Saturday, May 9, 2009

I'm not crazy!

Okay the jury is probably still out that I'm not totally crazy but at least I'm not going out of my mind! Several weeks ago, before I was admitted into the hospital, I started having this severe itching from head to toe. It has gotten so bad that I practically scratched my skin raw. Well it got to the point they would give me benedryl to try to stop the itching. I tried to go through everything like what soap and lotion I used, what I ate, and detergents but I couldn't figure it out. I started thinking it was in my head but the other day one of the doctors said lets do some blood work. I didn't think anything was really wrong but what harm could there be in giving a little blood. Well today the doctor came in and said my bio acids test came back elevated and I had cholestasis of pregnancy. This is when pregnancy hormones affect how well the gallbladder functions. Sometimes, pregnancy hormones slow or even stop the flow of bile. Eventually, this excess bile may enter the bloodstream. This is apparently what causes the uncontrollable itching. I asked if this affects the babies in any way and they said that if it goes undiagnosed there is a risk of fetal death. The doctor felt that our babies are okay because they are monitored everyday and we know their heartbeats are good and they have good movement. They started me on a medication today to help control it so keep your fingers crossed that it will go away. The good thing is it only occurs during pregnancy and resolves itself a few days after delivery.

5 comments:

Jess said...

Bless your heart! On top of everything else...girrrl...you must just be really lucky. :) Happy Mother's Day!

Ann said...

Wow! Who knew 3 babies would throw your body for such a loop. Hang in there!

Unknown said...

as i was reading the beginning i was thinking maybe this is what seth has b/c he's been itching and i've done that whole go through the soap and etc...so i was excited for a minute until it was because those little guys inside of you...he definetly doesn't have babies in him...haha. i hope it gets better!

KT said...

It's amazing how much trouble those little gall bladders can cause...Glad you figured out the mystery!

Anonymous said...

I also had cholestasis of pregnancy. It really did go away shortly after delivery. I found staying cool and using Keri lotion helped. Good luck! Your doing a great job growing those babies.
amy b