So it seems that Tuesdays every 3 weeks are pre-term labor days for me! Because today once again I was sent in to Labor and Delivery. I woke up earlier than normal and was really uncomfortable. I took my procardia and went downstairs to lay on the sofa with my feet up (the norm) and try to take in fluids to see if I could get what I assumed were contractions to go away! This was all before 8. Normally about 30 minutes after the procardia they stop. About 9 am I took a bath and soaked and thought all was well until 11:30 when they were back in full swing. This time I got out my ipad and opened up my BabyBump app and started timing my contractions as best I can. You know how I don't realize I am having them...today was no different. I was physically touching my abdomen to feel it tighten to try to feel when I was having them. By my count they were anywhere from 7 to 9 minutes apart. So I gave in and called my Mom and Michael and then the nurse and once again Michael and I set off for L & D and for the 3rd Tuesday afternoon this summer, we were checked into room 473. My favorite nurse Leslie was there once again and she came to take care of me...she herself went into PTL and was on hospital bedrest, so she knows from experience how it all goes. I told her I was actually feeling better, as moving around seems to help and thought they may have quit again. She said she would monitor me for about 20 minutes if the contractions were every 5-7 minutes and then call the doctor. if they were further apart than that she would monitor me and hour before she called Dr. Kouri. Well, she was back in 15 minutes because those darn contractions were one minute apart! Ha! Luckily though I had not dialated any further or become more effaced. Dr. Kouri order two shots of brethine and fluids. He came by and said that depending on how the monitoring went he may keep me overnight for observation but if they calmed down I could go home. I was so relieved! I had begun to think he was going to order up a c section, but he really wants me to make it to 37 weeks and so do I!
When Dr. Kouri came back he checked and my cervix was still in the same condition and the contractions had stopped so I got to come home...again! Holland and Tracy are over me coming home from the hospital without babies in hand and Kim thinks I have just become fond of Jackson Hospital as if it is a nice little get away, but I am thrilled to still be hanging on for a couple more days.
Showing posts with label Pre-term Labor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pre-term Labor. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Thursday, September 1, 2011
33 Weeks and home...
I am home now and on bedrest. I was put back on the monitor last night and I had no contractions. I have been prescribed procardia (not sure about spelling) inorder to ward off my contractions and have been given instructions to take “as needed”. Well, you know how good I am with contractions…I cannot tell that I am having them! So needless to say these instructions stress me out. Anyway, I am working on being more in tune with my body and hoping that at the very least I can go 3 full weeks from today before I am put back in the hospital. My doctors instructions on bed rest were to use “common sense”, so I have not been given strict instructions, but time will tell, I go back in a week from today so my instructions could change. Anyway, for now I am at home under Gie Gie’s watch. And she will not leave me at the house by myself because she does not want me moving….period! And today is Riley’s first day without ECDC. So we will see how the next couple of weeks ago.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Hospital Birthday Party!!
I will also add that my Mom sat with me while Riley went to his last day of school...so sad, we are going to miss ECDC so much! His teacher Ms Teresa was teary this morning when Momma dropped him off. And Holland came by and kept me company today too, so I have been spoiled with company as I hang out in my hospital gown in my hospital bed! All and all a much better day than yesterday!
Labor & Delivery Trip # 2
So yesterday I was sent back to labor and delivery for what I was certain was another bladder infection. I told everyone in the office it was no big deal and that I was fine. I even went and ate lunch before I went to L&D, knowing they would not let me eat after I arrived.
It is my last week at work, I put in my notice a little over a week ago and I was positive that I was going to be able to work until Friday and then if I had to be put on bedrest...that would be fine! Sometimes things don't go as planned!
I called Michael and had him come and pick me up from work and take me into the hospital. They checked me and set me up and much to my surprise I was between 2 and 3 cm dilated and contracting every 5 to 7 minutes. So we started fluids and brethine once again. And that is when it sunk in that I was actually in labor and that there was a chance I was going to have babies! There were tears, but Michael was great. He had Angela and Tracy come sit with me while he went and picked Riley up from school and took him to Holland and Reeds house...he was happy as a clam to be playing with his best bud Chappell. Meanwhile my Mom had been planning to come and see us today, so she was grabbing all her stuff and hit the road in a mad dash a day early. Riley's last day at ECDC is today so she was planning to come and stay with him for my last two days of work and then help me around the house this weekend with my sister and my dad...how else do you spend your 30th birthday weekend when you are pregnant with twins?
So that was how yesterday went and below is the email I sent out this morning detailing the medical side of things:
"I want to preface this email by saying it sounds like a lot of complaining, but please know that I know how blessed I am and I have just had a miserable day (sleeping exactly 0 minutes in 24 hours) however, the babies heart rates have been fantastic the whole time, so my misery is purely my own.
So since I arrived here I have had three bags (or more) of magnesium sulfate...not a fan, although my nurse leslie says I have handled it so much better than most people (again so blessed). Magnesium sulfate is given when patients are dealing with preclampsia/high blood pressure or in my case to act as a muscle relaxer. Because it is acting as a muscle relaxer they have to check my reflexes. They have also been checking my oxygen saturation levels because it can interfere with breathing. So nothing to help with my sleep last night as they needed me to continue breathing first and foremost. The other thing to know about Magnesium Sulfate...you are not allowed out of the bed at all! Can we say bed pan...I am just lucky my nurse saved me from the catheter.
I have also had three blood draws, 3 shots and my central IV has had three lines in it at almost all times. I am becoming really good at finding squirming infants on the heart monitors and my stomach probably looks as though it is covered in shelac from the tons of ultrasound goop it has been coated in.
