Incompetent Cervix - stitch/cerclage - threatened labour

[LaRockera]

Lizzie - You're thanking me? Ha! I'm GRATEFUL for all the support and encouragement! You made every little negative feeling dissolve, thank you!

 

[vaali]

Hey all

Larockera - glad to hear you're not leaving us completely. Hurrah!

Now i have a stitch question....(yawn) which i probably know the answer to, but i just like to ask these things for a bit of reassurance.

I've woken up this morning with a weird uncomfortable feeling low in my abdomen - so where my stitch is inside me (it doesn't feel vaginal / like the outside of my cervix)
It feels like something pushing or pinching again, and comes and goes depending on my position. I think i might have slept curled up in a ball, which seems to put pressure on the stitch or at least push is against something inside me.

Does anyone else have these weird feelings in that area that comes and goes? It's not painful enough to go to hospital for, plus there are no other symptoms that would worry a doctor (and God knows i hop to hospital at the drop of a hat at the moment, and all they worry about is bleeding, infection or the stitch opening) so i'm guessing its normal.

Hope you're all well.

TruthB - your baby will be along soon! I promise (hey, it's gravity, so got to happen soon). I found a spot of reflexology and some sex broke my waters and least go things started!!

Lizzie - sending you a hug. Just because i think you might like one x

Kate yes! count me in to be experiencing that weird feeling you are talking about. Initially though i felt it first thing in the morning during 27ish to 32ish weeks the pain only got more weird after that & i started feeling it more towards evening to become worst at nights.. so (as apsara mentioned already )my guess is till it is removed there is gonna be some prick/ pain/ weird feeling radiating down the stitch.
I think its the pressure of the bub bouncing against the stitch the moment to get out of bed (as bub's weight increases) which has been off the cervix all night when you sleep..(correct me if im wrong)..
& oh.. yeah! the sex thingy to kick start the labour i too have heard about it!.. i would so love to do that after all these 8+ months of abstinence but i can picturise the look my hub would gimme already if i tell him about this.. lol.. & i know he would say 'let him come when he wants to.. im in no hurry'.. i always tend to listen to my heart (& land up in trouble atleast most of the times, if not always ) while 'he' to his mind (& start giving me intellectual speech )..

 

[Mommy's Angel]

o
MA you spend the 10 years in a very useful way but here iam wasted it no kids to look after then also don't know anything crafty... hope to see your finished nursery soon.........

love you all ladies there

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012 to you all

Thank you Apsara. I'd like to think that your time honestly wasn't wasted. We all have special gifts and talents and not everyone has the time or the patience for crafting. There are things I'm really bad at that others have found the time for and do very well too. I don't think crafting of any kind is a necessity to motherhood by any means. If anything it was a way for me to put my emotions in to something because I felt empty.

As for keeping up with it, we'll see. In the end, I think spending the time with Amelia is much more valuable in the long run plus, if she walks anything like her legs run in the air, I don't think I'll have time. She brings such joy and makes me laugh!

LaRocka. I've been SO absent-minded I hadn't seen any of what's been going on. I'm so glad your staying hun! Like your email said, you can't let the negativity of others control the impact you have and the love many others have for you. The internet carries people of all walks of life who have differences of opinion. It makes things hard not to argue when we don't all agree but that's just life! We're not going to agree with everyone and it's why each of us are unique. I'm glad you didn't let others get the best of you dear. I enjoy your presence on this thread!

Well everyone. When I've said I'm absent-minded I REALLY mean it. Amelia turned 3 months old on the 29th. Is it normal to be so flighty at 3 months in?? I literally almost caught the house on fire twice. Yesterday I put some turnips and potatoes in the steamer. Turned on the heat and a half hour in I remembered I'd forgotten to put water in the pan. The pan was so hot that when I added water, the cold water started boiling in the pan. I thought absent-mindedness happened during pregnancy? Why am I getting this now all of a sudden?

Hoping everyone rang in the New Year with a refreshed perspective and will be abundantly blessed in 2012!

