Prayer request...

I'm copying this from an email I sent out to some people asking for prayer...so those of you who got that email, this is a repeat! :-)

Ok, i'm going to attempt to make this quick and sum it up, but I need your prayer!

I was exposed to fifth's disease this week. It's something mostly kids get but then can pass on to adults and it's contagious until kids break out into a rash on their face. That's the only way you even know they have it. Anyways, if you want to know more...look it up on google! It's kinda a weird thing.

Anyways, it's only dangerous to pregnant women. Lovely. So, we sent the student home, who i'm sure has infected otheres in my class(because we share EVERYTHING), but i won't know until they have a rash....and i'm freaking out. So after a crazy morning of work yesterday...principal and secretaries in and out to tell me updates of the girl going home and me needing to call my dr, i finally heard from my doctor. She had me leave school early and go get blood drawn....and i haven't heard results yet. Mainly, if you've been exposed it the virus before, you're immune, and that's my prayer because otherwise i'm going to freak out the rest of the month being in my classroom around kids. (I did have a rash in the spring during track season in high school one year. They never called it fifth's disease, but maybe they were dumb and maybe that was it. That would be really cool.) If i caught the virus....i've heard from everything i've read (not from my dr yet because we didn't have time to talk when she called) that i have to go weekly to get ultrasounds and get blood checked....for 8-12 weeks so they can look for fetal anemia...something called fetal hydrops...and something with that which could cause the baby's heart to fail if it's serious and would cause death for the baby. They dont' think there are any other effects to a baby's development as far as birth defects go if those other things don't show up. A girl in my building had the same thing happen to her, but she was about 8 weeks ahead of me with her pregnancy, so she was fine. Still....that's good to hear that she's fine and her baby was fine.

They say half of all adults are already immune, so i'm praying and trying to be positive about that otherwise i don't want to go back to work! UGH! I'm frustrated about how much money those appointments will add up to be too....when it wasn't my fault! I shouldn't have to pay! Because I'm past the first half of my pregnancy, I'm at less risk than someone who is at the beginning stages, so that's a good sign....but i'm also scared becuase they say it can wait to show that you have it until weeks and weeks later and a lot of times adults don't have any symptoms so you wouldn't even know you had the virus (or something like that) ahah! So....unless i'm immune, I will worry for the next 3 months that something is wrong and UGH. (I'm probably not explaining this all correctly, so maybe you should just read about it online if you want to know more ahahah http://www.fifthdisease.org/pregnancy.html) If you go to that link you can read a little more...then click on the treatment tab and it will talk about that.

So yea, another worry for me. I'm still concerned about the heart issue we heard of at our ultrasound a month ago, so Dr. Rama is sending me to University of Chicago on Thursday to meet with a genetics counselor who will do another ultrasound to look specifically for downs. She told us this is an option if we wanted to go, and I guess it wouldn't change anything about my baby to me...but it would help me be prepared if they found something that I need to be aware of. Also, a baby of Jason's family friend just died this week due to many complications at birth...one being with the left ventricle, so of course that is on the back of my mind too. Then I remember that God is so awesome and he has a plan, and I only want that for my life....so whatever that is, I will be okay! He is in control, loves my baby, and has his own plan.

God's still making me work on the sin I'm so talented with..WORRY! I've just gotta give this to him and trust him to take care of my baby. Worry won't make anything better.

:-)

Thanks for your prayers....and sorry, that wasn't quick like I said it would be!

Karla