Day 16: A Rough Night and Another Hospital Visit

Last night I had lots of contractions and cramping and had trouble sleeping.  Even a warm hot water bottle on my abdomen didn't help much.  B also came in my bed around 2 first because of growing pains in his legs and later because of an earache.  Thankfully, my mother-in-law was here to get him some medicine and get him settled again.  None of us got much sleep, so B and I slept in until 10 this morning, and J sent his mom home and laid in my make-shift bed in the living room when he got home from work at 8 a.m.  Unfortunately it was very uncomfortable on his broken shoulder and ribs and they've been hurting ever since.  I know he loves me and makes lots of sacrifices for me, and he's taking a lot on that I can't do right now.  He's a good man, and I love him for always supporting me.

Because of our restless night, we just took it easy today.  B and I watched a lot of movies while J slept off his shift.  But all day my stomach felt like it was tied in one big knot and I kept having pains and contractions.  I tried a hot water bottle and a bath, but they didn't really help my discomfort.  When J woke up, I had pretty much continuous contractions and was in a lot of pain.  I asked if I should call  the doctor and J said she'd just make me come in, which of course she did (and because it's New Year's the office is closed so we had to go to the hospital).  She also told me to double up on my dose of Nifedipine, the anti-contraction medication I'm taking. 

B and J weren't too happy about going back to the hospital since I was just released yesterday.  I further complicated things for J when he had to pack a bag for me again.  I really should have a hospital bag packed and ready to go.  J said we have to come up with a plan so we're not going back and forth to the hospital every other day.  I agreed and the purpose of this hospital visit was to be monitored and see if the painful crampiness and tightening I feel is just something I have to live with because of uterine irritability or if they're contractions that are bringing on pre-term labor and further cervical change.  That is something this baby and I cannot afford.  Laying here, I have lots of time to worry and stress, which just causes more contractions.  But, I just want to give this baby as much time in the womb as possible and would rather be safe than sorry so we packed up and went back to the hospital.

Of course by the time we reached the hospital the double dose of the medicine had kicked in, and I wasn't having many contractions.  Baby Boy looked good on the monitors too, which is good.  We were actually only at the hospital for a little over an hour, but I came back more educated about exactly what I've been feeling.  The nurse was really patient as she monitored me and explained uterine irritability versus labor-causing contractions. 

They told me I had an irritable uterus when I was in pre-term labor with B.  I remember feeling pretty much constantly uncomfortable at that time, but didn't exactly remember how the irritability felt and how to distinguish between that and real contractions.  The nurse explained how uterine irritability causes contractions that are either quick painful twinges/cramps or a tightening of the entire abdomen for long periods of time while real labor-inducing contractions come in waves, tighten the entire belly before releasing again, and have a consistent rhythm.  Most of what I've felt today and what was picked up on the monitor was uterine irritability (again they only picked up one major contraction in the hour of monitoring).  The irritability is uncomfortable, but I can live with it and am glad to see that the Terbutaline the other day seems to have disrupted my regular contraction cycle.  Now that I better understand the difference between the two issues, and know that irritability doesn't really cause the cervical change and premature birth like I was worried about, I am more relaxed.  I also have resolved that I can handle the discomfort as long as Baby Boy gets here safely and later rather than sooner.  In the meantime, I'm just glad another day has passed with Baby Boy still safely tucked away.  It's a Happy New Year, indeed.

B pushed me out in the wheelchair.  He almost ran me into a few walls, but that was the highlight of the hospital visit for us because we got to go home.

Monitor showing my uterine irritability.  Notice there are far fewer peaks (contractions) than on the monitor picture from Sunday night).

Day 15: Home again, home again, jiggity-jig

Ok, I can't do a jig while on bed rest, but you can. I'm glad to be home from the hospital, and I think the boys are glad to have me back too, though Bryson asked if I could stay so he could keep sleeping in our bed with Daddy and watch more movies.  After monitoring the baby and me for contractions last night and this morning and only seeing one or two contractions each time, they released me to bed rest at home.  I have to admit it is much better doing it at home.  J even let me lay propped up on the couch for awhile after the doctor said I can be in a reclined position for a few minutes each day. 

J straightened up the house for my return.  I'm learning to let him do things his way and to not pay attention to little messes or piles.  He's working his butt off to take care of me and B, going to his job, preparing for his upcoming nursing exam, and also taking on my responsibilities.  I'm very grateful for that and love him for supporting me through this.

After being at the hospital for 48 hours, I really enjoyed watching B play today (he dressed his doll in the preemie outfit he picked out the other day).  My in-laws came to celebrate New Year's with us.  We played Rummy Cube and we wore the New Year's hats B made while counting down to the New Year at 9 p.m before B went to bed.  My mother-in-law is spending the night because J went to work tonight and I can't get up to help B.  I've had a little cramping and few contractions tonight, but at least I can rest assured that  Baby Boy will not make his appearance in the year 2013.

J says this self-interview video is super cheesy but I wanted to get the baby's heartbeat on video.

