Messages

1

What's Your Story? Tell us. / Re: Back for round 3

« on: Today at 11:09 PM »

Thanks everyone.  My little girl has been doing well since her arrival. Recovering from my c-section and getting settled into our new lives in the NICU for the next few months.  She weighed 3 lbs 3 oz the exact same as her big brother, but the difference the extra 2 weeks made is really noticeable,  she is so much more comfortable and stable than he was when he was born.

Thanks for all the support through a difficult pregnancy, i'll be checking in every so often to see how your stories end

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What's Your Story? Tell us. / Re: Back for round 3

« on: June 16, 2018 at 07:20 PM »

Done cooking.  Waiting in line for the OR.  Bleeding, contracting and 4 cm dilated.  30 weeks 5 days.  Wish us luck!  Hoping my hubby gets here in time for the delivery.

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What's Your Story? Tell us. / Re: Back for round 3

« on: June 15, 2018 at 05:03 PM »

Thanks.  Official decision from drs today is hospital the rest of the way :-( but every day I'm in hospital might be one less NICU day for baby so staying positive.

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Pregnancy Complications / Re: Sludge/Contraction/Short Cervix/Preventative Cerclage - 16 weeks

« on: June 15, 2018 at 10:05 AM »

Congratulations!  It must finally be hitting you that you will get to take this baby home, such an amazing feeling after a loss.

Hoping full term for you!! 75th percentile is awesome. Bigger preemies do better if you do end up with an early arrival.

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Pregnancy Complications / steriods and gestational diabetes

« on: June 15, 2018 at 09:58 AM »

So my drs had warned me when they started the steriods for baby's lungs that it can affect my glucose numbers...

Didn't seem so bad the first day since they were starving me anyway in case of emergency c-section, but yesterday after a long fought battle for food privileges I finally got to eat lunch and dinner and my post meal readings were sky high (mid 200's after 30 pathetic carbs) and my fasting this morning was 140. I'm already on insulin treatment anyway but I don't feel like my drs seem to be on top of adjusting my doses enough to keep this under control.

For those who've had to deal with this combination before how long did it take for your glucose to get back to its normal after steriods?  (I have my makena tomorrow too that always gives them a bump too!!)

On a related note one weird thing, the morning before my contractions and abruption started my numbers went off a cliff, like half my usual after breakfast and battling off hypoglycemia in the 50's with emergency candy and extra snacks all morning. I'm convinced that was somehow a warning sign of something being wrong with my placenta before it started detaching but the drs I mentioned it to on admission were completely dismissive of the idea. Thoughts?

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What's Your Story? Tell us. / Re: Back for round 3

« on: June 14, 2018 at 03:55 PM »

Thank you

 Positive update for today,  after a long rough night of heavy contractions every 2 mins and blood everywhere, things have somehow settled down today.  The contractions are much further apart and I've  been only  spotting for the past few hours.

Persuaded drs to finally let me eat but they still won't be sending me home anytime soon since my scan showed a significant pocket of blood behind my placenta. Baby has looked great on the monitor and my blood work has been good so far too. So lots of reasons to be optimistic.

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What's Your Story? Tell us. / Re: Back for round 3

« on: June 14, 2018 at 03:59 AM »

Well here we go again,  after a calm week I started up with contractions every 2 minutes.  No further dilated when I got to the hospital but started a heavy bleed a few hours after being admitted. Me and baby still hanging in there despite the abruption. Steriods and magnesium but no signs of contractions letting up. She's breech so will be a c section if they have to deliver. Haven't broke my waters yet at least.  30 + 3 now and grateful to have made it this far.

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Making the Best of Bed Rest / Re: Monday Roll Call for June 11, 2018

« on: June 11, 2018 at 07:42 PM »

30 weeks now

It's been a good week with less than usual cramping and contractions.

Still haven't got my GD fasting glucose where it needs to be, but seems like we finally have the insulin dose right for breakfast so that is a small victory for me this week.

Last week of pre-k for my son, I'm relieved to have made it through his school year without giving birth, it will make the NICU stay much less of an interruption to his schedule plus we might finally make it through a week without a new cold!!

Looking forward to finishing decorating the nursery over the next few days, since we finally got the painting done this past weekend.

