bedrest success stories

Hello, I was just wondering if we could do a sticky with bedrest success stories.  I know how helpful success stories were for me when I was on bedrest and I thought it might help everyone that stumbles through here.  I have a hard time getting over to this forum often enough now that my babies are here, and I keep seeing posts I wish I'd seen earlier.  What do you ladies think?

 

I think that is a great idea. Since I am new to this bedrest thing it is really nice to hear the successes. It helps you follow the strict doctor's orders!

 

I think this is a great idea!

I was placed on bed rest at 23 weeks for a shortened cervix. (1.9) I was placed on fairly strict rest; only get up to use the restroom, shower every 3 days or so, and stairs only when going to the Dr. I followed those instructions closely, too. My husband was such a wonderful help, he set up a table next to my bed that held a microwave, toaster oven, and dry foods (bread, bagels, pretzles, cereal) and we also bought a mini fridge and stocked it with milk, juice, cheeses, fruit and all the leftovers when DH would cook. That way I only had to sit up and swing my legs over to make all my meals.

To help keep me occupied I had several books and magazines, my laptop (so I was able to spend time writing letters and catching up with family and friends), yarn and needles for crocheting, fabric and thread for cross stitching, and a subscritpion to Netflix (heh.) It does get tiresome laying there week after week, especially when you have no plan for your day. For the first few weeks I had no pattern to my day so I would end up going o bed a 3am and waking around 12... "Well, no ones counting on me for anything, so I have nothing to do." I found it helped a lot to somewhat plan my day. I would wake up around 9 and have breakfast and then spend some time working on a craft (crocheting a scarf or working on a cross stitch bookmark), then around 1 I would have lunch and watch a movie. In the afternoon I would read in my books or magazines, spend time on the computer, then dinner a little more TV, bible study then bed. I wouldn't always follow this to the tee, but it helped me get things done... I am a procrastinator so I'll always waiting till the last minute, and if I'm not given a starting time or a way to keep myself accountable, I'll never get around to it.

I also went to L&D twice (28 weeks and 32 weeks) for premature labor contractions. Both times I was given a shot and some pills (sorry, don't remember the names) to stop it and were successful. Over the course of the 3 months I was on bed rest I also dealt with hydronephrosis of both my kidneys and sciatica, though we were able to manage them effectivley with low dose vicodin. I was taken off bedrest at 35 weeks, but made it to 37 weeks and 2 days! I had no problems with delivery either, I had been worried that in my weakend state I wouldn't handle it well, but it went very smoothly. I did get an epidural.

The kids were born healthy weighing 5 lbs 14 oz and 5 lbs 10 oz! They were so healthy they never left our side and came straight back to the room with us! It was a wonderful experience and instantly validated how seriously I had taken my bed rest. It was all so worth it. And I wish any mom who is going thru this the best of luck, you can do it!!

 

Karen - Thanks for your story! It really does make me feel better!

 

I think this is a great idea. I just started bed rest and I am kinda upset about it. I just have to much to do and am usually very busy. I would love some good ideas, funny stories, or just some insperation.

 

I was put on bedrest at 18 weeks for a shortening cervix. It got even shorter in one week so at 19 wks. had the cerclage
and continued bedrest.
I only got up to move from bed to couch for the most part. Besided doctor's appointments, I STAYED ON MY SIDE. My doctor
was more laid back about it. He said I could get up to eat and sit up if I wanted to go out to dinner or go to church. I chose
to go strict. I stayed on my side and drank TONS of water. I was also hooked up to a contraction monitor around 20 weeks.
I wasn't really having contractions. I think the water and motionless days helped!
I was nervous every day I woke up. I would chug orange juice just to feel the babies move. I got on this site every day looking
for cervix/cerclage posts. I didn't join until after I had my twins. I know, I know...stalker

My water broke at 35 weeks 5 days. My twins were great weight with not one second of NICU time.

I agree with others, have a schedule. It sounds weird, but I would do the same thing every day, same shows, internet time, bed time
reading pregnancy books, back to afternoon shows, my moms daily visit, etc. and then once 7p.m. hit, I felt relieved that I had made it another day because
by that time my husband was getting home and I would hang out with him for a couple hours then bed.
Good luck!

 

QUOTE(mollyjm+2 @ Nov 3 2008, 01:23 PM) [snapback]1053708[/snapback]
I think this is a great idea. I just started bed rest and I am kinda upset about it. I just have to much to do and am usually very busy. I would love some good ideas, funny stories, or just some insperation.

do you have a laptop? if so I have fallen in love with graboidvideo.com. First month is free then you just pay 4.99 a month and you get tv shows and great movies (some still in the theatres) right at your lap!! This has really helped me pass the time. This forum has helped me as well. It was hard at first when I went on bed rest and wasnt following orders to a t, but I am now paying the price with cramps and dilating early on. So i am over doing stuff and am in bed where it seems to help (not on the couch like I was before). makes me feel like I am not a part of what is going on in the home but sometimes they all come in bed with me to watch tv. also my doggies are with me 24/7 and I find myself talking to them like i would a visiter! oh well our relationship (the dogs and myself) are getting stronger anyway!!! :lol:

 

great idea. when i was on bedrest i was always searching for success stories. it seemed when i searched the web all i found was scary stories!! the internet can be a scary place when you are faced with uncertainty. i wish i had found this site earlier!! once i read other people's success stories i was so much more at ease!

 

I'll try to make this brief. But 13 weeks of bedrest was a long time, haha!

I was told I was having mono/di twins at about 10 weeks gestation. That was a surprise, and exciting too! My DH about passed out at the U/S, that classic reaction men have to finding out they are expecting twins. I was very sick with morning sickness from weeks 5 until at least 20 weeks.

