Cautiously Optimisitc but not looking great...

Saturday I had my blood work done and it showed I was pregnant! My levels came back at 53. My nurse said they look for anything above 50. I went in again on Monday for my levels are supposed to double and I just got the news that my levels only went up to 77. (I was hoping for a number in the hundreds). So here I am going through the same drill as last pregnancy living on the edge of the unknown. I will continue to get blood work done every other day until we know what is going on. I am hoping for the best but really .. expecting the worse.

Information on HCG Bloodwork:
The hormone human chorionic gonadotropin (better known as hCG) is produced during pregnancy. It is made by cells that form the placenta, which nourishes the egg after it has been fertilized and becomes attached to the uterine wall. Levels can first be detected by a blood test about 11 days after conception and about 12 - 14 days after conception by a urine test. In general the hCG levels will double every 72 hours. The level will reach its peak in the first 8 - 11 weeks of pregnancy and then will decline and level off for the remainder of the pregnancy.

Key things to remember about hCG levels:

• In a bout 85% of normal pregnancies, the hCG level will double every 48 - 72 hours. As you get further along in pregnancy and the hCG level gets higher, the time it takes to double can increase to about every 96 hours.
• Caution must be used in making too much of hCG numbers. A normal pregnancy may have low hCG levels and result in a perfectly healthy baby. The results from an ultrasound after 5 - 6 weeks gestation are much more accurate than using hCG numbers.