Last Tuesday I got a call from my doctor. She asked me to come up to the hospital to have some lab work done and to have my vital signs checked. After getting the kids ready, I dropped Savannah off at school and Little Mike and I headed to the hospital.
Once we were there I did all of my lab work and headed up to Labor & Delivery to have my vitals done. Due to some of the complications that I experience while pregnant I am very use to being seen and checked on frequently so my doctor's request to do a pop-up check didn't alarm me in the least bit.
After having my blood pressure drawn the nurses and residents were concerned. It was running higher than they like to see. Personally, I wasn't concerned. My blood pressure has been high with all of my pregnancies so I thought this was just par for the pregnancy course. I was wrong. This time it was going to be much different.
Somewhere between, "Mrs.Smith we want to keep an eye on you for a few more minutes and Mrs.Smith we're going to admit you to the hospital" my mind went into overdrive. All I could think about was Sav being in school on the other side of town. My husband was giving a lecture at one of the local colleges and he was too far away to make it to her before school got out. Luckily, a friend was able to pick her up for us so that mini-crisis was averted.
Let me just say that I felt fine. I felt completely normal. Like myself. I was admitted and Little Mike and I were put in a room. My husband made it to Sav and then to the hospital and that's when things got more real. The doctor wanted me to have as little stimulation as possible so my family left and I began receiving treatment.
Enter magnesium via IV. I have never experienced anything like that before in my life. "Mag" as the the doctors were calling it makes you feel a little crazy... and sick. I was nauseous and felt like I was having an outer body experience. I was told that would happen before the IV was started so I was expecting it but that didn't make it feel any better. It was the worst.
Magnesium is used to treat all kinds of things but in my case it was being used to prevent any type of medical condition that can be caused by high blood pressure, like a stroke. With the right medication and the "mag" my blood pressure returned to normal and I was moved to a different room on Wednesday morning.
My blood pressure was closely monitored and I had more blood work done to rule out the possibility of preeclampsia. Once those tests came back negative my doctors thought it would be best to keep me in the hospital on bed rest until my blood pressure dropped back down to a range they were comfortable with for at least 24 hours.
Thursday, Friday and Saturday rolled by and I was still on bed rest. During my stay I learned a lot about my body (which is a good thing) and became a big fan of the salad and baked potato meal. It was delish. I ate it everyday for lunch and dinner.
On Sunday afternoon I was released. My family was there visiting me when I got the good news. It was perfect timing because they packed me up with the quickness and we were out of there before the ink dried on my discharge papers.
So for the next few weeks I'l be on what my doctor calls "couch potato" rest. There's a list of things I can't do and list of things I can. I'm thankful that I'm not on a strict bed rest. Honestly the little bit of going out that I am allowed to do wears me out so I've been limiting my trips to school drop off/pick up and doctor appointments.
I have been getting tons of rest and keeping a blood pressure log at home between prenatal appointments. I can not wait to meet our baby in December. The weeks are rolling by and I am getting more excited as the time passes. I think I'll do one of those fun pregnancy updates with a bump pic in a few days to share more about my pregnancy journey with #grandfinalebaby.
All prayers, positive thoughts and vibes are greatly appreciated. Has anyone else been on bed rest while pregnant?
