24 weeks and the scariest moment of my life: my trip to the hospital

(this is a scary post about my trip to the hospital and i just wanted to warn you beforehand about it being scary and no holds barred tmi.)

here's what happened... (day one)

yesterday i went to the bathroom to poop and like all pooping lately i have been constipated so i have to push to get things moving. everything felt totally normal like my normal constipation poops go but when i looked down into the toilet the entire bowl of water was bright red, like a heavy period. i was totally freaked out and at first thought that maybe i had a hemmoroid and it burst, but i wiped and wiped and it really seemed to be coming from my vagina.

at first i couldn't figure out what to do. emergency room? labor & delivery triage? ambulance? call OB doctor's office? after about a couple of seconds of shaking in fear in the bathroom i decided it would be best to call the doctor. i'm not sure i even remembered to flush the toilet i was so freaked out. and people, i was at work, so the next stall user may have gotten a surprise. OOPS.

i called my doctor and they asked me to come in immediately. i basically grabbed my purse and keys and left my apartment.  i drove super fast and got there quickly, but then had to wait and wait for like fifteen minutes in the waiting room while waiting for the doctor and a room to open. i think ultimately i may have gotten fit in faster because i was sitting in their waiting room crying. for a couple crazy moments i was even worried that i may have pushed the baby out into the toilet and not realized it. but now thinking back i realized i would have noticed because of 1. size of baby and 2. umbilical cord + placenta. but that is seriously how freaked out i was.

once in the exam room the doctor looked at my cervix and confirmed the bleeding was coming from my vagina. she didn't want to check my cervix for dilation because she was concerned that my placenta was over my cervix or that touching it could make things worse and wanted to wait for the ultrasound to give us a better idea. she checked the baby's heart rate and confirmed he was still in there and doing good. but, she said i needed to go to the hospital and get checked out with an ultrasound, contraction monitor and baby heart rate monitor. so, off i went in a wheelchair to the maternity unit in the hospital next door.

Once there i was very impressed by the nurses who asked to see the pad i was wearing to check my bleeding. i guess anything goes and they are not modest about anything, which i find fantastic! the nurse just lifted my underwear and took a look. and luckily my bleeding had greatly slowed to a brown trickle.

My husband finally arrived at the hospital and we waited while they hooked me up to the heart and contraction monitor. luckily the baby's heart rate was great and no one told me until later, but i was having contractions. we waited a bit longer and off we went to the ultrasound room.

the ultrasound was very reassuring. baby was measuring great for 24 weeks (1 lb 8 oz) and was kicking and moving and seemed great. they saw no visible evidence of a current bleed, placental abruption, clots and the placenta was at the top of the uterus. even better, my cervix was closed and long (3.4 cm?). WHEW.

so we went back to my room in the hospital and confirmed that everything on the ultrasound looked good and that the bleed could have been from a burst blood vessel in my cervix (from pushing so hard) or from a very small placental abruption that isn't visible in the ultrasound. they told me about the contractions and started me on some anti-contraction meds (don't remember the name). apparently the thinking is that the blood in my cervix is very irritating to the uterus and causes contractions. they also started me on steroid shots for the baby (1 a day for 2 days) to make his lungs develop more rapidly just in case he is born early to give him a better chance of survival.

my bloodwork also came back and said i am anemic (low on iron). oops. total list of medications/pills is now:

prenatal
iron
vitamin c (helps iron absorb)
higher dose stool softeners 2x a day
fiber pill
tums for heartburn
steroid shots
anti-contraction meds (2x a day)
am i forgetting anything? oh yes, ambien for not being able to sleep at night (if needed)

yikes, right? but, i'm glad they are taking good care of me. this is turning into a super long post, but day one finished off with the contractions slowing down, baby's heart rate looking good, and a good wait-and-see, cautious but optimistic approach. today is pretty much the same, but i will write more tomorrow about today as i am now officially on bed rest in the hospital and have plenty of time to blog!

sunday is 25 weeks and every extra day i can keep this baby cooking inside me is a blessing!!!