just joined the bedrest club

the on call doctor from triage just put me on bed rest until further notice. they want to put me on contraction stopping medication since i keep having some contractions combined with all day long uterine irritability....it's not the terbutiline it's the other one that starts with a p, i can't think of the name.

so yeah i'm bed ridden with pee and shower priveledges, no more. which should be interesting since DH works 80+ hours a week.

any advice on how to make the time pass? or to take care of yourself when you aren't allowed but don't have a choice?

 

Sorry to hear you've joined the bedrest club (it is rather boring!). Things I've done while on strict bedrest include reading, surfing around here and other websites (did some cybershopping for more comfy maternity clothes!), watching movies (Netflix - there are several good movies in the "watch now" category that will download right to your computer) and doing work-work (I'm a professor and have been trying to get all my lectures ready to go for my substitute teachers for the fall semester). With you being at nearly 32 weeks, I wouldn't think your bed rest would be for much longer since babies born at 32 weeks have pretty mature lungs and the same level of "survivability" as full-term babies. The drug you're probably trying to think of is Procardia. I'm on it, though I'm not sure how much good it does since I still have contractions. Why were you in L&D? What were some of the things they checked - i.e., cervix length/dilation, fetal fibronectin, etc.? Edited to add: as far as taking care of yourself - if you have to get up to feed yourself because you don't have help, then obviously do it; I think our bodies are pretty good at telling us when we've done too much. Have your friends go shopping for you to buy some simple easy-to-prepare meals that don't take much time or labor to put together. That way, you're not really up that much more than if your hubby brought you dinner in bed. Good luck!

 

QUOTE(pittmane @ Jun 28 2009, 08:52 AM) [snapback]1372059[/snapback]
Why were you in L&D? What were some of the things they checked - i.e., cervix length/dilation, fetal fibronectin, etc.?


This has been my 6th or 7th trip to triage for painful pressure and/or irritable uterus. Last night was the first time they actually caught two strong contractions on the monitors, despite me being able to feel them prior to getting to triage.

They checked my cervix and said it was nice and high and thick, did an FFN test but the doctor did not have orders sent out for it to be reviewed. I have had 2 others done in the past and both have come back negative. I also wasn't dialated.

Nope with me it's just that my uterus can't handle the pressure and the moment I stand up is when my stomach gets rock hard and the pressure and sometimes severe cramping set in.

Twice in triage I had horrible UTI's but the rest have just been with the irritability.

I guess the big concern is because I'm carrying identicals, I'm high risk (mental illness) and my uterus just doesn't appear to want to cooperate.

But thanks for the tips!

Oh and why don't you think the Procardia works? The terb shots make my pulse wicked high so Procardia is really my only option. How many times a day are you taking it?

 

Welcome to the fun filled world of bed rest!! :lol:

I watched a TON of TV, read books, did sudoko puzzles and *tried* to cross-stitch (wasn't good at it!).
My main thing was the internet of course!

I had to give us a little (OK, a lot) of my control issues & have my DH do the housework - which was SO hard for me.

Hang in there, get lots of rest & stay hydrated!!!

 

QUOTE(tamaras @ Jun 28 2009, 12:47 PM) [snapback]1372329[/snapback]
Welcome to the fun filled world of bed rest!! :lol:

I watched a TON of TV, read books, did sudoko puzzles and *tried* to cross-stitch (wasn't good at it!).
My main thing was the internet of course!

I had to give us a little (OK, a lot) of my control issues & have my DH do the housework - which was SO hard for me.

