Week 32 Preterm labor and Hospital Bedrest

I know everyone has heard by now the craziness that has occurred this week but I thought I would let everyone know the chain of events that took place in order to land me in my indefinite hospital bed rest.

Saturday we had an amazing time visiting cousins Katie and Chris in Columbus and friends Gina and Eric and their new home. I took it very easy knowing that I might be nearing the time in my pregnancy that I should stay off my feet as much as I can. Saturday night I had some mild uncomfortableness in my lower abdomen and just stayed calm and relaxed. It was not contractions so I just thought maybe my belly didn't like something I ate. Sunday morning I woke up fine and it wasn't until about 1:00p.m. that things started. I had a handful of randomn contractions which have been very common for me since week 15. We decided we should probably get on the road home because Austin was also getting more out of control.  My contractions continued for our drive home and by the last hour my contractions were becoming regular. Every five minutes to be exact! I had already crawled to the back and reclined as far as possible and rested on my left side. We were driving through some crazy weather, hail and thunder storming(if my contractions weren't nerve wracking enough). Once we arrived home, I phoned my doctor's office and was given directions to empty my bladder, rehydrate and rest in bed on my side and give it an hour. Well, luckily within the hour my contractions stopped and life seemed good. The doctor suspected that the car ride had irritated things and most likely all was well.

Monday came quickly as I slept very well and I was off to the Doctor's office for my routine non-stress test and appointment. During my 30 or so minute test I had 3 contractions on the monitor so the Doctor chose to check my cervix. What do you know, I was 1.5 cm dilated and she quickly suggested that I go to the hospital for further evaluation.
As calmly as possible, I made my way to the hospital and to triage. I was connected to the monitors and within the hour I was told I was going to be admitted for possible preterm labor.

Ever since then, I have been in this same room. I had gone into preterm labor and was given a steroid shot for the babies lungs to develop, in case they were coming very soon. I was also put on a drug every 6 hours to try and stop the contractions. I was checked again and had dilated to 2.5 cm, things were actually progressing :( That evening, Paul and I were visited by the NICU team to inform us of what to expect if we are delivering soon. It was a very scary talk yet very informative! I had no idea that even though their weight is good at over 4lbs each, there are many other things that the babies could deal with. One being underdeveloped lungs. So, our first goal was to make it another 24 hours to receive the 2nd steroid shot. Second the babies would not be able to maintain their body temperature so they would be in an incubator and third, they don't have a suck reflex yet so they would be fed by tube. Many of these traits develop around 35 weeks so we really want to get to that point and possibly the babies won't need to be in the NICU.

Well, the night went on and my contractions managed to slowly stop but at the same time I developed a localized sharp stabbing pain in my back which wrapped around my side and down to my groin. The nurse suspected that it may be a kidney issue and I had some more blood work to try to narrow down an infection or stone. It was a very rough night. Although my contractions has stopped my kidney pain was intensifying. By the morning I was screaming in pain and sobbing. The doctor checked me and she suspected that I had a kidney stone. I was immediately put on one of the best drugs EVER through my IV. In about 30 seconds the drug hit me and life started to be very good. The pain stayed away for about 2 hours before I was asking for more. Slowly, during the day the time between doses did span out and around 7:00pm the pain stopped and I likely passed my stone which had broken up and left crystals in my urine samples. I slept very well that night finally no longer in pain and thouroughly wore out from two days in the hospital.

Wednesday morning arrived and I was in extremely high spirits thinking that with no contractions and no pain I would be going home. It was at this point that I learned that when I was checked last my cervix was now 3 cm and the Doctor could feel baby FEET not her toosh which we assumed she was complete breech! Oh no, this is bad :( She advised that I needed more time in the hospital until they came up with the best plan for me. So I spent the day with a handful of visitors still very optimistic about going home.

Here it is Thursday and the real shocking bomb was dropped. Because of baby A being footling breech and me being dilated I am officially a part of the highest of high risk deliveries in pregnancies. The scenario goes as this, my water may potentially break which would result in the the chance that the umbilical cord could exit first putting me in a very dire situation. Because of this, I would not be safe outside the hospital where immediate action could not take place. I am in the hospital for the long hull. The only chance I have at going home is if she happens to change positions but that is very unlikely.

