Focus on getting these
• Protein x 3
o Milk - 24 oz (this alone fulfils calcium requirement)
o Cottage cheese - ¾ cup
o Parmesan - ½ cup
o Eggs – 3
o Yogurt (plain) – 1 ¾ cup
o Tuna – 3 ½ oz
o Chicken or Meat – 3 oz
o Tofu or Fake meat – 5 oz
• Yellow & Green x 4
o Cantaloupe slice
o Apricots – 2 dried
o Mango - ½
o Broccoli or beet or turnip greens – ¾ cup
o Carrots – 1/3 cup
o Collard greens, Kale, swiss chard – ½ cup
o Dark green leafy lettuce – 8-10
o Spinach - ½ cup cooked
o Sweet potato – ¼
• Fruits & Veggies x 2
o Apple
o Banana
o Blueberries, cherries, grapes – 2/3 cup
o Pineapple – 1 slice canned or fresh
o Asparagus – 6-7 spears
o Green beans – ¾ cup
o Mushrooms – 1 cup
o Zucchini – 2/3 cup
• Whole Grains and Legumes x 6
o Wholewheat bread – one slice
o Wild/brown rice – ½ cup
o Hot whole-grain cereal – ½ cup
o Cold whole-grain cereal – 1 cup
o Wheat germ - 2 Tbsp
o Kasha – ½ cup
o Quinoa – ½ cup
o Whole-grain pasta – ½ cup
Other things to include daily
• Vitamin C
o OJ - 1 cup
o Grapefruit - ½
• Iron
o Liver
o Kale, collards
o Potatoes with skin
o Spinach, spirulina
o Dried fruit
• Fats
o Cheese – 1 oz
o Whipped Cream – 2 Tbsp
o Whole milk – 1 cup
o Peanut butter – 1 Tbsp
o Egg yokes
o Avocado
o Tofu
o Salmon
o Meat
o Oil, margarine
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Hard to Believe
I took another pregnancy test this morning (#3) because I feel so not pregnant that I started having doubts it was true. I still have no symptoms. I worked out, went to the coffeeshop, worked, like I used to, not feeling different except a little suspicious that I was actually a moving oven, some kind of vessel. So I retook a test -- 99% accurate after the day of your period -- turns out, Im still pregnant. Im not taking another unless there is due cause. Its official for now.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
The day of discovery
That was yesterday.
Sunday night, I was taking a shower before bed and mentioned to my husband, hey, wasn't I expecting my period Friday? He shrugged (couldnt answer, was flossing). I thought about it and yes, I was definitely two days late. Nothing to write home about unless, like me, you are clock-work regular in your periods and had never missed one, compounded by the fact that this was your second month of having unprotected sex on the philosophy of "if it happens, it happens."
Its a good time for us. I am finishing medical school next year, my husband has part-time employment and is finishing law school next year. Being students in our final year, we have time to care for a baby before crazy-busy work years start. We have some savings. We are in our late twenties, feeling closer to thirty than to college. It just seemed like the right time. My husband adores kids. All shapes and sizes. Hes a really masculine man but somehow never fails to become putty when children are around. I however never wanted one. No biological clock. No feeling of awwww look at the baayybeee. So Ive put the breaks on for a few years. But we had talked about this before marriage, and assuming my feelings were going to change over the years, I agreed to have at least one child and see if I liked it (if so, sure Ill have more. If not, one it is). My husband and I dated for two years, were engaged for one, married 4.5, and here we were at a convenient point, so I stopped the birth control and figured Id try it.
My husband is a non-alarmist. While Im thinking all this over as I towel off, he spits out the toothpaste and said, why dont you take one of those pregnancy tests tomorrow morning. I wanted to take one that moment, but knowing how the test is more accurate with the morning urine, I ok'ed the plan. We took it out and put it on the countertop for morning. I surveyed my body: breasts the same size, no nausea, feel about the same mentally; and arent women supposed to just "know." So I was pretty sure I wasnt pregnant. Sure enough to go to bed and sleep as usual.