After finding out we were having mono/di twins, I read something about Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome (TTTS) and mono/dis. Hmmm, I kept getting paranoid thinking it was going to happen to us. . . DH told me I was crazy and that it was rare. He even joked with the OB about it, and the OB was like, "Yeah, that's rare." So when I asked him if we could have increased monitoring/more u/s, Dr.'s response was, "Oh, we treat twin pregnancies pretty much the same as singletons unless we have other reason to suspect something wrong." Ugh. I was paranoid and worried further and kept wondering if I should find a new doc. (If your doc tells you this, consider going to another one who specializes or understands twin pregnancies better.)

I waited until 20 weeks to get my next u/s. There, we found out we were having boys and that there was a 21% difference in their sizes. That's an indicator of TTTS. See, I told my DH. We were referred to MFM docs locally, and the next week, we went for our first u/s with them. . . March 14, I was told that my cervix was only like 0.9 cm in length, funnelling, and yes, my babies had a size difference. I wanted to die. See, I told my DH. I was 21 weeks along and admitted immediately to the hospital (where the MFM doc's were) for bedrest and an emergency cerclage. I was also having some painless contrax. Also, my Donor baby's amnio fluid was like 1 to 2 cm while the Recipient's was in normal range. Ugh.

I went home for full bedrest about 4 days later with a successful cerclage. That cerclage was scary because the doc was afraid of rupturing my membranes. But we made it, and I got in bed. (Hard thing to do with three other children, one under the age of 2 years.) We had help coming in: my mother, MIL, my sisters, friends. It was emotionally difficult letting go of caring for my children. It broke my heart. Downright depressing, but I had to do it for their little brothers. . .

***
Here, let me say that having done bedrest at home for 11 weeks with my 2nd DS also helped me know that we could get through the bedrest part. It would be temporary. Handling and doing bedrest is a lot easier than risking the possible loss of precious lives by being neglectful of them. Previous bedrest was due to PTL - I've always contracted painlessly, dilated to 6 cm by 37 weeks. But all three older kids had been full term.
***

I coped by staying on the c'puter and watching TV. I didn't do much else. I was too anxious to read. Talking on the phone caused me to contract. Also, I was on the high protein therapy diet, had gestational diabetes and was trying to find out all I could about TTTS. I managed 6 weeks of this at home: had a shower every other day for five minutes, but otherwise didn't get up out of bed except to go to the potty.

During that time, the TTTS symptoms were up and down. I spoke with Dr. DeLia (see the TTTS Foundation website) and the founder of the Foundation, Mary on the phone about my situation. They were so very compassionate and helpful. I highly recommend contacting them if you are told your twins have TTTS.

We were going to the MFM for u/s once a week, sometimes more if we got an if-fy u/s scan. We started going to the Neonatal heart specialist too so he could keep an eye on the heart of our Recipient. I hated having to get in the car for a ride for these things, but that's the only times I got out of bed (except potty).

People were bringing us food constantly. They brought too much chicken casserole and spaghetti, haha. I tried to keep my sense of humor.

I was also being given Prometrium (to insert vaginally) each night. I took some procardia, but my doc didn't want me to take it all the time. I also did Unisoms (my docs recommended it) to help me sleep at night. I used pregnancy body pillows, and there were times I thought I was going to never be able to climb out of bed. . . it had a huge dent in it.

I hated having visitors unless they were people that knew me very well. . . like my mom, sisters, father. Everybody else was just annoying - not on purpose. It just seemed they didn't understand how serious what I was going through was, and I didn't want to cry anymore. I had good days, and I had down days. I knew there would be terrible anxious days. . . accepting that helped me. I'm a Christian, so I relied a lot on my faith. . . God saw me through yesterday, and I trusted mightily that He'd be there for me tomorrow. (I still remind myself of this each day during these first months with the twins.)

The twins were hanging in there, and even the Donor was keeping on a good growth curve and his amnio fluid had increased. But so had Recipient's fluid which meant he had too much fluid. Too much fluid could mean hydrops and problems with his heart and other organs. Ugh.

The day I was 27 weeks (I think that is right), I had a scheduled appointment at the MFM. I got in the car to go and started bawling. DH asked me what was wrong, and I said, "I just know this is the day that I am not coming home for awhile." I just had this anxiety that I was having too many painless contrax and they would take one look at my cervix and say, "She's about to blow!"

I was right. I was admitted that day. The MFM didn't tell me then, but my docs did not think we would make it to 28 weeks. I would be lucky to get to 28 weeks.

So I found myself in the hospital, in a little room on the antenatal hall. I knew I was longterm this time because they gave me a room with a better view than the first time I was hospitalized, haha! The first night I was there, I have to tell you, I had the worst bout with constipation I'd ever had. . . hope it makes you laugh. It wasn't funny at the time. Let's just say, I've done natural childbirth twice, and that never made me cry. . . but this constipation did. : )

28 weeks came and went. I got to 30 weeks. Then 32 weeks. Then 34 weeks! And I was planning on getting further. . . but I went into labor at 34w1d!

My nurses took care of me, and I knew everybody on staff practically. They were my friends in my little world. I didn't want visitors except for my family. I was okay. There were good days and very anxiety-ridden days. My nurses understood and offered encouragement. I missed my children something horrible, but I was okay (learned to protect myself from these feelings by sort of trying to forget there was a world outside my hospital room). . . until my DS #2 came in one evening, climbed in my bed and tearfully said, "Mama, I'm homesick for you." Brokenhearted.

Hospital food was okay (except for the hair I found in my pudding one night). I had a hard time gaining weight, and they started trying to stuff me. But overall, they were very kind to me.

Anyways, I made it to 34w1d, and Baby A (my Donor) broke his water on a Friday night as I was relaxing on the internet. My guys were born vaginally although my cerclage wasn't totally removed. . . I ended up losing a lot of blood. The birth part in the OR was like a circus. . . easier than anything else I experienced during that last bit of my pregnancy/postpartum.

Caleb was 5 lbs.
Silas was 6 lbs. 12 oz.

