Cautious expectants - Page 9 « Back to Group Discussions

[mymaya]

thanks for this info. I just wonder, should I follow your midwife's guide-lines, or those other doctors' you mentioned.... my midwife also THINKS it's ok, but I am not sure. I ams till spotting sometimes, and when I do it's clotty and brown. on the other hand, yesterday there was a beautiful heart beat on the U/S and all looked good. I don't know if I should worry or not, so naturally I do...:)

[MacKinnon]

Originally Posted by mymaya 

thanks for this info. I just wonder, should I follow your midwife's guide-lines, or those other doctors' you mentioned.... my midwife also THINKS it's ok, but I am not sure. I ams till spotting sometimes, and when I do it's clotty and brown. on the other hand, yesterday there was a beautiful heart beat on the U/S and all looked good. I don't know if I should worry or not, so naturally I do...

Oh, I understand!! In fact, I called my midwife after mine came back at 18 and asked if we should up the progesterone, she said no, and in fact, since it's over 16 I could stop it if I wanted to!! I said no, I'll keep taking it thanks, since I've heard 25 is average!! I 'm still worrying!

[cryswilkins]

It's so hard to gage progesterone levels because everyone has different numbers. My Dr likes to see it at 20, and medicated me at 16 The previous practice didn't medicate unless it was under 10, and wouldn't give me anything at 11.5.

AFM - I am really crampy the last two days. Just like a sharp pain here and there, I remember this from DS, but I think I am extra sensitive this time around. I have an appointment Monday morning at 8:30. They will do another ultrasound, I am super nervous, this was around the time we lost or last one. Fingers crossed for a good heartbeat.
Edited by cryswilkins - 2/4/12 at 4:48pm

[Monkey Keeper]

I've been interestedly (is that a word??) reading the progesterone discussion because mine is quite low and was low-ish with my DS as well. I am intrigued by the vast differences in when providers take action. I did have an interesting conversation with a friend who is a MW, though. While I didn't understand it completely, she said that sometimes women's bodies are so efficient at using the progesterone they have in pregnancy that there is not a lot of 'free' progesterone in the bloodstream. At least that's what I took away from her comments. It was at least an intriguing train of thought for me since I have had lower numbers twice now but no symptoms you'd associate with low progesterone.

[mymaya]

Crys and pink, thanks for the input. It is very interesting. And honestly, I wouldn't even give it a second thought, had I not been spotting on and off for 5 weeks now. the spotting really messes with my psyche, and I can't stand it. I want nothing more than be able to relax and be the positive and optimistic woman I normally am. Really, I feel, emotionally and mentally, as if I had been hijacked by something. So I cling to the progesterone now. I mean 20.6 sounds fine to me. it is definitely in the good range (if a bit on the low side maybe); I have had TWO U/S that showed a growing baby, and my uterine bleed is resolving itself. just the damn spotting (clotty brown, a few times a day).

I know it's just a few more weeks of it being an issue, until the placenta takes over. I just want to cover all my grounds for now....:)

mymaya.

[Carson]

Mymaya - yeah, if you have a uterine bleed, that has to be so disconcerting, even though you know what it is.  The fact that it is brown at least is good.

Good thoughts for tomorrow Crys!

Just to throw more confusion on the progesterone level, my RE does not prophylactically prescribe progesterone to her patients.  I don't quite understand the reasoning for it, but I thought it was weird.  I've only had my PG tested at my first beta, and since it was 24.5, they won't test it again. 

I'm supposed to be 'released' after tomorrow at 8w2d.  I know it goes against being natural-minded, but I"m really going to miss those weekly reassuring u/s, to at least *see* that everything is okay.   Sigh.

[2sweetsparrows]

Mymaya- hope it stops and you get some peace of mind

Lucy- great news-

Crys- checking to see if you have any updates from yesterday

Progestrone- I am on 200 vaginally- I heard though that it may not show in levels because it is local.  My OB's do not hesitate with it because they seem to think at the levels administered it can't hurt???

AFM- I have really been MIA these days- family in town which is a great distraction.  I have been very tired and very very sick I am really good for nuthin except cookin our baby.  I hope this eases up soon!

Hope everyone is having a great week!!

[2sweetsparrows]

 I saw a perfect little one with 120hb  7w1d exactly what they thought- so great.  I will go back next week to my OB to reassess meds and start on our journey.  I am over the moon, I hope hope everything keeps up as I did see a HB before my last loss- but that was at 6.5w so  for a healthy healthy little #1 -

*Sigh of relief*

[MindlessChrissy]

Huge congrats 2ss!!

[rubyrose]

Hi ladies. Thanks for sharing your stories. I'm not sure how anyone could be pregnant and not cautious.

I'm nearly 41 yo and 6w 3d.  I never thought I would be able to be pregnant again.  

I send my best wishes to all of you.

[Milano]

Hello ladies. First time posting on this thread, and I'm definitely a cautious expectant.  Sorry to those mamas who've lost their precious babies, and fingers crossed to those of us here.  Have read through a bit and seen that some others have had scary stuff going on this time with HCG and Progesterone numbers.  It sure is a rocky road this PAL business.

