Since the end of June I have had to restrict my caffeine intake dramatically. I know, I know I'm not supposed to have any during pregnancy at all, but that is more difficult than you can imagine.
One of the first questions on my mind at my first ob visit was, "How much caffeine can I have a day?" Pathetic, I know. It isn't like I drink a pot of regular coffee everyday. In fact, I might only have one cup in the morning (and hubby makes half-calf anyway) and if I need a pick me up sometime during the day I might stop by Starbucks for my favorite, "grande, non-fat latte please!"
The midwives told me that I could have 1 cup of regular coffee a day if I desired. Whohoo! So for most of the pregnancy I either had a cup of hubby's half-calf in the morning followed by a decaf Starbucks later in the day or splurged with a tall latte as my one treat for the day. This seemed to keep my desire for coffee satisfied and I apparently forgot to consider the caffeine I was ingesting in the form of iced tea and the occasional chocolate treat.
At the end of June I headed to the gym to work out one day. When I arrived I felt my heart just racing and I hadn't even worked out yet! It was running at about 130 beats per minute. They immediately sent me home and told me to call the doctor. After several weeks of visits to the midwife, primary and even a cardiologist for a monitor and echo cardiogram - I was diagnosed with
pregnancy tachycardia. All it means is that my heart likes to race occasionally and add a few beats just to make things interesting!
What it meant for me was that I needed to stop exercising for the remainder of the pregnancy, rest when my heart raced and, you guessed it, stay away from caffeine even more. Naturally, that last one was the hardest! It's pretty difficult to give up coffee, iced tea and chocolate when you're headed to Virginia Beach for vacation. Nevertheless, I managed.
Eventually, after several chiropractic visits, my heart rate decided to calm down. (Apparently my twisted rib cage was aggravating the symptoms and the chiropractor was able to help reduce them with a few simple adjustments!) As a result, I have found that I do not have to rest as much these days since my heart does not usually go up beyond 120 bpm anymore. Also, the doctors said that I could have some decaf and small bits of chocolate too...how wonderful!
So in an effort to satisfy my cravings for coffee and chocolate I have been on the hunt for some chocolate chip ice cream to go along with my "grande, decaf, non-fat, light ice latte, please!" To my dismay, however, it seemed that good old chocolate chip ice cream has become obsolete in the shadows of such superstars as Moose Tracks, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Cookies and Cream, and it's more preferred cousin, Mint Chocolate Chip.
I was beginning to become convinced of the demise of Chocolate Chip ice cream after checking out what seemed to be every frozen food isle and ice cream parlor from here to the Jersey Shore. In fact, I had just given in to mourning that old comfort food, when I spotted a sale on Breyer's ice cream today at the grocery store. There it was in all it's simplistic glory: Old Fashioned Chocolate Chip Ice Cream!
What a yummy triumph!
