Grade 3 Placenta

[potatocraft]

Hey all,
So I had my monthly ultrasound yesterday that I have been getting because of the diabetes...and the tech got all freaked out because I have a grade 3 placenta. Basically my placenta is rather mature for it's age. So they sent me to Portland to get a level 2 ultrasound to see if the baby is getting enough bloodflow through the cord and what not.
And they panicked, pack a bag, bring your husband, make arrangements for the animals....the whole deal and my appointment is an hour drive time away in 3 hours....
So at 34 weeks what do i do? I panic, call my husband, pull him out of work, get a neighbor to watch the dogs feed up the cats, pack a hospital bag, rummage through the baby clothes to find an outfit, all that good stuff.
So we get down to Portland, get into the ultrasound. First thing the tech says is,"Wow, look at that hair on his head!" And i'm thinking yeah ok, he has hair but is he going to have live in the nicu for a week or 2. So she checks everything out: Fluid levels, good; heartbeat, good; bladder, stomache, etc, good; movement, like a backup dancer; lungs, practicing breathing, great...
Everything with the baby looks good.
And the placenta, yup it looks kinda old and crusty, but it is working just fine for right now. And as long as my NSTs are ok and my fluid levels are good I will be able to bake this baby another 3 weeks, probably not longer but i'll take the 3 weeks. Means I won't have to deliver in Portland and he won't end up in a NICU. Even if we only get 1 week i'll be so happy.

So long story short, after a very tense drive to portland and a freaked out family, because yeah, i called them all; we are ok for the minute. We just need this placenta to hold out a little longer.

Oh and this big diabetic baby i'm supposed to be popping out is measuring at 5 lbs 2 oz right now. So if i make it to 37 weeks he is estimated to be between 6 and 7 lbs, take it for what it is worth.

And here i though my biggest problem was the fact that he is still breach and looks very at home in that position. Still, I'll happily do a c-section before an inversion. and if that c-section is 3 more weeks away i'll dance into that or.

Thanks for listening to my rant.
Shawna

[MySunflowerBoys]

Yikes! I bet you were in a tailspin! Glad to hear the placenta is holding on longer. I'm surprised they are not making you go there for weekly biophysicals now, to watch the placenta. I also am having complications with my placenta & my drs are being very cautious about it, too.

Hope your baby boy decides to go for a spin and flips for you! Hang in there, momma, we are almost at the end!

[~Megan~]

Glad things are going well.

Where do you live? I'm in Salem.

[bettie cracker]

Good luck sweetie!!! Here's to hoping that your little one can stay put for at least three more weeks.

I am curious though, why you would prefer a c-section to an inversion? I ask this b/c my little guy prefers to be breach and I am trying my best for a vbac - but I want to do what's best for him.

[potatocraft]

update

So i went to my doctor today and...
I get to have twice a week nst's and ultrasounds for BPP's. Basically the way he interpreted the report is that the placenta is holding out now, and we can hope that it will hold out for up to 3 more weeks. However that remains to be seen. I am also going to Portland for an amnio to check for lung maturity at the end of my 36th week so we can decide if I can deliver in Augusta if i do make 37 weeks or not. Because I'm an insulin dependent diabetic they worry about his lungs, I guess they take a little longer.

As for the inversion, they have many risks. I figure that he is breech for a reason, whether that is because is cord is wrapped around him in such a way he can't turn, or some other reason I don't know. But even my Doctor thinks they are too risky, they can result in crash c-sections, fetal death, all sorts of things. I would honestly go with the planned section, I know they have risks too but I feel that their risks are less then those of the inversion at this time. Plus when we decide to do this he may be stressed from the placenta issue and an inversion may only add to that.
I am doing my spinning babies exercises and some other things to try to get him to turn on his own but with the placenta there is a good shot that even if he does turn he may have to be a section due to stress.
Not my ideal birth but at this point i will be happy with a baby. I will not let this ruin my whole pregnancy and child raising experience. I can make the best of this. And as much as I want to give birth by myself in a forest surrounded by fairies, it is just not going to happen.
Thanks for all the support.
Shawna
ps.. I'm in Maine not Oregon, however i was born in Vancouver WA so not too far from Portland, OR hehe.

[jumpincholla]

Those are some intense issues to deal with on top of all the normal stuff that goes on at the end of pregnancy. You sound like you're keeping things in perspective. I'm glad things are ok for now...and I hope that this little one turns on its own. Are you using a flashlight and ice and stuff too? I always wondered how those worked. Good luck!

[robertandenith]

that was pretty scary! keep us updated, thank God your baby will still be in there for another week! Good Luck!

[potatocraft]

Yeah, i'm hoping for another week. As of monday the baby will be in until thursday when they do another NST and BPP. As long as he is active, and after him tap dancing last night from 3:30 am to 8 am, and there is enough fluid then we are good to go until monday. Rinse and repeat. hehe. But he is a very active little guy and that reassures me.

Thanks for all of the well wishes. I'll keep you updated.
Good thing my husband shaved his head last week or he would be ripping his hair out. hehe.
Shawna

[bettie cracker]

Thanks for the update and the info about inversion. I will keep you in my thoughts.

[mamathellama]

I felt the same way when I was pregnant with DS (now 3.5)...we was breech from 20 weeks on and didn't budge. We decided there must be a reason and decided to have the c-section (of course I also tried all the positions and exercises). He ended up having a lot of cord around his neck and it was restricting his movement. If we had tried the version and he did start to move it may have pulled tight around his neck or pulled the placenta away. We were glad with what we decided, but it *is* hard to decide on a c-section if you were planning on a natural birth. I'm trying for a vbac this time around, and so far she's head down.

[MySunflowerBoys]

Thanks for the update! I don't blame you at all for planning a c-section. I agree, healthy baby is the goal!

[potatocraft]

update

Well he passed his Bpp and nst for today!!! so we get to go to monday and see how he does then. he is an active little bug, i think would be much more worried if he wasn't. they did use the buzzer to wake him up for the nst though, but they are all schedule for 11 am and he is usually asleep then anyway, he likes to be up from about 3:30 to 8 am and then sleep till noon hehe. but once he woke up he passed with flying colors. and kicked the crud out of my, he let his displeasure about being woken up known. hehe.
Shawna

[Shiloh]

good to hear!