Anyway, as I was writing this Dr. Kouri came in and said that everything looks great. He is taking me off of the magnesium sulfate and switching me to a pill of some sort at noon. He is getting a second round of antibiotics into me in case labor proceeds. Then they plan to monitor the girls rates until noon. This afternoon I will have the second dose of the shot that helps with their lungs. This afternoon and tonight they will be watching me to see how the new anti contraction meds work and if everything goes well, I will get to go home tomorrow. He also said that we may be able to keep labor at bay until 37 weeks.
All that being said I have been watching the screen since the mag was removed and I can see my contractions increasing. They can not start the new med until new bc it has interaction with the mag.
And for the record I will only wish Irish twins and friends and family in the future...the last 20 hours has been awful.
Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers, and feel free to pass this email along to anyone who you thinlk might care to read it.
Allison"
It is my last week at work, I put in my notice a little over a week ago and I was positive that I was going to be able to work until Friday and then if I had to be put on bedrest...that would be fine! Sometimes things don't go as planned!
I called Michael and had him come and pick me up from work and take me into the hospital. They checked me and set me up and much to my surprise I was between 2 and 3 cm dilated and contracting every 5 to 7 minutes. So we started fluids and brethine once again. And that is when it sunk in that I was actually in labor and that there was a chance I was going to have babies! There were tears, but Michael was great. He had Angela and Tracy come sit with me while he went and picked Riley up from school and took him to Holland and Reeds house...he was happy as a clam to be playing with his best bud Chappell. Meanwhile my Mom had been planning to come and see us today, so she was grabbing all her stuff and hit the road in a mad dash a day early. Riley's last day at ECDC is today so she was planning to come and stay with him for my last two days of work and then help me around the house this weekend with my sister and my dad...how else do you spend your 30th birthday weekend when you are pregnant with twins?
So that was how yesterday went and below is the email I sent out this morning detailing the medical side of things:
"I want to preface this email by saying it sounds like a lot of complaining, but please know that I know how blessed I am and I have just had a miserable day (sleeping exactly 0 minutes in 24 hours) however, the babies heart rates have been fantastic the whole time, so my misery is purely my own.
So since I arrived here I have had three bags (or more) of magnesium sulfate...not a fan, although my nurse leslie says I have handled it so much better than most people (again so blessed). Magnesium sulfate is given when patients are dealing with preclampsia/high blood pressure or in my case to act as a muscle relaxer. Because it is acting as a muscle relaxer they have to check my reflexes. They have also been checking my oxygen saturation levels because it can interfere with breathing. So nothing to help with my sleep last night as they needed me to continue breathing first and foremost. The other thing to know about Magnesium Sulfate...you are not allowed out of the bed at all! Can we say bed pan...I am just lucky my nurse saved me from the catheter.
I have also had three blood draws, 3 shots and my central IV has had three lines in it at almost all times. I am becoming really good at finding squirming infants on the heart monitors and my stomach probably looks as though it is covered in shelac from the tons of ultrasound goop it has been coated in.
Anyway, as I was writing this Dr. Kouri came in and said that everything looks great. He is taking me off of the magnesium sulfate and switching me to a pill of some sort at noon. He is getting a second round of antibiotics into me in case labor proceeds. Then they plan to monitor the girls rates until noon. This afternoon I will have the second dose of the shot that helps with their lungs. This afternoon and tonight they will be watching me to see how the new anti contraction meds work and if everything goes well, I will get to go home tomorrow. He also said that we may be able to keep labor at bay until 37 weeks.
All that being said I have been watching the screen since the mag was removed and I can see my contractions increasing. They can not start the new med until new bc it has interaction with the mag.
And for the record I will only wish Irish twins and friends and family in the future...the last 20 hours has been awful.
Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers, and feel free to pass this email along to anyone who you thinlk might care to read it.
Allison"
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Labor & Delivery
So today I started feeling crampy and I ignored it for a while...then i had a tiny bit if spotting so I called the nurse. The nurse had me go home and prop my feet up and drink fluids. I did as I was told and as I laid on my sofa (sooo boring) and after I had consumed about 60 ounces I realized that I was in more pain than when I called in originally. I called the nurse back and she sent me to labor and delivery. I believe I was sent to L&D because Jackson does not have a triage department, they just use L&D that way.
So I called Michael and told him I was going to the hospital and I was sure I was fine and I needed him to get Riley and take him to one of our friends and meet me at Jackson. Riley went ot play with Little T and Kim and Thomas and Michael came to the hospital. He was quite worked up and worried by the time he made it back to see me. They checked me and after having me prop myself up so they could get around Baby A's head they said I was slightly effaced but not dilated. The hooked me up to the monitors and measured the girls rates and my contractions...which i was unknowingly having! I was given a bag of fluids and a shot of brethine to stop the contractions. The contractions were really getting strong evry 20 minutes or so, then I would get up and go to the bathroom and they would slow down. Finally when the contractions were gone I was allowed to go home. All of this was caused by a bladder infection. Uncomfortable but all is well now!
So I called Michael and told him I was going to the hospital and I was sure I was fine and I needed him to get Riley and take him to one of our friends and meet me at Jackson. Riley went ot play with Little T and Kim and Thomas and Michael came to the hospital. He was quite worked up and worried by the time he made it back to see me. They checked me and after having me prop myself up so they could get around Baby A's head they said I was slightly effaced but not dilated. The hooked me up to the monitors and measured the girls rates and my contractions...which i was unknowingly having! I was given a bag of fluids and a shot of brethine to stop the contractions. The contractions were really getting strong evry 20 minutes or so, then I would get up and go to the bathroom and they would slow down. Finally when the contractions were gone I was allowed to go home. All of this was caused by a bladder infection. Uncomfortable but all is well now!
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