I don't know why I feel the need to document all the gory details publicly, but I do. Feel free to move on past.


So, life's been interesting. My dad has been flooding me with propaganda on a medication available only in Canada for morning sickness, but which is basically just Unisom + B6. So Friday night I took my prenatal, plus a B6 and one Unisom tablet. Saturday I felt so good I was actually worried. I spent the morning over at the lodge, being available for the members of the district board, who were having their meeting at camp this weekend. I even had a somewhat normal lunch with everyone, before returning to the house with Jefferson while Andrew tried to hunt down everyone he needed for his committee meeting.

Let me tell you, it's a very strange state of mind to be worried because you *aren't* sick. The Unisom + B6 combo never did anything for me before, but I was further down the morning sickness death spiral when I tried it with both previous pregnancies, because I wanted to get prior approval from my doctor before starting any new medications. When I started feeling a little nausea again in the evening, I was actually relieved. So that night, feeling optimistic, I took my second Unisom+B6 dose and planned to go visit the in-laws the next day.

Well Sunday morning I wasn't feeling quite up to church, so Andrew dropped me off at his parents house and took Jefferson to church without me. I made use of the time by watching The Business of Being Born on Netflix On-Demand, since they have lovely high speed internet. I have to say, despite the excessive propaganda which occasionally annoyed me, the movie really didn't do anything good for my attitude about my ridiculous lack of choice in giving birth out in the sticks. There are no practicing midwives in my neck of the woods, and I'm sorry to say, that I don't have a whole lot of confidence in my OB or in the local practice.

Anyway, when they all got home from church, we had lunch, and that's when everything went wrong. I was feeling good again, so I broke nearly all of my morning sickness rules, and I dearly paid for it.

But let me back up. Based on some websites and following the dictates of my own stomach, here are the morning sickness rules I've been following this time around:

1. Eat every two hours.

2. Never combine eating and drinking. Wait until a half hour after eating to drink fluids.

3. Increase protein in my diet, reduce fat.

4. Lots and lots and lots of fruit.

5. No caffeine.

This has all been working incredibly well so far, up until yesterday's lunch when I threw all caution to the wind. Here is the extent of my stupidity: 1. I ate mostly fat: a cheese and sour cream heavy potato dish. 2. I had a Pepsi. With lunch. 3. After I got a signal that it was time to stop eating, I had some more potatoes anyway.

Now here's something I really should know about my body by now: caffeine plus greasy cheese food = intestinal troubles, post haste. When you add that to the fact that I had not had ANY caffeine in the past week, trouble was bound to ensue. Sure enough, I was soon making multiple, urgent runs to the bathroom. On the second trip I had to holler for Andrew to bring me a bucket, and up came lunch. :(

Well, so, I'm an idiot. On the plus side, back on my rules, it's been 24 hours and I haven't puked again. So we aren't on the death spiral just yet. I worked at rehydrating myself this morning and am feeling downright perky at the moment. I even had half a #6 at Jimmy John's for lunch.

Anyway, back another step, this morning was the first OB visit. And boy, did I throw them a bunch of curveballs. According to them, today was supposed to go: intake interview, PAP and pelvic exam, pregnancy urine test then send me over to the lab for bloodwork. But remembering both puking all over the lab last time and also how much that labwork cost me out of pocket, I had some questions for them.

Now first of all, I wouldn't describe what happened last time with the bloodwork as informed consent. They told me I was going over for an AIDS test, which was highly recommended by the state of Michigan, though I could sign a waiver to skip it. That time I wasn't feeling difficult, so I just consented to the test. However, once I got there I found out there was actually a whole barrage of tests, 6 or 7, rather than just the one.

So this time I explain that although I have health insurance, it's going to pay for virtually nothing, so I don't want any unnecessary tests. So I ask her what all those tests are for. Basically she starts listing all these STDs, and I tell her I don't want those. Before I can explain to her that I'm in a monogamous relationship and that I can promise her I haven't contracted any of those diseases since my last negative results, she starts explaining that a lot of these tests may be required for their malpractice insurance and that she doesn't have the authority to waive them for me, I'll have to talk to my doctor. (Because the intake exam is done by a PA, not by an OB). Basically we agree to postpone the bloodwork until my next visit, which will be with my OB.

Then there's my other issue with my next visit: because I couldn't tell them for certain the date of my last period (though I know within a few days), they want an ultrasound to date the embryo. To which I say, I don't want to pay for an extra ultrasound. And she says, well, we need on at 12 weeks to date the pregnancy, but if you talk to your doctor maybe you won't need the 20 week ultrasound. Which is the stupidest thing I've ever heard. They didn't need an ultrasound to date the pregnancy last time, when I didn't express uncertainty about my period date, and doesn't the 20 week ultrasound actually check for some important developmental issues as well?

Plus, when I asked how a patient was assigned to a particular OB in their practice, basically they didn't answer my question at all. Then, when I asked if there were any doctors in their practice that had a reputation for fewer or more interventions in the birth process, she didn't answer that question either, but pawned me off by assuring me that I should talk to my assigned OB and that she thought my doctor was very sweet and would be willing to go along with anything that she thought would be good for the health of me and my baby. (But what, exactly, she thinks is good for the health of me and my baby) is exactly the issue.

So I'm having more and more daydreams about somehow moving back to Tucson for the birth, so that I could go to my birth center there, or somehow arranging to be in Canada when I'm due, or even going back to Kansas, as I really liked the OB who handled my miscarriage.

These things are not realistic, I know, but I can think about them anyway.

After the doctor visit, we headed to the grocery store to stock up on fruit and SweetTarts and Chewy Sprees and sweet corn cereal and Kool-aid. Woo! While we were there we were amused to see that Meijer has instituted some sort of standard nutritional rating system. So now nearly all (they're still implementing) food items have a number on their tag between 1 and 100, 1 indicating poor nutritional value, 100 indicating excellent nutritional value. The cereal aisle was very interesting, as all the cereals (including Andrew's beloved Life) seemed to have values from 21 - 35, except for my favorite cereal, shredded wheat with bran (yes, really), which had a 91. Andrew picked up a pamphlet on their rating system, but I haven't looked at it yet.

Well, I have to go find some food to eat now. Plus, I've rambled long enough.