My Pregnancy Update!

Good News! I had lab work last week, which showed that my liver enzymes were both around 15/16!!! Which is finally, well within the normal range of 4-40. Yea!!! I'm very relieved and with any luck that means my gall bladder is working too, and won't have to be removed, after all. I'm keeping my fingers crossed on that one! lol

Moved to Michigan!

Hi there Everybody!!!
A lot has changed around here for my family in the last couple of months. We moved right outside Lansing, Michigan. We are loving our new place, but despartely miss Fort Wayne and especially our friends:(
But overall, I think this move will be beneficial for my family.

A tornado did some major destruction to our little town of 2,000 people, last week. It touched down only a mile from our house, destroying about 25 houses! Pretty scary, but we thank God for the safety of all of those in range of the storms rage!
It's hard to believe, but Zachariah starts school Sept. 4th! Wow!!! They grow up so fast! Hope all is well with all of our friends back in Fort Wayne:)

Love to all,
Sarah and family

Ultrasound Pictures!!!

I got my twenty week ultrasound Thursday! I'm having a baby boy! Everything looks healthy from what they could see.

His name is Josiah Micah :-)

My Pregnancy part 2

This update was taken from segments of my facebook album to view the album click on the following link!

My Pregnancy Album

It was March 19, a Wednesday, just when I thought everything was starting to look up. After all, I had started eating and keeping water down on Saturday! Four whole days of nibbling on food and sipping on water, I was quite proud of myself!!! Then, I got the call. My doctor explained to me my lab work had come back with my Liver enzyme levels pretty high and I needed to go to the hospital to get more lab work and a ultrasound of my liver. Not too big a deal, a few hours at the hospital, not in my plans, but I could deal... At the hospital, I was given my own room (not a good sign!) and soon realized that this was not going to be a quick visit.

I was informed that my liver enzymes were in the 800's and 300's (normal is between 5 and 40!!!)

I'd never seen so many doctors, nurses, etc. come in and out of a hospital room! They didn't even let up come evening! At 2am I received an ultrasound of my baby (what a cutie!) and all of my important organs. The next day I was informed that my liver and gallbladder were inflamed and my spleen was enlarged. It also became pretty apparent I wasn't going to be leaving the hospital anytime soon:( The doctors needed to see my liver enzymes come down and figure out the cause of these high levels.

Come to find out, my life saving TPN was the most likely culprit. So I was immediately taken off of the TPN and put on a constant lactated ringer hydration and told I must eat! Meanwhile my liver levels continued to rise. On Saturday, they were up to the 900's and 500's!

On Sunday, my liver levels finally stabalized and one of them even came down a bit! On Monday, Both liver levels came down. They are now in the 800's and 380's, which I guess was good enough to send me home, and hopefully I'll get to stay out of the hospital until October!!! I'm due for lab work on Monday, March 31, to see if the liver levels have continued to come down and the gastro surgeon still wants to take my gallbladder out, sometime. Hopefully, later than sooner! In the meantime, my full time job is eating and drinking!

My Pregnancy!

Well, I thought I should update everyone on my pregnancy. I found out I was pregnant on February 2nd! I'm due on October 7th! I know when you find out your pregnant and it's supposed to be nine months full of joy and expectation! But frankly after three HG pregnancies I was scared to death!

The following are excerpts taken from a slideshow I have on facebook which includes pictures. To see the facebook album go to:

My Pregnancy Album

HG is a debilitating and potentially life-threatening pregnancy disease marked by rapid weight loss, malnutrition, and dehydration due to unrelenting nausea and/or vomiting with potential adverse consequences for the newborn(s). To learn more go to www.hyperemesis.org

I told everyone my "great" news and the joy lasted almost a whole week...then it hit like a brick...constant vomitting, dehydration, not being able to eat or drink...Over the next few weeks "The Puke Bucket" became my constant companion. If I was/am having a "great" day I might manage to eat some crackers. Perhaps, I could get a bit of apple juice down, too...but it never stays. Water became out of the question!

Alas, after three infusion center visits to get rehydrated, the PICC line was put in. That is, after two failed attempts due to spasming blood vessels.
On February 29, I received my PICC line and started in-home hydration.

The hydration and Zofran (drug normally used for chemo patients to prevent nausea) were not helping, hardly at all. It had been almost four weeks since I'd really eaten or drank so the doctor ordered TPN. TPN (Total Parenteral Nutrition) ensures that the baby and I are getting the nutrition we need.

The TPN runs for 24 hours via a pump, then the bag needs changed. Which includes adding three vials of vitamins and one vial of pepcid and one vial of Zofran to the bag. One would have thought all of this would have worked to get me feeling better and back to eating!!! Right? Wrong! In comes the Sub-Q. This "lovely" little pump puts the Zofran right under the skin in my upper leg. It runs 24 hours a day. When the site gets too irritated I have to switch to the other leg; about every 2-5 days! By the way, I hate needles, I hate pain!!

On March 18, The Zofran seems to finally be working! I ate a whole pack of crackers, yesterday!!!

As you can imagine, life goes on without you, for better or worse! The kids still need cared for (they are getting excellent full-time care at my parents house-Thank you mom and dad!), the bills keep coming, the pets want fed and watered, etc. So if you would keep my family in your prayers I would truly appreciate it! thank you:)

(Part 2 coming soon...)