We had a huge scare on Monday, but fortunately a happy ending.  It would happen of course in a huge shop while I was wearing tiny white shorts.  I looked down to see a huge amount of bright red blood between my legs, fortunately my DH was with me, it could have so easily been just me and the girls, I would have really been stuck.  After panicking we managed somehow to weave our way through the back aisles somehow to the bathroom without bumping into anyone and I hid there.  My DH picked out some (ghastly) dress for me and I just put it on, stuffed some TP in my knickers, and made our way home.  All the while I'm saying my affirmations from all the energy work I've done to get this baby here this time.  But at the same time I'm also thinking bleeding is never good.  Fast forward to the next morning, fortunately I already had a referral from my doc for a u/s so I took that up to the hospital at 8am and just sat and waited till I could be seen.  I had the most lovely Russian ultrasonographer who to my huge relief found a heartbeat immediately (147bpm) and a sweet baby measuring a whole 2 days ahead!  According to them I'm 8 weeks tomorrow.  She also found a sub chorionic hematoma of course the cause of the bleed, plus a large ovarian cyst, plus a small fibroid!  It was such a rollercoaster as the only bleeding in pregnancy I've ever had were my m/c's.  I am on baby aspirin due to clotting disorder so that means more likelihood of these kinds of bleeds.   I go back for a repeat u/s in 2 weeks.  I'm wiped out from all the shock and drama of it all.

Here's hoping for uneventful, boring pregnancies for all of us.

[crystal_buffaloe]

Hello all --

I know, know, know I shouldn't have done this, but I peed on a stick this morning (I woke up feeling good, and was immediately suspicioius) and it was a definite positive, but also definitely lighter than my previous BFP's, which got progressively darker from 10dpo until I quit taking them at aroun22d 22dpo. All of the last tests I took had a much darker line than the control line, and this morning it was lighter than the control line. I should be 8w on Sunday, and I'm thinking this is not good, but I'm trying as hard as I can not to obsess. Has anyone else had HCG fall and it still turn out to be a healthy pregnancy? I do have an ultrasound (my first) on Monday (8w1d).

Thanks in advance.

[cryswilkins]

I don't have an experience that late in pregnancy, but I took a third test about 6 days after my initial BFP and it was not as dark. I had my levels drawn that day and they were good so it could have been a fluke. I would just see how you feel tomorrow. I know that I have had days where I felt pretty good and then the next day I feel like death.

[MacKinnon]

You should not gauge the amount of HCG by the color of your test! It's a sure fire way to stress you out

It was earlier on for me too, but I had a positive urine test, two of them faint, and then a clearer positive, and then a negative. My blood test the day of the negative was also fine.

Your urine is concentrated a different amounts, tests vary in sensitivity. If you're really worried, I would ask for an HCG check and try not to stress.

[crystal_buffaloe]

I know! Even as I was doing it, I thought, I really should not be doing this.

I'm just waiting on the ultrasound on Monday.

My loss was at 6.5 weeks, and it was pretty obvious what was happening. I'm at 7.5 weeks now, and I was feeling really optimistic until today I'm just terrified I'm going to have a missed miscarriage, and I'm already so much more invested in this bean than I was last time around. Before, when the bleeding started, I was almost a little relieved that it wasn't missed -- like if I had to miscarry, at least it was clear and spontaneous ... so now I think I've jinxed myself and it's not going to happen

I am hyper-aware of my uterus, so that's got to be a pregnancy symptom, right?

Thanks mamas.

[rubyrose]

I'm still here so cautious and anxious.  6w 4d.  No ultrasounds yet.  No blood tests yet.  

[Lucy Alden]

Got my blood test results back. My progesterone is 22. Its not as high as they'd like to see (above 26) but its way better than the first two tests. It was 6 .

I'm definitely feeling much more hopeful now. We have our 2nd MW appointment at 11 weeks and then an NT ultrasound scheduled at 12 weeks.

With my first three pregnancies I hardly did any tests (doppler a couple of times, pee strips, one ultrasound with DS2 and DS3, thats it). But I'm so thankful that I got the early blood draw this time. If I wasn't on the progesterone suppositories I have no doubt I would have miscarried. I'm definitely open to more tests this time.

[Milano]

RubyRose--glad you're still here!

Lucylden- yay for high progesterone!  I can relate to the increased testing.  My first two were so calm and peaceful with no testing at all.  Now its completely different and I'm totally "in the system" regards every test out there.  How things change, eh!

Crystal Buffaloe-the fear and worry is so hard.  hang in there till Monday.

[crystal_buffaloe]

Great news!

DH and I went in for the u/s Monday afternoon -- 180 heartbeat and just one sticky bean!! I was measuring 8w4d, which is a little ahead of my chart, but I was just going by OPK and CF (according to the chart, I should have been 8w1d). Here's hoping we can go with the later due date, but either of those is much better than the one the med student insisted on putting in by LMP.

I took the "cautious" bit out of my signature, which feels a little bit reckless, but I'm all in and really feeling like planning/doing -- getting the ball rolling with looking for a doula and a MW

(still not really telling, though -- I want to tell my whole extended family at my grandma's birthday party March 16th -- and then I'll let other people know after that)

[rubyrose]

Thanks for sharing the good news crystal_buffaloe.

I'm still here anxious every day.  7w 3d 41yo.