Preterm Hospital Visit

Saturday we went to a baptism and then a date as our last date before baby.  We dropped Owen off to be watched and went to the new Provo City Center Temple.  While I was there I was feel contractions but I wasn't counting.  We got some food and Owen and then went home where I started counting contractions with my app.

I had a hard time realizing I was having contractions when I was pregnant with Owen and still was having a hard time telling all of them I was having with this baby.  I counted figure out when they start or end especially if I was walking or laying down, sitting was the best way to know.  My friend works at the NICU so I asked her some questions about mine since they were 7 minutes apart, then 5 then 3 minutes.  After 5 hours of having them consistently and getting closer and closer like that, we decided to call the doc then go in to L&D especially being 35 weeks.  We got there at 9:30pm and they hooked me up to the monitors and sure enough they were 2 minutes apart and when I checked in I was dilated to a 3-3.5 about 80% effaced.  They wanted me to be on the monitor for an hour and when they returned about 1030 I was still having contractions every 2 minutes and dilated to a 4, effaced 90% and baby was at station -1.  I ended up being dilated to a 4.5 somewhere soon after.  They decided to slow down my labor since the baby just turned 35 weeks that day, they hooked me up to an IV, gave me two shots and some pills and kept the monitors running to see if things would slow down.  About an hour later or at 12 midnight, the IV finished and I was not dilated any more and they kept me on the monitor.  Finally the contractions were smaller and further spaced (I think like 4 minutes then a little further than that).  At 1230 I was dilated to a 4.5, 90% effaced and they talked to my doctor and said I could go home and if I was ok with that.

I was super worried about leaving the hospital but wanted to keep him in as long as I can since he would be so early.  Eventually we felt good about leaving but I felt/still feel like he's about to come! I was discharged around 1am and in my preterm labor papers and what they told me, I need to keep down and do nothing to prevent more contractions and my cervix to progress.  No lifting heavy things, no stress, no sitting or standing long, laying is the best option.  They told me to come in if I was having contractions every 5 minutes I think they told me for an hour.  I didn't sleep well that night because I was worried the medicine wouldn't fully work and I would have the baby that day.  I woke up a few hours later since the contractions were large enough to wake me and I would count and sometimes fall asleep while doing that.  I think like 6 I was wide awake and counting them every 4 minutes for 3 hours by the time we got back to the hospital.  Thankfully I didn't dilate more, they hooked me up again and the contractions (even though for hours I counted with app every four minutes - sometimes less) they were more inconsistent and after a few hours I got released (Sunday).

Monday I was paranoid all day especially since my husband had to go to work.  I wanted to get through that day since I had my regular doctor's appointment Tuesday and didn't want to go back into the hospital unless I was completely sure he was coming.  Tuesday nothing changed when I went in and she said we need to make it to 36 weeks and then try for 37! During this time they took urine samples at the hospital and doc office this and last week, the samples and swabs came back negative for anything but one had a small amount of bacteria and she thinks maybe it could have been a bladder infection that triggered the contractions to put me into labor.  Who knows, anyway I'm so grateful for modern medicine and technology and pray I can make it as long as I can.  I'm almost to 36 weeks now and feel like I'm a ticking timebomb about to pop at any moment.  Oh on top of this I got a cold that Saturday before I went in and I cough and sneeze and blow my nose which scares me.  I still have tons of contractions every day but nothing continuous.  I wake up at night because they are painful but it ends up being nothing.  I just hope I can make it to the hospital too since I'm so far dilated along, labor is going to be faster.  Either way everything will work out fine and I'm getting plenty of down time and rest to keep him in the best I can!