Wow! It is GREAT that you have made it to 34+ weeks! That in itself is a milestone! Now they won't stop the labor will they? They will let it progress since you are 34 right?
I will try and keep my story short, even though it feels like I could write a whole novel on it.
From the very beginning of my first pregnancy I had issues. They thought my son was ectopic so they did a laperoscopy and come to find out, it was a cyst that had folded onto itself making it look like a pregnancy. They removed the cyst, but I was still pregnant. Only 4 weeks exactly along. From that point on until 17 weeks I had constant period like cramps. Once 18 weeks hit, I had a break...until 20 weeks. At 20 weeks I started having "braxton hicks" is what I thought they were. I called my nurse to see if that is what it was, she told me to head into OB Triage (the pregnant women's ER). They hooked me up and I was contracting about every 10 minutes. They said there was nothing they could really do for me, except give me some experimental drugs (Procardia/niphetapine) Which is a calcium blocker that slows contractions. I came back at 22 weeks and said that I had had it! I demanded a vaginal cervical length check through ultrasound. My cervix was really shortned and put on strict bed rest.
Every week I went into the hospital to have my cervix checked and at 27 weeks it happened. I started going into labor during the exams. They admitted me and threw me on some magnesium. (Which is the WORST THING EVER) I was also given demerole (a wonderful narcotic) and I soon dialated to 1cm. I finally stopped dilating but continued with the contractions. My High Risk OB Doc was amazing. He ended up telling me I was staying until I hit 34 weeks, no less. So I was there in the hospital for the longest time. I hit 33 weeks and I begged him to let me go. He did, and I finished the bed rest at home. I continued to take my procardia 3x's a day and have hephrine shots to thin out my blood since I had gained so much weight from steroid injections and sitting all the time.
Once 36 weeks came, I was off bed rest. Then, 5 days later, went into labor and had my precious baby boy. Brayden weighed in at 6lbs 12oz and they said if I went to term, I would have had a 9 pounder or more. He was so healthy that we were both discharged form the hospital 24 hours later.
Now, here I am again. I'm pregnant for the second time and it looks like I will be on the same path. This time, my doctor is going to be monitoring me starting this Wed and start giving me the right amount of medication to prevent things. I'm starting the procardia again soon, then at 15 weeks, getting the progesterone shots to make sure my cervix doesn't shorten. The goal is to stay out of the hospital, period. I started cramping again just a few days ago, so hopefully we caught it in time!
There ya go, that is me, in a nutshell!
