Okay I’m going to try to make a post. I feel like I’m running on near empty here, too many nights of not enough sleep, so I end up just sitting here staring blankly at nothing.

Yesterday was my 34 week appointment. I got to see a midwife I’ve seen before, one I really liked, so that was nice! My vitals were all perfectly normal… weight 160.4 (20lbs gained, according to their records which start after I got M/S), blood pressure sitting completely normal for me at 104/70. While we were sitting there a sheet of paper slipped under the door from the nurse – my urine results. The midwife glanced at it and said, “The most perfect result I’ve had today. No seriously, look… negative, negative, 0, negative, 0…. usually there’s something at +1 or something!” LOL She was funny.

I hopped up on the table and she measured me… 32cm. Measuring only 2 weeks behind this time, as compared to 4 weeks behind last time. I told you Devin has stretched himself out. She said the ultrasound showed he was a perfectly good size, and said that like any other test, they are not perfect. But baby’s good, so no one is concerned at all about me continuing to measure small. It could just be how I measure. Baby’s heartrate was around 140, right where he usually is.

And that really was the whole appointment. She mentioned that next appointment is when I get my GBS (Group B Strep) test. I asked her about how many women test positive (she said less than 50% for sure… maybe around 20%, off the top of her head), and mentioned how much I am REALLY REALLY HOPING to not have to get an IV. (Seriously, it sounds ridiculous, but getting an IV is like my biggest fear of labor. Not the pain, not the pushing, not the head coming out… the IV.) She looked at me and said, “Well, you can decline the test if you want to you know.” I sort of shrugged and said I didn’t really want to stir up trouble or anything. She replied, “Well honestly… that’s our problem!” So she explained to me that for people who don’t have a GBS result, for whatever reason (if they go into labor early, or if someone comes in who hasn’t had consistent prenatal care, or if they refuse the test) then they would treat based on symptoms… which means they would give the IV antibiotics if I showed signs of an infection… a fever, or baby’s heart rate increasing, etc. She pointed out that the medical community has been back and forth on the GBS testing over the years, from testing everyone and treating anyone who tests postiive, to testing no one and treating those who show signs of infection. Plus she did point out that, were I to need the antibiotics either way, I could have just a hep lock put in. They’d hook me to an IV to receive the antibiotics, then disconnect me until I needed the second dose. (Which does make me feel better, but hep locks still bother the shit out of me.) So she said to research it and think about it and let them know at my appointment what I wanted to do.

I’m really quite torn. My fear of testing positive, and thus being required to get the IV, is pretty high. But I’m not certain fear is a good reason to be making that decision. And on the flip side, being tested and coming back negative would take ALL the pressure and worry off of me which would be really nice. (And given my track record this pregnancy I have no reason to think I’d come back positive… I’ve been free and clear of everything all pregnancy. Though part of me thinks that’s leaving me wide open for something to go wrong! Yeah. Useless statistics.) I do need to figure out how dangerous this is and, if they “treat based on symptoms,” if that raises Devin’s risk at all, or if it means HE would have to get tested for anything. Given the choice between him or me, I’ll take the tests and IV so he won’t have to go through anything.

I did find it interesting that this is the second time a midwife has told me flat out that I didn’t have to take a test. I really do appreciate that! They have been very in-line with my beliefs to the point that I really trust them if they say I need something (like that ultrasound). They don’t suggest doing something just for the hell of doing it. Even these tests, which are all normal procedures for pretty much any doctor or midwife practice, they are perfectly okay with NOT doing, if I so wish. I really hope the pediatrician I’m meeting with has the same kind of viewpoint. It would be really great to have a ped that I trusted.

So anyways, that was my appointment. I didn’t even have to wait more than about 5 minutes to get in this time, I was in and out within half an hour. Next time I have to remember to bring my birth plan with me. Yikes! Birth plans already!