Not sure if I can post here, but my LO is likely to be preemie...

[2ndHeartbeat]

Any comments on what to expect?

I'm a little over 30 weeks currently, and back when I was 27+4 I was in the hospital for a couple of days as the docs were concerned with my thinning cervix. I got the two steroid shots that were to mature the baby's lungs then so I'm sure the lungs wont be an issue from here on out (I hope).

I'm on bedrest and such until 35 weeks, after which they said it didn't matter when I went into labor as it would be fine.

My cervix is 8mm. As they tell it, a normal cervix is 4cm. That's quite a significant difference, and I did have a swab test done (I forget what it's called) and the results were that I am at "high risk" for premature labor.

Anyway, I'm having no signs of anything yet, but given I could have him before the 35 weeks that they say is my goal, what can I expect? I'm sure I can expect to be dealing with the NICU and such, but anyone have any other insight? Thanks in advance as I am a little nervous!

 

[Marleysgirl]

Hi 2nd, and welcome! Feel free to ask any questions you have, we welcome potential preemie moms as well as those who have their preemie princes & princesses

What to expect ..... How long is a piece of string? Sounds like they're already preparing your baby for an early arrival with the steroid jabs (I had those too). Obviously the later the baby appears, the more developed it will be and the less medical assistance or intervention likely to be required.

Babies are fighters, and the best thing you can do is not worry too much, as this will stress you.

Gather your friends & family, and "prep" them for the possibility that your baby may be in NICU and, as a result, you will need more support from them, emotionally and practically (e.g. ensuring you get regular meals, help with travel to see baby).

Sorry, gotta dash (dinner) but the other regulars will be along later with more advice!

 

[bumpsmum]

hi hun welcome and congrats on your pregnancy.

My lo Matthew or as he's more often called these days 'trouble' was born 33+4 by emergency c section. I had pre-eclampsia and start of kidney failure so no experience directly of thinning cervix. You have done amazingly keeping him all warm and safe for the past 3 weeks im sure he will hang in a bit longer for you so long as you take it easy and accept the help from friends and family.

As he has had his steroids his lungs should be matured enough, he may need some breathing assistance at first but as he gets bigger and older his lungs will develop more. At first the breathing/feeding tubes etc look really scary but it will amaze you how quick you begin to see past it to the gorgeous boy underneath the mask or wires .

The main areas where he may need a bit of help are feeding he may have a wee tube in his nose or mouth directly to his tum but as soon as he is able and showing signs that his suck reflex is developed (not sure of specifics I think its roughly 32/32 weeks??) you can begin feeding him. If a feeding tube is req once you feel comfortable you will be shown how to feed him via tube etc...

Maintaining temperture and mild juandice are common but again as he matures these will improve, from 30 weeks onwards its really just a case of gaining weight hun he may drop below his birth weight this is very common (even in term babies) but they soon make up for it.

Good luck hun, take a peak at the VIP thread at the top of this forum some real inspirational stories in there that will give you hope. Feel free to chat away the next 5-8 or hopefully longer...... weeks here and feel free to ask anything at all, even if you think its silly, I wished I had asked alot more, I was ill for 3/4 weeks before and knew he might need to come early and loitered in here but dont think I ever posted xx

 

[AP]

the girls have covered it, and you have the added avantage of having the steriod shots (i only managed one shot while in labour at 27+4.)the reason for my labour was unknown

My LO was in for 12 weeks, however my mum had me at 29 weeks due to cord entanglement and it was only a few weeks, so Marleygirls right - how longs a piece of string!

Its hard to explain what neonatal is like - but the nurses will keep you informed with every step and you can ask a million questions!

MandaAnda on here is a neonatal nurse and im sure she'll pop by with words of wisdom when she comes over!

 

[Foogirl]

Abby was born at 29 weeks. (I started bleeding heavily due to a low lying placenta) I'd had the steroid injections at 26 weeks.

She was 3lbs 7oz at birth and was in hospital for just over 6 weeks. She needed minimal intervention with breathing, picked up one infection which knocked her back on to the ventilator for a couple of days, but other than that just had to get bigger and stronger.

