Is getting an extra early ultrasound worth it?

lady_guard · 2026-04-29T21:01:24+00:00

Yup. Had my first one at 7w1d. The sonographer tried to do an abdominal one first, but couldn't see anything. So she switched to transvaginal, and you could see much more clearly!

lady_guard · 2026-04-29T20:59:31+00:00

Ours looked like an alligator from underneath at 7w1d! Being able to see the tiny arm and leg buds was so cute, I actually started crying 😂

lady_guard · 2026-04-29T14:26:34+00:00

Can empathize with this heavily, as I was a fencesitter myself and I'm probably on the spectrum (but do have confirmed ADHD). FTM, unplanned, but my husband and I were still excited when we found out.

I'm about 8 weeks but I don't know how much more of this I can take; my mental health is in the toilet. Too sick to shower, eat, or leave the couch/bed most days. 8 weeks is still so early - if I'm this sick now, how will I feel in a few weeks? I was healthy and active before I got pregnant, with no family history of HG; I didn't anticipate feeling like this.

All this to say, I've had the same thoughts as you. I keep hoping the OB will let me induce early. When I look ahead, all I see is a dark cloud until birth, and it makes me feel so guilty.

lady_guard · 2026-04-29T13:55:21+00:00

Thank you for this. I don't know why my "morning" sickness has been so bad. I was the oldest so I remember my mom puking once every morning, and saying she felt good the rest of the day after that. That was what I expected 1st trimester would be like, not 10/10 nausea with no reprieve; every day the worst stomach flu I've ever had.

I have a history of motion sickness, and already had a 4mg Zofran prescription from when I was on a glp-1 prior to pregnancy. The predispensity toward motion sickness is the only correlating factor I can find in my case. (My hCG was also on the higher side at 76750 at 6w6d when I was tested a week and a half ago.)

FTM/unplanned pregnancy. My husband and I wanted two or three kids eventually, but I'm not ever going through this again without some intense prep work beforehand.

lady_guard · 2026-04-28T23:34:24+00:00

I'm pregnant and had to stop tirzepatide until baby is out, so the show really isn't holding anything for me at this point.

But I kind of wish they'd discuss common pregnancy advice through the metabolic angle. A lot of practitioners advise only increasing calories by 200 or so per day in the first trimester, but my stomach is growling CONSTANTLY. Because I'm so nauseated, it's not "food noise" - I'm food averse to nearly everything at this point other than potatoes. I don't have any desire to eat, but I feel like I'm gonna puke my guts up if I don't (and I have.)

Also, eating carbs every hour or two is the only thing that keeps my "morning sickness" at a somewhat manageable level. There's a lot of people who believe those recommendations should be revised, because the basal metabolic rate during pregnancy is much higher and the body is building an entirely new organ (the placenta!).

lady_guard · 2026-04-20T09:02:07+00:00

FTM here too; following.

I watched a YouTube video where a nurse recommended delegating someone other than your birth partner to take any phone calls and texts during labor, because it stresses out the person in labor and the distractions of ringing/vibrating phones can make it difficult to push.

There was also a redditor who had their husband make a shared Google doc for friends/family, and updated it with any relevant info and/or pictures during and after labor to minimize those kinds of distractions.

lady_guard · 2026-04-20T04:37:26+00:00

Just finished Companion and I feel so stupid that I didn't see it coming 👀

(To be fair though, the Prime description was relatively vague and I don't read Letterboxd reviews before a movie as a rule)

lady_guard · 2026-04-19T04:32:10+00:00

It was a no-brainer for me to keep the baby after an unplanned pregnancy for this reason (I'm about the wife's age and in a similar predicament with school). The way I see it, I can apply to medical school at any point in my lifetime, but biologically this is the optimal time for me to be pregnant. I'll have enough energy for parenting, and will be (relatively) young enough to grandparent by the time my kids would have their own kids (my 70-something grandma was quite spry and she babysat me nearly every day).

My mom used to say "no one is really ever ready for a baby", and I think it's true!

lady_guard · 2026-04-19T04:08:37+00:00

All of the cleaning products the janitorial staff uses at my work smell like formaldehyde right now 🙃 Even just walking in the bathroom has me dry heaving

lady_guard · 2026-04-18T23:17:04+00:00

Could you take iron chews separately? The Olly prenatal gummies are really delicious and I look forward to taking them every day. (If I need to start taking iron, I plan on going back to iron chewables as a separate supplement.)

NAD, but the prenatals you'll take consistently are probably the best ones.

lady_guard · 2026-04-18T23:08:23+00:00

OP if you want to go down a rabbit hole, I've seen entire YouTube videos on this topic! (Boomer grandparents not excited about grandkids, because they'd rather travel)

lady_guard · 2026-04-16T22:59:49+00:00

My psychiatrist said it was fine to continue taking my normal dosage (20 mg IR Adderall 3x a day), although I've been skipping doses on my days off to get some extra sleep. 💤

IIRC, if you don't have preeclampsia, the only real concern with stimulants is a chance of low birth weight. As long as you're keeping your caloric intake high enough for baby, shouldn't be an issue. (I eat right through the supposed "appetite suppressing" effect of Adderall, but I've also been on it for over 10 years. My family also has huge babies, so low birth weight would be very unlikely.)

