Additional Needs

Due Date

Posted by Brittney Baumgartner on 27th July 2016 Additional Needs, Disabilities

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Although much quieter than my first pregnancy, this time around has had its share of stress.

With Oliver, we pretty much went about the whole thing as any other person would.

Take naps when you can. Send the husband out for cravings. Whine about the weight gain, etc. 

Up until we received his diagnosis, we really had no other indication that things would take a turn in the opposite direction of 'simple'.

Hospital bed rest at 24 weeks, making it just a day over 30 weeks to deliver Oliver in all his three pound glory.

Besides his list of diagnoses that could have contributed to my body wanting to and successfully ejecting him out early, I had my own - Incompetent cervix.

The one amount of space that has a very important job of keeping my babies in until full term, was incompetent of doing just that.

This of course put me at risk for all future deliveries, of delivering prematurely.

Now, normally the approach for this when pregnant again, would be to place a cerclage in to stitch the cervix closed and prevent it from dilating prematurely. Normally.

But not all doctors follow it, and instead do a, 'watch and see', approach.

Beginning at 16 weeks of pregnancy, they usually see you biweekly for cervical length checks and in my case I had to self-administer progesterone injections once a week. Ouch!

If you fell below a certain measurement, and were before 24 weeks gestation, only then would they perform surgery for a cerclage.

I never fell below the range, and thus spent most of my pregnancy stressing out about every little twinge and cramp.

We always just assumed because Oliver came early and I had a cervix incompetent of doing its' job, that this baby would come early as well.

Thirty-three weeks into my pregnancy, I can happily say that we are still baking this little bun in the oven!

Besides all the worries from the pregnancy, Oliver is due in September for his sixth surgery.

Another tenotomy release of his right Achilles heel.

Even with recurrent casting and AFO braces, his right foot has managed to tighten itself back up not allowing him to step flat properly.

Instead, because his feet were clubbed, when he steps on his right foot he steps on top on it rather than flat on the heel. It just sort of folds underneath.

It is a minor surgery with only local anesthetic, so we hope to be in and out fairly quickly.

Recovery is the only problem.

Casting Oliver when he was young was no problem. But this kiddo is two years old now, and about as rambunctious as a chimpanzee.

We hope to update soon after September with a successful surgery and delivery of Aaden and Oliver's little brother!