Now, let me start off by saying that my pregnancy was not considered uneventful, but I also don’t personally consider it a “high risk” one, either. Sure, the last 4 weeks of my pregnancy were spent on early dismissal from the demands of ICU bedside nursing, and yes I saw a high-risk fetal medicine doctor every single week for being on “pre-eclampsia watch.” After my weekly OB appointment, I was sent downstairs to the docs with the big guns. They hooked me up to the external fetal monitoring set-up (for those who want technical terms: the tocodynamometer which measures uterine contractions/activity and the ultrasound transducer to monitor baby’s heart rate) then brought me into the ultrasound room for a quick scan to measure the placenta and amniotic fluid levels. But, after each appointment, everything seemed completely on track. I didn’t necessarily “feel” high-risk, even though we were labeled as such. 

That was me. However, going into a routine run-of-the-mill OB appointment can quickly turn any soon-to-be parent to panic-mode once your OB says with that concerned-but-trying-to-still-sound-upbeat tone, “well, just to be sure, we’re going to send you to high-risk fetal medicine to run some tests to make sure that {insert reason for concern} is okay…” Your OB may want you to see them immediately, the same day, or no later than the next day. Either way, thoughts of panic begin to flood your mind as the room starts spinning and you feel your face turn flush with anxiety. As your heart begins to race, you think to yourself, well if the baby’s heart rate wasn’t high enough before, it certainly must be NOW!

So What Does it Mean to be Considered “High Risk”? Continue reading “What is a “High-Risk Pregnancy”?” »