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Pregnancy Complications / Re: Long, but funnelling cervix at 26 weeks

« on: June 06, 2018 at 02:43 AM »

That's great news, hope the cramping has eased up too!

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Making the Best of Bed Rest / Re: Monday Roll Call for June 4, 2018

« on: June 04, 2018 at 02:37 PM »

Big day for us today, I'm 29 weeks now which is the furthest I've ever carried!!!

Relatively stable week for cramping/contractions. Still working with my doctors to try and get my blood sugar under control but otherwise doing good and feeling very optimistic 

A cold wet week of weather ahead for us, but I have been sitting out in the sun every chance I get. The house might be a mess, but somehow my husband found time to get our vegetable garden and fruit trees planted for the year so I'm pleased with a week of rain to water everything!

p.s. for sitting outside I'm a big fan of adirondack chairs, they are tipped back enough to keep the weight off my cervix but upright enough for me to eat comfortably and supervise my 4 year old.

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What's Your Story? Tell us. / Re: Im back with baby #4

« on: June 02, 2018 at 02:31 PM »

I hear you on the pressure, every time my little one goes head down it feels like bowling ball between my legs. Luckily she doesn't seem to camp out there for more than a day right now. She is extra busy flip flopping around when my sugar levels are high (GD  )  so in my completely unscientific advice maybe have a big glass of orange juice and lay down for a bit??

Depends how you feel about c-section vs. vaginal delivery too though, by this point most moms are hoping for head down. Even preemies do best delivered vaginally. If you are getting a c-section anyway for other reasons by all means do everything you can to flip her!!!

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What's Your Story? Tell us. / Re: Pregnant again after early loss

« on: June 02, 2018 at 02:24 PM »

That's great news! 

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What's Your Story? Tell us. / Re: Back for round 3

« on: June 01, 2018 at 01:44 PM »

Quick update on the gestational diabetes, met with the nutritionist who basically told me my diet was perfect don't change anything! Had a trip to the OB after a week of monitoring my blood sugars and they weren't happy with the numbers so starting on insulin, the long acting kind, levemir, every night to see if that helps bring down my fasting numbers, on day 3 now and it hasn't made a dent so my dose goes up tonight.

Interesting my worst fasting number was after I'd done my Makena shot the night before, I went back and looked at the patient insert for it and it does warn that it can decrease glucose tolerance and put you at an increased risk of GD (I had other risk factors too like PCOS and being overweight, so I can't exactly put all the blame on the shots)

Now I'm on insulin I have to go in every week. Still getting growth scans every 4 weeks, and then if I reach 32 weeks they will make me come in twice a week for NSTs. She even mentioned that they won't let me go past 39 weeks with GD, which made me laugh.

I'd had it in the back of my mind that if by some miracle I made it to term, that I would switch providers and go with midwife care either at home or in a birthing center to give me more control over the birthing process being the way I want it to be, but that is out the window now, stuck with high-risk and a hospital birth the whole way grrr.

Baby girl is so active in there, after spending a whole month stuck traverse early in the pregnancy she now seems determined to change position multiple time a day which feels really weird. My other two were big kickers but didn't spend all day doing somersaults the way she is!!

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Pregnancy Complications / Re: Long, but funnelling cervix at 26 weeks

« on: June 01, 2018 at 01:25 PM »

Yay for a negative FFN, that almost guarantees you another 2 weeks! I'm feeling good at 28+4 now, my rather long-winded story is under "back for round 3" under the "What's your story" category. Let me know how your appointment goes on Tuesday :-)

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Pregnancy Complications / Re: Long, but funnelling cervix at 26 weeks

« on: May 31, 2018 at 11:03 PM »

Hi Charlotte,

I had cervical length checks every two weeks from 16 weeks to 24 weeks, and they often showed a significant amount of funneling (as much as 2cm). My drs never seemed that bothered about the funneling, only caring about the length, I was consistently over 3cm so they didn't do a cerclage. Period type pain is a daily thing for me too.

with 3.7cm you shouldn't have too much to worry about, likely the specialist will be more concerned with your cramping.

You can ask about a pessary since that doesn't have the same gestational restrictions as a cerclage, also progesterone too, but I think it is reasonable to expect them to not take any action at this point beyond regular monitoring. Definitely take it easy as long as you are having the cramping.

Good luck :-)