hello titus: Baby Update

One Sunday, just shy of 12 weeks pregnant, we were getting home from church (stake conference that week) and I went to the restroom because I felt some warm liquid between my legs. Then I saw it, lots of fresh, red blood. It was one of the scariest moments I've ever experienced. I immediately called for Josh and told him I was miscarrying. I was trying to keep it together but it was impossible not to cry. Even though I didn't feel particularly attached to the tiny baby inside of me, the thought of losing the baby, losing the progress of the pregnancy, losing the excitement we were looking forward to, all seemed like too much. And that pain made me realize the attachment that was there, that I didn't realize. Since it was a Sunday, there wasn't a whole lot we could do but wait. It was either that or head to the ER. I called the ER to get their opinion but the nurse basically said to wait it out unless I wanted to pay a lot of money.

Unfortunately, I was right in between insurances and so I didn't have any kind of coverage. An ultrasound at the ER would have been quite costly so I decided to wait. The bleeding was on and off that day. I didn't have any bleeding during the night on Sunday which I felt was a good sign but when I used the restroom Monday morning, I had a bunch more fresh blood. I spent Monday morning calling Dr's all over Greenville trying to find someone who would see me. But, since I didn't have an OB already (we had just moved to Simpsonville, remember) nobody would see me immediately. They were all 4-6 weeks booked out. It was pretty frustrating, to say the least.

My mother-in-law happened to have an appointment with her gynecologist that Monday and mentioned to him during her appointment what I was dealing with. He was her OB with several of her children and has been not only her Dr, but Kendal, Hannah and Chandler's as well. After she had checked out, Dr Salley ran to catch up to her and offered to see me if I felt the need to see someone and still couldn't find anyone. I asked Laurie to go ahead and see if he could get me an appointment as soon as possible. They called the next morning and said they would see me that afternoon (Tuesday now at this point). By Tuesday morning, I hadn't had any bleeding for about 20 hours. But I was having mild to moderate cramping through the entire thing. I was trying to be hopeful but also felt scared to be too hopeful and then being let down.

I had the best support during all of this. My sweet sister-in-law, Jenn, took the kids one morning so I could rest. My friend Alyson, who has experienced miscarriage, sent me the most beautiful bouquet of flowers. I had the best support and love. On Tuesday afternoon, Josh and I drove to Columbia, dropped the kids off at my in-laws, and headed to sweet Dr. Salley's for an ultrasound. Dr. Salley was absolutely incredible. Not only was I not his patient, but he had never even met me. He took the time out of his busy day to speak to us, explain what might possibly be going on and then send us to the ultrasound. Our ultrasound tech was very sweet and encouraging. As soon as the ultrasound started, we heard the sweetest sound you could possibly hear when experiencing something so terrifying, the whoosh-whoosh of a sweet little heartbeat.

We could see the baby's tiny little heart beating away, as strong as ever. It was the most comforting, wonderful moment. The Dr. then explained that I had what was called a subchorionic bleed. It was just above my placenta and was basically a pocket of blood that formed as the placenta was growing. As it continued growing, the blood released. She told me there was a chance it would continue to release more blood but that it would be normal and not to worry.

Dr. Salley met with us again after the ultrasound and explained some of the risks of subchorionic bleeds and what he felt my odds were. Fortunately, my bleed didn't occur until almost the end of my first trimester and so my chances of the baby continuing on safely were much higher than someone with a bleed earlier in their pregnancy. Many times they end in miscarriage.

Those three days were terrifying. I know I didn't miscarry, and I hope that nobody would think I would take that lightly, but it felt awful not knowing what was happening with our baby for 2.5 days and just waiting for something to happen. I was a mess. But we are incredibly thankful and feel so blessed that our baby was okay. We are grateful that the bleed didn't present itself until this point in the pregnancy and that everything turned as it did. Our sweet baby is continuing to grow and we are so thankful every day.