...or should I say, for the weeks leading up to Christmas? Ryan and I were both very relieved this past Wednesday to hear why I've been bleeding and cramping on and off
over the past couple of weeks. (No more bleeding since Tuesday) Apparently I had a clot form in the placenta which broke off and attached to a part of the uterus wall. That clot had been bleeding, and the reason for the cramping was that my uterus was trying to heal itself. Apparently, the uterus usually get's only 1% of the cardiac output from the heart. So, if the heart is pumping 100cc's of blood a minute, then the uterus get's 1cc of that blood. During pregnancy however, the uterus get's 20% of that bloodflow, AND the cardiac output goes up 60%! So instead of receiving 1 cc of blood, the uterus get's 32 cc's of blood! That's a huge increase, especially since the same vessels are carrying the blood. The perinatologist explained it as if an old country road went to the amount of traffic on an LA highway. That's a huge adaptation to take, and it's no wonder why occassionally a blood vessel will rupture and clot. Apparently 99% of the time, there's no reason or cause for it, just the increase in flow. Anyway, as long as the placenta continues to nourish the baby, and provide adequate blood flow/nutrition, everything should be fine, but it takes about four weeks to heal from. The perinatoligst also said that if you were to rupture a blood v
essel on your arm, it would be no big deal to bandage that arm up for a bit and allow it to heal. However, there's no way that you can bandage up the uterus, and the only thing that can be done to heal it is to rest it. In other words, when I've been cramping, that's when my body has been been telling me that I've been doing too much and need to chill. So I took Wednesday off and went to work yesterday under the directions that if I could work great, and that if I started cramping, then I was probably going to have to take medical leave for the next four weeks to allow the clotted area to heal. Getting to work yesterday was a breeze, and I actually was looking forward to being productive and having some social interaction for a change! However, about an hour into the work day the cramping returned and only worsened as I continued to work. I ended up leaving at lunch, and laid down for most of the rest of the day, and am feeling better but not 100% yet today. I'm relieved to know that in spite of it, Melodie is okay, but am a bit shocked that sitting at a desk job was too much for me. Anyway, today I get to figure out the wonders of short term medical leave, and what that will mean for Ryan and I over the next few weeks. It's definately worth it, to know that Melodie will be okay then, and that things will heal up, but I think I might need to figure out some hobbies that I can do from laying on the couch. Anybody have any good ideas? Or book suggestions? I'm up for about anything but our non-cable tv channels which seem to have nothing on at all during the day!
over the past couple of weeks. (No more bleeding since Tuesday) Apparently I had a clot form in the placenta which broke off and attached to a part of the uterus wall. That clot had been bleeding, and the reason for the cramping was that my uterus was trying to heal itself. Apparently, the uterus usually get's only 1% of the cardiac output from the heart. So, if the heart is pumping 100cc's of blood a minute, then the uterus get's 1cc of that blood. During pregnancy however, the uterus get's 20% of that bloodflow, AND the cardiac output goes up 60%! So instead of receiving 1 cc of blood, the uterus get's 32 cc's of blood! That's a huge increase, especially since the same vessels are carrying the blood. The perinatologist explained it as if an old country road went to the amount of traffic on an LA highway. That's a huge adaptation to take, and it's no wonder why occassionally a blood vessel will rupture and clot. Apparently 99% of the time, there's no reason or cause for it, just the increase in flow. Anyway, as long as the placenta continues to nourish the baby, and provide adequate blood flow/nutrition, everything should be fine, but it takes about four weeks to heal from. The perinatoligst also said that if you were to rupture a blood v
essel on your arm, it would be no big deal to bandage that arm up for a bit and allow it to heal. However, there's no way that you can bandage up the uterus, and the only thing that can be done to heal it is to rest it. In other words, when I've been cramping, that's when my body has been been telling me that I've been doing too much and need to chill. So I took Wednesday off and went to work yesterday under the directions that if I could work great, and that if I started cramping, then I was probably going to have to take medical leave for the next four weeks to allow the clotted area to heal. Getting to work yesterday was a breeze, and I actually was looking forward to being productive and having some social interaction for a change! However, about an hour into the work day the cramping returned and only worsened as I continued to work. I ended up leaving at lunch, and laid down for most of the rest of the day, and am feeling better but not 100% yet today. I'm relieved to know that in spite of it, Melodie is okay, but am a bit shocked that sitting at a desk job was too much for me. Anyway, today I get to figure out the wonders of short term medical leave, and what that will mean for Ryan and I over the next few weeks. It's definately worth it, to know that Melodie will be okay then, and that things will heal up, but I think I might need to figure out some hobbies that I can do from laying on the couch. Anybody have any good ideas? Or book suggestions? I'm up for about anything but our non-cable tv channels which seem to have nothing on at all during the day!
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393 The Nativity
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