So, as promised, about week 14 of my pregnancy the morning sickness (or afternoon/evening sickness for me) finally eased up. I did continue to have some nausea, but no longer the kind that made me come home and glue myself to the couch and try not to move! It is making me sad that I didn't journal along the way because I know there are so many details I'll never get back. Some events are permanently stuck in my memory. Some time around 12:30 a.m. on Monday, March 16, my heart went into AFib. Atrial fibrillation is an abnormal heartbeat - some slow beats and some racing. Overall, my heartrate is very fast. I was diagnosed in 1994 and the cardiologist had released me since I don't have any structural reason for the AFib nor does medicine prevent epidsodes. Until March 16, I've always worked, slept, even exercised through my episodes and eventually they resolve on their own. About two hours into this particular episode, I started worrying that it might affect bloodflow to the boys. I called my OB-on-call and she said "AFib is EXTREMELY dangerous and you need to get to the ER right away." I thought she meant for the babies, so we went racing to the ER. Since the babies were only 16 weeks, they wouldn't monitor them AND THAT IS WHY I WENT! The cardiologist came in and they tried several different "safe" medicines to try to regulate my heartbeat. Nothing helped. They admitted me to the telemetry floor (I think) for monitoring and for administering some different medications that I thought the doctor told me I didn't have to have. The worst part was that they wouldn't let me eat. 16 weeks pregnant and not even a drop of water. ARRGGHHH!! I was on I.V. fluids, but I can promise you they don't help pregnancy hunger! My "new" cardiologist, Dr. Egoavil, came in later that morning. He discussed my options with Allen and me...and scared the poop out of me. Apparently AFib IS dangerous...for ME! I always knew it put me at risk for having a stroke, but have assumed that since it resolved on its own that I was OK. NOT. Ultimately, they ended up doing a cardio-conversion on me. Basically that means shocking my heart back into regular heartrate submission. Thankfully they did give me the quick-on/quick-off anesthia and they DID monitor the boys heartrates right before and right after the procedure. In fact, I woke up to the words "your babies heartrates are normal." We will always wonder what effect the procedure had on the boys. I have to trust that, if any, it was short-lived and not serious. Also, as soon as I woke up, I heard the BOM-BOM...BOM-BOM of my heart at 88 beats per minute instead of 190!! After pregnancy, I now have a "rescue" medicine that I take as soon as my heart gets out of rhythm. My episode last Saturday only lasted 4 hours instead of 24 to 36!! YAY! Thankfully, I only had one episode while pregnant. They normally happen about every 5 to 6 months and I am now back under the care of a cardiologist (since I'm OLDER...ugh!).
The rest of my second trimester was fairly uneventful. I do remember thinking at about the six month mark that I LOOKED nine months pregnant. Oh well...that feeling was just part of having twins. I think it was during this time that my appetite REALLY picked up. If you know me at all, I normally don't eat a lot. I had trouble eating ENOUGH while pregnant to gain weight AND to get full! Big Mac's and large portion lunches became a part of my regular routine...anything to get enough calories to gain instead of lose weight. The further into my pregnancy I got, the bigger my belly got and the skinnier my arms and legs got! I looked FUNNY towards the end...ALL belly. But that is a story for another trimester!
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