Another Scare

Jude has been the source of constant worry for us the past 4 years or so, but my pregnancy with him was smooth sailing.  Not so with all the subsequent ones, including this latest one.  My second pregnancy was with Titus who died.  My third was with Levi who was suggested to have (based on a Quadscreen blood test) Trisomy 18, which is incompatible with life and they suggested that I consider killing him myself while he was in me instead of letting him die after he was born.  Luckily for Levi, I wouldn’t hear of it.  Then there was Asher, who was about the size of a blueberry when my uterus started hemorrhaging.  It was then that I learned he even existed and I certainly didn’t think I’d ever get to keep him.  He could have easily gotten flushed right out of me in the midst of the blood loss, but the little guy clung on tight to the side of my uterus and survived for me to tell him about it.  Now today I learned that my TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) level is elevated and that I need to go on a prescription.  I was told that it would be really bad for the baby if left untreated.  Turns out really bad means typically one of 2 things: (1) the baby dies altogether; or (2) the baby suffers from developmental delays that can be permanent (e.g., low IQ, retardation).  It turns out that the baby has no pituitary glad until 12 weeks old so it relies entirely on the mom for the hormones that are supposed to be produced by the thyroid.  My thyroid isn’t producing enough of this hormone.  Turns out some of the causes of an elevated TSH level are pregnancy (check) and stress (check).  Best case scenario that since my TSH level wasn’t THAT elevated such that I was given the lowest dose prescription possible that the baby will survive and not have any impact.  But, it’s enough to give me a good scare.  I can’t take that new Rx until tomorrow since it has to be on an empty stomach, but I can’t wait to pop that pill and give the baby what it needs.  Besides, some of my many side effects may start to ease (e.g., I now know while I’ve been feeling chilled to the bone at all times and why I’m chubbier than I should be for someone who walks 4 hours a day).

And to top off this news, the nurse practitioner followed by giving me someone else’s PAP results.  Thank God I didn’t have a PAP done this year at all and thus managed to not die of a heart attack when she told me over the phone that the PAP showed I tested positive for the HPV virus (some STD) and that I was at high risk for cervical cancer.  Must be some other Jessica Olson that they have to deliver that bad news to.  At least I have that going for me — I’m not her.