She was fed through a tube in her nose and we started with breastfeeding at 31 weeks although she didn't really have it sussed til just before she came home. You will hopefully be encouraged to express milk for your LO.

You will be introduced to a world of abbreviations! And medical sounding things you may struggle to get your head around. You may get a shock when you first see your LO with tubes and wires - but s/he will still be the most beautiful thing you have ever laid eyes on. Take a look at the VIP thread, it will give you a little idea of what to expect.

You mentioned you are on bedrest, is this in the hospital? If so, you could request someone takes you round the NICU and you can familiarise yourself with the incubators and machines etc.

It is a scary time, of course it is, but as has been said, there are so many wonderful and inspirational stories here, the one word that you have to hang on to is "Hope" Because you have that in bucketloads! And every day your LO sticks, just brings a whole lot more.

 

[1st tym mummy]

i dnt know what the steroid injection is as didnt have it and the only thing you have to know about really is tht your baby will prob have to be in for 9 - 14 days as long as they can keep there own temperture and drink out of a bottle with no trouble you can go home i hd my lil girl at 34+5 and i never hd a steroid injection for her lungs and i was estimted to of had her at 28 weeks pregnant and still never had it so what is it for if you dont mind me asking and hope what ive tol you hass helped

 

[Foogirl]

i dnt know what the steroid injection is as didnt have it and the only thing you have to know about really is tht your baby will prob have to be in for 9 - 14 days as long as they can keep there own temperture and drink out of a bottle with no trouble you can go home i hd my lil girl at 34+5 and i never hd a steroid injection for her lungs and i was estimted to of had her at 28 weeks pregnant and still never had it so what is it for if you dont mind me asking and hope what ive tol you hass helped

If your baby is at risk of being premature, you are given 2 sets of steroid injections, 24 hours apart. These injections help give a boost to the baby's lung development. As the lungs are one of the last things to develop properly, this boost is a great help to premature babies.

I'm surprised you weren't given them. Are you in the UK?

 

[2ndHeartbeat]

I'm on bed rest at home, and of course sometimes I cheat (I sit upright in a chair for a bit here and there) but I do keep to the docs orders as best I can lol.

Thanks for all of your responses... puts me at ease somewhat. I figure when I do go into labor, whenever that is, I think he'll definitely pull through fine. I did have a consult with a neonatologist when I was in the hospital back at 27weeks and he said if I were to have him then there was an 80% survival rate, going up to about 82% at 28 weeks. Being 30+ now I'm beginning to think it's not going to be the fifty fifty will he make it scenario I was imagining. XD

 

[Foogirl]

I'm on bed rest at home, and of course sometimes I cheat (I sit upright in a chair for a bit here and there) but I do keep to the docs orders as best I can lol.

Thanks for all of your responses... puts me at ease somewhat. I figure when I do go into labor, whenever that is, I think he'll definitely pull through fine. I did have a consult with a neonatologist when I was in the hospital back at 27weeks and he said if I were to have him then there was an 80% survival rate, going up to about 82% at 28 weeks. Being 30+ now I'm beginning to think it's not going to be the fifty fifty will he make it scenario I was imagining. XD

The survival rates - and also the rate at which complications occur go down with every passing day. The chances of a healthy (if somewhat teeny tiny) baby born beyond 30 weeks are very very good.

Do you have a hospital visit planned at any time? If so I'd recommend a tour. Or, you could even ask if you can talk to one of the NICU team. They might even have an online tour.

 

[Foogirl]

Just did some Googling.

https://www.adhb.govt.nz/newborn/ParentSupport/VirtualNICUTour.htm
Gives a virtual tour of a NICU unit in NewZealand.

https://www.saintelizabethonline.com/index.php?page_id=144&pp=68#
Is a photo type tour of another unit somewhere.

Whilst, obviously, your own unit will have a different type of layout etc, it will give you an idea of the kind of equipment and the like, you can expect to see when you get there.

 

[2ndHeartbeat]

Thanks for the sites! I watched the video and it was sort of a scary thing but I guess no one 'wants' to see their baby in one of those.

