[greeneyes]

I went in for my normal OB checkup today and nothing about the appt ended up being normal. When the NP was measuring my fundal height, she commented that I was measuring really large which didn't make sense given my outward appearance and non-existent weight gain (lost more weight, I am now at -12 pounds for this pregnancy and I am 24+ weeks). As she was palpating what we thought was my fundus, it caused a deep, sharp pain and she commented that wasn't normal and my uterus didn't feel normal, it felt extremely hard. She brought in the OB who also palpated my "fundus" and she immediately left to go grab the portable ultrasound machine.

Once we took a look on the u/s, we could see that I have a very large, invasive fibroid growing on top of baby's placenta. At this point we do not know if the fibroid is inhibiting baby's blood supply, but the OB thinks it's very possible that it is given the position and baby's heart rate. The entire time we monitored baby, the heart rate was in the mid to high 180's and the OB explained to me that this could be because the baby isn't getting the proper blood supply. The less blood the heart has to circulate through the system, the faster it beats. She gave me a medical term for this but I have since forgotten it. I will have my regular Level II u/s tomorrow and the hope is that we will be able to see more at that time and make decisions on how to proceed.

As if that were not enough, as the NP was helping me sit up, I still had my shirt up from the u/s and the OB suddenly said, "Oh my god!" She had me lay back down and then sit up again slowly and at that time pointed out a major, midline hernia. Externally it measures four inches long by almost two inches wide and is another source of huge concern. Fortunately, it's only concerning for ME and not something that threatens the baby. At this point, this means I will not be having a vaginal delivery - they do not want me pushing with such a large hernia already in existence.

The best case scenario at this point is that the fibroid is not limiting baby's blood supply and that we can continue to monitor its growth over the next thirteen weeks. I say thirteen weeks because the preliminary thought is that they will start steroid injections at 35 weeks to help mature baby's lungs and then at 37 weeks, as long as developmentally everything seems safe, they will perform a c-section and resect the fibroid at the same time. Eight weeks later, I will have reconstructive surgery on the hernia. Basically we want to keep baby in as long as possible, but get him/her out as soon as we can to avoid any further risks or complications. I cannot have the hernia surgery at the same time as my c-section because they want to do the reconstruction after the abdominal muscles have had more time to tone and recondition from the pregnancy.

At this point, I am in utter shock. I am alone, my husband is 500 miles away and he doesn't even know about all of this yet because I cannot get a hold of him. I am 1200 miles away from my nearest family members and my heart is aching - aching for the potential risks to my baby and the fear of the unknown. I know that in many ways I have not even begun to process all of this and mostly I am worried about what more tomorrow's tests could reveal.

[~Caroline~]

Oh Kate, I'm so sorry to hear that! I'm going to keep you and baby in my thoughts and pray for the best scenario.

[♥Ashley♥]

Oh my gosh. I dont even know what to say because Ive never had to deal with anything like this obviously. But stay strong, and I hope that everything is okay and baby is getting proper blood supply. KUP

[midnight_starr]

I am so sorry to hear all of this.. I will keep ya'll in my thoughts and I hope everything turns out ok!!!

[Resi]

That is a lot to take in by yourself. I hope tomorrow brings better news and that the baby is okay.

[Frozendesire]

Oh wow! I'm so sorry to hear all this. I hope that the testings tomorrow show the best case scenario!

I'll be thinking and praying for you!

I am so sorry to hear about this and pray that the level II tomorrow shows nothing more serious. t&p for you and your LO, and I'm sorry that you have to go through this alone right now

[petalfuzz]

I'm sorry! I can't be of any help at all to you, except tell you you'll (and your family'll) be in my thoughts! KUP!

[*Mrs.J.2011*]

I'm so sorry to hear! I hope that everything works out for you and your family! You will be in our T & P's.. please kup

[*JenJen*]

Oh Kate! I hope you can get ahold of your husband soon. If you can't, please don't hesitate to go to his command to reach him, this is one of those times that they will do everything to get him in touch with you. II am here if you need to talk.

[thepinkleprechaun]

Oh no! How scary for you I really hope everything goes okay with the u/s!

[Mars]

My thoughts and prayers go out to you and to your baby!! (((HUGS)))

[alicenwonderland]

I'll be praying for you and the baby. I hope you are able to speak with your husband soon. I'll keep you in my thoughts over the next days.

[greeneyes]

I managed to finally get a hold of Lee - he was flying all day and obviously does not have cell reception at 12,000+ feet. I don't know what is going to happen at this point, we're trying to work things out so that he can wrap up his last three weeks of school and maybe have his mom come out and stay with me. Being told that I can't lift anything heavier than a dinner plate makes it pretty difficult to handle a toddler, to say the least.

Ugh, I feel like my brain has shut down. I don't even know how to process all of this right now, I feel like I'm just sitting here trying to make sense of it all and in the mean time all I can do is cry. Thank you everyone for your thoughts and prayers, I really appreciate you thinking about us.

[Frozendesire]

I'm so glad you got a hold of him. We really need to work on our technology so we can call cell phones that are up 12,000 ft in the air! haha

I hope his mom can come help out. I couldn't imagine not lifting Curtis around, plus the tantrums, plus the cuddles etc etc Hopefully she can come and be there as support physically and emotionally. Are you close to her???

Keep us updated when you have the time and feel up to it. I am praying like crazy for you and your baby

[*Anna*]

I'm so sorry and hope tomorrow brings better news. {{{{{HUGS}}}}}}}

I am a lurker, but I know how you feel and just wanted to give you some hope. At 24.5-26.5 wks(I had 2 due dates), I developed severe pre-eclampsia with my son. My husband was in ALASKA, I was in ALABAMA (we are military also-I was on vacay though)-so I know how you feel on that front too! Evan was having heart rate issues because of the pre-e. We only estimated that I would be able to keep him in for 2-3 more weeks at best, but instead-I had to have an ER c-section 4 days later. As you can see though (siggy), he just turned one and is doing beyond well. They can do soooo much for babies that are born early now.. and I can tell you first hand that the steroids really do help A LOT! I hope and pray for your sake that you will be able to stay pregnant for the next 13 wks, but if not-there is hope! I know its hard without your hubby and not being able to care for your toddler (my daughter was 10.5 mos old when I had Evan), hopefully someone can come out and help you. Just keep in mind, if things get too bad-I know it will suck for DH to have to leave school, but the redcross is excellent about getting spouses home quickly. My husband has been on the plane within hours of making the call BOTH times I went into emergency induced labor!

[*kyle*]

Oh sweetie, I am so sorry you're facing such news alone. The GOOD news is that your baby is hanging in there and is already so strong! I think you've got a little fighter in there! I will keep you in my thoughts and sending lots of good vibes your way. I hope you get much more reassuring news tomorrow.

[lauren in hi]

I'm sorry you're going through this w/out family or DH nearby, Kate. I will keep you & baby in my T & P.

[ShannonMVT]

Aw hun, I'm sorry, I know you must be worried. I will keep you and baby in my prayers that everything will be okay.