back from midwife appt.

[southernmommie]

We went over my diet/blood sugar numbers log and she put me on the medicine once before bed to help with my fasting numbers. (Which are 115 and below). I also have to exercise 30 min. daily. Either broken up into 2 15 min segments in morning and again at dinner time, or all 30 min. around dinner time. I am also now suppose to be doing weekly NSTs. Weekly. I'm 31 weeks. I'm also measuring 32 weeks, but that is normal for me. In a week or two, I'll start measuring 2 weeks ahead. That's just normal for me. Hubby doesn't get back for a few more weeks. This is all new territory for me.

Is the weekly NSTs neccessary? Are they going to start checking dialation and effacement weekly too starting soon? Is that normal or do they just rely on the ultrasound? Apparently I have weekly ultrasounds with the NSTs. I thought the NST was just a 20 minute hookup to the fetal monitoring system. I just had to lie there for 20 minutes. Am I wrong? I'll have to look it up real quick. So that is the start of my day.

How's everyone else's day going? Hopefully better than mine.

[EzzysMom]

Hmm I don't think I'm familiar with your background entirely of issues, but the measurement issue is silly, I'm way off each week (like 4 cms ahead one week, and right on the next time, and back 4 cms ahead again following time). Seems rather paranoid. I had a NST from the paranoid midwife this week and yes it was laying down for 20 minutes as they monitored me. The NST uses ultrasound, like a doppler does, so perhaps that is the confusion? Have they asked you to do kick-counts? maybe that might help them feel better about things?

32 weeks sounds way early for checking dilation and effacement, sorry if I'm missing the rest of the back story but I would keep my pants on and their hands out, that's information that isn't really helpful unless you have a preterm risk.

[southernmommie]

No. They aren't checking anything internally yet. I was just asking if they were going to start in a few weeks. As for the NSTs, its because they put me on the pills for gestational diabetes and they said that's what they do once they start the medicine. And the measurements. I won't go backwards in measurements at this point. I'm always ahead.

[EzzysMom]

Thanks for clarifying. My midwives do an internal check at 37 and then again at 39 and from then on they ask. I'll do the 37 week one I think, but we'll skip beyond that as it just gives me a major mental head trip to know about dilation/effacement.

It's hard to fight the system of standard care, especially once they have a medical concern about diabetes. Just remember to ask lots of questions when you can remember them? Why are we doing this? What do we want to learn? What decisions might we make differently based on them?

good luck!