ChezPerky

I’ve gotten a lot of google hits lately. Not surprisingly, a lot of them have revolved around the sextuplets. Actually, come to think of it, that does surprise me a little, because I wouldn’t think my blog would end up high on the list of hits in a sextuplet search, but even so, I’m not surprised people have been searching for it. So I decided it’s time to play another round of recent keyword searches. Some I’ve gotten have been predictable, some have been profoundly sad, and some have been profoundly hilarious. I’ll let you decide which is which.

Perky ovaries: Well, this one is predictable and is always high on the list. I actually don’t quite understand it. I’m going to have to assume that it is people who have heard of my blog but can’t remember the URL so they’re search for me specifically, because, really, who else would be searching for the term, “perky ovaries”??? (there was also a search for “my perkie ovaries” which I’m guessing really was someone looking for me specifically)

Morrison sextuplets stupid, Morrison sextuplets, Minnesota sextuplet, sextuplets Briana latest remaining, sextuplets and Morrison, Morrison sextuplets Minnesota, sextuplets Minnesota died, Morrison sextuplets reduction god: Actually, I do find this interesting… notice that the common trend isn’t just that it’s sextuplets? It’s specifically searches for the Morrison sextuplets that are leading people to my blog. Interesting. You can see that some people have formed opinions (as did I) before they’ve even finished googling. I don’t think it’s entirely fair to characterize the Morrisons as “stupid” though admittedly, I did characterize their doctors as “reckless” before I knew the whole story. I am so very sad for the Morrisons. Jody raised a very good point in her comment to my second sextuplet post: “Curiously enough, I don’t think there are very many examples of people taking crazy risks when they conceive their HOM pregnancies, although that’s certainly the spin the issue gets in every book and scholarly article written. Time after time, you see people making careful decisions and being screwed or surprised by the outcome. It seems to me that more needs to be written about that — that the conception of HOMs often happens against the best intentions and practices of the patients and doctors alike.” We would do well to remember that we haven’t lived the lives of the Morrisons (or the Masches, for that matter) or their doctors, and we can’t know what choices were made under what circumstances with what level of input, research and consideration. I made choices in this triplet pregnancy that not everyone agrees with, but they were my choices.

Pregnant with triplets belly pics, expanding pregnant belly photos, triplets pregnancy pics, clomid miracle triplets photos, pictures of a woman pregnant with quads, triplet belly shot: Still not gonna happen. I’m not planning to post belly shots, at least not yet. However, Jody and others HAVE convinced me that I need to at least take the occasional belly shot for my own sake, so I DO have one or two sitting on my digital camera, and I’ll have my husband take another this week. Maybe at the very, very end I’ll post a picture or two. But not now. Now I just feel like a giant freak, even though I know I’m not. However, I’ve also gotten bunches of searches for things like triplet ultrasound pictures and the like, and those I do post when I find the time to scan them. I have nine billion ultrasound pictures, so I really only post them when there have been really significant changes and they’re feeling particularly photogenic that day, but I don’t have any problem showing off my exhibitionist babies.

1st trimester spotting sneeze: Er… so I’m guessing when you sneeze, you’re spotting? Are you sure it’s really spotting and not just “leaking” a bit? Well, my guess, to be honest, is that it’s a combination. Spotting in the first trimester is really common. I didn’t just spot in the first trimester for either of my pregnancies, I had all-out bleeding for most of the first trimester both times (admittedly, the first time I didn’t make it past the first trimester, but that was unrelated to the bleeding). However, spotting is normal. So is “leaking” a bit of pee when you sneeze. My guess is that you’re noticing the spotting more when you sneeze because you’re “leaking” at the same time. I hear kegels help that, but it never really worked for me.

Pulsating pain in left ovary: never having experienced this, and not wanting to dispense medical advice, I’ll simply say you should mention it to your doctor.