It wasn't just 1-2-3 you know. I stopped the birth control back in April, but didnt get my period for seven months. Being in medicine is helpful since it allows me to know -- or at least look up -- what is normal and what is done when. Up to 6 months of amenorrhea after coming off years of oral contraceptives is normal. You can wait up to 12 months even for it to come back naturally. If the woman wants to get pregnant, docs can jump-start the process by giving a progesterone challenge to peel the uterine lining away and make her have a period. As the nurse so nicely said, referring to my uterus, "we're just kicking the old TV set." Lovely. Five days on progesterone and I bled, come next month, normal period. Now the month after, silence.
I went down to the kitchen and let the dog out. Boiled some water for tea and made myself a bowl of cereal. I went into the bathroom and peed on the little stick, capped it, laid it on the table, washed my hands and glanced at my watch to note the time. Back in the kitchen I filled my cereal bowl with milk and crunched away watching Morning Joe. After a few minutes I popped in on the test. One solid blue line, the control line, was obvious, but a faint blue line beside it made me go over and turn on the bathroom light to look more closely. Definitely a faint blue line. Now, I know thats a positive result, but there's always the thought of, "did I do it right?" A little urine had splashed on the indicator window and I wasnt sure if it invalidated the test. I went back to my cereal and googled it. Common question and it seems like as long as you get the control line, youre cool. And while a negative result can be wrong (too early to tell etc), a positive result almost never is.
The dog comes in, snowy, and we troop upstairs in the dark to where my husband is still sleeping. I dont know how I feel at this point. A little blank I guess. "Babe." He turns over in bed but doent open his eyes. "Babe. Its positive." "Whats positive?" I can feel his mind struggling against sleep, knowing this is important. He opens his eyes and looks at me with full understanding. "Really?? You sure?" I explained how Im not sure but I figure we'll go get a second one at the drugstore and confirm. I can see his suppressed excitement -- suppressed because hes not sure if this is true and if so it would be one of the biggest moments of his life and he doesnt want to give himself over to that moment unless its real. I still feel kinda blank and drink the cereal milk out of the bottom of the bowl.
The next one was also lightly positive. I've seen enough women in my office say, "I took three pregnancy tests, and theyre all slightly positive, but I dont think that its accurate", to know that yes, its accurate. Those home pregnancy tests are about as good as we get in medical test accuracy, and Im not one to deny that to myself. I seemed to be pregnant. Now came the panic. I dont even want a child, let alone to lose the extremely fun rest of my young life of travel and diving and mountaineering to diapers and waaaa and a little thing that for years is to short to do anything fun even if it was willing.
The rest of the day was a vacillation between fear and anger to acceptance and reasoning. My husband was adorable of course, very happy, and just hanging out beside me supportively during my crazy mood swings. (THAT explains my mood swings, I exclaimed to my husband! "No, dear, you being crazy explains your mood swings in the past few days. I havent noticed anything out of the ordinary." But I have I think. Well I have been unusually moody the past few days). We decided wed each pick one person to tell (we wont be announcing for months, to see if this little thing survives. I would hate if it died.) We picked our respective sisters. They both screamed and freaked from excitement -- they feel all motherly and want to buy it clothes and kiss its cheeks. I reminded them, its literally a ball of cells the size of a poppyseed so everyone can just chill for a while. Its got a long way to go to a person, and could die any time still, so everyones got to chill. They muffled their excitement with their fists in their mouths. But they texted me all day with electronic happy faces.
We went far away from where anyone might recognize us and clandestinely purchased What to Expect When Youre Expecting. It was like buying your first tampon -- just pray that no one you know sees it and that the lady at the counter doesnt comment or you die of embarrassment. I read the first 125 pages skipping over stuff that didnt apply to me.
