4 weeks: "Yay! I'm pregnant again! And wow. My beta number is high."
5 weeks: "Whoo-Hoo. Still pregnant. My really high beta number might mean multiples. Yikes."
7 weeks: "Only one baby. Huh, I guess really high betas don't necessarily mean multiples after all."
8-9 weeks: "Are you going to finish that? How about that? What do you mean I've already gained 5 pounds, doctor?"
10 weeks: "Twins? Are you *^&#&% kidding me?"
11-14 weeks: "Twins. PLEASE HELP ME. AM GOING INSANE."
I am once again publicly renewing my vow to chill the hell out. Many of you have offered some bits of fantastic advice. Thank you for that. Thalia hit the nail on the head in her comment to this post, in which she wrote that when you start panicking, everything seems unmanageable, so breakdown-management is tops on my to-do list. Of course, if you're a frequent reader here, you know I'm made this (empty) promise a few times before. I'm just going to issue this warning: the next 4 months are going to be Sybill-like around here. Strap yourselves in for a bumpy ride.
At my prenatal appointment on Thursday, I received two interesting bits of news. First, following a quick external examination, my OB tells me my uterus has already expanded to what would be the 20-week point in a singleton pregnancy (just below the belly button). Apparently, she said that she would have suspected twins (or more) based on this and taken me in for an ultrasound right away. That's encouraging, considering the fact that if I hadn't been granted that "bonus ultrasound" at 10 weeks, I would have gotten one hell of a surprise at my mid-pregnancy measurement scan.
The second bit of news is that apparently my RE and my OB have yet to have a little chat about my RE's big mistake, but that just after my first ultrasound with him at 7 weeks, he sent my OB a letter telling her that based on my high beta numbers and the presence of only one (ha-ha) embryo on the scan, he thought I had a vanishing twin, in which two embryos implant in the uterus, but at some point, early on, the second embryo dies and is simply reabsorbed by the body. According to Dr. Google, 1 in 8 singleton pregnancies actually begin as vanishing twin pregnancies, but no one knows the second baby ever existed.
Hello, RE? That vanishing twin you wrote about in your letter? Not so much interested in vanishing. Although I have no idea where he/she was hiding. Do you?
My OB also told me that she monitors twin pregnancies very closely. I receive an ultrasound every month (and even more frequently later on), and an office visit with her every two weeks for now, and every week in the 3rd trimester. She also said that I am going to have a lot of appointments toward the end of my 2nd and into my 3rd trimester, with non-stress tests at one end of the week and ultrasounds at the other.
So far, this pregnancy is progressing much like my first one.
Slight nausea in the morning of the early weeks, ending at about weeks 11? Check.
Exhaustion. All day, every day. Check.
Hair and nails growing at a freakishly fast pace? Check.
Strange bowel-related issues. Check.
What's different? I am enormous.At this point, I have given up trying to shoe-horn myself into my normal clothes. It's all maternity-wear, all the time, baby. I look at this photo, taken at 18 weeks of my first pregnancy, and I laugh-mightily and heartily. I am currently at least twice as big right now. At 14 weeks. Yes, I know you "show" earlier with second, third, etc. pregnancies, and yes, I'm carrying two babies, but dear God. I am only 14 weeks. What am I going to look like at 30 weeks?
Oh right. I've already covered that.
Wow! I hope you can relax a little. I'm sure it's very, very hard. My second pregnancy was a vanishing twin. On a very early ultrsound you can see the second one just sort of disintegrating.
I'm glad things are going well. Even if you only had one, you'd probably be in maternity clothes already anyway--it usually happens a lot faster the second time!
At least you'll have fun watching the babies grow with all the ultrsounds! I remember when I was pregnant w/#4, laying in the chair for the nonstress test while DS crawled all over me and "helped". He would push the button whenever the baby moved. Try to get a sitter if you can! LOL.
Have a great Memorial Day.
Pictures! Pictures!
Interesting statistics about vanishing twins. Considering I've had only singleton pregnancies, I am following your posts with great fascination. I am just so happy you have a doctor who is doing her best to keep everyone safe and healthy.
What I can't believe is that you are already in the second trimester!!
My pregnancy with Lila had a vanishing twin. I had very high beta numbers, and I had some bleeding, so they did a scan to make sure everything was OK, and there was that second little sac. It sort of looked like it was being flushed down a toilet. They do count it as a miscarriage (if they know for sure you had a VT).
Over the past two weeks I've actually started looking further along than I really am. People are starting to take note. It's hard for me to imagine how big I'll be in a few months.
Wow. That's a lot of appointments. I don't know about you, but I was allll over the appointments. I know so many people who could've had pretty big problems w/o them. And you're going to have great prenatal photos!!
congrats on making it into the second trimester. You are well on your way! That is a whole lotta prenataling you will have over the next few months. But I am confident that things will go well and hopefully not be too uncomfortable. Can't wait to read all about it!
Congratulations! I think about you a lot, as many other people do. Don't be afraid to show us pictures of yourself. We want to see you in full Angelina style. Just don't wear goth style caftans like she did a few months ago. Not good.
And eat cherries!
Congratulations on making it to your second trimester! Try to relax and enjoy it.
Wow, I can't believe you're already in the second trimester! That was fast. This is supposed to be the happy trimester, right? :) It's an amazing journey you're on.