 

[vaali]

oh la rock... i don't know about the reason behind your decision to leave BnB but may we request you as lizzie said can you be with us in this thread only if it is not too much to ask? all the very best la

lizzie iam 33+5 weeks now and way more relaxed than a few weeks before. now iam waiting for my appt on 10th to know about the possibility of normal delivery.
hope your kids are doing fine now take care lizzie

helen how are you hope oliver is fine now

truthb all the very best. come on baby don't make truthb wait anymore...

garrickbaby hope you are fine there

vaali... did they removed your stitch? then how are you feeling now about the pain 'down' there

MA you spend the 10 years in a very useful way but here iam wasted it no kids to look after then also don't know anything crafty... hope to see your finished nursery soon.........

love you all ladies there

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012 to you all

Aps next f/u falls on coming friday & i guess they would gimme the exactly date for stitch removal then. Usually they plan it by 37W since TERM LABOUR is by definition the one after 37 completed weeks of gestation. Though 13th jan is the arbitrary date they have given me already for it, pongal (one of the biggest festivals of south india) is around the corner & may be they are planning on holiday closure.. not sure so far..

 

[olga2424]

Hi ladies, please may I join you as I have been following this thread for a while but been too shy to introduce my self. firstly I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for being so knowledgeable and supportive as I have gained a vast amount of info on here....Lizzy, may I say you are a God send to this thread! .

OK a bit of history about me, I have 2 first tri loses and 1 second try loss at 21 weeks due to PROM in Jan 11, am currently 17 + 2 and am filled with anxiety and fear.
Prior to losing my baby, I was experiencing a lot of discharge which i had put down to having thrush and each time I'd mention it to the mid wife i was told that it was very common in pregnancy and they just kept giving me pessaries to insert and the thrush never shifted.

A few weeks prior to my waters breaking, I was also experiencing leaking fluid which i thought i was peeing my self which i didn't realize was amniotic fluid, constant back ache and cramping during the night.
I woke up that morning to go to work and i felt a trickle of water running down my leg, I run to the toilet and and that point i noticed blood in my under wear. Anyhow, cutting a long story short, I went to hospital and was examined were they found i was dilated 2cm with bulging membranes and i was told 2 conflicting stories....One Dr. claimed I had IC and the other said it could have been an infection that i was carrying for a while that could have traveled up to my cervix causing it to soften, open up and also breaking the babies bag of waters

I gave birth to my little girl after 9 days as i was convinced by the doctors to terminate the pregnancy and it was the saddest day of my life.
Am currently 17+2 pregnant and they have been monitoring me with T/V ultra sounds and on 29/12/11, @ 14 weeks my CL was 34cm and @ 16+5 I was down to 2.1cm, os closed which is very concerning. I was immediately ref to the consultant to discuss having a stitch asap. Am booked in to have one tomorrow which can't come soon enough. I have been on bed rest since Friday and only getting up to make my meals and toilet breaks/showers as my partner is away on a business trip (great!). The whole of yesterday I have been experiencing cramping and slight back ache and don't know if this is a cause for concern...???
My question, is the cramping and back ache a sign that my cervix could be opening up? I haven't got any bleeding or extra discharge.
What precautions should i take after i have the stitch to prevent infection?
Is 2.1cm too short for 16+5? whats your take on this and what advice would you give?

Am so anxious and extremely stressed as I have not slept a wink in days as keep thinking am going to go into PTL....so sorry for the long post.

Happy new year to you all and am looking forward to getting to know you and I will keep you posted on tomorrow's appointment.
Thank you and best wishes,
Olga

 

[vaali]

Olga all i have to say right now to you is stay calm & hopeful till the stitch is in, which is tomo (or the consultation?) as you have said.. i know it is very easily said than done esp with cramping & all but please try to stay off foot till tomo as much as possible & believe in your prego this time. The stitch is a life saver! really!! so please try to put your mid to rest till it is in & the rest we can always discuss later.. my prayers are with you & the bub & im sure everything is gonna go well this time around! May we all bake it & make it to term bud!!..

 

[LaRockera]

MA - Thank you, you know you've been an inspiration to me, and being in the same thread as you is an honour - like with the other ladies of course. Thank you again, I couldn't have made it this far without any of you.