Hang in there, get lots of rest & stay hydrated!!!



yeah i try and drink a ton of water but that just means getting up to pee every 5 seconds...lol, kind of defeats the purpose.

as far as housework goes my mom has cleaning people that come in and "tidy up" the house once a week, not to my standards of course and i would usually help them by doing the anal retentive things i like done like the dusting and the kitchen but now i can't even do that.

i have a ton of cross-stiching kits but they are so overwhelming to me to just get started, i used to be pretty good at them. and i' more of a word search kind of gal myself...numbers scare me....lol

 

Sorry you're on bedrest! Sounds like you're in pretty good shape though as far as active labor/cervix goes. That's awesome Unlike a PP, I found procardia to be very effective. I took it for 11 weeks with success. I did contract that whole time, but didn't continue to dilate.
As far as what to do, I may not be much help because I was on strict hospital bedrest, but here's what I found most helpful. Have a routine - this saved my sanity. I kept to the same mundane routine every single day. Right down to what shows I watched and what times I surfed the internet :lol: I just seemed to cope better mentally when I knew exactly what to expect each day. Take everything day by day - bedrest feels endless, especially when you are not sure when you will be allowed to roam free again. Counting each day at a time instead of staring into the future helped a lot. Keeping positive. I think bedrest has been proven to drive one crazy after a period of time. It really is a difficult thing to do, especially strict bedrest and/or bedrest in a place that is not your home. Keeping your eye on the prize so to speak is one of the things that I found essential to surviving bedrest.
GL!

 

If u have a little fridge that u could put beside ur couch/bed where ur going to be all day. Have Dh make your lunch and snacks and place them next to you for the day. Any friends/family who can bring meals over.

Watching tv, crosswords, try to get into ur cross stitch.

Good luck u will get through it

 

I feel like the procardia doesn't work because it doesn't seem to have any effect on the contractions. My contractions are pretty random - usually 1-2 per hour, but sometimes up to 6+ per hour (that's when perinatologist said to get up and walk - that usually does the trick and they go away). There have been multiple occasions when the 6 per hour contractions were within 1 hour or so of taking a 20 mg dose of procardia. I take it 4 times per day - 20 mg in the morning and afternoon and 10 mg in the evening and overnight. I was on 20 mg all 4 times but it was making me short-of-breath and light-headed so my OB backed me off in the late part of the day (when blood pressure is the lowest). The terbutaline given in L&D on the other hand, worked immediately - stopped the contractions dead and seemed to last a good 12-24 hours. Personally, I notice a diurnal trend - my contractions are few and far between in the morning-early evening and then pick up until I go to bed. This happened even when I took the 20 mg procardia round the clock.

 

QUOTE(pittmane @ Jun 28 2009, 05:53 PM) [snapback]1372568[/snapback]
I feel like the procardia doesn't work because it doesn't seem to have any effect on the contractions. My contractions are pretty random - usually 1-2 per hour, but sometimes up to 6+ per hour (that's when perinatologist said to get up and walk - that usually does the trick and they go away). There have been multiple occasions when the 6 per hour contractions were within 1 hour or so of taking a 20 mg dose of procardia. I take it 4 times per day - 20 mg in the morning and afternoon and 10 mg in the evening and overnight. I was on 20 mg all 4 times but it was making me short-of-breath and light-headed so my OB backed me off in the late part of the day (when blood pressure is the lowest). The terbutaline given in L&D on the other hand, worked immediately - stopped the contractions dead and seemed to last a good 12-24 hours. Personally, I notice a diurnal trend - my contractions are few and far between in the morning-early evening and then pick up until I go to bed. This happened even when I took the 20 mg procardia round the clock.



yeah they would have given me the terbutaline but my pulse runs fast anyway, over 100 and the shot makes it go crazy high. procardia is really my only other option

 

oh no! Just saw this post that you are on BR now. I hope you are getting through it ok. I don't have any personal experience with BR, but my friend just got placed on BR (32 weeks w/singleton) and she is devouring "easy reads" think: twilight, harry potter, etc. She said it helps her to stay distracted. Also, the book Twins, Triplets & Quads by Barbara Luke has a big segment on BR which includes excercises you can do in bed (not like I can imagine wanting to excercise, but maybe something else you can "do" to take away the monotony). Hang in there! You are doing great cooking those babies

 

yeah i just got home from my appointment with the regular OB and i'm now on bedrest until delivery. also taking procardia 10mg 3x daily. she doesn't seem to optimistic that i'll make it to 34 weeks