Wednesday, February 28, 2007

we still have twins - 7 weeks 6 days

Well we are just back from the OB. I really, really like this doctor. My first visit ever to an OB - I've always had my annual 'female' exams done by my internist. The minute he walked in the room I just felt totally at ease with him. My friend M will probably say 'I told you so', because she raved about him already. Everyone in the office was super nice, kept congratulating us, already seemed to know our names, etc.

He did a quick u/s - they are both still there and both heartbeats still flickering away. The u/s machine he had in the office didn't measure the heartbeats, but he said by looking he guessed they were around 150 - 160. I guess they have another room with the more detailed u/s machine, but this room just had a basic one. A measured 1.18cm (7w2d) and B measured 1.54cm (7w6d) - so they've definitely grown in the past week. It worries me a little that A is smaller and measuring a couple days behind. But he didn't seem concerned and said that the measurements are really rough at this stage. And I guess there's nothing I can do about it so no point in worrying.

I go back in 2 weeks. He said with twins he'll want to see me every 2 weeks instead of every 4. And he said we'll most likely get a quick u/s every time, because he likes to have a look at them, and also because visually seeing them on the u/s is the easiest way for him to distinguish between the two heartbeats.

He said that 38 weeks is the longest they'll let me go - they consider that full term for twins and they will induce you if you get that far. He also said that there is about a 50% c-section rate with twins and it's not in our control. I really, really don't want a c-section. He said that if the first one is head down, then it can be a vaginal delivery. But if it's breech that it has to be a cesarean. With singltons they can try to turn a breech baby, but they won't do it with twins. But he said they usually know by about 28 weeks what position they are in and they generally don't move from there, so we will have plenty of time to prepare.

I had to pee in a cup. Which I am not very good at apparently -I managed to pee all over my hand and only get a very tiny amount into the cup. And they took some blood. They didn't say what they were testing for in all this - and I was too overwhelmed to ask.

I got a few more pictures. And we still have the u/s appointment at the RE's office on friday, so we'll get more pictures then and hopefully better measurement of the heartbeats.

I didn't sleep great last night. I think I might have been anxious for the appointment. I keep thinking that it's not really real that we're having twins, and that one of them will have disappeared. I know, I know - I need to think positive. The nurse kept writing twins on all the forms, and the doctor was talking about all the things that can be different with twins. It kind of freaked me out. Not because I'm freaked out about having twins -I really want twins. But more because I'm freaked out that maybe I'm not having twins - and every time somebody says it or writes it I cringe because I think they might jinx it. J wants to tell our friends we are having dinner with tonight. They know about the pregnancy but not that it's twins. He thinks talking about it to somebody will help me accept that it's real.

And I'm totally overwhelmed with information. They gave us a whole packet of stuff. Including an entire book from the hospital. There are brochures about classes we can take (actually a whole book of classes, plus a few extra flyers), three separate flyers with food warnings, a separate whole booklet written by the doctors office with pregancy advice and instructions, booklets on prenatal screening, etc., etc. It's information overload. I haven't bought any pregnancy books, so this is the first actual printed information about pregnancy that has touched my hands. I've been afraid to buy any books about pregnancy, or (gasp) twins - afraid I might jinx things. I'm not generally a superstitious person - but I keep feeling like we shouldn't say it out loud, or else some evil spirit might hear us and come in and take them away.

I'm seriously heading off the deep end here.

Ok. Next OB appointment - March 14.

breathe....

7 comments:

Serenity said...

I can pretty much relate to the jinxing it thing - every time I see my RE, he booms "let's get you PREGNANT!" and I cringe. I want to say "shhhhhhhh - not so loud. I don't want to screw it up."

So I can totally understand the whole superstition about people saying "you're having twins!"

They sound like they're doing well, even if Baby A is smaller than you want to see. They're growing and they had nice heartbeats.

I will continue to hope that the next 31 weeks go smoothly for you, Carol. You SO deserve it.

Hang in there, sweetie!

Nickie said...

BIG HUGE CONGRATS times TWO for you!!!! So great you like your OB too.

Anonymous said...

Huge congrats Carol. I hope they both continue to do well.

Jen said...

Just wanted to say how happy I am for you, sounds like everything is moving along right on track. I will definitely be thinking about you & praying for you to have a healthy pregnancy & that your fears will be eased. I'm sure after all you've been through it's difficult not to be nervous.

I hope you have a great weekend.

p.s. Thanks for your comments on my post from yesterday, made me feel better. :)

abby said...

woohoo! So glad you like your OB and that you got to see the twins again. I can totally relate to thinking that one of them must have disappeared, I keep thinking that about my single bean too...hang in there. And keep reminding yourself that there's no such thing as jinxing -- I know it's hard to believe, but it's true. G has to remind me that over and over.

Just a few more weeks until the 2nd tri...!

Hopeful Mother said...

Thanks for this summary - it helps me to plan for my next appt. and OB visit since I am 6 days behind you.

I'm so glad to hear that both of the twins are still fluttering away!

I can relate to your feeling of worry with jinxing... but I just ordered some twin books as a sign of my faith in all of this. I've had the pregnancy books from the library since our positive beta... and it does at least help to make things feel real.

This IS really happening to us, hard as it is to believe!

Hope you are feeling well!

Jaimie said...

I'm so glad you liked the doctor. I can't imagine this whole process if your OB is crappy. Your going to get practiced peeing in the cup because they make you do it everytime. I'm so glad you got to see them. I wish I could get a peek at every visit. That would make it so much more fun. I am getting an ultrasound of my gallbladder tomorrow and I hope I can convince the tech to just "take a peek." I am doubting they will because it will be at the hospital instead of the dr's office. Congratulations again!