FFN test, NST test, amino levels, and lots of hours in triage

After my positive FFN test on Tuesday, Dr. H sent me to the hospital for monitoring on Weds for several hours. They were tracking contractions and the baby's heartbeats. The babies were highly active and the monitoring showed what they called uterine irritability. For whatever reason Dr. H got the report from the hospital and didn't like what he saw so I was told I'd have to come back today for a NST (non stress test) and an ultrasound. I was at the hospital today all day long. They did the NST test and I had a few contractions and I guess the babies heartbeats dipped a few times so Dr. H wanted me monitored in triage for a few more hours and then he required that I come back again for another NST test tomorrow and more monitoring in triage. This concerned me b/c I'm not exactly sure why he's so worried. Or if he's really worried or just a little concerned. No one is really telling me much other than what I've reported here. I was originally told I'd be released until Monday and then Dr. H said no after seeing the report. The only thing comforting me at this point is that he's a specialist and probably overly cautious and if he was seriously worried about immediate danger to the babies than he'd hospitalize me and not let me go home between visits. It was reassuring to hear several nurses talk about how good Dr. H is and how's he the best specialist in the area. I noticed that when someone is told that he's my doctor they immediately come to attention so he must hold some rank in this hospital. The hard part is the stress and worry (no duh) and the hospital is an hour away so that makes it a long day and I don't know how long I'll be up to making the drive.

I was diagnosed w/ a yeast infection and that could very well be contributing to the contractions and uterine irritability. I was put on something to clear that up and also put on Nifedipine to relax uterine contractions. It's a beta blocker that is usually prescribed for chest pain and works mainly by lowering your blood pressure. I have to take it every 4 hours (I was told every 6 hours yesterday and now they increased it to every 4 hours) and can feel the effects. I have very low blood pressure to begin with so it's super low now. I stayed around 80/55 today so I feel dizzy, lightheaded and faint at times. This was especially fun when they gave me the second dose of steroids today since that made me feel jittery on top of the above mentioned symptoms. And can I just say that the steroid shots are completely doable pain wise for us IVF patients (since we can handle anything after going through IVF and PIO) but still not fun...talk about a major burning pain for a few minutes.

It looks like at a minimum I'll now on be doing NST tests twice a week along w/ an ultrasound to measure amniotic fluid. Today the amniotic fluid levels were good. Baby A was 19 and baby B was 18.7 or something close to that. I'll also be doing my regular appts w/ Dr. Helm on top of the hospital visits. He'll be re-doing the FFN test on Monday and I pray it comes back negative and that it was positive this week b/c of the yeast infection and "affection" that occurred between J and I the night before. Those are fixable conditions...especially the "affection" part since we're not allowed to have any sexual activities at all now on...not even breast stimulation. It's going to be a long few months in that department. It may even be worse for me than J b/c sex is a huge stress reliever for me.

So at this point I'm hanging on to this theory... that sex and the yeast infection are my culprits b/c I just don't believe my body is giving out on me already. I do think it's the end of most daily activities for me. I'm on ordered bed rest right now. My papers actually say no cleaning, no cooking and no shopping. I'm to be on my backside unless I'm going potty and I'm allowed one 10 minute shower a day. Maybe that status will change if my FFN test comes back negative on Monday. Since you're supposed to be safe from preterm labor for 2 weeks if its negative. You can see how much hope I'm holding for a negative FFN... and by the way when I asked for clarification...Dr. H said a positive FFN means you have a 1 in 6 chance of going into preterm labor in the next 2 weeks. And he did say that sex "could" cause a false positive.

I am feeling calmer for the most part. I was a big ball of tears non-stop Tuesday and Wednesday. Not sure why I'm feeling somewhat calmer today...maybe out of energy to cry. I still feel like I'm okay and the babies are okay. And I remind myself constantly that it's much better to have all of this extra monitoring and be overly cautious to stay on the safe side. Worse case scenario and they hospitalize me than Dr. H will need to live up to his reputation and keep the babies inside me for many weeks to come.

CRAP!!!!

My fetal fibronectin test (FFN test) came back positive today. I'm really upset and scared. I wasn't even supposed to have this test today. The nurse screwed up and Dr. H went ahead and did it since I was undressed and prepped. My test that was done 2 weeks ago was negative and I was told that the combination of that result w/ my long cervix made me an unlikely candidate for preterm labor.

I don't have any signs of preterm labor. No cramping or contractions...sometimes a tightening of my uterus so I'm not sure if that means anything. But- while googling "fetal fibronectin test", I read that you shouldn't have sex for 24 hours before one of these tests. NO one in my doctors office has mentioned that and of course I didn't know I'd be having this test done today. So- J and I were very friendly last night at 10pm or so...less than 12 hours before the test was done. Could this cause a false positive??? I pray it is.

Either way Dr. H wants me back to start steroid shots tomorrow. I guess I'll have two days of these. What can I expect from this? I'll also be having something called wet mounts done...not sure on this one. I think it checks for an infection of some sort. I am now on official bedrest until I have the fetal fibronectin test redone next Monday.

I'm trying to calm down for the babies sakes. It's just way too early for these babies to arrive. I'm not sure about what my risks are or if it's more than likely a false positive... I'm tired of feeling so worried all of the time... first the fluid in the kidneys and now this.

