I went in for another ultrasound today. The morning started out pretty rough, and when we pulled into the parking garage at the hospital I looked at the slip of paper that was given to Neil with all of our appointment info on it. Oh crap! We were supposed to check in at 9:30 am! Here it is 9:45....and we're rounding up to the 3rd floor of the parking garage with no empty spaces in sight. Well, I figured if Neil dropped me off, I could casually walk in apologize for being 15 minutes late (cause when are ultrasound appointments ever finished on time, really?).....and we'd be set.
At this point I realized why my OB/GYN had given us specific instruction on how to find the Perinatal office in the hospital. Unfortunately for me, those instructions were given to Neil....not me. I spent the next 5 minutes walking by each elevator on 2-3 different levels, all of which were out of order. 9:50 AM. Crap. Finally, I run into a lady and ask here where the bridge is to the hospital, and she points to the other side of the parking garage and mentions its on the level below where we were. Sweet. I might make it by 10 AM. Hurrying over to the other side, I impatiently push the elevator button that will take me to the floor down.....holy cow! Talk about the slowest elevators EVER! I think I waited nearly 5 minutes for that elevator (I know, it would've taken just as much time to walk back over to the other side of the garage and take the stairs down). 9:57 AM. I hop onto the crowded elevator and eventually make me way through the bridge to the hospital. Crap. More signs. Which suite was I supposed to go to? Call Neil. No Answer. Crap. 10 AM. Maybe they wouldn't be too upset if I showed up at 10:03 AM. By this point I'm feeling really stressed. I'm desperately trying to hold back my frustration and tears. But Neil was definitely taking the blame for this one in my mind.....
Needless to say, I ended up on 3-4 different elevators, talking to 2-3 different people who sent me in 2 different directions. I scoured 2-3 different floors, was finally directed to the Radiology department, which totally made sense to me. I'm crying. Yup. Love being pregnant. It's 10:15 AM. Crap. I stumble into the radiology department teary eyed and talk to the male secretary. As much as I tried to hide it, I think it was clearly obvious I was an emotional wreck. His eyes just screamed "oh you poor crazy person!" I don't want sympathy....I want a dang ultrasound! I told him my name and mentioned that I was a high risk pregnancy, as I tried not to let the tears come to quickly. I apologize profusely for being late.....and then he told me that I was in the wrong spot! Are you kidding me!? Couldn't stop the tears at this point, no matter what I tried. It was a total and complete pregnancy moment. So much so, that I almost started laughing at myself. He then assisted me to the right elevator (literally, he walked out of the office and down the long maze of hallways and pointed directly at the elevator I needed to take).....thank you sweet man. I don't know your name, but may just have to stop in and say thank you. I hopped on the elevator went to the second floor, got out....and then hopped on another elevator to the 5th floor. (Why do they not make elevators that directly connect all of the floors? I have no clue.)
Finally, at 10:20 AM I found Neil and Ellie calmly sitting in the lobby. Still in tears, I went to check in with the secretary. I apologized a million times for being almost an hour late. Fortunately for me, it sounds like this happens a lot to first timers at this hospital. They were kind and helped me get rescheduled and had me back in for the ultrasound within 15 min.
Holy drama. I'm pretty sure I've never felt more pregnant in my life. I'm pretty sure my pregnancy with Ellie did not even rate on the same hormone scale as this one. Two different worlds. Poor Neil.
ANYWAY~
The sonographer was great. Really kind, and totally okay with the passive aggressive 2 year old who refused to say her name when asked, yet sang BINGO loudly for the next 60 minutes.
The babies looked great. I was SOOO relieved to see two little wiggly bodies, and 2 flashing hearts beating. She found baby B really easily. And then as she went on to look for baby A....it popped right up on the screen. They literally looked like they were sitting on top of each other. Confused, I asked her if that meant they were in the same sac. She said she wasn't sure, it depended on the angle etc. I started to worry at this point, because I know there are huge risks to twins who are sharing the same "everything". Luckily, she was able to find a membrane that separated them. I came to my own conclusions at this point.....the babies being that close together, and the "membrane" being so thin and hard to find.....I was pretty sure they'd be identical.
Everything checked out, measurements etc. She concluded that the babies ARE identical, but wanted the Dr. to check just to make sure. He came in, and quickly confirmed that they were identical....but that the had their own chorion (amniotic sac). They did share a placenta though, which he expressed meant that we'd have to be monitored very closely to make sure they didn't develop Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome. TTTS is a serious condition where one twin (for some reason that is not connected to genes, lifestyle, diet etc) receives the blood and nutrients that the other should. So, to make sure they catch it in time, I'll be monitored with bi-weekly ultrasounds. Assuming it will happen....it occurs in 1 in 7 identical twin pregnancies. So not very good odds. He mentioned something about a laser treatment that is really effective....but hopefully we don't have to explore that option down the road. The other downside is that TTTS can occur at ANY time during the pregnancy. There's not safe guard. There's no "make it to 18 weeks, and you're out of the woods!" So, we're just hoping and praying that everything turns out okay. Or as it should, anyway.
Our next appointment is slotted for Oct....and they told us we'll be able to find out the genders! YAY! I'm almost positive they'll be girls....(I've told Neil for years that he's going to be really blessed and have ALL girls.....I think he's heard that from other family members too.:).....but we'll keep you posted. Maybe he'll get lucky and get 2 boys. We're betting Chipotle......anyone else want in on the bet?:)
