Advice on High Risk Pregnancy/bedrest

Hi R.. I had 3 miscarriages before I was blessed with my daughter. And I have a heart-shaped uterus which caused problems as well. I was on bedrest for the first 3 months of the pregnancy (and just plain terrified for the rest!).

I'll tell you what I did wrong and hopefully you can avoid the same mistakes. I read WAY too many books/articles on fetal development. Yes, it's good to know some basics, but I kept reading the day-by-day or week-by-week things and found that to be scary ("oh my gosh, her fingers are developing, what if I jar her and they come out webbed...." seriously.). Too much information can be a bad thing. Your body knows what to do with her, the doctors are keeping tabs on her. Likewise, do NOT watch A Baby Story (if it's still on) or any of the childbirth shows. My husband nearly took away the tv after coming home so many nights to find me bug-eyed and crying from watching those all day.

As hard as it is to do, try not to worry. Find things to distract you. And use positive visualization. Meaning, when you start to worry, practice a 'scene' from your baby's life. Silly things even, like picture yourself changing a diaper, imagine a giggle. Think about will she like stuffed pigs or stuffed elephants better. Things to shift gears and focus on a positive future.

If there are things that keep coming up that you worry about, write them down. Putting them on paper will get them out of the worry-machine in your head. Ask your doctor about the things you write down.

It is scary, and you've been through a lot so to you, your fears have been justified. But separate the past from this baby. She is growing inside you- send her positive vibes!

Good luck and God bless....

Congrats on your pregnancy and making it to 32 weeks. I am sure you know, if she were born now, she will do pretty well. As for something happening before she is born, since you are high risk, I am sure the docs are watching you/her very closely. I have had very difficult pregnancies, as well. I was 34 when my youngest was born. I had preterm labor with all of my pregnancies, including a cerclage, lots of meds, hospitialization, and long term bed rest. I had too much amniotic fluid with my 2nd to last pregnancy - which is not good for someone with preterm labor! I lost weight, or gained very little, with each of my pregnancies. I had 1 miscarriage and 2 babies born very preterm that did not survive. I have 3 wonderful children with me, ages 21, 9, and 7. It was very difficult to get them here and very difficult going through the pregnancies (there is way too much to type out!). The minute that baby is born and you hold her or see her face, you will know it was all worth it and you wouldn't change a minute of the whole ordeal. You only have a few weeks to go, enjoy the last weeks of your pregnancy and good luck! You will be a great mom.
S.

My son was born at 32 weeks and he did really well considering his gestational age. Girls do better than boys too.

Have they given you steroids to help with the development of her lungs? That made a huge difference for my son. He was on a vent for less than a day and on a cpap for less than a day then to room air.

Make sure you control your GD really well. That helps make for a healthy baby.

The best advice I can give to take very good care of yourself because that means you are taking very good care of baby girl. Follow your doctor's advice for bedrest. Eating things like avocado, wheat germ have good fats for you and baby and may help with weight gain.

What a scary s ituation you are in! I agree with the other posters - take good care of yourself. 32 weeks along is pretty good...

Use positve visualization - think about the outcome you want - is it delivering at 40 weeks? Create a scene of that in your mind - use all of your senses. Think about the feelings (i.e., how good you feel that you were able to carry your baby as long as you did), the sights (your bedroom? Your hospital? Wherever you would like to give birth)...the smells, the sounds, etc. Create as much detail as you can to create a picture to put yourself in. Think about how you will feel holding your new baby!

This can take your mind off the crazy worry, and can create a potential outcome that you want that you can put yourself into. Make it as real as you can, and send yourself to that place as often as you want, and as often as gives you comfort. Talk to your baby, tell her you want her to stay in until (whatever date you visualize) so that she can be as healthy as can be.
Again, this is not to make you feel like a failure if this doesn't come to pass, but it creates a picture for you of the outcome that you desire, and helps to put yourself there, emotionally. (I feel like I am rambling - am I making sense?) It can change the energy of your situation from fear and worry to calm and peace. If you find it hard to go there by yourself, how about guided meditations / visulizations? They can really take you out of yourself and shift your energy.

It sounds tough, but you can do it!
(Can the Dr's give you any advice about eating right to manage the GD and the weight gain? I know nothing about those things...)
Good luck to you, I will hold good thoughts!

Hi. I am pregnant with baby #2 and am also on bedrest with preterm labor. I started having preterm labor at 24 weeks and have been in bed since then. I am 29 weeks along and going strong. In fact most of the cervical changes that I was experiencing before bedrest have now stopped completely. Bedrest is hard! We put a mini fridge and microwave in the bedroom with me and now our master bedroom looks a bit like a college dorm. We ordered netflix so that I can stream to my tv or computer. Books and magazines help! Being on bedrest is a challenge. But if you take it really seriously and stay flat your body will benefit. :) Best of luck!