Curious

On the way home from the ultrasound appointment, J and I were talking about several things. I've noticed that the impact the 17P injections have on my energy level these past two weeks has not been as severe as it first was. At first, I dismissed it. I thought that the weight I've gained has impacted the overall hormone level. But then we started talking. I've only gained about 15 pounds since I started the injections. Is that really a significant enough weight change to go from falling asleep eating after a shot to taking an hour nap a few hours after a shot?

I tend to doubt it.

So what gives? Am I getting used to it? Perhaps. Then we remembered a set of graphs we were shown at a preconception appointment from a medical text book (I've Googled to find something similar without success). It was a study of the progesterone levels in a normal, healthy pregnancy that goes to term compared to those of women that end up delivering preterm. In the first group, the progesterone level rose until around 37 weeks when it leveled and then declined just before delivery. In the women that delivered prematurely, the progesterone level started leveling or declining as they entered the third trimester (~28 weeks).

I wonder if that is it? Is my body just producing so much less that the injections just bring me to a normal level now? I could ask my OB for a blood draw to check this theory. I'm not sure if I care enough to have a needle in my arm though.

The whole thing just makes me wonder about the cervical length change we saw today. It wasn't a huge change, but it was the first change we've seen at all in weeks of measurements. Since we won't have any more ultrasounds, I don't really have any way of knowing if the shortening is a new trend or just a blip.

My OB is right, there is so much that we just don't know. I hope someday we will be able to learn and understand more.