My gut tells me they're okay but what if it's not....

Will the worry ever stop?

I've been meaning to post but haven't had been able to compile my thoughts. I had a growth ultrasound last week at 25 weeks and it didn't go exactly as I'd hoped. J went with me this time and I was so glad he ended up being there. Basically everything was great w/ the babies except for the fact that they have fluid in their kidneys. Baby A has fluid in one kidney and baby B had fluid in both kidneys. Dr. H said it's really common especially in boys and usually goes away on its own. He said it's the most common birth defect that they see which freaked me out b/c the term birth defect doesn't sounds all that great. When I asked about worst case scenarios he said the babies could need surgery when they're born and that this can be a soft marker for downs syndrome..... He said he doesn't think I needed to lose any sleep over it (yeah right) but that we should keep an eye on it. (When I heard your phone message Watson...I was amazed at how similar our experiences have been...same RE, pregnant w/ twins, and now we're both going through similar worries...I will be calling you back soon!)

I was pretty upset for a few days after finding out....imaging all kinds of horrible things...kidney failure...yadda yadda. But- then my Mom talked to my cousin who works in a hospital and she said they see this all of the time and it almost always goes away and if they need surgery it's not a big deal. I have also started to interview pediatricians and the one I met w/ yesterday confirmed that the majority of the cases clear themselves up on their own by the time the baby is 2 weeks old or earlier. I can't help but worry though. You just want everything to be fine and perfect for your little ones. On a positive note...they both weighed almost 2 pounds each (only 2 ounces difference between them) and everything was measuring just like it should. Baby A is still breech while Baby B is vertex. I'm also praying that the soft marker for down's syndrome doesn't mean much since I did the NT scan and Quad screen and both showed we had very low risk.

My parents were here for a visit and they painted the babies nursery and my guest room. I picked a really soft, light colored cream color that has a hint of yellow for the babies room... My bedding is very bold... see link: http://www.babyuniverse.com/kit/baby/2433/AlphabetSoup.html
....so I needed a simple backdrop for it. I bought the crib bedding, the hamper, diaper stacker, the lamp and picture frame and then I picked out floor length solid red curtains. I'll post actual pictures when the room is finished.

I plan to catch up on everyones blog today and hope each of you are doing well. Please send prayers and positive thoughts towards my boys that they are born strong and healthy.

24 weeks!

I can't believe I've already made it to 6 months already. I had my first cervical check today. It measured 4.3cm and I was told that was great. He also did the FFN test (fetal fibronectin test) to see if preterm labor could be in my future and that came back negative which is also wonderful news. Dr. H said the combination of these two results makes me an unlikely candidate for preterm labor. I was thrilled to hear that. For some reason I've lost 3 pounds since my last appt so I'm currently up 17 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight at this point (24 weeks). I have noticed that it's much harder for me to eat much these days. I suffer from constant indigestion and heart burn. After every meal I feel like it's coming right back up my throat. So even though I still have a healthy appetite I'm less inclined to eat much b/c I'm miserable afterwards. I'm also becoming more and more uncomfortable. It already feels like my ribs are squished.

J and I went out and bought me a recliner this week. I have a feeling I'll be spending more and more time in this chair as the pregnancy continues. I also predict I'll be sleeping in it before long. I'm able to recline just right so that my rib cage opens up. It's so nice to get a full breath. We debated on the glider vs. recliner, but I went w/ the recliner b/c you can get really comfy over-sized ones that are reasonably priced and look good. I also think we'll be more likely to use it as an everyday piece of furniture later on than we would be w/ a glider.

On Monday I'll be having another growth ultrasound. We have the quick "find the heartbeat" u/s every visit but it's been 6 weeks since we had an in depth ultrasound so I'm looking forward to seeing the boys in detail. They have definitely make their presence known. I have kicking and moving around going on all day and all night long. Have any of you w/ twins named which baby is which yet? I have Matthew on my right side (baby A) and Andrew on my left (baby B), I asked Dr. H if he could keep them straight when they're born so that they can remain named that way. He said since I'm having a C-section that it might be hard...b/c you never know which one might pop to the top when he opens me up. It may help if one is breech and the other vertex or if they differ some in their weights so that we can tell which is which. I already talk to them all the time and use their name so I'd love to keep them straight... and J has recently started to read children's stories to them at night. They have the ability to hear at this point so we want them to get to know his voice too.

I have to say that even though you hear all of my pregnancy complaints and so forth here...I truly couldn't be happier. I was just reflecting this morning on how lucky I am. My life is much better than I even imagined it could be. This is in part b/c of being pregnant but also due to more than that. I used to be so restless... I didn't have a direction in my life and I was constantly searching for something to fulfill me. My life was filled w/ drama. It took me a long time but now I'm settled down and married to a great guy w/ a good heart. Someone that I can count on and that puts me before himself. We both deeply love and respect one another. I'm about to have two children w/ this man. We have a solid foundation for raising a family. We'll never be wealthy but we'll be fine as long as we're careful w/ our spending. I'll be able to be a stay at home Mom to raise our children and I'm beyond grateful that we even have this opportunity in today's day and age (living in California). I don't know if it's age that's mellowed me out or what...but I'm at peace w/ being me. Today I just give thanks for all of the blessings in my life.