Caleb was very pale, while Silas was quite red (from all the extra blood). My bedrest had paid off: my guys were survivors with no laser surgery or amnio-reduction needed. Just strict bedrest and high protein therapy diet.

Today at 5 months plus, they are doing great. Despite being 6 weeks early, Caleb is 10th percentile without adjusting his age, and well, Silas is 75th percentile without age adjustment! Caleb did 2 weeks of NICU, Silas did 1 week. It took almost two months to get them breastfeeding exclusively, but all the hard work before and after has paid off.

So there you have my "brief" bedrest success story. Please message me anytime if you want to know anything else OR if you just want encouragement!

Again and again, my doctors told me it was a miracle we got to 34w1d and both babies survived.

 

Emily- Thanks for sharing your story! I am currently on day 19 in the hospital and will be 30 weeks along tomorrow. I keep praying that I make it to 34 weeks. Your story gives me hope!

 

I was on bed rest in the hospital from weeks 24-35 because of a shortened cervix. After 35 weeks they let me off bed rest and my babies were born at 37 weeks.
Like Emily, I took prometrium and I really believe it helped. I asked my doctor to prescribe it when he admitted me because I had read a newspaper article about a study that was done with women who were at risk for premature delivery. The women who took progesterone did much,much better than the ones who didn't.
I was also very disciplined about the bed rest. The doctor said I could take a shower every day but I didn't want to risk it, so I usually asked the nurses to bring me a basin. I took a shower only once a week because I was terrified of unnecessary pressure on my cervix.

Bed rest is a distant memory now. My twins are 10 months old. Now I could use a couple of days of bed rest.

 

I was placed on bedrest at 27w for incompetent cervix. I went into premature labor around 30w and spent 2 nights in the hospital, got steroid shots and then sent home.
At 34w I was allowed to move around a little bit, it was like modified bedrest.

I was induced at 37w2d, my girls were 5 1/2 lbs each and had NO NICU time!! :yahoo:

 

Here is my story...I went on bedrest at 28 weeks and up to that point I had been pretty active. I work in a hopsital so I'm everywhere all the time and I have to say it helped keep me in shape. I had an ultrasound at 28 weeks and my doc said well we need to check you. Lo and behold, I was dilated to a 1 and 50% effaced so from that day forward, I was on bedrest. I have to agree with what several others have said, the first week is the hardest. When you are used to doing what you want and now you are stuck in a bed, its hard. I was only allowed to get up to go to the bathroom and take a shower every other day. My husband was a tremendous help but it was a shock for him too. He didn't realize everythin I did before and now he had to do it. Every morning before work, he got a cooler ready for me, he came home for lunch, and then restocked my cooler when he left. I had to say every morning I put on makeup. Granted you aren't going anywhere but it certainly made me feel better. Also when I did get up to take a shower, I made sure I had shower gel that smelled good because it made me feel better. Also have plenty of good books, magazines, etc. Oh, also the laptop was so important to me; it was my connection to the outside world. We were really blessed because the church we attend made us food twice a week. My water broke at 34 weeks and Jackson was perfectly healthy. Once Jackson was delivered, Luke who was head down, decided he was going back up and he was delivered breach. He was not breathing and was on the ventilator for the first 2 hours of his life. He did have some issues with eating and body temperature early on but both boys are perfectly healthy now.

Oh I will say while on bedrest, have someone get you some light hand weights, about 2lbs or get some canned good and just do arm exercises in bed. This will really help out come delivery time if you have a vaginal delivery. Also have a body pillow you can curl up with; it really helps you stay comfortable.

 

I just finished reading your stories and wanted to thank you for sharing. I am in my second week of bedrest for shortened cervix and everday that I don't have PTL is a blessing. I also hope to make it to week 34 but we are setting small goals. Today I am 26w2d and my next personal goal is 30w.

 

Well, I was put on bed rest at about 27 weeks. And my bed rest consisted of me taking care of 2 toddlers all day, everday. I was working and had daycare for the two older children before I got pregnant with the twins and for most of the pregnancy, but when I stopped working, we couldnt keep them in daycare... I tried to explain to my DR that I would be doing less if I went to work, than if I stayed home, but he wanted me on full bed rest, in BED, NOT the couch, and actually laying down, not sitting up! That obviously didnt happen!

I cried the day the DR told me I had to be on bedrest. A lot of people told me, I would have to be on bedrest, and I wouldnt make it to 'full term' b/c I was having twins. I was bound and determined to prove them wrong. I felt like I was doing well, and all of my appointments were fine, but my babygirl, Baby A was not growing as fast as they wanted her to. My son, Baby B was always at least a pound larger (which to me was normal, I didnt expect them to be exactly the same) So, I started my 'bed rest' and I tried to sit/lay on the couch as much as I could and only really got up to feed the kids, fortunately they were good about playing together, without me.. although I was right there watching them.

I was going to the DR every week, sometimes twice a week if I had to see my OB and my Peri in the same week, sometimes the same day.. So my DR FINALLY scheduled my csection at 36w1day..

I went in at 7am to set up with everything they had to do.. Only me and their father were there. I went into the OR at 9oclock so they could start prepping me and they gave me the spinal and made sure it was working, brought daddy in to sit next to me and DD was born at 9:35am, DS at 9:36am weighing 4.1 and 5.5 respectively. NO Nicu time, and they came home with me 3 days later.

Honestly I didnt want to be on bedrest and didnt feel like I had to be.. and I really dont know that it made a difference for me, b/c like I said I was taking care of my other 2 children during the day, not strictly laying in bed. Not saying that anyone else shouldnt follow DRs orders, but I didnt have any risk for preterm labor or cerclage, or anything like that.. so it was frustrating for me.!
I hope everyone does really well, and has healthy babies!!

 

I'll add mine!