I spent this evening officially moving into my new residence. I had my mom pack my real hospital bag and Paul delivered it with our daily evening visit with him and Austin. If was absolutely amazing to put my own under garments and clothes on....ahhhh! For the first time in days I also with normal clothes on felt brave enough to venture out of my room and into the mini food area. I decided I should get aquainted with my home for now! I am hoping for a very pleasant sleep tonight as I have come to terms with my situation and now just truly hope for the best!!

I will close this incredibly long entry with the couple scenarios that may play out in the next couple weeks. One, baby girl moves positions during my next ultrasound and I get to go home. Two, I start contracting again and they do their best to stop it. Three, we get to 34 weeks which is August 10th and labor starts again in which case they will just prep me for c-section delivery and things go smooth (mostly). Lastly, the worst case scenario, my water breaks anytime while I am here and we will be rushed to have an emergency c-section and it is very likely I will be put under during this option and not be awake for the birth of our babies.

So the dice have been rolled, we just don't know which way they will land!

Weeks 29-31 The turning point

The third trimester has arrived with a vengeance and reared it's ugly head! Uncomfortable has become my way of life. Uncomfortable to stand, the weight on my legs makes me feel like I ran a marathon everyday. Uncomfortable to sit because that's all I do, SIT. My tail bone is just about numb from all the sitting and I am not even on bed rest. Uncomfortable to eat because I can only fit small amounts. Uncomfortable to shower because I need to find a bench to sit on.(anyone have an old person bench?) Uncomfortable to sleep because I switch sides every half hour, pee at least 4 times and my ribs burn from expanding but luckily not from kicks. I really don't know if there is a time when I am not uncomfortable(oh wait, in the pool) but then as soon as I hit the staircase out- it's like, "woah my aching back" UGH! I did not experience any of this with Austin so it's officially new and not so fun to be pregnant anymore! By the way, I have surpassed my Austin size around and weight gain but funny I am not as heavy with the twins yet because I started out 10 pounds lighter so I will most likely weigh the same at their birth as I did with him.

The weeks prior to this week alone, life was fantastic (awkward) but very manageable. I spent my free time assembling baby items that were stored in the attic and getting my ducks all in a row. I sure am glad I got almost all of the nesting done now that I can barely get around without moving like a snail, out of breathe or hurting all over from the simplest tasks! This will be my last week of work for a long time! I had to cut it one week short, I was hoping to get through July but it's just too much strain. August is going to be a very boring month (visitors are welcome to come keep me company and occupy poor Austin.)

Our 83 year old Bassinet from the Smith/Keller side. Our babies will be the 4th generation to sleep in it just like Austin!

Okay, I am done with the complaining, onto the good stuff. I have had 3 appointments since I last wrote with lots of items to report. One, my weight is good at 30 lbs so far. Two, my blood pressure is wonderful at 116/68 which is normal for me. Three, I have no swelling in my legs and feet. My ultrasound was very good except that we found out both babies are breech and that I am most likely having a c-section delivery. Baby girl weighs 4 pounds and baby boy weighs 3 pounds 12 ounces. That has really eased my worries. They are at a good weight for a projected delivery in 4-6 weeks hopefully being over 5 pounds then! I have been informed that if I go into labor soon, they will only try to stop the contractions if I am less than 34 weeks, anything after, we are a go for delivery. Also, if we make it to week 37 we will schedule an induction or more likely the c-section by week 38. My next ultrasound is set for week 35 and we will know more then!

Baby Boys cute little 3D face!

Today I also had my very first non-stress test. Pretty uneventful actually! The fetal Doppler monitor was connected to me to detect both babies heart rates and movements. Our son is an angel and cooperated just fine(like his brother) but man oh man baby girl is a trip. She was all over the place and gave us a real run around to track her. Maybe she will be better on Monday for my next test. Yep, a test every week until I deliver! I also had a tetanus booster and my arm is aching, more being uncomfortable(Geesh). We plan to have one more exciting weekend to visit some friends in Columbus this weekend and then it's home bound and boring life for me. The only exception will be to meet my twin baby cousins who are four months old already and will be in town to visit briefly in a couple weeks! I suppose I should take this time and enjoy the calm before the storm and the decent sleep before it all ends!

Until next time, the countdown has officially begun!!!!