Pregnancy/Surgery Update

Well . . .my medical card FINALLY arrived (phew!) and my surgery is now scheduled. It will be on Monday, October 6 at Duchossois Center for Advanced Medicine. I will then stay at Bernard Mitchell Hospital across the street. Dr. Arthur F. Haney will perform the Transabdominal Cerclage (or TAC). TACs have a 95+% success rate, which is all the more incredible considering all of those who have a TAC have had failed TVCs and Incompetent Cervix. Dr. Haney has been amazing--always ready and available to answer all of my questions, very reassuring, and very positive. He's a great physician and surgeon--a rare find indeed. And I also joined an online community of women who all have had TACs and success stories abound! I am feeling very positive and excited about this. Please keep us in your prayers--there are risks to the surgery, just as with any surgery, so we could sure use them.

About Dr. Haney:
Dr. Haney is Chairman of Obstetrics & Gynecology and the Catherine Lindsay Dobson Professor in Obstetrics & Gynecology at the University of Chicago.

The recipient of numerous honors, including a Distinguished Professor Award from Duke in 1986, Haney has served as president of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, as president of the Congress of the International Federation of Fertility Societies, as well as an examiner and director of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

He has published more than 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals, authored dozens of review articles and book chapters, and served as editor for the 9th edition of the most widely used textbook for medical students and residents, Danforth's Obstetrics and Gynecology.

He also has served as a consultant on fertility issues to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the National Institute on Environmental Health Sciences, the National Cancer Institute, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and the President's Council on Bioethics.

Dr. Haney specializes in abdominal cerclage.

LINKS:
Duchossois Center for Advanced Medicine
Arthur F. Haney, MD
University of Chicago Medical Center Obstetrics and Gynecology

In other news, please pray for my uncle as well. He is in the hospital with some heart problems, though I'm not sure exactly what is going on right now. He was NOT having a heart attack, so this is good news. His heart rate is also improving.

I realize I haven't been saying much about the pregnancy yet. There has been a reason for that. I am very, very early . . .even earlier than I had first thought when I went to the doctor. Apparently, I found out about a week to 10 days post conception. So I am just now between 5-6 weeks. I was nervous at first, because last week when I went in, the nurse said my pregnancy test (urine) was "very light." So they did a sono, and all they saw was a small gestational sac, which apparently is normal for early pregnancy. However, it can also be that way if you have a blighted ovum or other such complications. They took my blood and had me come back 2 days later to do it again to make sure the hCG was doubling.

I was afraid to talk about things because I was really, really worried. Even though I didn't really tell anyone, I just felt so afraid of something going wrong in this early stage, and how hard it would be . . .especially since I have already told everyone. Sometimes when you start THIS early in the pregnancy, it can be scary! There's not a whole lot they can see or do at 3-4 weeks, but we want definite answers! We are praying a lot and learning a lot of patience already.

So . . .the good news is that my hCG looks great. It is doubling, and the numbers are right in the 4-6 week range.

The best news is that I had another sono today. This time the gestational sac was much larger than a week ago, and the doctor could see the yolk sac and fetal pole, both of which are very important to identify at this stage! I go back for another sono next week, and hopefully at that point there will be a heartbeat.

Keep praying that things continue to develop normally and this baby is healthy!