Once the door is closed, and it’s just Carse and I in the exam room, he turns to me. “Are you freaking out? They’re not going to like, look down there while I’m in here right?”
Just as the words leave his mouth, there’s a light knock on the door before my doctor peeks her head in. “McKenna?” she asks, then holds her hand out for me to shake when I nod. “Hi, I’m Dr. Bahati. Nice to meet you.” She then looks over at Carson and holds her hand out for him to shake. Instead, he grabs her palm in his and smacks a kiss on the top of her hand. Dear lord, please help me.
“Hi, I’m Carson, Mack’s twin brother. I’m the funcle.”
“The what?” I squeak.
“Funcle. The fun uncle.” He rolls his eyes as if that should have been obvious.
“Nice to meet you, Carson,” she says politely before turning to me. “So, McKenna. I hear congratulations are in order. I saw in your chart that you weren’t sure of the exact date of conception due to your irregular cycles. Were those caused by your endometriosis?”
“Yes. It isn’t uncommon for me to go two to three months without a period.”
“That can be common with endometriosis. When, then, did you find out you were pregnant?”
“Well, I didn’t think I was. I only took a test earlier this week. I was in a bad car accident about three months ago, and I thought the nausea and headaches were a result of my concussion.”
Carson cuts in. “It was more than a concussion. She was in a medical coma for almost two days due to her brain swelling. If she was pregnant then, shouldn’t they have caught that with all of the bloodwork and testing they ran?”
“That depends on whether or not McKenna was far enough along at that point for the pregnancy to show in bloodwork,” Dr. Bahatiexplains. “I would like to do an ultrasound today to get a better idea of how far along you are, and to ensure all is well. Because we know that you’re at least three months along, we can do an abdominal ultrasound.”
I nod my head in agreement, my anxiety spiking with each step as I follow Dr. Bahati down the hall to the room where the ultrasound scans are done.
As she washes her hands in the sink, Dr. Bahati tells me to hop up on the exam table, lift my shirt up, and tuck it into my bra.
“You’ll feel some cool gel, and then you can look up there at the TV to see your little one.”
Carson and I gasp in unison as we watch the screen’s display—it’s the twin connection. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I didn’t realize I would see anything that resembled a baby. Weren’t they supposed to look alien at this point still?
But instead of a blob in front of me, the most beautifully developing baby is on the screen.
After doing some measurements, Dr. Bahati says, “Alright, McKenna. It looks like you’re right about seventeen weeks pregnant, and the baby is looking great. I’m just going to take a listen to baby’s heartbeat.”
Just then, the most amazing sound floats through the speakers. Tears flood my eyes as I listen to my baby’s heartbeat for the first time.
“Baby’s heart rate is 155 beats per minute, which is great. Did you want to learn the gender today?”
I say no, just as Carson says yes. Dr. Bahati chuckles and shakes her head. “We can wait on that for now, McKenna.”
She continues to take some additional measurements while Carse and I both stare at the screen in awe.
“Hmm,” Dr. Bahati says to herself as she takes a few more measurements below the baby.
“What is it? Is something wrong?” I ask, my voice pinched in fear.
“Nothing is wrong, McKenna. But your cervix is measuring shorter than I would anticipate at this early stage in the pregnancy. I would like to place you on light activity restrictions throughout your pregnancy so we can monitor this. A shortened cervix can lead to preterm labor, and we want to avoid that as best as we can,” Dr. Bahati informs me.
“Is this because I was too active when I didn’t know I was pregnant? I play college volleyball, but I’ve only recently been cleared for normal activity after my concussion. The season just ended, so light activity shouldn’t be a problem once I talk to my coach.”
“A shortened cervix is not uncommon. There has been no research to show that overexertion or heavy exercise causes a shortened cervix. However, I want to stress how important it is to remain on light activity—drive instead of walk when you can, take the elevator instead of the stairs when able, and try not to lift over fifteen pounds for the time being.” Her response is reassuring.
She hands me a towel to clean my abdomen before she continues, “I saw on your intake paperwork that this was an unplanned pregnancy. Do you have any questions for me? We have materials I can send home with you so you can be informed about your options.”
Carson squeezes my hand beside me, letting me know he’s here for me.
I clear the tickle of anxiety in my throat before responding, “Thank you. It wouldn’t hurt to learn more about adoption, though I don’t foresee myself going that route.”
She places her hand on my arm in a gesture of endearment. “Of course. I will grab those materials and the prescription for your prenatal vitamins and be right back.”
