Preparing for the Appointment

I am fasting and preparing an overnight bag. Just in case. I have no idea what to expect. Thankfully I will have my husband with me today. I’m not sure I could get through this without him.

Lots of Tears and More Sleepless Nights

This morning I went to the OB for my first exam. And I was so excited. Fresh off of my 5.6 result at the Endo, I was ready to share my joy and elation with  the OB. And just like that, the wind was knocked out of my sails.

The exam started with the ultrasound. The technician was friendly and energetic. And she took the time to point things out to me, which I really appreciated. Things were on the right track.

Then the doctor came in. He was not nearly as energetic and friendly as the technician, and he started right off with lots of serious questions. When was my last period? When did I go off of the pill? Was I having any pain? Any bleeding?

I started to get nervous. He finally spilled his thoughts. The ultrasound rose some concerns. The technician showed me the gestational sac and the yolk sac. And she commented that she could not see “the little peanut”. It is probably just too early, she reassured me. The doctor was  not so sure, though. Apparently they also saw a “mass” on (or maybe near?) my ovary. And all of these signs and symptoms added together point to a possible ectopic (tubal) pregnancy. OMG. My mind started spinning. My eyes welled up. I became a blubbering mess.

So he ordered more blood work — tests to measure HCG and progesterone. The good news is that the HCG is plenty  high for the pregnancy to still be viable. The progesterone results are not in yet.

It is possible that it  is just too early. Perhaps we estimated the gestational age incorrectly. This is not uncommon for women with irregular periods. The problem is that a tubal pregnancy is pretty dangerous for the mother. If the fallopian tube bursts, I could basically  bleed to death, so they don’t like to just “wait and see.”

I have to go back on Thursday for another ultrasound. My husband will go  with me. We are hoping to see a “peanut” complete with heartbeat. I also need to be prepared for surgery. If the ultrasound results are not good on Thursday, they will do laparoscopic surgery the same day and remove the “mass”, whatever it is. The doctor tells me that if the pregnancy is in fact tubal, they will remove it from the fallopian tube and, if possible save the tube. If not, they might need to remove the fallopian tube. OMG.

I am a nervous wreck.