33 weeks and halfway done with radiation!

Well, it has been a challenging week in the Siebenaler House. First, my horrible cough came back - something that makes us very nervous because a strenuous cough can easily cause a bleed. We've been doing so well without bleeding, I'd hate for something to happen now. Then, to top it all off, Wednesday night I perforated one eardrum. I have not done that as an adult, I'm sure I did as a baby, but it is EXTREMELY painful. I'd much rather be in labor than go through that kind of pain. It also produces a sticky discharge and a buzzing/ringing in your ear. All of it is just horrible. I thought I'd seen the worst of it. Then, 24 hours later, I perforated the other eardrum. If one is painful, two is nearly unbearable. There is no postion, sitting, standing, lying down, crawling, nothing makes the pain lessen. It just plain hurts. Although most people think that there's no medication I can take because of the pregnancy, that's not really true. There are a few medications that are safe, especially because I'm so far along and the baby is mostly developed. So fortunately I do have some medication. I saw the ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat) Doctor today and he tested my hearing because I am suffering from hearing loss. Everything should return to normal once the ear infections (and my sinus infection - to add insult to injury) have cleared up. Unfortunately, because I am pregnant, we have no idea how my body will react to the antibiotic so we're not exactly sure when the pain will start to subside on its own. Right now, it hurts a lot, particularly once the pain medicine wears off and it's time for another dose. I hope the antibiotic kicks in soon. You're probably wondering how on earth I could bust both eardrums just lying around on bed rest. I guess it's just all the pressure that has built up in my ears because of allergies and sinus infection and finally my ears just had enough. And now they are showing their disapproval. :)

On a side note, Grandma Belle flew home last Saturday and prior to leaving was experiencing some of the same allergy/cold symptoms that I was having and she also perforated one of her eardrums on the airplane flying back. What are the odds? At least we can commiserate together. Poor thing. And she is still going to work with the pain. I can barely concentrate on a TV show.

I also saw my OB doctor today for a checkup. Everything looks good there. I had her check and double check my medications and any drug interactions and everything that I'm taking is fine. The baby's heartbeat is fine and the height of the fundus is right on track. (The height of the fundus is measured in centimeters from the top of the pubic bone to the top of the uterus with a tape measure. The number of centimeters should be the same number of weeks that you are pregnant. This tells the doctor that the baby is growing fine and everything is on track - isn't that incredible? I wonder who figured that out... It's almost like the thing where you can measure the length of your foot on your forearm. Just crazy!) On Monday I will see the High Risk Doctor and pending his schedule we will be able to tentatively decide on a c-section date. Stay tuned and I'll let you know. I think we'll have the baby just in time for Mother's Day - a perfect Mother's Day gift.

Dad has completed exactly 15 treatments of radiation and has 15 more to go! That's the most exciting news of the day... he sounds good. According to the doctors the half way mark can really be a turning point for patients, it might really start getting more difficult and painful so I'm praying that everything stays as smooth as it has been. Only 3 more weeks for both of us!!!

Thanks to everyone that helped out this week. Especially Mishial. I think she was over every day for a shift or part of a shift or something. So nice. I can't begin to convey how appreciative we are. And it's nice seeing her so much.