I started being monitored for a weak/dynamic cervix at 12 weeks when I went in for something unrelated and they discovered that my cervix was 2.5-3cm at that point. So I had vag u/s every 2 weeks for measure my cervix. At 21wks4 days, on a Friday, it had shortened signifigantly since the last appt. I was sent home on strict bed rest with the understanding that I'd be back for a check on Monday morning. If it was any shorter, then I'd have an emergency cerclage and be admitted to the hospital. I spent the weekend on the couch and terrified.

Monday morning came and it went from 2cm to 1.5 over the weekend. DH barely made it in before I was wheeled to the OR for my cerclage.
I was exactly 22wk on that day.

I was on hospital bed rest from 22 weeks until 35wks.

We were just hoping to make it until viability/24wks when I could get the shots.

At first I was not allowed to get up to go to the bathroom (except for BM) or to shower. I used a bed pan and had bed baths. Then at 29wks things were stable so I was allowed to get up for the bathroom and I started to shower every few days.

I still had cervical measurements done, but I chose not to know the lengths because it stressed me out so much. All the nurses and doctors and ultrasounds techs knew this and it was something we just didn't talk about. I knew I was doing everything I could and followed the doctors' orders to a T. DH, however, did want to know, so they told him.

I found out that at the end I barely had a cervix left. But it didn't matter because it held! I went home pregnant at 35w2d! I was on modified home bed rest until 36wks when I had my stitch removed and was told all bets are off. What happened would happen.

Of course at that point I was so pregnant and big and swollen I couldn't do much anyway! But I went out to eat and went to get a few last minute things for the kids.
Then on Friday Dec 7, the morning of my next appt, I woke up around 2am with horrible back pains. I knew it was back labor and woke DH up. We timed it and monitored it for an hour. I was about to call the doctor when it just stopped. Since we were going in at 10am that morning we decided not to call and to just wait and see.

I went in and was 5cm. It was baby time! Baby B was transverse, so we opted for a section. Baby A (DD) was born at 1:16pm and Baby B (DS) was born at 1:17pm.


Being in the hospital had it's ups and downs. We don't have any family close by so it was just me and DH. He would go to work, come to the hospital, go home to get some sleep, and repeat the next day. His job and the hospital were an hour apart with traffic and all that with our house in the middle. I spent almost all my time alone and that was really hard. But I also had some of the most amazing nurses who I'm still close to today.

My parents were wonderful and bought me a laptop and got me set up with wireless internet and that helped so much! I read a lot of books. I listened to a lot of music and I watched a lot of TV and movies.
In my hospital all the rooms had small white boards for the date, the name of the nurse and that sort of thing. Well, on mine we kept track of what week and day I was on in my pregnancy. I loved seeing that. And we had small parties for milestones. (24 weeks, 28 weeks, 32 weeks, for me.)


No one- not my doctors, not the nurses, not me- ever thought we'd make it as long as we did. I'm so thankful for it everyday.

 

Thanks for all of these stories!! I was just put on bedrest 2 days ago for a shortening cervix and contractions. I am 31w3d and just hoping and praying to make it a few more weeks.

 

Hello ladies! Thank you so much to those of you who have posted amazingly encouraging success stories!! They are so enjoyable to read!

My name is Amanda and I am currently 25 weeks along with identical twin girls. I have been on bedrest since 16 weeks already!! Fortunately, I've been at home. The reason is that at 16 weeks they determined that Baby A was 18% smaller than Baby B. The doctor gave us a very grim prognosis and talked to us about the possibility of ligating Baby A to try and save Baby B. I went on bedrest, a high protein diet (3 protein shakes a day!!), and daily hydrotherapy (immersion in a pool and bathtub to promote blood flow). So far, so good! Nine weeks later, Baby A is only 15% smaller than Baby B (16 oz vs. 14 oz!). Each week at our ultrasound (they check fluid levels and Doppler blood flow through the umbilical cord), there is the possibility they will want to admit me for hospital bed rest. I would like to hold out as long as possible. I just got the steroid shots for the little girls' lung development. I would absolutely love to get past 30 weeks. The docs will be ecstatic if we get to 28. And they have told us very frankly that they didn't expect us to make it this far. My husband is being incredibly supportive, feeding me all kinds of nutritious and delicious foods! There is still so much up in the air.

I will keep you posted if you are interested!

Thank you again for your wonderful success stories.

Amanda

 

Ha! I started this thread and then forgot to come back and add my success story. Ok, here we go.

