Absolute Terror!

Well, terror struck this morning in the form of the evil "S-word:" spotting. I was immediately thrown into a panic! I'm losing my baby! I sent ardent prayers to God, texted Aaron, and asked Sara what to do. I'd heard that some light spotting was normal, but I've never done this "support another being with my own body" thing before, so what does a word like "normal" mean to me? Sara's response confirmed my fears; better call the doctor.

I had an early morning meeting, but you can guess that I lacked that good old participant spirit requisite for and early morning idea exchange. I'd tried to call the doctor's office on the way to the borefest, but they weren't actually open until 8:30am. I had even found an email address before leaving home and attempted to seek information via electronic means (I know it was dumb, but when confronted with such profound fear, you do things that often don't make sense).

At the meeting, one coworker noticed that I was upset, asked if I was ok and I lost it all over her shoulder. Tears, snot, shakes, etc. She was incredibly supportive, offered whatever words of comfort she could. At 8:30, I made the call and spoke with a receptionist, who said that a nurse would contact me shortly. I checked my phone chronically over the next 30 minutes. Low and behold, when the nurse called, my phone never even rang; it went straight to voicemail. Grrrrrrr!

The nurse I spoke with was easily the nicest person I've never met; she will be known as an angel to me for all the comfort she offered. She asked what I had done in the previous few days and confirmed that I had simply overdone it somehow, most likely while moving/lifting totes of books. She told me that I should be on pelvic rest for a few days until everything resolved itself. Apparently, spotting can be completely normal and doesn't necessarily indicate miscarriage. I also asked her about the mild cramping I've had, which again is completely normal because things are expanding down there. So long as things don't "get worse" down there (aka. no more blood and/or extreme cramping), I'll be just fine, and so will the little kidlet in there.

Lesson learned...don't lift crap that could be deemed "a bit strenuous." It can lead to major panic attacks.