This week has generally gone well, the tiredness seems to be lifting, and the craving for jelly sweets (mainly skittles) isn't subsiding! Good news is that my weight gain seems to be more under control now that I'm really restricting my carbs after breakfast.
I did have a terrible scare yesterday though and I got to the point when I really did think it might be over. I got some spotting. It wasn't much, but as I've had nothing so far I feared the worst, especially as it was accompanied by mild cramping. I called the midwife at the hospital straight away and apparently they can't see people there until you're 18 weeks, so she referred me to my GP. Amazingly, I managed to get an appointment within a couple of hours, which really amazed me, as you usually have to wait for weeks. I'm assuming now that they keep emergency appointments for things like this.
Anyway, I went along like a gibbering wreck, trying to keep my chin up so that my son didn't guess that something was wrong. The appointment was half an hour late and that time in the waiting room was the worst, especially as the playground was in sight and my son couldn't understand why we couldn't just go there. When I eventually arrived in the room I was faced with a locum GP. I told her what was wrong and she very clearly told me that she would listen to my stomach and there would be two options:
1) She would hear a heartbeat, which would mean the baby is alive and I would then be referred to a midwife for a full check on Monday.
2) There would be no heartbeat and she would refer me straight to the Gynaecologist at the hospital.
Put any two year old in that situation and they're going to be confused. Mine just wouldn't stop screaming "no Mummy!" as I tried to get onto the bed. My heart was pounding wondering if I had lost my baby and at the same time I had to comfort my son that all was ok and he could sit next to me on the bed. If anything, a real first insight into life as a Mummy of two. Once I was in position, she got to it quickly and I was relieved to see the surprise on her face when she found the heartbeat really quickly and told me it was very strong and easy to find. A wave of relief washed over me and I actually forgot to realise that it was the first time I had heard my baby's heartbeat.
After my examination she told me that apparently bleeding at 4, 8, 12, 16, 20 weeks etc. is perfectly normal, as it's when your period would have been due and your hormonal levels can change slightly.
The good news is that all is well and I can continue to get excited and speculate about the gender...
So, this is me, 16 weeks pregnant:
According to BabyCentre my baby's about the size of an avocado now but in the next three weeks, he'll go through a tremendous growth spurt, doubling his weight and increasing his length. In the meantime, he'll be playing with his umbilical cord and practising breathing. His head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His circulatory system and urinary tract are in full working order and he's inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid through his lungs. Apparently I'm going through a bit of a growth spurt myself. My uterus has expanded so much that the ligaments in my abdomen are stretching to make room for it. If I feel any twinges of pain now, that's why....
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