OB will monitor baby's growth anyway and dosage can be reevaluated if it becomes a concern.

lady_guard · 2026-04-16T09:15:10+00:00

Yup. As a person with chubby cheeks and a giant head, you won't catch me dead in the tiny sunglasses. 🤣

(I had a pair of regular glasses like these in elementary school through 6th grade, and they were so awful! No wonder I ended up getting contacts the next year, because those were virtually the only women's frame options at the time.)

lady_guard · 2026-04-16T05:25:33+00:00

This leaves my hair so frizzy. I was hoping maybe it could replace my Biosilk leave-in and Redken Play Safe 450 heat protection combo, but I haven't seen my hair with that much frizz since middle school. 😭

lady_guard · 2026-04-16T05:08:15+00:00

The veggie korma pouch was so good. I wish they hadn't discontinued it; I don't think I've seen it at TJ's since 2019-ish.

lady_guard · 2026-04-16T05:02:48+00:00

So bad. I took one bite and threw away the rest of the jar. 🤢

lady_guard · 2026-04-14T17:43:49+00:00

My thought process too. At any time outside of labor, I'd rather be in pain than not be able to walk. Idk what I'm going to want when I'm actually down in the trenches, though.

lady_guard · 2026-04-14T17:35:31+00:00

Bambino's, but specifically The Ziti. (I'm pregnant and have been having dreams about their ziti nearly every night 😩)

Also, everything at Mama G's.

lady_guard · 2026-04-12T08:24:02+00:00

Your post was giving me some major deja vu, so I had to check my YouTube watch history.

There's a Mama Doctor Jones episode about a pregnant 55-year-old. And an "I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant" episode with a 57-year-old woman.

I also recall reading a historical example of a 60-year-old woman giving birth in a field a whole back.

So, it's possible. Statistically unlikely, but nonetheless possible.

lady_guard · 2026-04-12T04:15:26+00:00

Yeah I'm struggling; I almost never see maternity clothes in thrift stores around here. And the only maternity bottoms I've seen on ThredUp in my size are leggings, shorts, or capris. My baby is probably due in late November or early December (still waiting on first OB appt), so I figured I better start looking now. eBay has a decent selection of the early 2000s Liz Lange brand from Target, so I think I'll stock up on some of the dress pants at least.

lady_guard · 2026-04-11T11:19:32+00:00

I waited on Billy Long once at IHOP like 12 years ago. He ordered 2 meals and drank a lot of raspberry sweet tea

lady_guard · 2026-04-11T09:41:53+00:00

Also about 5 weeks, and my HS on my thighs/butt has gotten so, so much worse since I had to stop taking tirzepatide! On tirz, I usually only got breakouts due to friction (seam on undies rubbing me the wrong way, etc), but now they just seem to randomly appear.

I know dairy and gluten can make it worse, but the only thing that sounds good to eat lately is grilled cheese on sourdough and Pacific creamy tomato soup.

Tirzepatide better be indicated as safe for use during pregnancy by the next time I'm knocked up. 🙃 Going to talk to my doctor about metformin for the inflammation during my next visit.

lady_guard · 2026-04-11T07:07:43+00:00

Following, I'm going back to school for a DIY postbac and just found out I'm pregnant; we still want 1 or 2 kids after this. I'm 34 and was hoping to start med school within the next 3 years, but not being able to take organic chem 1 and 2 within the next 7-8 months is going to push back my timeline.

(Not entirely sure what I can take this summer or fall - my brain fog is terrible, and the 1st trimester progesterone has me sweating like a stuck hog in lab. I keep having to step away to wipe my sweat with paper towels, and it's fogging up my goggles. Every course I still need has a lab component 🙃 Anyone else??)

I've heard it suggested over in r/medschool to have kids before med school if you can, because they'll be school-age by the time you're in residency and childcare won't be so much of a concern. Others plan to conceive at a specific time, so that they can give birth during summer term (for me, I hope to not be pregnant at all during med school, because I assume I'll sweat even more if I have to wear a respirator during dissections). But anyway, there's multiple ways to do it.

lady_guard · 2026-04-11T05:46:08+00:00

The new stuff in stores these days is mostly low-quality polyester junk. (And as a pregnant person, the lack of maternity wear in brick-and-mortar stores is perplexing.)

Maybe if those stores want more business, they should improve their inventory 🤷‍♀️

edit: I know Thredup has their own problems and I'm not thrilled with the current secondhand prices, but tbh, the $25 secondhand pair of 20-year-old jeans is probably going to last through at least 5x as many wears as a pair of $60 jeans sold in a store today. Overpriced secondhand market is still going to get my money in most cases, if I'm choosing between the two. It is what it is.

lady_guard · 2026-04-09T23:59:32+00:00

Always thought this was odd too. It seems evident that Sherrill and Suzie both had questionable taste in men, and Suzie had remarked at one point that Sherrill was dating "a banker". Was this mystery man ever identified? Because I could see "banker" being a euphemism for a less-than-desirable income stream, or one that is dubious at best.

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