I don't have a tour planned but I'm not sure I could get one if I wanted one... perhaps after the 35 weeks when they said I could be up and around... otherwise I don't know if they'd let me walk around that much. But who knows, maybe they'd make an exception considering.

 

[Foogirl]

Thanks for the sites! I watched the video and it was sort of a scary thing but I guess no one 'wants' to see their baby in one of those.

I don't have a tour planned but I'm not sure I could get one if I wanted one... perhaps after the 35 weeks when they said I could be up and around... otherwise I don't know if they'd let me walk around that much. But who knows, maybe they'd make an exception considering.

It is scary - that's why it is best to be prepared!

If you can't walk, they can always take you round in a chair.

 

[2ndHeartbeat]

Oh man... I hated being wheeled around when I was in the hospital back at 27. It was like I can't go pee without alerting you people, but why do I have to be wheeled around like my legs don't work

I mean I understood why but I'm super independent and hated it altogether XD

 

[lanaross]

2ndheartbeat, I am so sorry you're going through this. I am in the same exact spot and was just admitted to the hospital today for contractions/heartbeat test and lung shots, so lurking around to see what to expect. My cervix is at 1.5, which is a bit better but two weeks ago it was at 2.5 and I also began funneling, so I am expecting my LO early

 

[premmiemum123]

So sorry to hear you are going through this...I hope your little ones sleep tight inside you and don't want to come out just yet. x

 

[Sam9kids]

I agree with the other poster about being prepared for what you might see.

I had a premmie baby in 2006 (35 weeks) but he was ok.

The second was in Feb 2008 (33 weeks) and when i walked into the special care unti and saw her in the incubator, i burst into tears.

9 months later in Nov 2008 i had another premmie (31 weeks) and i was a lot more at ease as i knew what to expect that time. It was a lot easier to take in.

Ive been told that this one will be prem so im having steroids at 28 weeks and keeping my legs crossed!

Good luck xx

 

[Foogirl]

and keeping my legs crossed!

I'm sorry, but this tickled me coming from a lady with 8 children and 1 on the way.

Oh man... I hated being wheeled around when I was in the hospital back at 27. It was like I can't go pee without alerting you people, but why do I have to be wheeled around like my legs don't work

I mean I understood why but I'm super independent and hated it altogether XD

Yeah, I hated it. But there was no way I could make it down there myself!

 

[2ndHeartbeat]

2ndheartbeat, I am so sorry you're going through this. I am in the same exact spot and was just admitted to the hospital today for contractions/heartbeat test and lung shots, so lurking around to see what to expect. My cervix is at 1.5, which is a bit better but two weeks ago it was at 2.5 and I also began funneling, so I am expecting my LO early

That sounds just like me. Back at around 27/28 weeks my cervix was 1.4ish. A week later it was just at 1, and this last measurement was under 1, at 8mm. If your hospital is like mine was, they'll just keep you for a few days, then send you home on strict bedrest and have you go in for an internal sonogram for measuring once a week.

It is comforting to get feedback from all of you, having been there and such. I just showed my OH the NICU video just so he'd sorta know what to expect as well. I'm pretty sure we're going to be good though. By my calculations, February being 28 days exactly, I should be good to go on the first of March... so the way I see it is if I can make it through the shortest month of the year, I'm home free!

 

[1st tym mummy]

i dnt know what the steroid injection is as didnt have it and the only thing you have to know about really is tht your baby will prob have to be in for 9 - 14 days as long as they can keep there own temperture and drink out of a bottle with no trouble you can go home i hd my lil girl at 34+5 and i never hd a steroid injection for her lungs and i was estimted to of had her at 28 weeks pregnant and still never had it so what is it for if you dont mind me asking and hope what ive tol you hass helped

If your baby is at risk of being premature, you are given 2 sets of steroid injections, 24 hours apart. These injections help give a boost to the baby's lung development. As the lungs are one of the last things to develop properly, this boost is a great help to premature babies.

I'm surprised you weren't given them. Are you in the UK?

yh im in the uk why is that?

 

[Foogirl]

yh im in the uk why is that?

Because pretty much anyone else here who was deemed at risk of a premature baby was given the steroids. I thought maybe the reason you weren't given them was that you weren't in the UK.