A Jersey Birth?

I saw Dr. Davis today for my now weekly NSTs and AFIs. My fluid was just under 10 today and Dr. Davis is happy if it remains at this level for the remainder of my pregnancy. I asked the nurse if the testing was still necessary and she said once you start monitoring you don't stop until delivery. So, I am signed up for the next seven weeks or so. It's actually reassuring to know that I have a standing appointment each week.

Today marks 29w 5d, exactly five weeks from the gestation at which My Girl was born. I can't believe Baby Boy has been cooking for an extra five weeks! It is truly amazing!

Back to my appointment. I was scheduled for 10:30 this morning and didn't leave the hospital until 2:00. There was really no idle time as I brought my latest book and read a page at most. An ultrasound with Patty started things off. My fluid level was checked as was my uterus for any signs of thinning (this was my request as my latest concern is uterine rupture). Then my cervix was evaluated and thankfully it remains long and closed.

I went for my NST and Baby Boy was quite active. He had some really nice accelerations and no contractions were recorded. Although, I will state for the record, I had three horrible contractions last night that woke me out of sound sleep at 3:28 A.M. They were all within a 15-20 minute period. After speaking with the nurse it was determined that my full bladder could have had an influence on the uterine activity. Otherwise it sounds like the low pelvic pressure I am experiencing now on a daily basis is "normal" and par for the course.

From there I had a very long and very nice conversation with Dr. Davis. I brought my records from my old group (the ones I requested in the event of that feared snowstorm that would cause me to go to a closer hospital) and Dr. Davis did a complete exam. When I say complete, I do not mean an internal, but he weighed me, did a breast exam and measured my uterus, which for the record had never been done by my old group in spite of numbers being written into the appropriate column on the prenatal care worksheet. I am a bit concerned that these numbers were just "made up" as a tape was never taken to my abdomen nor was ultrasound used to determine the height of my uterus.

Dr. Davis then called for copies of my most recent pap test (which was completed prior to conception) and all my labs. He was working to set up my complete file as I am now one of his OB patients. He informed me that he only takes about 10 OB patients at a time and that within the past five years has only missed one birth and that's because he was in Houston at the time.

I feel quite flattered that I would be one of the women he selects/agrees to provide this kind of care for. I feel that he is very invested in this pregnancy, as if it were not for him, Baby Boy would not have been able to remain in the womb five weeks longer than his sister. I am 100% sure of this and therefore, have absolutely no regrets about having my pre-pregnancy TAC placed. I would do it over again in a heartbeat! So when my old group questions me, they do not make me feel bad at all. If only every decision I encountered was made as confidently as this.

Trying to figure out which of the several hospitals Dr. Davis works out of my delivery would occur in, I asked if I should schedule maternity tours to familiarize myself. Right then he escorted me out of his office and took me on a full tour of Labor and Delivery, the c-section rooms, the NICU, well baby nursery and post-partum, which is where I recovered from my TAC placement earlier in the year. While Dr. Davis himself is a wonderful physician and I trust him completely, the facility at South Jersey Regional Medical Center is not exactly one that gets me excited. I can't quite put my finger on it except to go back to my initial impression which holds true every time I drive up to the place: it looks like a prison.

The Antenatal Staff is wonderful but I can't be 100% certain the same is true for the staff in Labor and Delivery and my experience with post-partum was a little iffy. For example, the one nurse who gave me a medication to combat my itchiness that counteracted my pain meds, in spite of my asking for plain old Benadryl.

Anyway, this is the latest situation - that Dr. Davis is willing to deliver me. It feels only right to have him take us full circle in this process: from pre-conception TAC to actual delivery of our Baby Boy. I am still torn, however...