I'm almost at the magical 24 week mark! It is one of my milestones to reach as they say if the baby was born at 24 weeks it has a good chance (44%) of surviving. Obviously I want her to stay put, but it is kind of reassuring. At the moment her chance of survival would only be 16% so it's amazing the difference a week makes on their growth and development.
Anyway, I've had a difficult time the last couple of days. Tuesday afternoon I started getting an odd pain, well more of an ache, above my uterus in the stomach area. It just kind of came and went on and off. It wasn't painful as such, more annoying. When I woke up yesterday the pain seemed to be a bit stronger but I couldn't decide whether it was muscular, as it seemed to get worse when I moved around or changed position from sitting to standing, or whether it was a problem in the stomach. The baby had been giving me a few strong kicks to that area the night before and also with a bit of rapid growth in my tummy I wondered if it was organs being squashed up. As the day went on I found a pattern to the pain. It always got worse as I ate, or just after eating. It then turned into a gnawing pain like when I get a stomach ulcer which I'm all too familiar with.
I called a private midwife as my doctor is away on holiday and she said to take some gaviscon to ease the pain. Problem is they don't sell it here in Spain and I'm not sure what a good alternative is, especially one safe to take in pregnancy. The pain went on and I found more and more that it was very much like my stomach ulcer pain. I ate lunch and within 10 minutes my stomach felt empty and hungry again which is always a symptom when I get an ulcer. I had some medication left from my last ulcer at the beginning of the pregnancy so I checked it was ok to take one and took half in the afternoon and the other half before bed. I slept so well and so far today not a hint of the ache or pain! I always respond very quickly to this medication, usually within 12-24 hours. I've managed to eat breakfast with no problems and haven't had the slightest twinge afterwards. I'm very relieved to say the least! At least I now know what was causing it and how to combat it in future. I have an appointment with my doctor on Tuesday for the glucose tolerance test and a growth scan so I'll mention it to him to see if he recommends taking a maintenance dose of the medication to prevent further incidences or just to take a pill as and when necessary. I've just been listening to the baby on the doppler and she's happily kicking away with a strong little heartbeat!
Sunday, 23+3
The baby is so active at the moment. Yesterday morning while lying in bed Chris watched my tummy as the baby moved across and the whole shape shifted. She woke me up in the night with some very strong kicks and she's been kicking away all morning. I haven't had any sign of the weird stomach pain again, so really not sure what it was. I'm still undecided as to whether it was indigestion/ulcer pain or the baby standing with her head pressing on something in the stomach area. She has since changed positions to lying across my tummy again and things feel much more comfortable.
Wednesday, 23+6
I've just been for the glucose tolerance test this morning to screen for gestational diabetes. They perform the test as a matter of course here in Spain. It's a fasting test where you don't eat or drink anything from midnight the night before, then have a blood sample taken. After the first sample you drink a cup of glucose-type syrup, wait one hour and have a second lot of blood taken. The idea is to see how well your body manages the glucose. I should get the results in a day or so.
I also had a growth scan and I'm pleased to say that the baby is measuring exactly on schedule, although her legs are still a week ahead! She was curled up in the strangest position today with her arms and legs over her head so we couldn't get a very clear look at her face, just a glimpse. She weighs an estimated 1lb 8oz and her heart rate is 145bpm. Everything appears to be going well. I've gained 1.2kgs in weight, making a total of 5 kgs (11.2 lbs) so far. Blood pressure and urine sample were both fine. Below are a couple of pictures taken this evening before heading out to dinner.
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