We had a couple of scary moments over the past few weeks. First, the Monkey was sick, home from day care for three days with a moderate fever. A trip to the pedi showed his ears and lungs were clear, so we just had to wait it out. In the meantime, he was also cutting four teeth, so that just added to his level on crankiness. After taking a 4.5 hour (!!!) nap on the third day, his fever finally broke. Unfortunately, two days later, a rash appears on his trunk and cheeks. I didn't think much of it at first, but then I started consulting Dr. Google...
While that can be a risky venture, it turns out my research was pretty accurate. Monkey's history of a fever, then a rash, without other symptoms indicated Roseola or Fifths Disease. Unfortunately, because his fever wasn't ever very high, and because the rash didn't develop for two more days, the pedi narrowed it down to Fifths Disease.
That isn't a problem and requires no treatment...unless you are pregnant. If the fetus contracts the virus, it can develop anemia and ultimately, a miscarriage can occur. The same day Monkey was diagnosed, I went in to get some blood work done, to see if I had the antibody for Fifth Disease. My mom couldn't remember me ever having it, but the majority of adults do have the antibody, even if they never displayed the symptoms.
The antibody test is a special one that requires being sent out of state. Lucky me, I got to wait a week for the results, over the Thanksgiving holiday. Added to the anxiety, at my 9w midwife appointment, she couldn't hear the hearbeat on the doppler...now I know, 9w is early, and they say 10w is usually the earliest they can hear a heartbeat. I'd say I kept it pretty calm, all around, especially for an Infertile. That's the benefit of doing this the second time around, I guess.
Well, the antibody results came back, and thankfully, I was in the clear, testing positive for the antibody. The crazy IF in me still worried if I had had the virus before Monkey had it (unlikely I know, but we discovered that our neighbor had it 6 weeks before he did, so she could have passed it along to me first). I had to wait another two weeks to get to our NT scan, at 12w.
Oh, and in the meantime, I had an awful cold. I'm happy to be pregnant, and I'll happily abstain from drugs and alcohol, but it's really hard to have a congested, fluid-filled head for over a week, zapping your energy and giving you sinus headaches. The cold also developed into an ear infection, and I got to have the feeling of an unpopped ear for over a week. Fun, fun, fun.
Thankfully, again, everything showed up normal. E2, as we're calling our little fetus, looked great, wiggling around, looking much more like a human than s/he did at the 8w ultrasound with the RE, when the resemblance was closer to an alien or gummy bear. Our risks for Downs and Trisomy 18 are the lowest they can be, and the doctor talked to me in detail about my blood results.
In short, I tested positive for the antibody, but not for the marker that indicates a recent infection....so, I haven't had Fifth Disease in at least the past 5-6 months. Excellent news! Plus, we got the cute ultrasound pictures to complete our day.
With the good news of the NT scan and making it to 12w, it was time to make the big announcement to the whole world. I hadn't told anyone at work other than a close colleague and my supervisor. However, I've been wearing maternity pants since 7w (seriously! I popped over night!), and wearing baggy clothes to hide a most definite bump. I know it happens faster the second time around, and I could have made do a few more weeks, using the belly bands, like last time (didn't wear maternity pants till 12w last time), but why bother when I have a full wardrobe of comfy elastic pants in the attic? Anyway, we made the big announcement to the world, via FB, of course.
It's always important to me, whenever someone knows I'm pregnant, to also let them know it's after IF, and through IVF. I feel like it makes a difference somehow, to me, as well as to other IFers who may or may not be out of the IF closet. I know it's brought other people to me, sharing experiences like bedrest, miscarriages, and IF treatment, and for that, I will always feel it's important to share. It's easier to share once you're pregnant, and if I can raise awareness in even one person, so they won't make an insensitive remark to a fellowe IF-er (pipe dream???), then it's definitely worth it.
Well that's about it for my massive update. I really should (and want to) write more often...and then I don't...for no good reason, other than when I'm not on baby duty, I'm either cleaning, running errands, or taking advantage of the precious time to be VERY lazy. Seriously, what is it about being a parent that makes me feel more lazy sometimes? It's like the free time, during naps for example, is so rare and so finite, that I feel like it's almost criminal to be productive.
Being in the first trimester hasn't helped. Nausea and fatigue were definitely present from 5w to about 9w, but it definitely got better, and earlier than I remember last time. I'm looking forward to the second trimester of energy and feeling good! And just in time for the holiday season. Monkey is so amazing now, at 18 months. He enjoys seeing the lights, he's picking up words at an amazing rate, he clearly understands commands, and he's definitely got quite the personality. It's fun to be a parent for the holidays. I remember how hard it was when we were going through treatment. Having the extra special bonus of this second pregnancy makes it even better.
Congrat's on your pregnancy! Wishing your family very happy holidays.
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