My pregnancy went well minus horrible all day sickness until 20 weeks. At 20wks5dys I went in for a regularly scheduled appointment to discover that I was 3cm dilated with bulging membranes. To back up a little I have to say that in hindsight I did show many signs of PTL (backache, menstrual cramps, increased discharge) Instead of calling my peri though I just asked some ladies online and was reassured that this was normal. Back to 3 cm dilated. I knew from the u/s techs face that something was really, really wrong. When my peri came in and told me I was losing the pregnancy, I went into shock. I just couldn't wrap my mind around those words. I felt so good, I could feel my babies kicking, how could this be happening? I told him no, no way, there must be something we can do. I didn't even know I was contracting at that point. He left the room and came back about 5 minutes later. He said you are not a candidate for a cerclage, but if you're willing to try it, I'm willing to place it. He went on to explain how a cerclage worked, why I wasn't a candidate (active labor, bulging membranes, too far along, dilated), and the very slim chance that this would work. I vividly remember him saying that he might be able to buy me a couple days, but he didn't see how he could get me to viability. I jumped at a couple more days. I would have done anything for just another hour with my precious babies. I was wheeled to the hospital which was connected to my peri's office. Little did I know, I was moving in. On the way to the L&D, I started feeling constant cramping. They hooked me up and sure enough, I was dilating every 1-2 minutes. They quickly gave me a shot of terb, but soon moved to magnesium. Once they had the mag to tortorous levels, my contractions started to space out. Soon I was only having 6-7 an hour. My wonderful DH stood beside me, bathing me in cool washcloths (mag makes you HOT!), changing my bedpan, holding my hand, basically being my rock as I felt like my whole world was shifting and crumbling. I was still struggling to wrap my mind around the fact that I was losing my babies, that this was REALLY happening. Honestly I don't think I ever did accept that. I just couldn't believe it. I can't describe the places my mind took me, I just felt like I was in some kind of battle with myself and my body. I tried so hard to relax, have hope, and imagine my body doing what it needed to do to hold these little ones inside. I don't know if it helped, but it was impossible not to dwell on it every second of every day. That night they gave me some kind of sleeping aid and as I slept the contractions stayed pretty calm. The next morning my peri came in and said we would be placing the cerclage at 9am. Everyone in the room held their breath as my peri expertly was able to use a balloon to push Abby's (Baby A) bag of waters back up and stitch the cerclage closed. At the time of the cerclage I was 4 cm dilated, when he was done I had about 2 cm of cerclage to work with. I thank my peri every day for what he did for us. Although the surgery went well, he warned us that we still had a huge battle in front of us. Our big enemies now were infection (because the bag of waters was exposed) and increased contractions. He was really good about giving us goals and told us that the next 48 hours were key. If we could get through 72 hours after being dilated, we had crossed the first hurdle. We made it to 72 hours and asked for another goal. 14 days with no infection cut our chances of infection way down. And on and on we went. The weeks between 20 and 24 were the hardest. Knowing that they could be born any moment of any day and knowing that they wouldn't survive. I knew women personally with these stories and I knew the grief they went through. I could hardly stand the thought and sometimes wished I could just go into a coma and wake up when it was all over. I will say that the mental battle is one of the hardest things you go through on bedrest. At 24 weeks, we breathed a little easier and were given a tour of the NICU. I read success stories constantly and my ultimate goal was making it past 30 weeks. The weeks continued to pass and I soon became used to living in the hospital. I befriended my nurses and other staff, decorated my room, made myself a schedule, and above all I continued to HOPE. Around week 28, my contractions started to break through the medication and my cervix was constantly shortening. Within a week or so I would have no cervix left and begin to dilate again. I forgot to mention that I was only on mag for the first couple weeks. After that, I was on niphedipine around the clock and had shots of terb as needed. On June 14 (my birthday!) at 31.3 weeks my contractions started coming a lot harder and faster. I was contracting regularly every 3-4 minutes and they were painful! My cerclage continued to hold, but my cervix was tearing and man could I feel it. I desperately wanted to walk around and give birth, but at the same time I wasn't ready yet to let go of my pregnancy knowing what they would face. Apparently it was time though. On June 16 exactly 11 weeks after I was admitted to the hospital (I broke their ante-partum record!), my peri removed my cerclage and they were born vaginally 2 hours later, 1 minute apart. Abby came headfirst screaming and Ethan came feet first, not breathing. They both did really well however and came home with us 30 days later. Today they are happy, healthy 7 month olds with no lingering effects from their prematurity. I am still deeply affected and struggle to this day with guilt and regret. But then I think of what we went through and am overwhelmed with gratitude at what I have been given. My children are alive and well against all odds. I hope our story brings you hope

 

Lovelylily-
Wow! What an absolutely amazing inspirational story! Thank you for sharing it...it brought tears to my eyes. And from what I read there is nothing you should feel guilty about. You did an amazing job!

 

oh wow... thank you all so much! I was admitted to the hospital at 30 weeks one day and am now 31 weeks one day. I am crossing everything that I make it to 34 weeks!

 

Here's my story... I was put on strict bedrest around 25 weeks due to contractions and a shortening cervix. I was allowed to move from my bed to the couch, but had to eat my meals lying down on my left side (not fun with horrible heartburn.) I was only allowed to get up for 3 things: to use the bathroom, to take my daily shower, and to go to doctors appointments. My family and most of my close friends live far away from me, so I was pretty much on my own during the weekdays until my husband came home from work. Bedrest was a completely isolating and depressing experience for me.

My contractions never really stopped throughout my bedrest. Initially I was taking terbutaline every 6 hours to manage them, but then had to go down to every 3 hours around the clock as my pregnacy progressed. I was hospitalized twice as a result of my contractions worsening. The first time was at 28 weeks for 3 nights and the second was at 33 weeks for 6 nights. I was given an IV of magnesium sulfate both times, which thankfully stopped the contractions, but made me feel utterly sick and miserable.

My boys were delivered via scheduled c-section at 38 weeks weighing 6.4 lbs and 5.14 lbs! They were both healthy and needed no time in the NICU.

I absolutely hated bedrest, but without it, my wonderful boys wouldn't be here. Here's a big hug for all of you going through it right now. You can do it!

 

wow your story is amazing. thanks for sharing. and no there is absolutely nothing you should feel guilty about. you never gave up HOPE. i am on week 30 bedrest with my first 2 weeks having been in the hospital. it is so hard mentally and each day feels like a miracle. thanks for sharing -


QUOTE(lovelylily @ Jan 25 2009, 11:03 PM) [snapback]1161986[/snapback]
Ha! I started this thread and then forgot to come back and add my success story. Ok, here we go.

