As many, or some, of you may know, Chris and I have had a more difficult pregnancy than we were hoping for. Thankfully, it hasn't been as bad as some, but it definitely has came with it's hardships. I have spoken minimally of our complications, but I figured it was time to give some more answers. This may not be the most exciting post I have ever written, but hopefully more informative. Now, although I post this blog to my facebook account, this blog is intended for family and friends that I do not have the opportunity to talk with as much as I would like. For those of you who read this and may not know me as well (or know me at all), prepare yourselves for a more in depth and personal look into my pregnancy.
Many of the pregnancy problems I have mentioned have been due to my poor progesterone levels. Progesterone is called the pregnancy hormone in which it helps prepare the lining of the uterus for the fertilized egg as well as maintain the pregnancy by calming the uterus throughout the pregnancy. As you see in the graph below (wow, what a teacher-y thing to say) is the normal progression in the rise of progesterone levels throughout pregnancy. Low levels of progesterone can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, and preterm labor which obviously leads to premature births. As I am in my 22 week of pregnancy, on average my levels should be anywhere between 55-65, which is considered Zone 3 to Zone 4. Unfortunately, throughout my pregnancy, I have maintained levels which leave me in mid Zone 1. So if you can do the math, my levels are way lower than they should be. In this case, our pregnancy is considered "high-risk" ever since our first preterm labor contractions at 17 weeks. Since this time, I continue to have episodes of these complications, which have ended me on temporary bed rest numerous times (most currently this past Thursday through the weekend). You add a flaring ovarian cyst to the mix and it's not such a fun ride.
Thankfully, our very small doctor's office (Pope Paul IV Institute) strongly believes in monitoring progesterone levels throughout pregnancy due to the high risk of complications involved with low hormone levels, so we have been very aware since the beginning of our pregnancy of the possible outcomes and have learned what we can do to help prevent further complications (although we cannot prevent everything). To help aide my low levels of progesterone, I take up to 800 mg of progesterone a day as well as a 200 ml booster shot of pure progesterone twice a week. As mentioned in previous posts here, Chris has been trained to give me these shots from home and then I must have my blood taken every two weeks to check my levels. Chris thought it would be a good idea to show exactly what the shots (or needles) look like.
Now, you must understand that I have been receiving these shots since my 5th week of pregnancy, but I continue to dread them and they do not get easier with time! Some of you may wonder where exactly these shots go. Welp, you guessed it....right in the bum cheek. Ugh, now if that isn't bad enough, it isn't just a slight prick, but the entire 2 1/2 inch long needle! Oh, and it only gets better. The pure progesterone is mixed with sesame oil for easy absorption into the muscle. What this really means for me is that it is a very thick substance that takes anywhere from 3-5 minutes to fully inject.
So what does this mean for the future? Well, we're not quick sure. I believe we'll just continue on our course and hope that our complications do not rise enough to cause serious problems (the biggest concern being preterm labor with as many contractions I've already begun having). So far our baby is continuing to grow on track and spends most of his/her days playing and kicking - an updated post on our baby soon to follow. Until then, Chris and I remain positive, yet mentally prepared for more complications in the future, as possible with any pregnancy. We continue to be thankful for this experience and the knowledge we've been given to continue to move forward in this exciting new journey.
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