Hello there.
Nick and I wanted to provide you all with a little update from our appointments last week. Last Thursday, we met with my OB - Dr. Lynch for our "regular" appointment. These appointments are great-- we get to hear the boys' heartbeats, see how I'm measuring (31 weeks--- 3 weeks ahead), and of course I get to see how much weight I've gained. :) Although I'm not a big fan of that part. ;) Our appointments with Dr. Lynch are a little less stressful, and I actually look forward to these appointments. Dr. Lynch instantly found both of the boys' heartbeats. Peyton's was registering around 150 and Preston's, around 140. Dr. Lynch thought that maybe since Preston's had decreased his heart rate slightly, that maybe he had turned head down.
We discussed with Dr. Lynch a plan for delivery. More or less, he basically said that he thought we would go to 38 weeks. Basically, deliver sometime during that 38th week. Of course, this could all change based on what we would find out the next day with Dr. Wickstrom, our specialist. Ultimately, Dr. Lynch said that he 100% supported our decision to do a planned c-section and said that at our next appointment in 2 weeks, we could set the date. Woah!
The next morning, we went in to see Dr. Wickstrom for our specialist appointment. Both boys were moving around like crazy, but we were able to capture more pictures and get everything accomplished they were looking to do that day. We discovered that Preston is still breech and that Peyton is transverse. So at this point-- c-section is our only option. (Might just be God's way of making sure that we're able to "stick" to some sort of plan:)). We asked Dr. Wickstrom about delivery--- she said that she would want to take the twins at 37 weeks. Timeout-- my twin brother is getting married that day-- I'm not missing that. So Dr. Wickstrom agreed that we could deliver "during" the 37th week, basically anytime between Sept. 29 and Oct. 3. There is no indication at this point that says I would go any sooner than that, so we are hoping to get that date scheduled next week when we head back to my OB.
Nick and I began asking a few more questions about the actual delivery. What can we expect? Will there be a team there to try to "save" Peyton? What about surgery? The list goes on. We explained that we want to do everything we can in order to make sure that the diagnosis they have given Peyton is indeed correct. However, on the other hand, if it is correct, we don't want to waste any time not having the opportunity to spend with Peyton. Of course, we don't want to overshadow Preston either. We want to make sure that we are able to bond with Preston, nurse him, bathe him, etc. Our minds seriously move a million miles a minute when we start thinking about "birth day". After listening to Nick and I, Dr. Wickstrom recommended that we meet with the NEO NATO team at Shawnee Mission in order to determine what our options are the day of birth. She said that someone would call me this week to schedule.
So we have a plan. Somewhat. Or at least we're heading in the direction of making a plan. :)
After we got home, Nick and I decided that we should call Dr. Andrews--- our pediatrician, just to loop her in on what's been happening over the past month or so since we saw her in June with Kaylee. Dr. Andrews is seriously amazing. She ended up having a conversation with Dr. Wickstrom that same day and they decided that we should actually meet with the Fetal Health Team at Children's Mercy before meeting with the NEO NATO team. The team at Children's Mercy is the best of the best and they will do a series of tests, an MRI, echocardiogram, etc. in order to see if Peyton's lungs are developing, what pace, etc. Once we have met with them, they will help us formulate a plan. Nothing like shifting gears a little bit. But let me just say, Nick and I are not complaining. And we're not giving up hope. Thanks to Dr. Jen (Andrews), she listened to us and helped guide us in the direction we wanted to go without us even realizing that was the direction we wanted. Dr. Jen assured me that this would be the best option for us in order to determine just exactly what should or shouldn't be done on the boys' birth day.
We are currently waiting for a call back from Children's Mercy to set up our series of tests for the twins. We are anxious to find out exactly what we need to know for October. All of that said, we find ourselves a little overwhelmed with emotion. It's hard to imagine that day just yet because it seems like it is going to be a total whirlwind. We just want to make sure that we make the right decisions and have no regrets. We don't want the situation with Peyton to overshadow Preston, and on the other hand we can't even begin to fathom what we will feel like if we lose Peyton. We try not to think about it too much and instead are just keeping faith that God will guide us in the direction we need to go. In the meantime, we will try to keep asking the right questions in order to keep ourselves educated so that we are able to make the best decisions possible for us.
In as soon as 9 weeks, we will be meeting our boys. It is going to go faster than we think! Time to start decorating the nursery and getting some clothes for these little guys. The nesting will begin soon too I am sure!
Thank you all for your continued support!
Love,
Nick, Ashley and Kaylee
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