What does it feel like to be pregnant with triplets: Honestly? Well, I’m only in my 20th week, and so I can’t say I know the whole story (but check in with Jody at http://raisingweg.typepad.com who has triplets who just finished kindergarten!), but so far? It’s pretty darned exhausting. From what I can tell, it’s like a singleton pregnancy, but on super-speed. The exhaustion is for sure three times worse and that second-trimester energy burst doesn’t happen. Nausea varies for everyone, but for me is for sure three times worse. At 20ish weeks I’m still taking Zofran so that I can keep food down, whereas with a singleton pregnancy, one would expect that nausea would go away around 12 or 13 weeks. You have all the aches and pains of a singleton pregnancy, but sooner. I started having contractions at 15 weeks, round ligament pain at 16 or 17 weeks, hip pain even earlier than that, heartburn around 17 weeks (and it’s only getting WORSE), sciatica around 17 weeks, and all sorts of fun. On the other hand, at some point, I’ll probably be able to distinguish the three babies’ movements, which is something singleton moms never get to experience. Right now I can tell when Baby A is moving because he/she is literally punching my cervix regularly (which freaking HURTS!!), but the other two are indistinguishable from one another, though I suspect I’m mostly feeling baby B, since he/she is the more active of the two (baby C is kind of squished in the corner and seems pretty docile). I admit that talking about what it “feels” like to be pregnant with triplets isn’t particularly pleasant sounding, because it’s NOT the most pleasant feeling. Everything is uncomfortable, and it’s going to be that way for a good, long while. On the other hand, it is surreal and interesting and unique, and I feel very blessed even though 10 weeks ago, I would not have believed you if you’d told me I would soon refer to myself as “blessed” to be feeling this way.

Ivf ohss walking: Fortunately for me, I can’t help you there. Unfortunately for her, I suggest you contact Akeeyu who has the misfortune of personal experience in this arena. http://herveryown.typepad.com

Can ovary get loose come out: hehwha? Well, okay. There are two ways to read this question. No, it’s not going to fall out, if that’s what you’re asking. But the ovaries are attached to the uterus via a ligament, I believe, and I imagine that ligament could become severed through trauma or some such thing. What I don’t know is the medical ramifications of such a detachment. My guess is that the only real ramifications would be fertility-related, unless there was significant trauma involved, but I’m not a doctor and I don’t play one on TV.

What to expect from two gestational sacs one without a heartbeat: well, that depends on when you had the ultrasound. At my third ultrasound, I had three gestational sacs, and one heartbeat. But it was only barely at the point where you could theoretically visualize a heartbeat. I was told then to expect to have a singleton pregnancy, but I didn’t think that would be the case. Four days later, I had three gestational sacs and three heartbeats and it has remained three ever since. But I don’t know when you had your ultrasound. If you had that ultrasound at 8 or 9 weeks, it’s unlikely that a second heartbeat will materialize. If you had that ultrasound at 5 weeks, 5 days, anything could happen. I hope that everything turned out for the very best for you.

Pregnant topomax: You found my blog because you, like me, misspelled Topamax, which drives my pharmacist husband crazy. Anyway, this is a question you have to speak with your doctor about. I believe Topamax is Pregnancy Category D, so it’s a question of weighing the risk benefit ratio. Obviously if you have seizures, you have to keep them under control. If, like me, you have migraines, you have to consider the level of debilitation you are suffering, but this risk/benefit analysis must be considered with your doctor, not unilaterally, as this is not something you want to take into your own hands, particularly in early pregnancy. Most anticonvulsants are particularly problematic in early pregnancy, which is why I suffered through my first trimester in tears a lot of the time. I am now taking a very low dose of Topamax. It’s not a therapeutic dose, but it is helping a little bit. I cannot, however, emphasize enough that this is not something to decide without consulting your physician or physicians. Involve your OB and your neurologist, and encourage them to communicate with each other if you can.

