Hey! I'm still kickin. Well, survivin'. Jared tested positive for Covid last Tuesday, so Jack wasn't allowed at preschool all last week or this week. They're having Jared come back to work today wearing a heavy-duty face mask because homeboy is needed. It was a pretty mild strain of Covid. Basically just fatigue and a recurring headache. I think me and Jack got it too, but Covid's so rampant now that it's near impossible to find a place with availability to get tested unless you're a healthworker/hospital employee. So we've just been quarantining with Jared. It was kind of rough being all cooped up. The pregnancy hormones are real this time and I'm a ticked off pregnant lady. Also, the nausea hit me (mildly) a week earlier than expected. It's been the plan for Jared to take over a lot of the household upkeep/Jack duties once the nausea hit, but since Jared was "sick" too, he mostly did a lot of sleeping. Hopefully his fatigue disappears before my nausea gets worse or this place is going to be in shambles.
So like I said, the nausea hit a week earlier than last time. Fortunately I've been able to manage it pretty well with lots of medication and constant snacking. When Jared asks, "How are you today?" I have no idea how to answer. In comparison to normal Laura? Pretty bad. I'm tired, I'm grumpy, there's a low level of nausea at all times, and I don't really want to do anything. But in comparison to last-time pregnant Laura? I feel great! Food doesn't sound good, but I'm able to get my own snacks. I can walk around and play with Jack. I don't feel like I'm 3 seconds away from throwing up at all times. Could be much worse. That said, it could get much worse this week. I feel like this week is going to determine how the rest of my pregnancy goes. For most women with HG, week 6 is when all hell breaks loose. So there's a chance my health rapidly declines this week and I end up clutching a bowl in bed full time. But there's also a good chance I'll be able to keep masking the nausea pretty well with aggressive medication and snacking. I've got a good feeling! I really do. It's empowering to know what to expect and have some tools for fighting back this time. I'm nearly on the maximum dose of doxylamine (Unisom) and I had to add in benadryl over the weekend. But I still have room to add meclizine (dramamine) and the heavy-duty nausea drugs if/when (almost definitely when) the nausea gets worse. So I'm feeling hopeful! I'm also happy to report that after a full week of being unable to keep my eyes open, my body did adapt to the unisom and now I don't feel impossibly tired on all these drowsy medications. Just mildly loopy at all times.
Here are a few pictures from this week (evidence that I am surviving but not having it in me to do my hair in 2022--I should probably invest in some hats or something haha):
