Thursday, Oct 27th was the first OB appointment of our (yes, also first) pregnancy, so -- as you can imagine -- it was quite momentous for Seth and I. We got to meet our doctor for the first time, and I do like her a lot. Not too young, not too old. She was very open about discussing anything, yet was also brief and concise in the topics she covered. Not too much small talk (and thank goodness for that -- what a breath of fresh air that she didn't immediately delve into personal details, focusing instead on the more important tasks at hand).
Unfortunately, when it came time to schedule upcoming appointments with the receptionist, we learned that our Doc also serves as a hospital Administrator in addition to being an OB -- thus, limiting her availability for our appointments. At this point, we are comfortable sharing our appointments between two doctors as long as things go relatively smoothly and there are no complications during the pregnancy. I've spent many years working for overachieving women, therefore I suppose it should come as no surprise that our doctor of choice falls in line with that group as well ... am I drawn to this "type" or do I just have a 6th sense when it comes to personnel selection? Sometimes you just have to trust your instincts. Ah, I digress!
I just assumed that we would be listening to the baby's hearbeat via the ultrasound machine ("2 birds, 1 stone"), but actually the initial appointment with the doctor and the ultrasound appointment were at 2 separate locations. After a few minutes of pertinent dialogue, Doc approached me with a small device that was no larger than a VHS tape. It's called a Fetal Doppler and is undoubtedly one of the coolest gadgets I have ever encountered (partially due to its portability, fast response, & ease of use, but mainly b/c it litereally introduced us to OUR BABY!):
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The Doppler Fetal Heart Rate Monitor, invented in 1958 (I was surprised to learn that, too!). |
Doc said, "And this is the best part of my day: we're going to hear the baby's heartbeat." I was taken aback that we were jumping right into things, but composed myself quickly enough to make a phonecall to Seth (in the waiting room) so he could join us in the exam room for this part. One end of the device scans over my lower abdomen, similar to that of an (mini) ultrasound. Then the speaker came on and we waited. A few seconds of silence passed as we both watched the doctor's serious expression. Without looking at each other (Seth & I), the same frightening thought entered both of our minds. Meanwhile, Doc was concentrating and trying to find just where this baby was situated in that moment.
And then VOILA! We hear a wonderful heartbeat. A very fast one at that. The Doppler showed that our baby had a heart rate of 163, which Doc said was very healthy. Music to our ears! We were a little surprised at the doctor's genuine amusement upon hearing the heartbeat (surely, she has heard it countless times!). There was even a slower, muffled yet loud noise that Doc said was the baby doing a "flip." We heard that same noise a second time, and Doc sounded pleasantly surprised that the baby flipped again.
Seth later shared a revelation: This little heart has already been beating in the womb since week 5, and does not stop until the end of a lifetime. It certainly gave us a renewed appreciation for life. Later that day, my mother-in-law Marsha mentioned "the miracle of life," and I could not agree more. No words were more fitting to describe this experience. Truly a miracle.
And while we're on the topic, here's a little background info on fetal heart rates:
Starting at week 5, the fetal heart rate accelerates by 3.3 bpm per day for the next month. The fetal heart begins to beat at approximately the same rate as the mother's, which is typically 80 to 85 bpm. The approximate fetal heart rate for weeks 5 to 9 (assuming a starting rate of 80):
- Week 5 starts at 80 and ends at 103 bpm
- Week 6 starts at 103 and ends at 126 bpm
- Week 7 starts at 126 and ends at 149 bpm
- Week 8 starts at 149 and ends at 172 bpm
- At week 9 the fetal heartbeat tends to beat within a range of 155 to 195 bpm.
At week 9, the fetal heart rate begins to decrease, and generally falls within the range of 120 to 160 bpm by week 12.
"We now take you back to your regularly scheduled programming." |
Oh, and just to paint you a picture of exactly what we were hearing: Although the volume on the little Doppler device was very audible, the sound coming out of it was slightly static-y. Reminiscent of what you might hear from the speaker of the safari Jeep in the Indiana Jones ride at Disney. I was elated to hear our baby's heartbeat, but couldn't help but think that, somewhere in that background noise, I would hear a familiar British voice from the movie saying "Dr. Jones! Are you there? Do you copy?"
