The ongoing saga of swelling

The weekend came and went and with it my sanity ... you see, every year John and I go to the NASCAR race in Dover DE. This year was no exception - we discussed it beforehand and I figured I wouldn't be going next year ... and probably not the year after that ... or after that. Etc. I enjoy the race a lot and didn't want to miss out on it and on being with our friends. I'm not sure what the hell I was thinking.

Actually, it's pretty much of a guy's day out - I'm the only woman in the group of five but we chill well together. It helped that my very first time, my Canadian self looked aghast at the amount of Confederate flags flying and asked innocently "Is that legal??". The guys remind me of this frequently and usually after their 5th or 6th beer.

Anyway, John and I decided as long as I stayed off my feet as much as possible, it would probably be ok. What we didn't realize - because we're not clairvoyant and the Weather Channel is screwed - is that it was going to be 90+ degrees out there. Factor in the bleachers, the 28th row in the middle section, no shade and a humidity level that had been steadily rising and I found myself in the "yowza, this is not fun" factor. Fortunately we were near an exit that led to a walkway and I could sit there and chill. Literally.

I am obviously pregnant, I guess. I got many pitying looks as I gasped my way up the never-ending stairs, holding my belly. Yes, I held my belly but I didn't rub it. I swear. A couple of EMS people looked at me sternly as I made my way past them, daring me to use their services. I decided that Dover DE was probably not a good place to be in the L&D ward so I drank water like it was going out of style. Of course, that meant going to the bathroom ... some 150 steps below. And then coming back up. And again. Oy.

At yet another bathroom break, John decided to come with me and we headed downstairs. I didn't want to subject the baby and my very white skin to the 400 laps of sunshine and decibels, so John and I headed to the midway to check out merchandise. We ended up standing in the lemonade line for 30 minutes, I kid you not, and although the lemonade was FOUR DOLLARS!!!!!! it was damned good. Did I mention that the lemonade was FOUR DOLLARS????? Jesus H Murphy.

I kept close tabs on intake/output and was glad to see my urine remained pale. Yes, I'm such a nurse, what can I say? But it was the only way to measure possible dehydration. Unfortunately by the end of the day, the oppressive heat had caused my ankles to swell tremendously. It wasn't helped much by working on my feet the next day, and between that and the awful pain in my feet and hands, I called my OB late yesterday afternoon and they decided they wanted to see me the next day.

I saw him today - one I hadn't seen before. I'll call him Dr Young because he looked only slightly older than Doogie Houser but he was good and had a nice bedside manner. My pressure is good, no proteinuria, no glucosuria. As for the hands - he tapped my wrist and I nearly went through the roof. Definite carpal tunnel on the right, well on its way on the left. Splints recommended and monitoring via my family doc - which I don't really have. Oops.
As for the ankles and feet - compression stockings and elevate when possible. Keep up the fluid intake. He said resignedly "I doubt you'll see it getting much better over the next few months. As for the carpal tunnel, they don't like operating on pregnant women, but let's see what happens". Maybe I should call him Dr Positive. After all, he didn't even mention my weight gain...

Off I went to the W-mart where I picked up some compression stockings and a couple of wrist splints - far cheaper than CVS. I called John and told him and he, nice man that he is, expressed deep concern while snorting with laughter at the thought of me wearing "old lady stockings". Uh-huh. We'll see who'll be laughing later tonight.

As a side note, I will mention I have now winnowed out some of the watermelons (*SOB*)and lettuce and all the tomatoes are caged. I also put up some form of cage/trellis between the squash/cucs and the rest of the garden. Hopefully that will work and prevent them from taking over. Did I mention that the lemonade at the race was FOUR DOLLARS?????

Oh ... and I heard my son's (!!) heartbeat today. I've been worried because I haven't felt anything recognizable as "movement" and I am 19+ weeks. *whew*. I was having DBTs. I wonder if they ever go away completely.


DBTs- also known as "Dead Baby Thoughts" in the infertile blogosphere.