To get back to you guys (enough of my own little dramarama

Kate - I think that what you're experiencing is normal, hon. Sounds like baby's shifting positions to me, and sometimes extra baby + bladder weight = a bit of cervix discomfort. I've experienced this throughout various stages in my pregnancy, and after 26/27 weeks it may become a bit more obvious (but not necessarily constant). I had it at 27 weeks, it's gone now, I bet it'll start again as last time my LO had already taken position. I'm hoping she won't decide to shift around again. I'll find out how she's lying on Thursday, as I'm having another well-being scan.

Olga - Welcome, honey. Needless to say how sorry I am for your losses. Please know you're a very brave, strong person, and your deserve all the happiness in the world. I have experienced non-related cramping & backache in various stages in my pregnancy. Sometimes it was just round ligament pain, other times traces of nitrates have been found in my urine (ie possible UTI, but it was never confirmed ). My advice is, stay on bed rest and drink gallons and gallons of water. And do this in the future, as it is a great way to prevent infections. I also take probiotics to prevent thrush, insert a rephresh vaginal gel every once in a while as per my own doctor's advice (always check with yours though) as a precaution, and drink the yucky concentrated cranberry juice you can find in healthshops. My discharge has always and still is out of control. I've purchased Ph litmus papers and urine tests strips to check myself frequently. You can find them on amazon and ebay. With the litmus test, I just slide them on my vulva (then wipe off with a wet cloth/ I sink it in a solution of 1 cup of chamomile + 2 teaspoons of baking soda, as it's a natural treatment for thrush. My doctor even advised douching with it but I've been a bit scared to try internally) and see how the colour changes. Good luck with your cerclage insertion tomorrow hon, it'll be fine! They should put you on antibiotics and tocolytes to prevent infection. You may experience some cramping or bleeding for a few days afterwards.

 

[kateqpr]

Hi everyone!

Thanks for your comments on the pain I had yesterday. I was quite uncomfortable last night but woke up pain free. But then I go to the loo and the spotting is back. Oh my god. Really I don't think I can cope with many more visits to hospital, but off to triage now to be checked out yet again as I have some cramping too. I just wish I knew for sure what it was so I didn't always worry so much. Shall try to find a nice doc to bend their ear today.

Olga - its great your having the stitch. They really do work and I had similar measurements as you on my last pregnancy, stitch at 18 weeks and gave birth at 38 weeks! You might be a bit sore and crampy after the operation but just take it easy in bed for a few days after and soon you'll be feelIng more normal. Oh, and welcome aboard!

Right, off to triage now. Wish me luck!

 

[apsara.m]

kate i know the tension of pg with spotting i was in your shoes from around 8 weeks to 28 weeks .. it was real hell. i will spot a bit (brown tinged mucus or just brown blood sorry TMI) and will have cramping on and off i was in constant fear about PROM ... and i was on projesteron injections twice a week. after around 30 weeks my spotting vanished by itself and my doc stopped the injections. she was not able to found out from where it is coming she assured me bubba is fine.. i really hope this is the case of you also. as vaali mentioned the pressure may be bubba pushing down there through stitch ..
olgahoney welcome here i assure you you will get best support possible from all of us here. please keep your feets up and drink as much water as humanly possible. best of luck for tomorrow
MA love you dear..... yes you are right when amelia runs around the house you will not think about crafts a bit.... MA i really enjoyed the "fried potato" so iam sure we will have our pregnancy brain even after lo is here haha

 

[kateqpr]

Have been admitted again. Bleeding bit heavier and now getting cramps. Very frightened. Just waiting for my husband to come. Feel a real mess - keep on crying x

 

[LaRockera]

Have been admitted again. Bleeding bit heavier and now getting cramps. Very frightened. Just waiting for my husband to come. Feel a real mess - keep on crying x

All our thoughts are with you, honey. Hope the torture is over soon- i.e. bleeding and cramping stops and you get sent home again. Is it cramping, or proper contractions? They'll probably be able to stop it with tocolytes.

Please let us know what's going on as soon as you feel up for it.

Sending you lots of wishes for strength and the possible outcome.

PS. This sounds like some sort of infection to me. If your cervix is closed, I doubt it you're going into early labour.

 

[LaRockera]

An update for Kate (I'm sure she's fine with me posting it). She's still bleeding and has been given steroid injections.

Sweetie, we're all here with you, sending you tons of good thoughts and wishes.