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If you presume that this is the first of many Disney references to come, then you've presumed correctly ... Dr. Jones. |
Our next stop took us to the Ultrasound room. Before we got started, the ultrasound technician asked nicely if we were ok with also having a new trainee girl sit-in on our appointment? Sure, why not. I think our ultrasound appointment actually went longer due to the training, and we loved every minute of it. The tech would explain to the trainee every step of what she was doing, which in turn was very helpful to us newbie, parents-to-be.
Once we were situated, the lights were dimmed and Seth & I focused our attention to the flatscreen TV mounted on the wall in front of us. This definitely created a theater-like effect. Time for the "Seth & Jennifer's Baby Show" to begin! Before we knew it, we were looking at a 2D view of our baby -- realtime, real motions and all. It was your classic ultrasound shot - baby is lying on its back, facing up & you can see it's head, little nose, body cavity, and the little heart beating. A very peaceful scene. I've seen this picture many times before from other parents, but of course this time I found it to be just magnificent! Amazing. I started to cry. The tears must have been silently streaming for a good 10 minutes!
Drumroll please ...
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The USC drumline: one of Seth's favorite teams. Let this be a timeline reference (football season) |
**AND NOW WHAT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR!!**
With just 1 click of a keyboard key, the screen would switch from 2D to 3D view. Here's a good full-body view of the baby:
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| The baby was moving its arms up and down over its head. |
In this view, we saw what appeared to be the baby "jumping" up and down. The technician explained that this was most likely caused by the still-developing nervous system. When the baby was laying on its back, at times we would see a sudden jolt -- sending the baby arching up at the trunk of the body and lifting it up suddenly. Then it would float back down to the original resting position. The jolt effect was similar to what you see on TV when defibrillator paddles are used on a patient. Needless to say, we were surprised to witness these sudden movements and found it peculiar. The tech reassured us this was normal behavior inside the womb, as the baby's nervous system is still developing.
The baby was very active from the get-go, which is typical for its "age" of 12.5 weeks. Both arms would move up and down over it's head. One minute, baby was laying on its side, facing us:
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| You can see the baby's brain, 2 eyes, nose, mouth, left arm up, and right arm close to face. |
Then it would flip, with its back to us and laying on its other side:
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| You can faintly see the right ear, part of right arm (legs tucked up in front at the abdomen). |
After waiting for the baby to change positions so they could get a different angle, the Tech asked me to get up and walk around for a few minutes. This worked and a few more pics were taken. Also towards the end, the Tech switched seats with the trainee so she could try her hand at using the ultrasound. Very cool for Seth & I, b/c this meant we got to see our baby in 2D and 3D, from the back, from the front, from the top of the head, etc -- all over again!
When the baby was conveniently laying on its tummy (facing my back), the Tech freeze-framed the shot to take some measurements. The baby is currently 6.9 cm. long (or 2.7 inches) from "head to butt," as Seth eloquently put it.
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| Here, you can see baby's right ear, face, and fully-extended right arm. |
For quick reference, here's a little schedule of the baby's growth (length) over the next few months (keep in mind we're just finishing month #3):
- Month 4: 6-7 inches
- Month 5: 10-12 inches
- Month 6: 11-14 inches (weight may be up to 1.5 pounds by end of 2nd trimester)
A quick update about me, since I know some have inquired: The early mornings are still rough, but a new improvement that I can report is that Friday (Oct 28th) is the first day where I dont have to eat every 2 hours. I eat breakfast, and then later I eat lunch -- LIKE. A. NORMAL. PERSON! Believe me, this little feat is something I'm not embarassed to embrace. I'm also able to make it through the workday without taking a 30 minute nap on my lunch break. Yeah! again, more like a normal person. I still usually take a nap in the evenings after work -- just for an hour max. Any longer, and I'll wake up feeling starving and weak. If the 2nd trimester is all its cracked up to be, I'm really looking forward to the increased productivity. After getting through this first trimester, I hope I never take my well-being for granted again!!
| We were so happy to hear about the baby's healthy status! |
Seth & I look forward to reading your comments, thoughts, and reactions!
