No extreme nausea for me

I was just reflecting on how my pregnancy is going. For the most part my pregnancy has been great and I mean that in ever since of the word. Great for me means “no persistent vomiting”. When I was pregnant with my daughter about 10 years ago, I had the worst pregnancy, I could imagine. And there is a name for the crap I had to go through about 7 months out of the 9 months of pregnancy and it is called “Hyperemesis gravidarum.” If you don’t know what that is let me give a little explanation;

Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) is a severe form of morning sickness, with “unrelenting, excessive pregnancy-related nausea and/or vomiting that prevents adequate intake of food and fluids.” Hyperemesis is considered a rare complication of pregnancy but, because nausea and vomiting during pregnancy exist on a continuum, there is often not a good diagnosis between common morning sickness and hyperemesis. Estimates of the percentage of pregnant women afflicted range from 0.3% to 2.0%.

So for 7 months of my pregnancy I couldn’t really eat or drink because I vomited everything up. The nurses called me around the clock. I was constantly dehydrated and having to go into the doctors so I could be rehydrated by needle. It was a very scary pregnancy. Not only did I have that issue but at about 5 months I was hit with a situation, the doctors thought my daughter might have Down Syndrome or Spina bifida.

Down syndrome is a chromosomal condition characterized by the presence of an extra copy of genetic material on the 21st chromosome, either in whole (trisomy 21) or part (such as due to translocations). The effects and extent of the extra copy vary greatly among people, depending on genetic history, and pure chance. The incidence of Down syndrome is estimated at 1 per 733 births, although it is statistically more common with older parents due to increased mutagenic exposures upon some older parents’ reproductive cells. Other factors may also play a role. Down syndrome occurs in all human populations, and analogous effects have been found in other species such as chimpanzees and mice.

Down syndrome is associated with some impairment of cognitive ability and physical growth, and a particular set of facial characteristics. Individuals with Down syndrome tend to have a lower-than-average cognitive ability, often ranging from mild to moderate disabilities. Many children with Down syndrome who have received family support, enrichment therapies, and tutoring have been known to graduate from high school and college, and enjoy employment in the work force. The average IQ of children with Down syndrome is around 50, compared to normal children with an IQ of 100. A small number have a severe to high degree of intellectual disability.

Spina bifida (Latin: “split spine”) is a developmental congenital disorder caused by the incomplete closing of the embryonic neural tube. Some vertebrae overlying the spinal cord are not fully formed and remain unfused and open. If the opening is large enough, this allows a portion of the spinal cord to protrude through the opening in the bones. There may or may not be a fluid-filled sac surrounding the spinal cord. Other neural tube defects include anencephaly, a condition in which the portion of the neural tube which will become the cerebrum does not close, and encephalocele, which results when other parts of the brain remain unfused.

I had to take a test that they normal give to a woman pregnant and over 35, they gave to me a 21 year old, and the test is called “amniocentesis.” That process in itself was very scary because there was a possibility of miscarriage if I went through with it. And there was also a possibility my child could have one of the two or both.

After making my decision to get the test to find out, me and my fiancé’ had to wait 2 weeks or more to get the results back. It was longest, most heart wrenching 2 weeks of our lives. I think even more so for my fiancé, he was so happy to become a dad, I think his heart broke even before the results.

When the results came back they were negative we were so relived but I was still sick as a dog.

Now that I’m pregnant with twins I can say I was very scared of going through the same thing but two times worst. Fortunately I had a good 3 months of morning sickness and that was it. I may occasionally throw up be nothing as severe as with my first pregnancy.

I’m thankful for that of course, seeing as there are so many other things I have to go through because I’m pregnant with twins. So throwing up every minute I think would have driven me crazy. I appreciate greatly I had someone by my side the entire time with my first pregnancy I don’t know if I could have gotten threw that by myself.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperemesis_gravidarum

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Down_syndrome

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spina_bifida

 

Related articles

• How long does hyperemesis gravidarum last in pregnant women? (zocdoc.com)
• Can hyperemesis gravidarum cause dehydration? (zocdoc.com)
• How can I tell if I have morning sickness or food poisoning? (zocdoc.com)
• Are prenatal vitamins going to get rid of my morning sickness? (zocdoc.com)
• When does morning sickness normally stop during pregnancy (wiki.answers.com)

Nutrition has gotten a simplier.

Can you remember the days of the nutrition pyramid and not really understanding the logic. Well those days are behind us Today Michele Obama  introduced a new icon for nutrition. One that is simplistic and like “duh” how come no one else thought of that in all these years, the “plate”.

When I saw it on the news I couldn’t believe it. Finally we are moving towards simplifying things instead of overwhelming people with a long draw out description of something that would need a lot of explaining. I think the idea is very straight forward and understandable. Now a person can just look at a plate and see what should go on it and about how much, just from the picture alone.

The new graphic is split into four sections: fruits, vegetables, grains and proteins, with a small side of dairy.

This is a positive step forward to teaching children in the future about healthy nutrition. Even a kindergartener can get the picture.

For more information on the new nutrition guide go to >>>http://www.choosemyplate.gov/

The Help aint me, could have never done it, my Mouth is to unruley ) ) )

Cover of The Help

I was watching TV the other day, saw this new movie coming out called The Help. I found out it was first a book written by Kathryn Stockett depicting the 1960’s and black maids and there white employers. Just from the one trailer I saw on TV, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy of the book. As I know and many readers know, the book is always better than the movie. It’s the original thought before the subtractions and exciting improves.

So, I’m reading the book and can hardly put it down long enough to write this entry on how good it is thus far. Now for me it takes a certain kind of book that can pursued me to stay in it all day and night until I am finished. The Help is that book. The characters are realistically sound. The way the author tells each persons side threw them, shows a life in the sixties that if I was there they would throw me back to the 80’s where I came from.

Disease carrying, separate bathroom shitting, floor wiping, dish washing, clothes hanging, child rearing, good cooking, silver polishing, shirt ironing, blanket folding, party catering, bus riding, hush your mouth or your fired, black ass having, under paid maid. And the list goes on. What a world! The book is filled with indifference, understanding and kitchen gossip. Love it!

I can only relate to these maids, servants, house prostitutes (in a kind way) in the face of being strong, a superwoman, a jack of all trades. I wonder how they put up with the nonsense, the indescribable insensitivity, the overly arrogant display of ignorance. The book portrays black women as the strong silent type. Keeping their mouths quiet in the face of all that is unholy, so they may eat, live, survive!

I couldn’t even fathom being in that time period. I’m a truth teller, word smith wheeler and dealer, and for someone to take that away from me, would be a crime. But the strength to continue and live in such a humiliating disposition, I understand things a bit better. I guess that’s why my grandmother moved west. I’ve never had the pleasure of such a contradiction of life, but I have run into foolish people with foolish thoughts, and it didn’t take me but a second to snap on that ignorance.

The book is a real good outlook on the turmoil of a black women in the south being a white persons “maid”. A testimony of the strength one has in an obstacle of a consensus way of thinking. I’m enjoying every book turning moment…Can you dig it!