So... You're Pregnant

I've always been one of those people who was certain that I would know if I got pregnant. I was confident that I would recognize the signs and be able to handle it from there. But I was so wrong about that fact.

The female body is weird and sometimes it doesn't behave the way it is supposed to behave. Sometimes it decides that it's going to keep functioning like normal even though you are pregnant. Sometimes your body is an a**hole and sometimes it lies to you.

More often than not, if you don't think you can get pregnant, because of contraceptives or medical reasons, then you don't look for the signs as closely. In hindsight, I can see a few yellow flags pop up that should have caught my attention, but I wasn't entertaining pregnancy as a possibility. I was functioning under the belief that my bases were covered. I was wrong.

So here is how I found I out I was pregnant 21 weeks into it.

The story really begins back in April when I had my IUD (Inter-Uterine Device) swapped out for a new one. I had hit my five year expiration date on my old one and it was time to trade it in. Now, I'd had no problem with my IUD for the first five years. No complaints. No pregnancy scares. It was great, which is why I wanted to get another one.

However, my first hangup came when my OBGYN had retired and I was switched to a new one. As it was a time-sensitive issue, expiration date looming and all, I took the first one they offered me. And I have very few nice things to say about this doctor.

My first IUD implantation was fairly painless and was a smooth process. The second time around it was like having a fire poker shoved inside of my uterus. And so the saga of my IUD simply went downhill from there.

I followed up with this doctor a month later and was informed everything was good. The IUD was in position. I should have no issues. I shouldn't be concerned about anything.

Did he do an ultrasound to check the position? No. He just checked the strings and went, yup they're there. But, I tend to trust medical professionals, especially ones who have been doing their jobs as long as this doctor had been. So I went on my way.

Turns out, the IUD was actually inserted too low and, therefore, never actually worked. Hence, me being very pregnant.

Fast forward about five months to October and things start to get a little weird for me. I haven't had any pregnancy symptoms. No nausea. No taste aversions. No mood swings. Nothing jumping out to scream "You're pregnant." But I had missed a period for the first time in the five months and I was having abdominal pains.

Anyone who has ever had an IUD knows these are red flags. So I went into emergency. I don't have a family doctor so that's where you go. And I waited and was seen quickly. And when I saw a doctor she laid me down on the table, poked at my abdomen, and went, "I'm pretty sure you're pregnant."

She got her handheld Doppler and ran it over my abdomen and, sure enough, there was a heartbeat. I was rushed into a quick ultrasound to determine how far along I was, and on that day, it was 21 weeks.

Needless to say, I had a bit of a breakdown at the surprise and things have been a whirlwind since then. But I've always been a firm believer that everything in life happens for a reason. So this is just another adventure for me.

I'm 28 weeks today and have three months before I meet my son. My partner and I are excited, doing our best to plan for this new part of our life.

Life is chaos. All you can do is take it one day at a time.