This morning I had my regular weekly appointment with the midwife (I saw the other midwife since mine was in the middle of a delivery) and when she measured my belly she said that I was definitely measuring "small". After that I told her that I had noticed that while the baby is still moving, she hasn't been moving as much lately as before. At this point the midwife decided to send me over to the hospital for a Non-Stress Test (NST) and an ultrasound to check on the baby. Of course I immediately called Marshall and our doula to fill them in. It was a bit scary, but Marshall was able to make it over to the hospital quickly which was a huge relief.
First we did the NST where they hooked me up to monitors to make sure that the baby was moving properly and that her heart rate goes up when she does move. She wasn't too incredibly active during the test, but apparently she had enough movements to satisfy them. Next we headed over to ultrasound where they took all sorts of measurements. It turns out that the baby is measuring about 16 days smaller and is around 5 pounds which is on the low end of "normal". So now I am scheduled to do 2 NST's a week (on Tuesdays and Fridays) as well as an ultrasound once a week to make sure that the baby's growth is on track. Our doula told me that now that they have a baseline measurement they will be looking for her to get bigger and that the only concern will come if she gets smaller. Apparently her not growing is concerning because they start to think that the placenta might be deteriorating and that the baby isn't getting the proper nutrients anymore.
So they sent us home and told me to rest, drink plenty of water and increase my protein intake. I am really hoping that she is bigger by the ultrasound next week (on May 1)! The good news is that while we were in the ultrasound the technician confirmed that it is still a GIRL and also said that the baby is head down (although at this point she is face up). Now we will just have to wait and see if she starts packing on the pounds (or more realistically ounces)!
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4 comments:
I'm thinking about you guys and hoping that teeny baby Hazel grows bigger! xoxo
Hi Laura,
I am all too familiar with the NST's. I had them often and I ended up with moose children:) well 9.3lbs and 9.9lbs, close enough! Also remember the ultrasound has up to a 2lb error. I love you and am praying for all of you!
Give her the pounder!
the pounder? i'm in...
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