Three times now, since I got pregnant, I have nearly passed out. I am well acquainted with the feeling of passing out, because it used to happen to me about 4 or 5 times a year when I was 15 - 20. It happened again yesterday, except that I did not actually lose consciousness.

My mom happened to call me at work and I mentioned this, and she nearly threatened to decapitate me if I didn't call my midwife right away. So I did, but only to find out if I should still go to the prenatal belly dance class. Instead, the midwife told me to get myself to the emergency room right away. Last time I called her when this happened, she just told me to take it easy. So I really wasn't expecting what I was told.

So I went to the emergency room, Leo joined me soon after I got there. While we were waiting, we read a story about Siegfried and Roy in the Spanish version of Readers Digest. Leo also studied my CISSP study guide, which I found amusing. We even both took a practice test (on a chapter I have not read) and I think he got a point or two higher than me. Pretty amazing, for a liberal arts type.

Anyway, it was four hours post "incident" by the time I was all checked in and in triage. My blood pressure was 114/68, so it was low. They did an EKG and some other blood/urine tests and they all came back normal except that I am severely potassium deficient and moderately magnesium deficient. From what I can look up online, there are three causes for this. The most common is severe diarrhea and vomiting. That hasn't happened to me since that horrible post-Moroccan vacation illness of 2002. The next cause is that athletes can get this because they sweat and drink a lot of water. Obviously, this isn't the cause for me. The last cause is kidney disease, which I will get checked out for tonight but I feel certain that I don't have it.

Pregnancy isn't listed as a cause, but I bet that Owen is really some kind of potassium vampire, sucking every drop out of my blood. I got potassium and magnesium through an IV (the nurse said that potassium usually burns while going in, thank goodness it didn't with me). I also had to be hooked up to a heart monitor while receiving it, just in case. Naturally, Leo and I goofed around trying to set it off by holding my breath. It measured respiration, so it was a lot like an etch-a-sketch that I could control with my lungs. OK, we were really bored by then.

Leo brought me sushi (cooked) sushi and a seaweed salad for dinner. How sweet. I also had to take three gimongous potassium pills. The doctor said that she couldn't give me as much potassium as I need at one time, or I'd get sick. So I got a prescription for even more.