Expecting triplets risks debate: I try not to get into this too much, to be honest. I had very specific personal medical risks to consider and those were the concerns I focused on in my own decision-making process. If you look through my “reduction discussion” tag you’ll see some of that debate. Jody’s blog also has some good facts and sources. Mostly I relied on PubMed and my husband’s ability to pull full medical journal articles from the medical library at the hospital he works at. I tried not to pull information randomly from the internet. I wanted true, quantifiable medical studies about triplets, prematurity, reduction, and my specific medical conditions.

How ovaries make triplet babies: Now, I know this was a serious question, but I literally almost snarfed when I read this one. Anyway, there are a couple of ways that triplets get made… either your ovary produces multiple eggs in an ovulatory cycle (producing fraternal, or trizygotic triplets) or (more rarely) your ovary produces one egg which spontaneously splits into three zygotes after fertilization (monozygotic, or identical, triplets). You can also have a combination (two eggs, one of which splits once), which is the most common configuration of triplets for spontaneous triplets (vs. fertility-assisted triplets which are more commonly trizygotic). Also with IVF, you can transfer multiple embryos into the uterine environment resulting in multiple gestations, though do note that monozygotic twinning is more common with IVF than with spontaneous pregnancies, interestingly enough.

Insurance okayed ivf but not iui: I gotta tell you, if they’re going to deny one but not the other, that’s the way to go. An IUI cycle at my clinic (without meds) runs about $2000 if you don’t have insurance. An IVF cycle at my clinic (without meds) if you don’t have insurance runs about $10K.

When will I deliver my triplets? Average gestation for triplets in the US is 32 or 33 weeks depending on who you ask. My perinatology practice doesn’t let most of their triplet patients go beyond 34 ½ weeks because they find the babies do better on the outside than the inside after that point (particularly with me, because I’m short). They won’t let me go past 34 weeks, which is fine by me. My practice historically does get the majority of their triplet patients to 34 weeks, with only a couple of exceptions per year (they deliver about 15 sets of triplets per year) I do know women with triplets who have gone to 35 and 36 weeks and I’ve heard of women with triplets who have gone to 37 and 38 weeks, though I can’t for the life of me figure out WHY or HOW.

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I’ve gotten a lot of google hits lately. Not surprisingly, a lot of them have revolved around the sextuplets. Actually, come to think of it, that does surprise me a little, because I wouldn’t think my blog would end up high on the list of hits in a sextuplet search, but even so, I’m not surprised people have been searching for it. So I decided it’s time to play another round of recent keyword searches. Some I’ve gotten have been predictable, some have been profoundly sad, and some have been profoundly hilarious. I’ll let you decide which is which.

Perky ovaries: Well, this one is predictable and is always high on the list. I actually don’t quite understand it. I’m going to have to assume that it is people who have heard of my blog but can’t remember the URL so they’re search for me specifically, because, really, who else would be searching for the term, “perky ovaries”??? (there was also a search for “my perkie ovaries” which I’m guessing really was someone looking for me specifically)

Morrison sextuplets stupid, Morrison sextuplets, Minnesota sextuplet, sextuplets Briana latest remaining, sextuplets and Morrison, Morrison sextuplets Minnesota, sextuplets Minnesota died, Morrison sextuplets reduction god: Actually, I do find this interesting… notice that the common trend isn’t just that it’s sextuplets? It’s specifically searches for the Morrison sextuplets that are leading people to my blog. Interesting. You can see that some people have formed opinions (as did I) before they’ve even finished googling. I don’t think it’s entirely fair to characterize the Morrisons as “stupid” though admittedly, I did characterize their doctors as “reckless” before I knew the whole story. I am so very sad for the Morrisons. Jody raised a very good point in her comment to my second sextuplet post: “Curiously enough, I don't think there are very many examples of people taking crazy risks when they conceive their HOM pregnancies, although that's certainly the spin the issue gets in every book and scholarly article written. Time after time, you see people making careful decisions and being screwed or surprised by the outcome. It seems to me that more needs to be written about that — that the conception of HOMs often happens against the best intentions and practices of the patients and doctors alike.” We would do well to remember that we haven’t lived the lives of the Morrisons (or the Masches, for that matter) or their doctors, and we can’t know what choices were made under what circumstances with what level of input, research and consideration. I made choices in this triplet pregnancy that not everyone agrees with, but they were my choices.

