Camastoo: Our Life

In sickness and in health

I was laying with Arastoo in bed, just staring. I couldn't sleep, I felt sick from how empty my belly was - I had woken up at six and had emptied my stomach content into the toilet (again). I wanted to go downstairs but I didn't want to wake Arastoo, he was sleeping so peacefully plus if I ate anything I'd probably spend the next twenty minutes throwing it back up. I knew it was stupid, Arastoo wouldn't mind if I woke him up I just didn't want to. Time was moving so slowly, I closed my eyes and when I opened them again it was only 7 o'clock. I decided to get up, have a shower, get dressed and get Ryan ready. I got up and walked to the bathroom.

At the lab

"You left early this morning!" Arastoo said as he entered my office with two drinks, one was coffee the other unfortunately was mine as it was... Orange juice.
"I couldn't sleep!" I said brushing him off.
"Have you eaten this morning?" He knew I most probably hadn't.
"Must have slipped mind." I answered honestly.
"Cam it's not just yourself your starving!" He said angrily.
"I would have loved to seen your reaction to my dieting during my pregnancy with Ryan!" I said sarcastically.
"Cam its not funny, your going for you first weigh up and booked appointment tonight!" Arastoo said unhappy with my sarcasm.
"Thanks for the orange juice!" Arastoo had already walked out the door.

At the Appointment
"I'm Your midwife Louisa!" This was directed at Arastoo, I'd had Louisa before. "I will be weighing you for the first time today. I will be working out your BMI. You will also be weighed during your third trimester, particularly if you have gained a lot of weight. Putting on more weight than you expected may affect your plan for labour. To check how well your baby is growing, I will measure the size of your bump. If your baby seems on the small or large side, I may suggest you have an ultrasound scan. A scan will give us a better idea of how your baby is growing!" A thin Caucasian women in a pink nurses uniform stood with a tape measure next to the scales.
"How far along are you, do you know?" This question was directed to me.
"About a month!" I said cautiously.
"Well you look the perfect size for a month, but you sound unsure so I'll do a ultrasound just incase!" She said joyfully.
"Just lay down for me!" I did as I was told.
She rolled my t-shirt up out of the way of stomach. She put the cold gel onto my lower abdomen and then rolled the scanner slowly over my belly. It picked up the heart beat and I smiled.
"There's your baby!" She exclaimed.
"Arastoo your crying!" I smiled at his tears of joy.
Arastoo had missed all the stuff like this with my pregnancy with Ryan and was over whelmed by the miracle of life.
"Your actually about eight weeks pregnant!" The young nurse chirped.
She wiped my belly and developed a picture of the ultrasound. She gave the little photo to Arstoo who stared at the black and white image of pure life.
"Could you please stand on the scales so I can weigh you?" I did exactly what I was told to.
"Your weight is a little less than we'd like. You'll be doing the best for your baby if you keep up your weight gain. You may be more likely to have a premature or low-birth-weight baby if your BMI is low. Babies who are born early and small sometimes need extra care when they are born."
Arastoo finally looked up from the photo and said "I told you, you shouldn't have skipped breakfast this morning!"
"Arastoo!" I glared at him.
"Skipping breakfast while your pregnant is not a good idea, but it is often done when your in between six and sixteen weeks because this is usually when morning sickness is at it's worse. But I remember with your first pregnancy you had Hyperemesis gravidarum!" She smiled sympathetically.
"Sorry, what's Hyperemesis gravidarum?" Arastoo asked concerned.
"Were you not with Camille during her first pregnancy?" Louisa asked confused
"It's a very long story!" Arastoo persisted.
"It's not a common pregnancy condition. It affects up to three per cent of mums-to-be. But if you're unlucky enough to suffer from HG, it is miserable and can be a real worry for you. You'll probably struggle to keep anything down, even your own saliva. " She smiled again sympathetically.
"Hyperemesis gravidarum means excessive vomiting in pregnancy." Arastoo said just to clarify and now he was staring at me sympathetically.
"Can we just get back to my current pregnancy please!" I said before anybody else could come in and give the sympathy vote.
"This is a critical period in your baby's development, as their organs are forming and their tiny tail is disappearing. Your baby is constantly moving and shifting, though you won't be able to feel anything for several weeks. Their arms have grown and they can flex their wrists. Your baby's legs are getting longer and their feet may be long enough to meet in front of their body. It's still almost impossible to tell whether you're going to have a boy or a girl."
"Thank you." I said relived.
"If your worried just call me or book an appointment!"