I read about all these changes that supposedly happen after the first month, but which havent happened to me. Nausea (I felt a little nauseous after I read that, ahh the power of suggestions), breast enlargement, food cravings/aversion, fatigue (who doesnt have that), frequent urination, heartburn. Nothing. It casts doubt on my pregnancy, but then theres always the I havent gotten my period yet. Thats a classic sign. And the pregnancy tests. So we'll see how it all pans out.
One thing I read that made an impression on me, is that after 1 month of pregnancy (because of crazy medical counting, the baby is only 2 weeks only really, but is dubbed "1month"), it is the size of a poppyseed. A poppyseed. All this fuss over something that gets brushed off your bagel when you take it out of the bag.
So at the end of the day, I was freaked out. But took a walk in the night in the snow with the dog. I watched her trot and play through the airy white fluff and she reminded me how much fun snow was. How I would wait to get home as a child, bundle up and jump in it, kick it, lie in it and watch the sky. Snowmen with carrot noses, snowball fights, running as fast as you can laughing and falling down with a silent "pwoof!" Then suddenly I thought how nice it was to give someone else the opportunity to experience it. Someone new, for whom everything is incredible and interesting and good again. And for the first time, I felt tranquilly happy.
Sunday night, I was taking a shower before bed and mentioned to my husband, hey, wasn't I expecting my period Friday? He shrugged (couldnt answer, was flossing). I thought about it and yes, I was definitely two days late. Nothing to write home about unless, like me, you are clock-work regular in your periods and had never missed one, compounded by the fact that this was your second month of having unprotected sex on the philosophy of "if it happens, it happens."
Its a good time for us. I am finishing medical school next year, my husband has part-time employment and is finishing law school next year. Being students in our final year, we have time to care for a baby before crazy-busy work years start. We have some savings. We are in our late twenties, feeling closer to thirty than to college. It just seemed like the right time. My husband adores kids. All shapes and sizes. Hes a really masculine man but somehow never fails to become putty when children are around. I however never wanted one. No biological clock. No feeling of awwww look at the baayybeee. So Ive put the breaks on for a few years. But we had talked about this before marriage, and assuming my feelings were going to change over the years, I agreed to have at least one child and see if I liked it (if so, sure Ill have more. If not, one it is). My husband and I dated for two years, were engaged for one, married 4.5, and here we were at a convenient point, so I stopped the birth control and figured Id try it.
My husband is a non-alarmist. While Im thinking all this over as I towel off, he spits out the toothpaste and said, why dont you take one of those pregnancy tests tomorrow morning. I wanted to take one that moment, but knowing how the test is more accurate with the morning urine, I ok'ed the plan. We took it out and put it on the countertop for morning. I surveyed my body: breasts the same size, no nausea, feel about the same mentally; and arent women supposed to just "know." So I was pretty sure I wasnt pregnant. Sure enough to go to bed and sleep as usual.
It wasn't just 1-2-3 you know. I stopped the birth control back in April, but didnt get my period for seven months. Being in medicine is helpful since it allows me to know -- or at least look up -- what is normal and what is done when. Up to 6 months of amenorrhea after coming off years of oral contraceptives is normal. You can wait up to 12 months even for it to come back naturally. If the woman wants to get pregnant, docs can jump-start the process by giving a progesterone challenge to peel the uterine lining away and make her have a period. As the nurse so nicely said, referring to my uterus, "we're just kicking the old TV set." Lovely. Five days on progesterone and I bled, come next month, normal period. Now the month after, silence.
I went down to the kitchen and let the dog out. Boiled some water for tea and made myself a bowl of cereal. I went into the bathroom and peed on the little stick, capped it, laid it on the table, washed my hands and glanced at my watch to note the time. Back in the kitchen I filled my cereal bowl with milk and crunched away watching Morning Joe. After a few minutes I popped in on the test. One solid blue line, the control line, was obvious, but a faint blue line beside it made me go over and turn on the bathroom light to look more closely. Definitely a faint blue line. Now, I know thats a positive result, but there's always the thought of, "did I do it right?" A little urine had splashed on the indicator window and I wasnt sure if it invalidated the test. I went back to my cereal and googled it. Common question and it seems like as long as you get the control line, youre cool. And while a negative result can be wrong (too early to tell etc), a positive result almost never is.