Pregnant with triplets belly pics, expanding pregnant belly photos, triplets pregnancy pics, clomid miracle triplets photos, pictures of a woman pregnant with quads, triplet belly shot: Still not gonna happen. I’m not planning to post belly shots, at least not yet. However, Jody and others HAVE convinced me that I need to at least take the occasional belly shot for my own sake, so I DO have one or two sitting on my digital camera, and I’ll have my husband take another this week. Maybe at the very, very end I’ll post a picture or two. But not now. Now I just feel like a giant freak, even though I know I’m not. However, I’ve also gotten bunches of searches for things like triplet ultrasound pictures and the like, and those I do post when I find the time to scan them. I have nine billion ultrasound pictures, so I really only post them when there have been really significant changes and they’re feeling particularly photogenic that day, but I don’t have any problem showing off my exhibitionist babies.

1st trimester spotting sneeze: Er… so I’m guessing when you sneeze, you’re spotting? Are you sure it’s really spotting and not just “leaking” a bit? Well, my guess, to be honest, is that it’s a combination. Spotting in the first trimester is really common. I didn’t just spot in the first trimester for either of my pregnancies, I had all-out bleeding for most of the first trimester both times (admittedly, the first time I didn’t make it past the first trimester, but that was unrelated to the bleeding). However, spotting is normal. So is “leaking” a bit of pee when you sneeze. My guess is that you’re noticing the spotting more when you sneeze because you’re “leaking” at the same time. I hear kegels help that, but it never really worked for me.

Pulsating pain in left ovary: never having experienced this, and not wanting to dispense medical advice, I’ll simply say you should mention it to your doctor.

What does it feel like to be pregnant with triplets: Honestly? Well, I’m only in my 20th week, and so I can’t say I know the whole story (but check in with Jody at http://raisingweg.typepad.com who has triplets who just finished kindergarten!), but so far? It’s pretty darned exhausting. From what I can tell, it’s like a singleton pregnancy, but on super-speed. The exhaustion is for sure three times worse and that second-trimester energy burst doesn’t happen. Nausea varies for everyone, but for me is for sure three times worse. At 20ish weeks I’m still taking Zofran so that I can keep food down, whereas with a singleton pregnancy, one would expect that nausea would go away around 12 or 13 weeks. You have all the aches and pains of a singleton pregnancy, but sooner. I started having contractions at 15 weeks, round ligament pain at 16 or 17 weeks, hip pain even earlier than that, heartburn around 17 weeks (and it’s only getting WORSE), sciatica around 17 weeks, and all sorts of fun. On the other hand, at some point, I’ll probably be able to distinguish the three babies’ movements, which is something singleton moms never get to experience. Right now I can tell when Baby A is moving because he/she is literally punching my cervix regularly (which freaking HURTS!!), but the other two are indistinguishable from one another, though I suspect I’m mostly feeling baby B, since he/she is the more active of the two (baby C is kind of squished in the corner and seems pretty docile). I admit that talking about what it “feels” like to be pregnant with triplets isn’t particularly pleasant sounding, because it’s NOT the most pleasant feeling. Everything is uncomfortable, and it’s going to be that way for a good, long while. On the other hand, it is surreal and interesting and unique, and I feel very blessed even though 10 weeks ago, I would not have believed you if you’d told me I would soon refer to myself as “blessed” to be feeling this way.

Ivf ohss walking: Fortunately for me, I can’t help you there. Unfortunately for her, I suggest you contact Akeeyu who has the misfortune of personal experience in this arena. http://herveryown.typepad.com

Can ovary get loose come out: hehwha? Well, okay. There are two ways to read this question. No, it’s not going to fall out, if that’s what you’re asking. But the ovaries are attached to the uterus via a ligament, I believe, and I imagine that ligament could become severed through trauma or some such thing. What I don’t know is the medical ramifications of such a detachment. My guess is that the only real ramifications would be fertility-related, unless there was significant trauma involved, but I’m not a doctor and I don’t play one on TV.

