Yesterday I had my flexible sigmoidoscopy to investigate where all the blood in my stool was coming from during my first trimester. The results were good. Everything they saw looked very normal and healthy. Now, they want to do a full colonoscopy on me in about 8 months, which means that in 8 months my 2 or 3 month old will have to go 24 hours without breastfeeding. That scares me more than anything, but I guess I can't borrow tomorrow's trouble.
So, things went well, overall. First of all, my school ended up having a snow day so I didn't actually use the sick day I requested. That was great!
My Flex Sig was scheduled for 9:35, and I'd gotten special permission from the GI nurse to eat all morning because I wouldn't agree to the proceedure without being able to do so. I just didn't want a repeat of the whole dehydration and vomiting episode that happend back at about 7 weeks. Well, apparently somethign was lost in translation because my GI doctor about fainted when he saw me eating an apple. I reminded him that I told the nurse exactly everything that I eat in a morning and that I had to be able to continue that way or not have the proceedure and that she'd gotten back to me and said it would be fine. He then told me that I was allowed a liquid diet in the 2 hours prior to the proceedure. He decided that we'd have to wait 2 hours to do it, and then I took a swig of liquid and he glared at me. I was confused since he'd said I could have a liquid diet. Apparently he meant up until 2 hours before.
"I don't think I can do that." I said. "So what if I vomit. I'll be awake, it's not like I'll aspirate if I'm awake." But he was really uncomfortable proceeding so I agreed to stop drinking too and they gave me an IV of fluids and electrolytes while I bit my tongue and tried to hold off the nausea. They also decided that some Zofran through the IV would be a good idea as well. I had some pills in my purse but apparently it's more potent through an IV. So, I grabbed my knitting (I knit some adorable newborn longies for a friend and now I'm making some shorties for my baby) and prepared to wait it out.
Two hours went by much more quickly than I'd imagined they would and I got to know most of the nurses pretty well. My doctor walked by and saw me knitting, and worried that I'd freak out during the proceedure told me that I should knit while he worked, but since I was following a cable pattern and I knew I'd be on my side, I decided it wouldn't be possible. I thought it was funny, though, how worried he was that I wouldn't be able to handle it. Didn't really help my anticipation, but I tried not to think about it.
What I did discover during those two hours without anything going into my stomach was that an IV with electrolytes made me feel amazingly well. I kind of wish I could just get my fluids intravenously throughout the remainder of my pregnancy since I have so much trouble with gas bubbles and ensuing nausea every time I drink but I realize that isn't really a viable option. I also started peeing a LOT and they consequently lowered the speed at which I was being fed fluids.
I was the last patient that morning to get treated and it was nice to finally be alone in the surgery prep room with just the nurses. I had more privacy and got more one-on-one attention. When I came to a stopping point in my cable pattern in the shorties, I picked up my copy of "The Fellowship of the Ring," and tried to soldier through the prologue about the history of the hobbits.
At one point my doctor had me sign this form and it mentioned something about the chance of "spontaneous abortion" during the proceedure which he glossed over quickly like it was nothing but of course gave me cause to pause and reconsider. When he assured me that the chance of that was one in a million and that it would probably be caused by something like aspiration or excessive coughing that would cause distress to the fetus, I decided I would be okay to go with the proceedure, though I did feel some guilt for doing so. I just prayed God would keep our little precious safe and sound.
The proceedure itself was pretty fascinating. I put my book aside and watched the screen as he explored my lower intestines. It wasn't really painful at all, though there was some discomfort involved. As I said before, everything was super healthy and the bleeding has gone away at this point so we don't really know if it was hemarroids or fissures but it doesn't really matter because what they were looking for was cancer or polyps.
After the proceedure as I signed some last papers and got dressed I asked the nurses if they could bring in a doppler to check my baby's heartbeat. The "spontaneous abortion" bit had me a little paranoid. They aren't maternity nurses so they hadn't really used the doppler much but they found the heartbeat immediately. Then, because I was still controlling and afraid they checked this heartbeat against mine to make sure they really had the baby's heartbeat and not the placenta. With Bunny, my placenta must have been in the front because they always got that first in the OB office, but with Baby #2, that doesn't seem to be the case. I don't think we've ever found the placenta's pulse when looking for him/her.
Anyway, that was that. I was fine, the baby was fine, I got some knitting done, had lovely conversation with some nurses, and read some of Tolkein and then I got to go home and be with my family. Actually, we went to the butcher shop first to stock up on some meat (I think we're good for a week or two now :-D) and then to Cracker Barrel for some family time before going home and napping til about 4:30. Actually, Bunny and I laid in bed and rested but Dave NAPPED--boy did he nap!
All in all, it was a good, good day. :-D
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