The dog comes in, snowy, and we troop upstairs in the dark to where my husband is still sleeping. I dont know how I feel at this point. A little blank I guess. "Babe." He turns over in bed but doent open his eyes. "Babe. Its positive." "Whats positive?" I can feel his mind struggling against sleep, knowing this is important. He opens his eyes and looks at me with full understanding. "Really?? You sure?" I explained how Im not sure but I figure we'll go get a second one at the drugstore and confirm. I can see his suppressed excitement -- suppressed because hes not sure if this is true and if so it would be one of the biggest moments of his life and he doesnt want to give himself over to that moment unless its real. I still feel kinda blank and drink the cereal milk out of the bottom of the bowl.
The next one was also lightly positive. I've seen enough women in my office say, "I took three pregnancy tests, and theyre all slightly positive, but I dont think that its accurate", to know that yes, its accurate. Those home pregnancy tests are about as good as we get in medical test accuracy, and Im not one to deny that to myself. I seemed to be pregnant. Now came the panic. I dont even want a child, let alone to lose the extremely fun rest of my young life of travel and diving and mountaineering to diapers and waaaa and a little thing that for years is to short to do anything fun even if it was willing.
The rest of the day was a vacillation between fear and anger to acceptance and reasoning. My husband was adorable of course, very happy, and just hanging out beside me supportively during my crazy mood swings. (THAT explains my mood swings, I exclaimed to my husband! "No, dear, you being crazy explains your mood swings in the past few days. I havent noticed anything out of the ordinary." But I have I think. Well I have been unusually moody the past few days). We decided wed each pick one person to tell (we wont be announcing for months, to see if this little thing survives. I would hate if it died.) We picked our respective sisters. They both screamed and freaked from excitement -- they feel all motherly and want to buy it clothes and kiss its cheeks. I reminded them, its literally a ball of cells the size of a poppyseed so everyone can just chill for a while. Its got a long way to go to a person, and could die any time still, so everyones got to chill. They muffled their excitement with their fists in their mouths. But they texted me all day with electronic happy faces.
We went far away from where anyone might recognize us and clandestinely purchased What to Expect When Youre Expecting. It was like buying your first tampon -- just pray that no one you know sees it and that the lady at the counter doesnt comment or you die of embarrassment. I read the first 125 pages skipping over stuff that didnt apply to me.
I read about all these changes that supposedly happen after the first month, but which havent happened to me. Nausea (I felt a little nauseous after I read that, ahh the power of suggestions), breast enlargement, food cravings/aversion, fatigue (who doesnt have that), frequent urination, heartburn. Nothing. It casts doubt on my pregnancy, but then theres always the I havent gotten my period yet. Thats a classic sign. And the pregnancy tests. So we'll see how it all pans out.
One thing I read that made an impression on me, is that after 1 month of pregnancy (because of crazy medical counting, the baby is only 2 weeks only really, but is dubbed "1month"), it is the size of a poppyseed. A poppyseed. All this fuss over something that gets brushed off your bagel when you take it out of the bag.
So at the end of the day, I was freaked out. But took a walk in the night in the snow with the dog. I watched her trot and play through the airy white fluff and she reminded me how much fun snow was. How I would wait to get home as a child, bundle up and jump in it, kick it, lie in it and watch the sky. Snowmen with carrot noses, snowball fights, running as fast as you can laughing and falling down with a silent "pwoof!" Then suddenly I thought how nice it was to give someone else the opportunity to experience it. Someone new, for whom everything is incredible and interesting and good again. And for the first time, I felt tranquilly happy.
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