie
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