My pregnancy went well minus horrible all day sickness until 20 weeks. At 20wks5dys I went in for a regularly scheduled appointment to discover that I was 3cm dilated with bulging membranes. To back up a little I have to say that in hindsight I did show many signs of PTL (backache, menstrual cramps, increased discharge) Instead of calling my peri though I just asked some ladies online and was reassured that this was normal. Back to 3 cm dilated. I knew from the u/s techs face that something was really, really wrong. When my peri came in and told me I was losing the pregnancy, I went into shock. I just couldn't wrap my mind around those words. I felt so good, I could feel my babies kicking, how could this be happening? I told him no, no way, there must be something we can do. I didn't even know I was contracting at that point. He left the room and came back about 5 minutes later. He said you are not a candidate for a cerclage, but if you're willing to try it, I'm willing to place it. He went on to explain how a cerclage worked, why I wasn't a candidate (active labor, bulging membranes, too far along, dilated), and the very slim chance that this would work. I vividly remember him saying that he might be able to buy me a couple days, but he didn't see how he could get me to viability. I jumped at a couple more days. I would have done anything for just another hour with my precious babies. I was wheeled to the hospital which was connected to my peri's office. Little did I know, I was moving in. On the way to the L&D, I started feeling constant cramping. They hooked me up and sure enough, I was dilating every 1-2 minutes. They quickly gave me a shot of terb, but soon moved to magnesium. Once they had the mag to tortorous levels, my contractions started to space out. Soon I was only having 6-7 an hour. My wonderful DH stood beside me, bathing me in cool washcloths (mag makes you HOT!), changing my bedpan, holding my hand, basically being my rock as I felt like my whole world was shifting and crumbling. I was still struggling to wrap my mind around the fact that I was losing my babies, that this was REALLY happening. Honestly I don't think I ever did accept that. I just couldn't believe it. I can't describe the places my mind took me, I just felt like I was in some kind of battle with myself and my body. I tried so hard to relax, have hope, and imagine my body doing what it needed to do to hold these little ones inside. I don't know if it helped, but it was impossible not to dwell on it every second of every day. That night they gave me some kind of sleeping aid and as I slept the contractions stayed pretty calm. The next morning my peri came in and said we would be placing the cerclage at 9am. Everyone in the room held their breath as my peri expertly was able to use a balloon to push Abby's (Baby A) bag of waters back up and stitch the cerclage closed. At the time of the cerclage I was 4 cm dilated, when he was done I had about 2 cm of cerclage to work with. I thank my peri every day for what he did for us. Although the surgery went well, he warned us that we still had a huge battle in front of us. Our big enemies now were infection (because the bag of waters was exposed) and increased contractions. He was really good about giving us goals and told us that the next 48 hours were key. If we could get through 72 hours after being dilated, we had crossed the first hurdle. We made it to 72 hours and asked for another goal. 14 days with no infection cut our chances of infection way down. And on and on we went. The weeks between 20 and 24 were the hardest. Knowing that they could be born any moment of any day and knowing that they wouldn't survive. I knew women personally with these stories and I knew the grief they went through. I could hardly stand the thought and sometimes wished I could just go into a coma and wake up when it was all over. I will say that the mental battle is one of the hardest things you go through on bedrest. At 24 weeks, we breathed a little easier and were given a tour of the NICU. I read success stories constantly and my ultimate goal was making it past 30 weeks. The weeks continued to pass and I soon became used to living in the hospital. I befriended my nurses and other staff, decorated my room, made myself a schedule, and above all I continued to HOPE. Around week 28, my contractions started to break through the medication and my cervix was constantly shortening. Within a week or so I would have no cervix left and begin to dilate again. I forgot to mention that I was only on mag for the first couple weeks. After that, I was on niphedipine around the clock and had shots of terb as needed. On June 14 (my birthday!) at 31.3 weeks my contractions started coming a lot harder and faster. I was contracting regularly every 3-4 minutes and they were painful! My cerclage continued to hold, but my cervix was tearing and man could I feel it. I desperately wanted to walk around and give birth, but at the same time I wasn't ready yet to let go of my pregnancy knowing what they would face. Apparently it was time though. On June 16 exactly 11 weeks after I was admitted to the hospital (I broke their ante-partum record!), my peri removed my cerclage and they were born vaginally 2 hours later, 1 minute apart. Abby came headfirst screaming and Ethan came feet first, not breathing. They both did really well however and came home with us 30 days later. Today they are happy, healthy 7 month olds with no lingering effects from their prematurity. I am still deeply affected and struggle to this day with guilt and regret. But then I think of what we went through and am overwhelmed with gratitude at what I have been given. My children are alive and well against all odds. I hope our story brings you hope

 

Lovelylily-
WOW what an amazing story.... YOU DID A GREAT JOB!!!!!!!
I'm so glad to hear that they are doing so well.

Jodi

 

Hi,

I posted earlier (starting bedrest at 16 weeks due to growth discordance in our identical twin girls). I have now been on home bedrest for over 16 weeks!! I am at 32 weeks now and going strong. Both girls are still growing well. At our last growth scan, Baby A was 3 lbs and Baby B was 4 1/2 lbs! No symptoms of labor, either, so we are very encouraged! The doctors think we may make it as far as 36-38 weeks!! That would be miraculous!

So far, we are a success story. But we would love to let these girls grow inside for another month or so!

Amanda

 

QUOTE(abruce @ Feb 23 2009, 01:52 PM) [snapback]1201629[/snapback]
Hi,

I posted earlier (starting bedrest at 16 weeks due to growth discordance in our identical twin girls). I have now been on home bedrest for over 16 weeks!! I am at 32 weeks now and going strong. Both girls are still growing well. At our last growth scan, Baby A was 3 lbs and Baby B was 4 1/2 lbs! No symptoms of labor, either, so we are very encouraged! The doctors think we may make it as far as 36-38 weeks!! That would be miraculous!

So far, we are a success story. But we would love to let these girls grow inside for another month or so!

