30 Wks Pregnant: Menstrual-Like Cramps

This was originally written on Saturday, February 23, 2008

Although my menstrual-like cramps went away for about an hour last Thursday, they soon returned and didn't stop.

So, after my blood glucose test on Friday (results will be back Mon), I told my doctor about them. She didn't hesitate--she told me to get undressed, lol. She then checked my cervix which looked the way it was supposed to at this stage of pregnancy--so, the good news is I'm not dialted yet--but she still wanted to do the test to see if I was at risk for labor within the next couple of weeks. I'll spare you the suspense: the results came in at 5:30 pm last night and all is good. The test has an 85% accuracy rate so chances are I will not go into labor over these next two weeks--whew!

My appointment lasted 2.5 hrs because my doctor also wanted to hook up the fetal monitor to make sure I wasn't having any contractions. I knew I wasn't, but it did show that there was "uterine activity," so she could see my cramps on the print-out. Fortunately, everything with Logan is still in top shape.

It was quite the ordeal, though. (To the left is a picture of what it all looked like, except Joe wasn't there with me. Ironically, our childbirth class instructor had just passed around the pink & blue bands at our last class. I had no idea they were going to be wrapped around me so soon.) Apparently the woman who usually works with the fetal montitor quit last week, and no one else has had time to be trained on how to use it. At first one of the nurses tried, but quickly lost her confidence, so another nurse came in to give it a shot. She soon gave up as well. Meanwhile, my doctor was still seeing other patients, but checking on me in between them. (I thought back to that other Friday when I was on the opposite end--this time I think I was the one making her run behind!)

Needless to say, someone forgot to tell me what to do, because not long after my doctor left, the machine started beeping! You know, like when there's an emergency! I kept thinking surely someone is going to hear it and come check on me. Nope. I noticed that the button to push for help was located at the opposite side of the room. Great, what was I supposed to do? I was all hooked up and couldn't move--but the sound was so annoying! Still, I could see the print-out with my baby's heartbeat, etc. so I didn't want to unplug myself because then it'd stop recording everything. So I just sat there for a half an hour--UGH!

Finally another nurse came in and gave me a weird look. I asked, "Is it supposed to be beeping like that?" She shook her head and looked at the print-out. She said she'd take it to my doctor and get back to me.

A few minutes later someone else came back and said that I was supposed to press a button whenever I felt Logan move. Apparently the monitor had thought there hadn't been any movement or something and so my print-out didn't record correctly. SIGH.

Soooo I had to sit there for twenty more minutes. At least this time the monitor was quiet. But I don't know how long it was before the paper ran out! Yes, there my sheet went, falling to the floor! I was thinking, are you serious?! I decided I'd had enough. I'd been in that room for a full hour! So I unhooked myself, got up, and opened the door. There was a nurse standing nearby and so I told her that the machine ran out of paper. She came in, put more paper in, and motioned for me to sit back down. I said, "Isn't this enough? I'd prefer to just go home now."

She said she'd ask my doctor. A couple of minutes later another nurse came in to let me know that I was indeed done. Yeay! She said that the good news was that I wasn't having any contractions, however, my cramps were indeed real, as my line on the graph should have been straight but instead was curvy.

It appears my problem is that I have a yeast infection :p Prior to the fetal monitor, my doctor tested me for that and a urinary tract infection (which came back negative). I've only had one other one in my life (nearly 8 yrs ago) and that time I experienced all of the symptoms. This time there were none, so I was really surprised. But yeast infections are super common during pregnancy--in fact, women are more likely to get one while pregnant than at any other time of their life. Every book I've read since "day one" had told me this, but I was so sure I wasn't going to get one. I guess I associated it as a "bad" or "unclean" thing to have, but that is not the case. It's simply just another hormonal side effect of pregnancy, no different from the morning sickness I experienced for so long. And, my virus last week might have made me more prone.

I have a prescription cream for the next three days, and I don't know if it's a coincidence, but I started it last night and haven't had cramps since! Crazy! So hopefully that's what caused the cramps and that will be the end of them.

Since, as I said, yeast infections are another common side effect of pregnancy, I thought I might as well make that my topic today:

When you are pregnant, your body is going through so many changes, it is difficult for your body to keep up with the chemical changes in the vaginal environment. Since a woman’s immune system is weakened during pregnancy to allow the fetus to grow unharmed within the womb, yeast infections can occur more readily and sometimes more than once, even for women who have never experienced one before. Also, your higher level of estrogen during pregnancy causes your vagina to produce more glycogen, making it easy for yeast to grow there.

If you develop symptoms from a yeast infection, they're likely to plague you (and may get worse) until you treat the infection. Symptoms may include:

• Itchiness, irritation, soreness, burning, and redness (and sometimes swelling)

• An odorless vaginal discharge that's often white, creamy, or cottage-cheesy

• Discomfort or pain during sex

• Burning when you urinate

(Like I said, I didn't have any of these symptoms, so I don't know if it's because we caught it early or if a lot of women may have yeast infections and never know it.)

