Keep Praying

We had another ultrasound today to check on the growth of our little one. In the last 3 weeks he has only grown the equivalent of 5-7 days. We had a different specialist this time who was great. He walked us through what he was finding, asked us about our history with my other pregnancies, and what his thoughts were. Aaron is now growing asymmetrically and is sending all his nutrition to his brain and heart and other essential organs while sacrificing growth in his limbs to continue to survive. I do have placental insufficiency and it has gotten significantly worse in the last 3 weeks. I once again have low fluid and there is a small amount of fluid around Aaron's heart, he also weighs less than 1/2 of what he should so there is no possibility of a successful delivery at this point. The causes for these problems are: I have an autoimmune disease, I and/or the baby have a clotting problem, my placenta has a tear in it and is bleeding into the amniotic fluid, or I have pre-eclampsia, or a combination of some of them. He believes I have had the same placental problems with all my kids and the fact that we have 4 beautiful children is reason to cheer and to continue to have hope.

His best guess is that both I and Aaron have the same clotting problem and that I also may have a small tear in my placenta. He thinks I had the same clotting problem with all the kids but that I did not pass on the gene to them so they were able to make it as long as they did. He thinks Aaron may have the same clotting issue which is causing the problem with his growth. If this is the case there is treatment but it may be too late. They could put me on blood thinners and hope more blood flow gets in, unfortunately because there is the question of a tear blood thinners could cause more problems. The doctor who knows the most about these issues is here in town and the doctor we saw today has consulted and published material on this clotting issue. He said he will do whatever he can to help us (even though he lives in San Antonio, TX). We have found out that the specialists at this practice all live somewhere else and travel around the country to different clinics to treat women with Maternal Fetal Medicine issues. So, we most likely will see someone different every time and that none of them will do the actual delivery when that time comes.

The doctor ordered a slew of blood tests to see what we can find and if there is anything that can be done. He told me I need to be "lazy" as much as possible while still maintaining order at home. (That is certainly easier said then done as the kids are off track at the moment). The more I lay down the chances for better blood flow increases although strict bed rest is not yet warranted. We should have the blood results back in the next 2-4 days. We wish the doctor 3 weeks ago would have ordered the same tests and took into account my previous placental problems. We may have had a better chance but it is what it is. There is no going back now. I have to return for another ultrasound in a week and to see my regular doctor between now and then. Please continue to pray for him to grow. That is our hope now.

We asked how soon they could or would deliver. For any chance of survival he needs to be at least 500 grams, at the moment he is weighing in at only 160 grams. If they can put me on the blood thinners he should be able to gain weight quicker. He told us that there is still hope although the margin is slim. He told us to prepare for a good fight but also to prepare for Aaron not making it. How on earth do you prepare for that???? The fight I'm ready for!