Welcome to Gaia! ::

Dr. Tessanne pursed her lips slightly at Rhine's question, in hearing his tone. Apparently she hadn't been as careful with concealing her inner thoughts as she'd liked. She sighed and paused to think about her words a moment before speaking. It wasn't terrible news, but she knew that anything out of the ordinary should be discussed with delicacy.

Keeta frowned and looked from Rhine to the Dr. So there was something more to what was going on with the baby. She sat up better, so she was sure the doctor had her full attention, and she squeezed Rhine's hand, whether to reassure him or herself, she wasn't sure.

"Based on the weight reading we did earlier, and what I have seen from the ultrasound I can conclusively say that the baby is larger than what I am used to seeing at this point in the pregnancy. Perhaps you may have even noticed this yourself, as you have concieved previously and probably have been comparing the two pregnancies." She held up a hand to forestall any protests that might have come from one of the two of them in regards to Rhine's heritage. She wasn't finished.

"Please don't take this as a slight against you," she said looking at Rhine. "I understand that with dragon genes, the baby is bound to fall into the bigger end of the spectrum than if the baby was not part dragon. It is what it is. What worries me, however, is whether Keeta can safely carry the pregnancy to what would be a normal gestational period for a woman of her size and heritage. The baby will continue to get bigger and I'm not sure it will be able to fit through the birth canal without problems, if you choose to wait until you go into labor." Dr. Tessanne lowered her hand and let them process this information, and waited to see what they had to say.

Keeta was basically stunned into silence. This wasn't what she had expected to heard. If anything she expected to be scolded for putting on too much weight. She looked at Rhine, her expression slightly helpless.

"Well here is what I think the best case scenario is. After another month or so Keeta would come in for weekly appointmnts, so we can check and see how the baby is developing and how Keeta is coping. When we think the baby is developmentally ready to come into the world, we set a date and deliver her, via a Caesarean section." Dr. Tessanne was about to continue, but Keeta inturrupted.

"What's a Caesarean section?" she asked. That was not a term she was familiar with. She had done a good job acclimating to her life in Gaia, but some things she still didn't know. Many of the medical things were foreign to her.

The doctor looked at Keeta, a tad bit surprised, but explained. "This means we put you under a local anesthetic, which is something that makes it so you don't feel pain, and then surgically remove the baby, instead of letting it come out the "natural" way."

Keeta blinked, a bit taken aback. "You mean they would cut her out of me?"

Keeta nervously squeezed his hand back. Rhine didn't seem upset by this announcement, so it must be safe and fairly commonplace, but Keeta didn't like it. They didn't perform procedures like that in Evin. Surgery was only used as a deperate last resort. It wasn't something she would look forward to. She swallowed hard and looked back at the doctor, her face paler than it was.

"And that's your best case scenario?" she asked, feeling a hint of a challenge in her tone.

"What would happen if we didn't go that route?"

Dr. Tessanne sighed and looked at Keeta, trying to impress upon her the seriousness of what she was saying. She wouldn't admit it outloud, but she was glad that the husband seemed to have her back on this. While she could understand that surgery, even one as routine as this one, could be scary for someone, she knew it was the safest route for mom and baby.

"First let me be clear that the scenario I already proposed will be the safest and easiest for you and your little girl, even if it doesn't seem like it. Caesarean sections, otherwise known as C-sections, are a very safe and routine surgeries. Many women deliver their babies this way.

"If you choose not to do as I initially suggested, several things can happen. Scenario 1; We induce labor early, when the baby is still small enough to safely fit through the birth canal, but this could cause some problems if she is not ready to come out yet, developmentally. Meaning she could be born with major health risks. Scenario 2; We let nature take it's course and attempt a vaginal delivery when the baby decides to come on its own. It could be alright, but I predict there could be several complications if we were to attempt this. She could cause internal damage and bleeding to you, if she is too large, and it could harm the baby, by causing her to get stuck or something similar, and then we might have to do an emergency c-section anyways just to save both your lives.

"If we choose when to deliver and deliver her with a planned c-section, however, most, if not all of those problems can be avoided."

Dr. Tessanne nodded, emphasizing the truth of Rhine's words. She hoped that he could be a soothing influence on the nervous mother. His move to sit behind her head like that was a little surprising, but she chose not to say anything about it.

"What he says is correct. Anyways, it's something I think you should seriously consider for both your sakes. It does not have to be decided this moment, however, or even today," she continued, hoping that the removal of pressure for an immediate decision would help relieve some of Keeta's stress regarding the procedure.

"I would like to see you again next month, however, and I would like your decision by then, so that we can proceed appropriately. That should give the two of you plenty of time to discuss what you would like to do. You can also use that time to do some research about it if you like. It might help you feel more at ease if you know what is going to happen and why.

"Unless you have any more questions, though, I think we're done for today, and the receptionist can help you set up an appointment for next month."

Keeta shook her head. There were no more questions right now. Just a whirlwind of thoughts passing through her mind. Just when she thought she was getting used to Gaia, something new would throw her for a loop. Rhine's presence was a comfort, but it didn't still her torrent of thoughts. Her attempt to smile at the doctor was relatively weak, but it was all she could manage at the moment. She was glad, when the doctor seemed to take that as a cue that things were alright for the moment and stood to leave and see her next patient.

"Please consider carefully everything I've said, Mrs. Harding. And if you think of more questions after you leave here today, or you need help finding materials from which to do research, please feel free to call the clinic."

"Let's go find some Chinese food," Keeta said, taking his hand. There would be a lot to mull over as she ate her orange chicken and fried rice. She would pick Rhine's brain later, after she had settled some things in her own mind.