34 Weeks Pregnant During a Pandemic
34 weeks pregnant
Life is unlike anything any of us have ever known right now. Everything feels so unknown and scary, and I know each of us have our own worries and hardships that the pandemic has brought about. I have friends who had to close the doors on their small businesses, losing income and praying they can ride the waves to be able to open back up later. Friends who just booked theater shows, only for it to be shut down. Friends who are immunocompromised or whose children are. I have other friends who are on the front line of the medical field, seeing first hand what a toll Covid-19 is taking on our nation. As of today (and it changes by the hour it seems), NYC alone makes up 30% of the nation’s coronavirus cases. And that’s where I find myself living, getting ready to bring our youngest son into all of this in just 3 short weeks, a time that our governor predicts will be the peak of the virus here.
We are currently set to induce with Luca on April 11, which is the kids’ first day of Spring Break. I only made it to 35 weeks with Jackson, so we’ve really been praying for Luca to make it all the way to 37 weeks. Of course, I want him to keep growing inside my womb as much as he can, but perhaps a bit selfishly, my prayers have always been that he would stay in until then, just so that when Gigi and Bop come, they would be here to care for my Big Kids while they’re home for an entire week. Because a week off from school sounded so daunting a few weeks ago. Of course everything has since changed. The odds look incredibly slim that my mom will be able to be here for our son’s birth. She has been here for each of my other 4 children’s births, and it is hard to imagine her not being here this time. But I’ve had a bit of time to process this information now. After making it through our first week of school closures and quarantining, I now know that we can make it through that Spring Break week, ha. Practically we will be just fine, even if my heart hurts so much for them to miss out.
Another thing we found out this week is that the hospital has enacted a new policy in light of everything, and only Ron will be allowed to be at the hospital with me when Luca is born. This means that the kids will not be able to meet their baby brother when he is first born, and I’ll have to spend a couple of days away from them. Again, this was really hard to accept at first, but I understand it is for the best. It just feels tough that things are not going as planned.
With my previous history, my pregnancy is considered high-risk. So at this point, I am now going to the MFM High Risk office twice a week. This ward used to be inside the hospital, but they recently moved it into an office space across the street from the hospital. I am so grateful for that right now! It means I do not have to physically step into a hospital until it’s time to have him.
Over the past two weeks, I’ve seen such visible changes to the circumstances in NYC just in this office alone. Three days can pass between appointments, and yet things in the office change so drastically. To paint a picture of what a maternity office looks like in NYC right now…Today, no one could get past the lobby without first proving they had an appointment and then filling out paperwork confirming we were symptom free. From there, no one is allowed into the MFM office except for the patient, so no spouses or children. The entire staff is in full protective gear—face masks, gloves, etc.
And so, as things worsen here, we have hunkered down in our 800 square foot apartment. Over the past week, we have only left the house for a daily 20 minute walk. I’ve also been walking the mile to my doctor appointments instead of taking public transportation. I imagine we will end up walking to the hospital when it comes time for Luca to born as well. We are doing our best to protect ourselves and do our part in society as well.
And now for some good news!
Despite all of the chaos and stress surrounding us, I am incredibly grateful that everything with Luca is going really well. With Jackson, things got rocky at 33 weeks and I was in and out of the hospital before having him at 35 weeks. And I am at 34 weeks now and everything is still good!! This is such a huge praise. We are so grateful for his and my health, especially during this time. I am grateful for each positive appointment and continually stable blood pressure. And as we are with everything else right now, we are just taking things one day and week at a time.
Our fears, anxiety, and stress have shifted from worrying about this pregnancy to worrying about everything else happening around us. We (along with everyone else!) are now trying to navigate both working from home, caring for a toddler, doing virtual therapy sessions 8x a week, 2-3 prenatal appointments a week, and homeschooling our oldest two. The first couple days felt daunting for sure. But just a week into our new rhythms and everyone is adjusting. Aly & Fynn are closer than ever, stretching their imaginations more and more as school and all activities are cancelled and outdoor time is severely limited. Jackson is figuring out how to share Mom all day long, which is probably a good thing with Luca’s arrival coming soon!! And Ron and I are figuring out how to tag team everything and find space to recharge.
We don’t know what things will look like here in 3 weeks time. It feels scary to think about bringing such a vulnerable little person into this scary world right now. But we know this virus is no surprise to God, and that he will continue to hold us in his hands. For now, we pray particularly for the safety of our loved ones and for all of those in the medical field working tirelessly to combat this.