A Little DisTERBing

At 22 weeks pregnant, I made a trip to the Birthing Center tonight.

Because I was having contractions all day long ...

I super-hydrated, tried to rest, and hoped they would go away, but by the time I put Natalie to bed my instincts were telling me that intervention was needed.

I called my doctor hoping she would tell me to keep doing what I was doing - fluids, rest, and we'll see how things are going in the morning - but her immediate response was, "You need to go to the hospital." Tears sprung to my eyes because a) a trip the hospital did not sound all that pleasant, b) for the first-time all day I started to think this was serious, and c) I was immediately worried about the baby.

Thankfully, my wonderful MIL is here visiting, so we didn't have to worry about our sleeping baby girl. She stayed put, and we headed out the door without having to scramble for childcare or take her with us.

The trip to the hospital was agonizing, and I really had to work hard not to hyperventilate. To make matters worse, the Exit to the hospital is currently under construction from 9 pm until 5 am everyday ... we were coming through at a little before 10 pm, which meant an agonizing detour with tons of traffic.

Once we arrived at the hospital, it was hard to remember where to go, and we ended up in the wrong parking garage. I was close to panic at this point. By the time I did get into the right elevator - CPV dropped me and went to park - and headed to the 6th floor, I broke down in sobs. At the reception area, I could barely squeak out my name, but they were expecting me and the admittance process was very smooth.

The nurse talked me through the possible causes of all my contractions and got me busy peeing in a cup right away - this combination calmed me down and I was able to stop crying like a big baby.

The first thought in these cases - 22 weeks and contracting - is a bladder infection. As a result of my super-hydrating, which was the right move by the way, the sample I provided was clear and any bacteria was obviously diluted. So a culture will be grown over the next couple of days.

Next order of business was getting me hooked up to the monitor ... and hearing baby's heart beat which sounded fantastic. The monitor showed contractions every three to four minutes, and I was definitely feeling them. Had I not gone through this with Natalie at 30 weeks, I am not sure I would've known they were contractions. I always picture women screaming in pain with each contraction - like you see TV. These contractions were uncomfortable, but not painful.

Within 20 minutes of arriving at the hospital, the nurse administered a shot of TERButaline, and the jitters began and my heart raced and the contractions slowed within 5 or 6 minutes. After another hour of monitoring, I was discharged with two doses of oral terbutaline and told to follow up with my doctor on Monday ... unless the contractions come back and can't be controlled with the meds ... in which case we get to make another trip to the Birthing Center ... and I am only halfway through this pregnancy.

There is so much more that I am thinking and feeling about all of this ... but here are the details ... I need to get back to bed ...