Amanda


Amanda,
That is so great to hear! Congratulations on 32 weeks, that's a HUGE milestone! I hope you make it full-term.... keep us posted

 

I went for a regular appointment with my OB at 29 weeks. I had had an ultrasound the week before and it showed that Baby A's head was nearly engaged. The OB did an examination and discovered that I was 2cm dilated and 50% effaced. He said he wanted to admit me to the hospital because he was fairly certain the babies would be arriving within the next week or so. My first labour was very quick, less than 90 minutes from first twinge to final push, was less than 90 minutes. I nearly didn't make it to the hospital. The OB was concerned that my twin labour could be even quicker and he didn't want me in a situation where I was delivering them at home by myself. I was given a steroid injection and told to go home and make any necessary arrangements for my toddler then check into the hospital. I was devastated. So I checked into the hospital the next day. My husband made arrangements to work from home, and my inlaws were prepared to help all they could with baby #1. After two days in the hospital, I started having contractions. They stopped on their own, but because of that, the pediatricians wanted me moved to another hospital with a better equipped NICU just in case. I was not happy because the hospital they wanted to send me to was about 40 minutes away and I knew it would be so difficult for me to see my son. In the end, they decided not to move me and I happy about that. When I had been in the hospital for about 2 week, I got a phone call from my husband early one Sunday morning saying he was downstairs in the ER because my son had had a seizure so he called an ambulance. I was so upset and the midwife kept telling me I had to calm down because being so upset could cause me to go into labour. I went to the ER and just cuddled my little boy until it was time for my husband to take him home. I nearly checked myself out of the hospital that day to go home and take care of him.
Anyways when I got to 36 weeks, my OB offered to induce me for "humanitarian reasons" just so I could go home. It was tempting. So so tempting, but I declined. I hadn't had an ultrasound for 3 weeks and I wanted to wait until after my next one to decide. That was at 36 weeks, 4 days. At 36 weeks, my blood pressure started going up. Then the ultrasound showed that Baby B hadn't grown very much since the previous ultrasound and both babies barely had any fluid left. The OB said it was time to get them out so I accepted the induction at 37 weeks.
Both babies were born healthy and well. Baby A was 7lbs, 9oz and Baby B was 5 lbs. The first night, my bigger twin had to spend a few hours in the NICU because he had trouble regulating his body heat and his blood sugar was very low. But he was back with me and his tiny brother before too long.
It was the worst 8 weeks of my entire life. I cried nearly every day because I missed my little boy so much. But in the end, it was all worth it. I gave birth to two healthy baby boys who came home with me two days after they were born.

 

I went on bedrest at 25 weeks due to a shortening cervix (it was .9cm). My doctor determined it was too far along to do a cerclage and put me on strict bedrest for the next 10 weeks. I was allowed to take a shower and go up and down the stairs once a day. I was immediately sent to the hospital for steroid shots for our little ones' lungs and then went to weekly check ups at the specialist and my OB.

Being on bedrest was a very dark time for me. I am an extremely active person and I do have an older DD who was 18 months at the beginning of my bedrest.

However, the doctors can't figure out how I made it to 38 weeks when I delivered healthy babies with NO NICU Time!
My DS was 5'7" and my DD was 5'12"!
I was let off bedrest at 35 weeks but it was another 3 weeks before I delivered!
Hang in there -- healthy babies make everything worth it.

 

Hi!! I was put on modified bedrest at 23w4d due to a shortening cervix (2.6cm). By my next cervical check at 25w3d, it was even shorter (2.1cm) I was put on strict bedrest at home. I was admitted to hospital bedrest at 27w5d due to PTL and cervical length of 1.3cm. My midwife told me that I would most likely be on hospital bedrest until I delivered. Needless to say, I was devastated!! The hospital I was admitted to was an hour away from my home and my poor DH was exhausted trying to do everything by himself! Every moment he was off work, he was at the hospital with me. Spending every night he could sleeping on those horrible hospital pull out couches. I received steroid injections at 28 weeks because I was continuing to contract and my cervical length had dropped to 0.9cm. The did a FFN test when came back negative (very reassuring!!) At 30 weeks my cervical length had increased to 2.1cm and my contractions had slowed to one or two a day. With a little begging, my midwife and MD both agreed to let me go home on strict bedrest with bathroom privileges. I had to agree to go to the hospital twice a week for NST's, and had a cervical length done weekly until I got to 32 weeks. My cervical length at 32 weeks was 2.6cm, and my MD decided to stop checking it. I also had appointments with the MD and/or midwife weekly to check my progress. I was lucky enough to have my mother and sister's support and had plenty of help with cooking and cleaning my house after I came home.

I remember going crazy the first week of home bedrest, wondering how I was ever going to make it through 10-12 weeks of it...but I remember PRAYING for home bedrest after one night in the hospital!!! I had a horrible time...I cried everyday in the hospital. I felt guilty that my DH was shouldering so much responsibility and that he was exhausted every time I saw him. I felt guilty because I thought my body was failing my little babies and there was nothing I could do about it! I prayed a lot and begged for strength to get through every day...and God listened!! Here I am, 35w6d...10 weeks of bedrest and still holding out!! I will be off bedrest and all restrictions in a couple of days...not that I can do much at this point!! My last ultrasound estimated both babies’ weights at a little over 6 pounds!! Although bedrest is hard, I focused on little goals. First it was to get to 28 weeks, then 30, then 32 and so on. My DH and I celebrated every milestone and every week that passed. Even though it seems impossible, remember you CAN do it!!! When everyone else doubts your ability, keep thinking positively! My doctor told me last week that she didn’t expect me to make it to 28 weeks…and never thought I’d make it where I am today!! Hang in there!!!

 

I'll throw my story in.

We found out we were having twins at 9 weeks, and at 14 found out they were suffering from TTTS. I was put on strict bedrest (up for showers and bathroom breaks only) at 19 following laser ablation surgery. A week later we found out they were now pseudo-momo twins as their membrane had torn during the surgery. After speaking with my peris, we decided I would go inpatient at 24 weeks.

While at home on bedrest, my daughter (2.5 years at the time) continued to go to daycare as I couldn't care for her at home. A friend borrowed me their laptop and my mom bought me a little adjustable table so I could lay on the couch on my side and use the laptop. I read at on of books and watched a lot of TV.

My husband was amazing. He did so much for me and my daughter, essentially becoming a single dad of one 2 1/2 year old girl and a 27 year old. He cooked and cleaned and did all the laundry, plus worked full time. And he never complained.

At 24 weeks I was admitted for monitoring since our boys' cords were already tangled. The hospital was about an hour away from our home, so I only got to see my husband and daughter about once a week. It was important to me that out daughter know that I wasn't sick and neither were her brothers. While I was on bedrest in the hospital, I was monitored 3 times per day for one hour each time, and I had an ultrasound daily.

My sister visited me almost every day. She did my laundry while I was in the hospital and brought me magazines and movies and coffees and whatever takeout I wanted (although, the food at our hospital was really good so I usually ate that).

I got out on 3 passes while I was there. Once we took our daughter to the zoo - I did use a wheelchair the whole time. Once my sister and a friend took me out to eat, and the last time was to watch the fireworks on the 4th of July.

I was in the hospital on bedrest for 8 weeks. Prior to that I had been at home on bedrest for 6 weeks, so I was on bedrest for a total of 14 weeks.

Our boys were born at 31 weeks 6 days. I did have PTL from about 28 weeks on, and tried Terbutaline although that stopped working after about a week, and then they put me on a few other pills. Can't remember the name of them.

Anyway - Jacob and Boden are now happy, healthy 2 year old guys. My weeks spent on bedrest were so completely worth it, but they were tough. Many people act like bedrest is a simple thing, a treat. I can't say that is true. But - when I look at my boys I know that they were worth every second!

 

I hope to be a bedrest success story and reading all of these other inspiring stories has given me the motivation to continue to hope!

I have been on bedrest for just over 4 weeks - I was put on bedrest at 28 weeks and a few days for a shortened cervix (1.9cm, with slight funnelling), contractions and a positive fetal fibronectin test. I was admitted to L&D overnight for monitoring (NST and fluids, no tocolytics) and by the next morning my contractions had calmed down and I was allowed to go home on modified bedrest. I also received steroids to hasten the babies' lung development. The last four weeks have been good - I have only had a few contractions here and there and although my cervix is still shortening (it was 1.2cm at my last ultrasound two weeks ago) it is described as "stable and dynamic." Other than sore hips from lying on my side all the time and carpal tunnel syndrome I am doing pretty well physically - no other signs of PTL. Mentally and emotionally I have been pretty positive too. I will be 33 weeks in a few days and can't believe I've made it this far. My ultimate goal is to make it to 36 weeks at which time I can go off bedrest completely! But even if I don't get that far I am ecstatic that I made it past 30 weeks.

 

I am right there with you!! I was put on at 17 weeks...I'm now 18 weeks and 3 days. This is not easy especially when you're a busy woman with a low case of ADD. BUt we'll get through this!!! Everyone on here so far has had such great stories to share.

Good Luck!!!
TC

 

Wow, you went through a lot!! I'm so glad you and the boys are healthy and happy. I had to respond because we were considering Boden as a name for one of our sons and I had never heard of anyone else with it!

 

I'm from South Africa and would love to share my bedrest success story!

At 25 weeks my OBGYN discovered that my cervix were completly dialated and the membrane of the placenta was sticking through. I got rushed to hospital, had a cervical serclage, my bed was lifted at the bottom so that everying inside could move back in and I was put on strict bedrest until the twins were born.

At 28 weeks I went into preterm labour and got admitted to hospital for the 3rd time during my pregnancy. I was put on treatment to stop contractions and after 5 days got discharged and back home on strict bedrest!!! At this time I was so over my pregnancy and couldnt wait for the twins to come but also knew that every day they stay inside the womb was a day less in NICU for them.

At 32 weeks I went to my OBGYN for my check up(here in SA we see a OBGYN throughout our whole pregnancy wheter its multipales or singleton). He scheduled my c-section for week 34 on the 16th of December 2008.

At 33 weeks I went into preterm labour again!!! Got admitted to hospital, put on treatment again to stop contractions until I'm 34 weeks but the twins had other plans!!! I got admitted at 17h00 in the afternoon and by 22h00 the Nurse phoned my OBGYN and he told her to get me ready for an emergency c-section.

At 00h08 Caydee was born first weighing 1.92kg, then at 00h10 came Jayden weighing 1.91kg. Both spend a total of 21 days in NICU before coming home.

Today they are healthy 9 months old babies and not classified as prem anymore. They are reaching all their milestones like full term babies. Crawling, standing up, talking etc...

I'm very blessed!!!

My advice to anyone who is on bedrest??? STAY IN BED!!! REST!!! ENJOY IT!!! Once the twins are here there is not much resting!!! l.o.l

 

Here's my story:

At 26 weeks, I had an ultrasound, which showed that my cervix was nice an long (an actual measurement wasn't given to me.)

At 28 weeks I went to the hospital due to frequent Braxton Hicks contractions, every 2 - 5 minutes. My cervix was checked digitally, and they said it felt long, but was 1 cm dilated. My OB decided to keep me in for 48 hours for steroid shots. I had an ultrasound the next morning, and my cervix was only measuring 4 mm in length!!! I don't know if it actually changed overnight or if the resident that had checked me the day before had been wrong. I stayed at the hospital for a total of 10 days on strict bedrest (up to pee and one shower a day), and then got to go home to continue strict bedrest. I continued to have Braxton Hicks contractions, but not frequent enough to go in to get checked out.

At 33 weeks, my cervix was checked by my OB, and he said that I was now also 4 cms dilated. I was going to go onto modified bedrest at 34 weeks, but my OB did not want to deliver Baby B breech before 35 weeks, so I stayed on strict bedrest until 35 weeks in order to avoid a section.

At 35 weeks, I went onto modified bedrest. I knew as soon as I was able to move around a bit more, that I would start to contract more, and that is exactly what happened. I had an OB appointment at 35w, 3d, and my OB examined my cervix, and said it was now between 4 - 5 cms. We had plans to admit me to the hospital within about 36 hours since my last birth had been fast, but we never got to that point. Several hours after my appointment, I went into labour, and had the babies!

I'm sure that for me, bedrest really worked! I wasn't sure how long I would actually make it with my cervix being so thin, and once I found out that I was dilated to 4 cms, I thought that I was for sure going to end up with a section. But I made it through the 12 days that I needed in order to have a vaginal birth (and a few days past that for good measure!)