 

[HelenGee]

Kate- sending you love and all my prayers. Will keep checking back so that I know you're ok. Stay strong :hugs

 

[HelenGee]

Lizzie and Aspara- thank you for asking, Oliver is so much better now, it's been about 3 months of passing colds and stomach bugs to each other. We're now all recovered just in time to return to school. How's your little chap doing Lizzie? It's heartbreaking when they're ill, Oliver seems to just be knocked for six every December, he doesn't eat especially well and I struggle to get vitamin tablets into him too.

MA- the flightiness only gets worse LOL! I have also done the "fried" potatoes trick and my hubby jokes that he thought that scraping the burnt bits off toast was the correct way to cook it. Even Oliver laughs at his food and points out all the burnt bits as I try to juggle feeding us all with the loud protests from Bella in the background. I have missed doctors appointments, turned up an hour too early for a dentist appointment and nearly forgotten to collect Oliver from school (I had to call my mother in law to race there as she was closer). The comedy is I have to be super-organised to teach I don't know how I get through a week. Enjoy, it's a special time, and just laugh it off!

Garrick- I have a mirena, had it fitted about about 7 months ago. I really didn't give it the thought I should have, I knew that another pregnancy riight now would not be good for us as a family, and I felt I was too young to have my tubes tied. I am also hopeless with the pill as I can barely remember to attend to a meal when I'm cooking it, being constantly tired is not a good state for me to rely on my memory. The honest version is I hated it at first, the cramping lasted for weeks, and the constant spotting lasted about 5 months. I decided to have it removed and called for an appointment, but my doc was going to be on sick leave as he was having surgery, so I decided to wait until he was back as I really like him. My appointment is in 2 weeks time and I'm now really undecided as to what to do. Apart from a slight left-side pain sometimes, it has totally settled down. My unbearable periods have almost stopped, the last one was 7 weeks ago, was light and lasted 4 days. Prior to that I was anaemic during periods as they were so heavy and lasted for about 9 days. I had it checked quickly at my last smear and the nurse said it looked like it was in place. I'm not sure now whether to have it removed or not, I will at least get the position checked.

The only other bug bear is weight gain, I still had about half a stone of baby weight to lose when it was fitted, but my appetite increased massively (through tiredness and lack of time to eat healthily too). Courtesy of a vile stomach bug I've now lost that weight! I also think it's cut my appetite right back, so I'm now eating a lot more carefully. It is worth considering as it is reversible. I don't know how uncomfortable removal is, the fitting didn't bother me one bit, it was the cramping afterwards that knocked me for six. Let me know if you have any other questions, it's not perfect, but I'm hoping it will save me from worry.

Vaali, I can't believe you're 36 weeks, that's amazing

Susannah- how are you, bubs and Charlie bean? Getting excited x

 

[blav]

Oh Kate, I'm still keeping my fingers crossed and hoping the best for you and the little one. Try to keep your head up and stay relaxed (yeah, right) but it's best for you and baby right now.

I've been stalking this forum for a little while, but hadn't really needed to post, just wanted to offer some words of support

 

[apsara.m]

kate............ you and bubba are in our prayers keep tight... take care

 

[vaali]

kate my prayers are with you & the bub honey. Im really hoping they settled the cramps & bleeding down by now.. my heart goes out to you honey.. & sending you both loads of strength & peace...

 

[vaali]

Helen thanks for mentioning me bud! that really brought me a smile!!.. & no, i cant believe it too i made it this far . So glad to know Oliver is doing healthy now.. my hugs to him!

 

[garrickbaby]

Kate- hang in there, thoughts and prayers are sent your way for you and baby.

Helen- Thanks for the information. Is the Mirena works right after they insert it or does it take awhile? I've signed the forms for the Tubal but who knows if I will go though with it. My daugher is turning 11 next week and we are already trying to figure out money for College for her not to mention having this new addition to our family.

 

[Mommy's Angel]

Praying for Kate. Your in my thoughts tonight darling and I'm praying for improvement.

Helen, Oh goodness! I'm glad I'm not going through this alone. It'll be interesting to see what else comes up missing, burnt, etc. My poor husband!

Lots of love to all you lovely ladies!