Neil is 5 lbs, 15 oz.! He did so good on his BPP, too. I am very proud of him. Unfortunately, half a pound a week isn't enough to keep him above the 10th percentile. So now even Dr. Reynolds is talking about inducing. He said we'll reevaluate on Monday after Neil's BPP and checking my cervix. I asked how certain he is that induction is going to happen, and he said there's no way I'm going past 40 weeks. So to avoid induction, I'm probably going to have to go into labor in the next week. My mucous plug started coming out today, so I'm making progress. I've searched the Internet for acupuncturists and found some in Elizabethtown. I'll try calling them to find prices and other information to see if it's an option just in case.
Dr. Reynolds warned us that growth-restricted babies are less able to handle vaginal birth, so Neil's heart rate may drop, resulting in a necessary C-section. Induction that ends in C-Section is not what I want. I know I can't necessarily get what I want, but I'm still hoping. I'm going to start talking to Neil about hanging in there during labor. I think he's strong and healthy and can handle it, and I'm going to tell him so multiple times a day.
We learned a bit more about growth restriction today. The difference in the sizes of Neil's head and abdomen suggests that he really is growth restricted, not just small, and that it's asymmetric growth restriction. (The alternative is that he has a REALLY big head.) Asymmetric growth restriction means his body is funneling the insufficient nutrients he's getting to his head and major organs, resulting in a normal-sized head and a small body and femur. It sounds really scary, but my research doesn't show any real immediate or long-term problems to full-term growth restricted babies. Growth restricted babies have higher incidences of breathing problems, but they also have a much higher incidence of premature induction and C-sections. I think the correlation is between prematurity and respiratory problems, not between growth restriction and breathing issues. Some studies indicate that growth restricted babies develop issues in adulthood, including obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol. I told Matt those conditions don't sound unusual for someone in my family who was born full size.
So the good news is that Neil is doing good. He's growing and practicing his breathing. He's been really active for the last few days. Last night I think he was learning to hula. Tonight we've been taking turns patting each other: he pats me, I pat back, and he pats me again. He's a lot of fun. And I'm doing fine. I haven't been sleeping as soundly recently, but I'm feeling good.
The bad news is that talk of induction has started again. Fortunately, Neil is full term, and I could theoretically go into labor on my own at any time. So maybe bad news only goes so far. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment