October 01, 2004
24 week prenatal check-up
Dale and I ended up leaving a little late for my 2pm appointment this afternoon, and the clinic was quite busy as well. I've never seen so many women in the waiting room, let alone so many pregnant women in one room, big bellies everywhere.
I didn't get enough sleep last night and I guess I'm just feeling emotional as well today, because I nearly burst into tears three times while reading a copy of Parents magazine.
Anyway, the appointment went fine. My urine strip showed some elevated sugar again, possibly caused by the caffeine-free Dr Pepper I had with lunch. Weight was up 2lbs. Blood pressure was good. This time, the nurse was able to find the baby's heartbeat almost immediately and that was good too, in the 150's. Dr. Litzinger measured my uterus and was a little surprised. I'll be 24 weeks tomorrow and despite the minimal weight gain, my uterus measured at 26 weeks.
That was reassuring because I've still been worried about my weight. The morning sickness is all but gone; I usually only get sick about once a week now. I'm able to eat more at a time and agonizing hunger isn't striking just an hour later, but our bathroom scale still shows me fluctuating within the same few pounds. The measuring tape also tells me that my waistline has only grown about an inch, despite the current shallowness of my navel and my inability to fit into my old pants.
Dr. Litzinger reassured me again that I can, in fact, take Claritin and other antihistimines as needed. Even though I'd called and asked a nurse a week ago, I was still nervous about using antihistimines since so many other pregnant women talk about being limited to only plain Tylenol. Good, because I have sucky allergies to begin with and lately they've just been awful.
At this visit I was given a small bottle of orange-flavored Glucola. Before my next visit on Nov. 4th, I have to drink this stuff then get my blood drawn to check my glucose levels. I'm not looking forward to this test as I've heard from pregnant/mom friends about how nasty the stuff is. Ah well.
So, overall, a good visit. My aches and pains are typical, my vitals are ok, and I have a chubby uterus.