What to expect from two gestational sacs one without a heartbeat: well, that depends on when you had the ultrasound. At my third ultrasound, I had three gestational sacs, and one heartbeat. But it was only barely at the point where you could theoretically visualize a heartbeat. I was told then to expect to have a singleton pregnancy, but I didn’t think that would be the case. Four days later, I had three gestational sacs and three heartbeats and it has remained three ever since. But I don’t know when you had your ultrasound. If you had that ultrasound at 8 or 9 weeks, it’s unlikely that a second heartbeat will materialize. If you had that ultrasound at 5 weeks, 5 days, anything could happen. I hope that everything turned out for the very best for you.

Pregnant topomax: You found my blog because you, like me, misspelled Topamax, which drives my pharmacist husband crazy. Anyway, this is a question you have to speak with your doctor about. I believe Topamax is Pregnancy Category D, so it’s a question of weighing the risk benefit ratio. Obviously if you have seizures, you have to keep them under control. If, like me, you have migraines, you have to consider the level of debilitation you are suffering, but this risk/benefit analysis must be considered with your doctor, not unilaterally, as this is not something you want to take into your own hands, particularly in early pregnancy. Most anticonvulsants are particularly problematic in early pregnancy, which is why I suffered through my first trimester in tears a lot of the time. I am now taking a very low dose of Topamax. It’s not a therapeutic dose, but it is helping a little bit. I cannot, however, emphasize enough that this is not something to decide without consulting your physician or physicians. Involve your OB and your neurologist, and encourage them to communicate with each other if you can.

Expecting triplets risks debate: I try not to get into this too much, to be honest. I had very specific personal medical risks to consider and those were the concerns I focused on in my own decision-making process. If you look through my “reduction discussion” tag you’ll see some of that debate. Jody’s blog also has some good facts and sources. Mostly I relied on PubMed and my husband’s ability to pull full medical journal articles from the medical library at the hospital he works at. I tried not to pull information randomly from the internet. I wanted true, quantifiable medical studies about triplets, prematurity, reduction, and my specific medical conditions.

How ovaries make triplet babies: Now, I know this was a serious question, but I literally almost snarfed when I read this one. Anyway, there are a couple of ways that triplets get made… either your ovary produces multiple eggs in an ovulatory cycle (producing fraternal, or trizygotic triplets) or (more rarely) your ovary produces one egg which spontaneously splits into three zygotes after fertilization (monozygotic, or identical, triplets). You can also have a combination (two eggs, one of which splits once), which is the most common configuration of triplets for spontaneous triplets (vs. fertility-assisted triplets which are more commonly trizygotic). Also with IVF, you can transfer multiple embryos into the uterine environment resulting in multiple gestations, though do note that monozygotic twinning is more common with IVF than with spontaneous pregnancies, interestingly enough.

Insurance okayed ivf but not iui: I gotta tell you, if they’re going to deny one but not the other, that’s the way to go. An IUI cycle at my clinic (without meds) runs about $2000 if you don’t have insurance. An IVF cycle at my clinic (without meds) if you don’t have insurance runs about $10K.

When will I deliver my triplets? Average gestation for triplets in the US is 32 or 33 weeks depending on who you ask. My perinatology practice doesn’t let most of their triplet patients go beyond 34 ½ weeks because they find the babies do better on the outside than the inside after that point (particularly with me, because I’m short). They won’t let me go past 34 weeks, which is fine by me. My practice historically does get the majority of their triplet patients to 34 weeks, with only a couple of exceptions per year (they deliver about 15 sets of triplets per year) I do know women with triplets who have gone to 35 and 36 weeks and I’ve heard of women with triplets who have gone to 37 and 38 weeks, though I can’t for the life of me figure out WHY or HOW.

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