I am happy, happy and oh so relieved. The lab results for my hemoglobin came in at 11.3, down from 11.6 at 15 weeks! This means that all is well and that all fears were undo. Wow. Whew. Breath.
I am not sure why my Midwives hemoglobimeter read 12.5 when it was actually 11.3 is beyond me, but it seems apparent that it may need some adjustments!
See, this whole scare for me highlights in many ways how technology can seriously interfere with the natural progression of pregnancy. I worried quite a bit for no reason at all. Though my placenta does filter out most cortisol (the stress hormone), it cannot filter it all. This means that the developing baby is victim to my worries...we have a life time to worry, the womb is not a place for such a thing!! One of my good friends had a baby last December. She sought out prenatal care with the same Midwife that helped us with Theo but refused all prenatal testing. This means that she choose not to even pee on a stick to test for proteins, glucose, specific gravity and so on. Nothing. She intuitively knew all was going to go well in pregnancy, so why add the element of testing that can and often does go wrong? I think that if I am ever pregnant again and am blessed with the same intuition that the pregnancy is perfect, I think I will forgo all testing as well.
That is not to say that prenatal tests do not have their place, because they certainly do. They are a great way to keep track of progress and to spot red flags should they appear. Thank goodness we have prenatal testing, for the times when red flags do appear, then the appropriate measures can be taken and mother and baby can almost always be spared. Who knows how many lives have been saved? Some mothers need all the possible testing done, just so they feel comfortable in their pregnancy. Some Midwives need the same. However, there are certainly many women who, like my friend, do not need them or want them and that is perfectly fine (as long as pregnancy is progressing fine from observable measures and from the testimony from her heart).
Whew! Though slightly worked up about faulty testing, I am so far beyond relieved, I feel like I am in this zen state...no cortisol reaching this womb today.
Oh, and thank you so much for those that posted comments of well-wishing...maybe you are my lucky stars!