A yeast infection won't hurt or affect your developing baby. If you have an infection when you go into labor, though, there's a chance that your newborn will contract it as he passes through the birth canal. If he does, he may develop a yeast infection in his mouth, known as thrush. This condition is easily treated.

It's less likely you'll get a yeast infection if you keep your genital area dry (yeast thrives in a warm, humid environment) and your vaginal flora in balance. Not all of the following suggestions are supported by hard evidence, but they're easy enough and worth a try (although, I had already unknowingly been following all but two and still got one):

• Wear breathable cotton underwear and avoid pantyhose and tight pants, particularly synthetic ones.

• Get out of your wet bathing suit promptly after swimming, and change your underwear after exercising if you break a sweat.

• Try sleeping without underwear at night to allow air to get to your genital area. If you prefer to wear something to bed, a nightgown without underwear allows more air circulation than pajama bottoms.

• Avoid bubble baths, perfumed soaps, scented laundry detergent, and feminine hygiene sprays. While it's not clear whether these items contribute to yeast infections, they can cause bothersome genital irritation so are best avoided.

• Clean your genital area gently with warm water. (Never douche during pregnancy.)

• Always wipe from front to back.

• Eat yogurt that contains a live culture of Lactobacillus acidophilus, which can theoretically help maintain the proper bacterial balance in your gut and vagina. There's conflicting evidence as to whether yogurt helps prevent yeast infections, but many women swear by it.

• Limit sugar intake, as sugar promotes the growth of yeast

• Get plenty of rest to make it easier for your body to fight infections

• Avoid sexual intercourse until the yeast infection is completely gone

So what are the treatment options for those who have a yeast infection during pregnancy? It is important that you make sure the treatment poses no threat to the developing fetus and won't cause you to go into premature labor. Many natural and herbal remedies as well as some subscription medications can cause such problems so it is important to get advice from your doctor on the proper treatments for a yeast infection during pregnancy.

Your practitioner will most likely give you a prescription or recommend a specific over-the-counter antifungal vaginal cream or suppository that's safe during pregnancy. (Note: Oral antifungal drugs should not be taken during pregnancy to treat vaginal yeast infections.) Yeast infections generally clear up pretty quickly.

I also read that it could be a symptom of gestational diabetes so I hope that my test results aren't positive on Monday. For the test, I had to drink orange glucola (tasted like orange pop) about 45 minutes prior to my appointment time. When I arrived to the doctor's office I told them the exact minute I'd finished drinking. (It'd taken me two minutes--from 12:25-12:27.) At about 1:20 a nurse I'd never seen before came back to get me and took my blood pressure (still "excellent," whew) and my weight (I don't know if she thought it was a lot or what but she asked me if I'd just had a big lunch. . .um, hello?!)

Then she took two vials of my blood which I was glad to get over with. Like I said, I'd never had this nurse before and I almost laughed when she started rubbing a birth mark on the palm of my hand. I was thinking, what are you doing lady? She asked, "What happened there?" I haven't been asked that question since I was a little girl. Back then everyone always thought it was an "owie," too. So I explained it was a birth mark--I've had it my whole life. She informed me that she has a birth mark shaped as a butterfly under her armpit. . .

From there she took me to my room and soon after my doctor came in (so no waiting this time, thank goodness). My doctor told me that if the test to see if I was at risk for labor came back positive then she'd want me to immediately go to the hospital where I'd probably be on bedrest for the remainder of my pregnancy. Either way, she wanted me to just sit around all this weekend. I kind of laughed on the inside and thought, all I do is sit around these days! Today I'm going scrapbooking and tomorrow is the baby shower with Heather, Lisa, and the Sara(h)s so I'm pretty sure those activities will be okay. Next Saturday is my baby shower at my mom's house in Iowa, so that's a little riskier, but at least it's only 2.5 hrs away, so if for some reason the test was inaccurate and I do go into labor then, we can high-tail it back to Omaha. But I feel pretty good now and am confident I'll be okay for at least a few more weeks :p

It's just crazy that now there's something else! I told Joe it seems I've gone through more stressors while being pregnant than during any other six months of my life! I hope that Logan is blissfully living in the womb, unaware of all this "stuff" that has gone on. Because absolutely none of it has been in my control.

Otherwise, since I last wrote, I went to Panera Bread with Melissa and had a nice lunch. She said the nicest thing to me: she told her husband that even if she ends up really liking Arizona, there will never be another Andrea. I know I will cry when she moves :-(

Afterwards we went shopping at Burlington Coat Factory--I'd never been there but she'd told me they have a baby depot and the prices are a lot cheaper than at Babies R Us (but some of the same stuff). In fact, I ended up buying two gowns for Logan (highly recommended, especially for babies born in the summer). . .and when I got home I realized that I had registered for the exact two at Babies R Us--only they were $6 cheaper at Burlington Coat Factory. So I deleted them from my registry and now they are here for Logan whenever he arrives :-)

That evening Joe and I went to our childbirth class and learned about c-sections which I really hope I don't have to have. Last week we'd talked about epidurals and medication which I also really don't want to have. I'll explain more when I write a blog about my birth plan.

This, however, concludes my blog for today!