Habits of My Heart

Chapter 35

Excuse the mistakes

Enjoy!

August

It's now been two weeks since the attack on Xe and I'm on my way back to the hospital to pick her up finally. She went from only needing to stay one day to being there two whole weeks.

After running that last test Dr. Rochelle found some complications with the baby so she had to stay few more days to be monitored.

Xe was officially 5 months pregnant but was still really small which prompted her doctor to run more test.

I knew she was small but didn't think anything of it because Xe wasn't big to begin with and my mom carried me small as well. I was never a big baby even as a lil kid I was always the smallest one in the group with a big head.

Grams told me they use to be scared for me because my body was so small and fragile but my head was so big. I'd walk and sway as if I was about to tip over. I just knew my kid was gonna be small just the same.

The results from the test shows that our baby have fetal growth restriction otherwise known as intrauterine growth restriction. This happens when the unborn baby don't get the amount of nutrients and oxygen it needs to grow and develop organs and tissues.

Apparently when an unborn baby don't get enough oxygen or nutrients during pregnancy, the baby's body and organs don't grow as much as they should. This could also limit how much blood flows through the placenta and can cause the baby to get less oxygen than normal. This increases the baby's risks during pregnancy and delivery. According to Dr. Rochelle.

This has us all worried for both Xe and the baby but she said it's still not too late for the baby to hit their development milestones. She just gotta keep up with her appointments, take her vitamins and take it easy.

The doctor said Xe's placenta attached low in her uterus which is possibly the cause of this happening. Also her blood pressure is high so we have to monitor that.

If there are no changes or improvements with the baby it's possible she might have to go into early labor. However, there's still some hope. Dr Rochelle have been very informative and helpful with explaining everything to us. It also helps that Xe mom is a nurse she know a lot of information and it has been keeping Xe calm throughout this ordeal.

As for as we know, many small for gestational age babies have low birth weight. But not all are premature, she could still carry to full term. Only difference is that our baby would probably weigh less than normal babies who are carried to full term.

I've done my own reading up on the condition and found that fetal growth restriction usually doesn't cause long-term problems. Most babies who have it usually catch up in height and weight by age 2. Which was confirmed by Dr. Rochelle. She said if the case is mild then the baby will catch up to other children their age.

With our baby it's not severe but we are still being cautious. I can't lose another child and I'll do everything I can to make sure the rest of her pregnancy is smooth.

As of right now my lil family is my main focus. Once home is taken care of and I know they are both good. Then I'll circle back to the bullshit with Tony.

Don't get it fucked go though, I'm not lacking in anyway Kev and Chris been looking into everything. We gonna get it back in blood one way or another.

Having my brothers holding things down and watching my back give me more time to focus on my babies without being all over the place. Xe need my time and energy right now and that's where it's at. Gotta show her she's not in this alone I'm right by her side every step of the way.