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- Path: sparky!uunet!olivea!spool.mu.edu!umn.edu!news
- From: sapphire@wings.micro.umn.edu (Theresa Jarosz Alberti)
- Newsgroups: misc.kids
- Subject: Re: Update on my preterm labor: bed for the duration
- Message-ID: <1992Nov23.144311.2034@news2.cis.umn.edu>
- Date: 23 Nov 92 14:43:11 GMT
- References: <4286@bcstec.ca.boeing.com>
- Sender: news@news2.cis.umn.edu (Usenet News Administration)
- Organization: Authors with Twins
- Lines: 85
- X-Xxdate: Mon, 23 Nov 92 03:05:56 GMT
- Nntp-Posting-Host: dialup-slip-1-37.gw.umn.edu
- X-Useragent: Nuntius v1.1.1d7
-
- In article <4286@bcstec.ca.boeing.com> Pam Griffith,
- griffith@bcstec.ca.boeing.com writes:
- >In article <1ebcumINN1v3@darkstar.UCSC.EDU> larrabee@cse.ucsc.edu (Tracy
- Larrabee) writes:
- >>Well, I'm still in bed. And the way it looks, I'll only get out of this
- >>bed before Christmas if I do it to give birth.
- >
- >I know how you feel, I was in a similar situation not too
- >long ago and I certainly sympathize with you. I did not have preterm
- >labor - my membranes ruptured at 16 weeks! (more on that later..)
- >
- >>I'm glad I have computer access...
- >>...I almost let my fear of appearing
- >>hysterical keep me from getting help, and that would have been very,
- >>very bad.
- >
- >I did the same thing, it was my first pregnancy, so I really didn't
- >know much about anything, if I hadn't mentioned to the nurse by chance
- >that I was dripping just a little bit, who knows what would've happened.
- >I have since learned to tell my doctor every little detail and let him
- >decide whether it is of any concern or not.
- >
- >>... In any case, as
- >>many of you have told me: six weeks will have been a very short time
- >>to have invested in a healthy son. (If I just *knew* he would be OK, I
- >>think it would make the whole thing quite a bit easier.)
- >
- >That is definitely true - as I said earlier, I ruptured at 16 weeks - so
- >early that I wasn't even showing yet. That was about Christmas last
- >year. My husband and I were planning on driving to the Bay Area to see
- >our families at Christmas time, and so we went ahead and did that - this
- >was with the doctors' blessings, I was to find out later that the doctors
- >really didn't have much hope for my baby because I ruptured so early.
- >I'm still really mad about this becaused I think I had the right to know
- >no matter how bad it looked.
- >
- >Anyway, we DROVE to CA from Seattle, I kept leaking the whole time, and
- >when we got back home, they did an ultrasound and found that my fluid
- >level was unchanged. We then got the bad news that I would most likely
- >loose the baby. They didn't offer us any thread of hope and said that
- >even if I went on total bedrest, chances are not good at all.
- >
- >Well, I went on bedrest anyway, but like the doctors said, I kept on
- >leaking...my husband also took over all the household duties and had
- >to take care of me, it really is tough on the men too. Anyway, after
- >about 4 weeks in bed, I started to bleed at little bit, which really
- >freaked me out. We went to the hospital right away, and I was not
- >allowed to leave - that was on Valentines Day. I stayed in the hospital
- >for 9 weeks, until I was 34 weeks along, the whole time all they
- >did for me was put me on the fetal monitor several times a day, and
- >check my temperature to make sure I don't get infected.
- >
- >I was so bored, and scared, and depressed, I'm amazed my husband lived
- >through all the whining that I did. Luckily, the hospital was right
- >here in Seattle, so he could pretty much come see me everyday. I met
- >some women here on the "bedrest ward" are live farther away - one as
- >far as Alaska! I'm also lucky that this was my first pregnancy, so I
- >don't have other kids at home to worry about.
- >
- >Anyway, my son was born at 34 weeks gestational age. We had a real
- >scare because he was born with pulmonary hypertension because his lungs
- >just could not develop without the all important amniotic fluid. There
- >were about 7 days where they thought we would loose him, but he's such
- >a tough kid - he had to be to make it this far, and I'm glad to say
- >he got through that rough patch in record time too - he only had to
- >stay in the hospital for 20 days! And he is perfectly normal now - except
- >he has a really bad cold right now, but other than that, he's just
- >beautiful!!
- >
- >Anyway, I didn't mean to drag on and on about this, I just wanted you
- >to know about a case with a very happy ending. We did have several
- >rough patches, but in the end it all worked out. I'm praying for a
- >similar outcome for you.
- >
- >>You will probably hear from me again. I hope I don't get too
- >>repetitive.
- >
- >Please do keep us posted on your condition.
- >>--
- >>Tracy Larrabee larrabee@cse.ucsc.edu
- >
- >I hope this goes out OK, I've been lurking for a while, but I've never
- >posted before.
- >--
- >Pam Griffith Boeing Computer Services ppg1998@bcstec.ca.boeing.com
-