Feel it on my fingertips

I had my second official pregnancy freak-out yesterday (the first happened when I got the genetic screening results, as you may remember). The baby was moving sluggishly all night and all morning, and for this baby, that is highly unusual. All the normal tricks weren't working: drinking juice, lying on my side, pushing on various body parts to annoy him, etc. I kept thinking it was most likely nothing but couldn't concentrate because I wasn't sure.

So, off I went to the doctor's office, where, upon walking in, I dissolved into a teary mess. Luckily, the women at the office are nothing if not used to teary women, so they calmly asked what they could do for me and basically acted like my behavior was totally normal, which was consoling of them. Within minutes, I was on a monitor to track the baby's heart and movement rates.

And wouldn't you know? As soon as I got on the table and fitted with the monitor, the baby started his usual acrobatics. So now here I am, feeling weepy and foolish, all at the same time. My usual doctor wasn't in at first, but then they tracked her down. Since she was only over in another wing of the hospital, she came right over. After 20 minutes on the monitor, it was clear that the baby was doing fine, with a strong, normal, healthy heart rate and normal movements. Big sigh of relief. HUGE!

She also told me that while I was on the table, I had had three contractions, totally unbeknownst to me, which made me feel quite relieved since all along I have been maintaining that if I am having contractions, I certainly can't feel them, and since I didn't feel any of these three, this felt like proof that I am not insane. According to the doctor, when the contractions are "clinically significant," I'll know, so it doesn't matter that they appear to be happening all the time without my knowledge.

So, in short, it was nothing. But I figured I was due to have some sort of melt-down or mini crisis since I have been on a relatively even keel so far. The nurses agreed with me, actually, declaring that in the final weeks the hormones are simply too much to handle and any anxiety becomes major anxiety, so this was only to be expected. Have I mentioned how much I like this clinic and all is employees? They are fabulous!