Update - home from hospital

Yikes, it's been a long, scary, miserable couple of weeks!!! On Sunday, Sept. 30, I started having a lot of contractions and ended up having to go to the hospital. When they put me on the monitor, I was contracting every 2-5 minutes. They checked my cervix and said I was a fingertip dilated. I was only 21 weeks, 5 days pregnant. The doctor who was on call for my OB was not very nice - didn't want to put on the right medication to stop labor b/c I wasn't even far enough for viability yet (which makes no sense - isn't that the whole point??), and wouldn't give me any pain medication despite the fact that my contractions were becoming quite painful.

Fortunately, when my OB came on Monday morning, he immediately ordered some pain meds and got me on the right medication - magnesium sulfate - to stop the contractions. Unfortunately, this drug is quite miserable to be on - makes you feel like total crap. For one thing, it gives you severe cotton mouth and makes you feel all hot inside, yet they have to restrict your fluid intake while you're on it - so you feel like you're dying of thirst, yet have to beg for mere ice chips. So I was on the mag sulfate until Tuesday night, then they took me off. I managed to stay fairly contraction-free for over 24 hours, so Thursday morning they moved me out of labor & delivery to a regular room (with a much comfier bed!).

Alas, I was only in my new comfy bed for about 8 hours when I started contracting again, and they had to move me back to L&D and put me back on the mag sulfate. Oh, did I cry! I was so discouraged!

Meanwhile, they really messed with my blood sugars, and one day I would be high, and then there was a day this week when I could hardly lift my head off the bed b/c my blood sugar was so low all day. Since I've been home, my blood sugars have been perfect, without any insulin or medication. So hopefully they will continue to stay where they're supposed to be. Also, one of the meds I'm on to stop contractions makes my migraines worse, so I've had to have pain med shots several times in the past 2 weeks!

I was back on the mag from Thursday night to Monday morning, when they took me off it again. Tuesday afternoon they moved me to a regular room, and finally, Thursday night, I got to come home.

The good news is that the babies seem to be doing well, and they both look good on ultrasound. The day I turned 22 weeks, they each measured just over a pound, which is a good size. So I guess it doesn't matter that I'm still not gaining weight! The day I got discharged from the hospital, I was still a pound under what I weighed at my first appointment with the perinatologist.

Anthony and Darrell were both thrilled to have me home. They both slept so well that first night, after 2 weeks of not sleeping well. Darrell is doing a great job of keeping me fed. The doc said I could get up to prepare light meals for myself, but I tried this the first day home, and after being up for only about 10 minutes, I had contractions for about an hour. Pretty much anytime I stand up at all, I have contractions. Also, my arms are covered in hives/rash from my tape allergy, as well as countless bruises from the many IV sticks and blood draws. I look kind of scary!! Anthony makes a daily routine of kissing all of my "owies."

Thanks for everyone's continued prayers - we need 'em!!! I'm 23 weeks 5 days today, and these babies really need to stay put at least until 28 weeks so they have a fighting chance at being healthy and not having any long term disabilities. Even at 28 weeks, they'd have to spend weeks to months in the NICU, but their prognosis would be much better then. I will likely have to get steroid shots sometime in the next several weeks to help their lung development, in case I do deliver early.

I go back to the perinatologist on Wednesday to check my cervix and address my blood sugars, then I see my regular OB the following Monday. I will continue to have weekly appointments throughout the pregnancy.