Day 14: Staying Overnight Again (29 Weeks)

After getting three shots of Terbutaline last night, my preterm contractions finally slowed to a minimum.  But around 2 this morning, my contractions came back with a vengeance.  Mercifully, though, I didn't really feel them as intensely because they gave me Ambien, a medication to help me sleep and relax my uterus.   When the contractions didn't stop, the nurse gave me another shot of Terbutaline around 5 a.m.  Within twenty minutes of getting the first shot, my contractions stopped completely, and she didn't need to give me the remaining two doses.  The Terbutaline seems to have successfully interrupted my body's contraction cycles, though the doctor doesn't expect my uterus to "be completely quiet," and I was told to still expect occasional (keyword here) contractions, as my body IS still in preterm labor.  My uterine muscles have honestly not felt this relaxed in weeks, and that relaxation has brought great physical relief.  I was still nervous about the contractions coming back like they did last night, so I am having them keep me overnight again so they can monitor me.  So far today I've only had four contractions, and those were after I was active (like when I got up to shower or walked down the hall to see the perinatologist).  One contraction an hour is to be expected in my case, but the eight to ten I was having in an hour yesterday were not.

 

I visited the perinatologist (high risk pregnancy specialist) this afternoon and got an ultrasound, though Baby Boy is too low in my pelvis for the ultrasound techs to get a profile or face shot.  The good news is Baby Boy looks good, my fluid levels are great, and although my cervix is still a lot shorter than it should be (1.5 cm. instead of the normal 3.5+ cm at 29 weeks), it has remained the same length in the last few days, despite contractions.  The doctor also said that although Baby Boy is low, because my cervix is stable, birth isn't imminent yet.  It actually looks like he's mostly in the smaller horn of my bicornuate uterus (the left side), so as my cervix has shortened, he's settled there to be able to stretch out and have enough room. That gave me some reassurance, as did hearing there are still more measures that can be taken to stop labor if contractions start up again in the near future.  I can also get another series of steroid shots to help Baby Boy's development if it looks like he'll be born before 34 weeks.  So there's still hope for a more to term baby, which is very good news because Baby Boy would only be about 2 pounds, 10 ounces if born right now.  That's only the 36th percentile for weight at this gestational age so he's on the smaller side.  Now that preterm labor has been stopped, my prayers are now for this baby to grow.

 

J and B spent the morning at home so B wasn't bored while I laid in my hospital bed and saw doctors.  He needed a chance to play (I think there was more movie-watching than playing going on, but I'm OK with that at the moment).  The funny thing is that Jarom woke up with B's feet in his mouth.  (I've always told Jarom that I have trouble sleeping next to Bryson because of all the moving and fidgeting he does, and he finally believes me, but B still isn't he moves around too much, even after the feet incident).  They did come by for a few hours after lunch and a visit to the library, around the same time they transferred me from a labor and delivery room to a mom/baby room.  (This bed is a lot more comfortable than the labor bed I was in last night and most of the day). B wanted to be J's twin today, so they both dressed in plaid shirts, jeans, and brown baseball hats.  It's pretty cute how much this boy idolizes his Daddy.  Soon I'll really be out-numbered with boys at our house.   

B enjoyed watching a movie in bed with me, getting snacks from the patient lounge with Daddy, and dancing around my room to Disney songs.  Sorry the quality of the dance video isn't great, but I had to share.  Watching him "get down" and hanging out with my boys (my husband and son) was the highlight of my day as was having my contractions successfully stopped so Baby Boy doesn't come any earlier than he has to!

Day 13: Hospitalized

My mother-in-law took B again this morning so J and I could rest (J worked last night) and she could take him to church.  I spent the day listening to conference talks, wrote in my journal, and had a visit from a friend.  The day was pleasant enough, but I had several contractions throughout the day.  By late afternoon, the contractions were coming about six minutes apart and wouldn't stop even after I took my contraction-blocking medicine (Nifedipine/Procardia).  So, tonight, I'm in the hospital dilated to a little less than a 1 and 30%+ effaced and doctors are getting my preterm labor under control.  I just had three shots of Terbutaline to stop the contractions that were coming every 2-3 minutes.  The shots made me shaky and caused my heart to race super fast (over 145 beats per minute) and Baby Boy went nuts in my stomach, too.  I did not like the way the injections made me feel at all, but they did help stop the contractions from coming as frequently.  In fact, they've pretty much stopped now, and we're thankful for that.

Hopefully the medicine will stop the contraction cycle completely and I can soon go home to bed rest and focus on getting this baby to term.  (And to think that last week, I couldn't imagine saying I wanted to be on bed rest).  That way I don't have to disrupt our lives more than I have to.  Poor J is still recovering from  his snowboarding injuries, he's caring for B, and he's working hard at his job and at home by taking on my responsibilities, so this preterm labor situation is stressful for him.  I've also turned B's world upside down the last few days.  He tried so hard to stay busy and fall asleep here so J could stay with me, but he was uncomfortable so J took him home to bed.  B rode out in the wheelchair because he was so sleepy, and he thought that was fun.  But the last thing he said before he left was that he's tired of the hospital since we've been here several times in the last three weeks. 

Tomorrow I'll be 29 weeks, so we're coming along, but still have a ways to go.  29 weeks is just not long enough.  Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers. They are being felt.