May 9 Doc appointment…Bless my Dutch bones!

Yesterday I had my last doctor appointment before the arrival of this Kid. I can say that with certainty as we have decided that if we don’t have this baby by Thursday afternoon we will go in to start the induction process on Thursday evening.

My appointment was a mixed bag of emotions, results and events. I was going to call this post “Strike Two” as my doctor made his second big mistake with me but I’ve since put his indiscretion behind me (yes I will elaborate on this later).

Eiko picked me up and we were in hospital at about 9:45 am. Huge lineups, extra chairs were set out and it was hot as Hell in there. I got in pretty quickly and got my blood pressure, pee test and weight check over with. My blood pressure was initially a little on the high side but it was ok the second time around. Non stress test was normal. Sean and I had decided we would indeed go through with the pelvic x-ray that the hospital was recommending and fretting profusely about. The results are as follows….

Average Japanese woman’s pelvic opening = 11 cm
My pelvic opening = 13.2 cm
Babies head size = 9.5 cm

…that’s nearly 4 cm of extra room folks. Not that I’m surprised. Thanks mom for passing those good ‘ol European child bearing hips on to me! So that insanity is now dealt with.

The sonogram went fine and determined the following…

-baby weight: approx. 4169 grams (approx. 9.1 lbs)

So on to the internal exam. This is where I sit in this really quite comfortable examination chair that is like a dentist chair for pelvic exams. Lifts and separates one could say. To the point where my shins are parallel with the ceiling, knees are about 2.5 feet apart, my back is at about a 45 degree angle to the floor and my head is about 6 feet off the floor. I always have to try to stifle a giggle when the doc walks in and says “ok, please relax”. It’s just such a ridiculous request in that position. Anyways, I’m as used to this as earthquakes by now and just stare out the window during the process. Except this time. My doc had decided without consulting with me that was going to strip my membranes. And just dives right in and does it. For the uninitiated stripping the membranes is a process where by the doctor inserts his finger into the cervix opening and separates the wall of the uterus from the amniotic sac. It’s mother fucking painful. Especially when you don’t know it’s coming. So naturally I tried to get out of the chair. Over the head rest. I was so stunned I couldn’t say anything. He was happy to ask me to relax again and told me he was just trying to stimulate natural labor. Fucker. We’re gonna have a little talk about this tomorrow. I’m not up for a third strike. Plus, I need to trust this guy. Good grief. So we finish up the appointment with me feeling like I’m in shock, I couldn’t even tell Eiko. [Gomenasai Eiko! I just couldn’t find the words!] So Eiko and I go out and get groceries, go out for ice cream do some other shopping. I was very happy to get home, climb into bed and wait for Sean to get home so I could have my little meltdown. And meltdown I did. It felt great.

So tomorrow at 4 pm I get admitted into the hospital, I have my little chat with the doctor and they keep my under observation until the morning. On Friday morning they start my Oxytocin drip at 8:30 am and hopefully by Mother’s Day the newest O’Flanagan will be snuggled in our arms.