Pregnancy scare!

For Easter Weston and I went up to St. George to spend the holiday with the Milnes this year. I did some shopping and tried to lay around some because of the swelling in my feet. Sunday morning I noticed I was having a contraction that was more painful than the ones I have been feeling so far. I just got through it and figured it was just a normal contraction instead of the many Braxton Hicks I have been feeling.

Monday morning at work I mentioned the contraction to my co-worker and she suggested we measure my cervix. I really wasn't concerned about it, but gave in and 2 of my co-workers scanned me. My cervix was only measuring 1.6cm, which is short because it should be anywhere from 2-4cm in length. The nurse practitioner I work with suggested I call my doctor and just let them know what was going on because she thought I should be put on bed rest. I called my doctor's office and they told me I needed to leave work and come in for an appointment later that day. I was just going to keep working until the appointment, but the radiologist I was working with was insistent that I go home and lay down. I figured my doctor was just going to think I was a crazy ultrasound tech that scans herself all the time and would send me home. I got to my doctor's office at 1pm for my 1:15pm appointment. After waiting 55 minutes in the waiting room and getting agitated I asked the secretary if there was a reason I was having to wait so long. She checked and they took me back right away. Weston thinks they forgot about me which made me really unhappy. I started crying when the nurse triaged me because I had been waiting so long and I thought the doctor would think I was silly for being there. After explaining everything she went and got the doctor and he came in to check me. He said, "I hear you have been falling on the ultrasound machine again" because the last time I saw him I mentioned the baby had the cord wrapped around his neck. I am pretty sure he thought the visit wasn't really necessary, but after doing a manual exam he told me my cervix was thinning and I was 1-2cm dilated. I asked him what that meant and he said he was sending me over to the hospital right away. I was a little surprised because I wasn't expecting that. I started crying in the car on our way home because I didn't think all this was going to happen when I left work early. We went home to grab a couple of things and then headed St. Rose Siena hospital since it has a level 3 NICU.

When we got to the hospital they put me in triage for monitoring. Once Dr. Ciklin and the other OB hospitalist got all the info from me they decided to put me in a room for 23 hour observation. They gave me fluids and a shot of tertbutylene to stop my contractions. When Dr. Miller came in later that night she decided to check me again and said I was 50% effaced and 2-3cm dilated which made her change me from an observation patient to an admitted patient. They gave me a steroid shot in my butt after that, just in case I delivered early, to help the baby's lungs. My contractions were getting closer together so they put me on Magnesium, which helps with the baby's brain development and sometimes helps slow contractions. I had to have a catheter put in which was horrible! Usually they don't put a catheter in patients until they have had an epidural when they are in labor, but since I couldn't go to the bathroom while on Magnesium they put one in me. I wasn't able to eat while on the Mag either because it can make you nauseous. Weston had a test Tuesday morning which he emailed his professor about postponing, but I told him to go home to sleep just in case his professor made him take it anyway. At 3 in the morning my contractions were 2-3 minutes apart so the nurse told me to call Weston to come back to the hospital since I would probably deliver that day. They gave me the second steroid shot sooner than 24 hours because they thought I was going to have the baby. My contractions began to slow down and by the time my nurse was off her shift I wasn't having frequent contractions. Weston was able to postpone his test until Wednesday morning so he stayed with me most of the day. Both of our parents, my friend Caren and more family came by to see me. That night I was able to come off the Magnesium and have the catheter removed. I was so happy to be able to use the bathroom and eat some food! They started giving me Procardia which helps slow down contractions and stopped the saline in my IV. Weston slept there that night and I was able to get 5 hours of sleep since I was only having to take the Procardia every 6 hours.

Wednesday morning Weston went to school to take his make up exam and go to the classes he missed on Monday. Everything was pretty calm until mid afternoon when my contractions started getting closer together. The doctor decided to increase my Procardia from 10mg to 20mg and then from every 6 hours to every 4 hours. I wasn't really feeling the contractions so they said that was a good sign because if they were painful it would be more worrisome. I spoke to the nurse and figured I would be at the hospital until I delivered because in order to go home my contractions would have to stop and I would have to have not dilated anymore. I finally got to shower that afternoon around 4 which felt wonderful, but when I got back to bed my contractions were really close together. I had a lot more visitors from church, work and family throughout the day. Since my Procardia was being given every 4 hours I told Weston to go home and get some sleep because he would probably wake up every time they came in to give me medication. I got about 4-5 hours of sleep, but when the nurse came in at 3 in the morning to put the monitor on the baby I couldn't go back to sleep so I just watched tv.

Thursday morning the doctor said that once the perinatologist came to see me we would decide what to do. Right before lunch the perinatologist came in a told me that if I hadn't dilated anymore they were going to send me home on bed rest and meds. I was so surprised! When we did the manual exam I was only 1-2cm dilated and 75% effaced which was ok for me to go home. The nurse took out my IV and gave me a prescription for Procardia to take on my own at home. I was so excited to go be going home, but almost surprised I hadn't gone into labor.

I am so grateful for the family and friends that came and visited with me and brought me treats. I am grateful for modern medicine and the nurses and doctors that took care of me. I am so grateful for Weston and that he was ready for whatever was going to happen. I am also grateful this baby boy has decided to stay in a little while longer so he can develop more inside of me. Hopefully bed rest and the medication with do it's job and I won't go crazy while at home :)