Okay, well, maybe I should say "Oh what a day, late September here in 2010...." :)I woke up this morning with lots of contractions. Right about 7 I asked Casey to go downstairs and get a Terb for me, and after I took it, I laid in bed for another hour and continued to contract. I called the doctor's office asking to talk to a doctor or nurse. The receptionist asked if my call was urgent and she transferred me right away to Nurse Sharon, who told me to come in right away. I stood up to get dressed and they pretty much stopped. My first thought was, "Should I call them back and tell them that the contractions stopped? I'm supposed to be in bed, so standing up probably shouldn't be the cure." So, I decided against calling back - I got dressed, went downstairs, ate breakfast, and then we left.
The plan for today was that Meryt was going to come up from Aurora with her girls and hang out at the house with me and the girls. Well, since I had to go to the clinic, she stayed in Aurora until Jacqueline was done with preschool and she picked her up and took her back to our house for the rest of the day. Leah was originally going to Stacy's and I never called to tell her about Meryt, so we took Leah there, and then on to Boulder. We got right in to see the doc right away, after Casey dropped me off at the entrance, sit down on a bench, and then after he parked and came in, he took me up in a wheelchair. The nurse took us back, I weighed in at 142.5 and my BP was 110/56, then I peed in a cup. I undressed from the waist down and soon Dr. Price came in. My contractions had started again in the car, mostly in the back, and by the time we got to the office, they were in the front and back. I was dilated to about 2 cm and 80% effaced. Since I have had so much activity in 4 days, she was thinking she wanted me to get the steroid shots that help to mature the baby's lungs. Studies have shown that if the shots are administered after 34 weeks, they aren't affective in a premature baby, so she wanted to get them in me, just in case Tina comes early. So, I was admitted to Labor/Delivery and was told to expect to be here at least 2 nights because the shots have to be administered in the butt 24 hours apart. I got my first one today at 11 am, after they got my contraction monitor and baby monitor in place. Tina was good, but my contractions were coming 3-4 minutes apart. Around 12 I got a Procardia (stronger than the Terb), but it wasn't working, so around 1:30 or 2 they gave me an IV with Magnesium Sulfate (which is the strongest thing they give). I have to be on the Mag for about 48 hours, at least 24 hours after shot number 2 because they need that long to get the shot in place, just in case Tina decides to come soon.
My IV went into my left arm, same place it went in on Sunday, but this time it was really hurting. The Mag is very painful going in, but it was more than that and I couldn't even lift my arm more than 1-2 inches up without it hurting really really bad. I also had to get a catheter because they don't want you up on the Mag because it can make you so disoriented, dizzy, and it can also give you blurry vision or double vision. The catheter was really painful too, and I was just miserable most of the day. I was hot, another side affect, and just out of it. It was a very rough day! They took me all the way up to 3.5 g per hour, which is almost up to the 4 g/hr limit that they have for Mag. By night I was down to about 10 contractions per hour, but I was still in a lot of pain. They moved my IV to my right arm, and it started out hurting as well. I asked for an ice pack because heat wasn't helping, and Jack (my nurse - who I think was our nurse for Jacqueline) asked another nurse to come check it out. Her two recommendations, before she even came in, were ice and upping the gatorade-like substance (minus sugar and flavor) that is also going in, because the Mag is so strong and the other dilutes it some. It was a huge change! My catheter was still really hurting and Jack actually called down to Peds to get a smaller one for me, but we never put it in.
Casey went home for lunch, and when he came back, a nurse practitioner from the NICU came over to talk to us about what goes on over there, just in case Tina comes before 35 weeks. Their rules are that every baby that comes before 35 weeks, even at 34 weeks 6 days, is admitted to the NICU. If she comes before 35 weeks, she is automatically put on a feeding tube because baby's born before 35 weeks haven't learned to nurse, swallow, and breathe at the same time. We would start her on donor milk (my choice - no formula) and then once I was pumping enough, she would get my milk. She might be on oxygen, all sorts of different ways, but they will play it all by ear. Our NICU is different than some in that it has a room for mom and bathroom (a little suite for mom and baby) attached together. Once I am discharged, if she is still there, Casey and I can stay for free as long as she is there free of charge. So that is kind of the low-down on that, but hopefully she will wait another week and a half before she comes.
I feel like I whined and complained a lot, but heat (Jack brought me a fan), the IV pain I had all day, the catheter, the headache, blurry and double vision, just made me miserable. It really sucks, and the nurses know this, and they told me I was actually doing a lot better than many women do.
Casey stayed here on the couch because I have been so miserable and the girls stayed the night at Stacy's. Last I heard they were doing well. Jacqueline took a baby and Leah took a yogurt container with her. What a goof! :)
By bed time, I was on Ambien, which eventually helped me sleep. Hopefully I will feel better in the morning.
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