In order to fill y’all in about my visit this morning…I first have to fill you in about my day yesterday!
This week hasn’t been an overly crazy week. I’ve felt pretty good, overall. Some symptoms that labor is coming (increased pressure, occasional cramping) but nothing major. I don’t feel like I’ve overdone it or anything either?
Zach has been out of town so when I started feeling increased cramping and contractions yesterday afternoon I immediately worried. I was having peaks and valleys to the contractions so I do feel like they were legit. I tried resting. I tried drinking water. I tried eating. I tried sleeping. I also tried pooping. Nothing made them stop and they were pretty much constant.
With both of my previous deliveries I basically skipped the early phase of labor. With Kye I got checked at my weekly appointment, came home, and BAM! my water broke. From there on contractions were pretty legit and there was no wondering whether or not labor was happening. With Britt I also got checked that morning at my weekly appointment. I was out running errands so I didn’t notice a lot of the contracting until it got too bad for me to speak through them which is a sign of the second stage of labor.
The stuff I was feeling yesterday was very similar to the feelings I was having at 31 weeks when I was concerned I was in pre-labor and ended up on bed rest (you can re-read about that experience here). I wasn’t sure if that meant I was in labor or not?!?! Which I know probably has some of y’all laughing. I mean it’s my third pregnancy. How could I not know if it was labor?
I felt less dumb about not knowing once I did some research about it. Even my Bradley books talk about how the first phase of labor isn’t obvious labor and you don’t really know for sure if it’s the real deal or not until you progress to the second stage.
The contractions started at about 1:30 in the afternoon so I spent nap time resting and sleeping and seeing if they would stop. They didn’t. I didn’t want to tell Zach to come all the way home if I wasn’t sure I was in labor but I was also worried that if I WAS in labor he wouldn’t make it home in time by the time I knew for sure it was happening. Especially when you factor in the time of day and Atlanta traffic!
At 4, once both kids were up and running around, I broke down and called Mrs. Charlotte. I still was not feeling okay and was worried about the kids and being alone etc. She called me back at 5 ish and we made a game plan. She offered to take the kids with her to her house but honestly I wanted them at our house. I have their stuff all ready for when the time comes and if the time was coming…I wanted our plan to stay the same. The less stress the better 🙂 She did come bring us dinner and was a HUGE blessing by getting the kids bathed and in the bed for me.
I went to soak in the tub at 7. When I had the pre-labor symptoms before they told me to sit in the bath for an hour and chug water and see what happened. So I did that and while in the tub made a plan of action. I decided to go ahead and shower and get ready and tie up all the lose ends to be 100% packed for the hospital. Then I planned to go to sleep as quickly as I possibly could. At that time of night I felt better about Zach making it in time since there wouldn’t be any traffic. I have never gone into labor in the middle of the night but I assumed if it was labor that it would wake me up at some point and that the sleep would help me either way! If it wasn’t labor then the sleep would help the contractions stop…and if it was labor it would help me be well rested for the journey to come!
I had text a couple friends and pretty much everyone told me to go to the hospital and get checked just to see. But I didn’t want to risk doing that. Because if I WAS in early labor they wouldn’t let me leave. It’d be AWFUL to be in labor without Zach but it’d be even MORE awful to be in labor without Zach and stuck at the hospital WAY too early. I knew it was a risk to wait it out and that it could mean Zach would miss it all but I would rather take that risk and have myself be in the best possible delivery situation.
Mrs. Charlotte offered to stay the night but I really felt better alone. If I went into labor I want to labor at home as long as I can and I could NOT do that successfully with her there for sure! I had also decided that if Zach wasn’t home at the point where I went to the hospital that I’d go into the delivery room solo too. Which I know sounds nuts but I would rather do it myself than have anyone in there that would mess up my game plan. Zach is the only one who knows and understands my needs during that time period! Casey would probably be the only other person I’d feel truly comfortable having in there but with her needing to nurse Carter so often I doubt that would work out very well! And Lindsay is also out of town so if someone did come in the room with me they’d have to be both my husband and photographer haha
When I went to bed I really felt okay about everything either way. I had gotten upset a couple times during the afternoon. Selfishly I was more concerned about Zach missing the labor part than the meeting the baby part haha. I mean he’d meet the kid eventually…but I need him for the hard work leading up to it! But by the time I got in the bed and had my game plan set…I felt okay. I really do think I’d be able to handle it solo if needed and it was nice to have that confidence.
Obviously…since I’m sitting here writing this…no baby came last night! I got up a couple times to go to the bathroom but nothing significant happened. This morning I went ahead and got ready for my appointment as usual! I still felt some contractions, but def more the braxton hicks type as they weren’t coming as quickly and didn’t have as obvious peaks as yesterdays.
I went to this visit expecting to see Theresa but ended up seeing Stacy! She was on call and came in so it worked out good 🙂 I told her that I thought I might be in labor last night and she confirmed that there really isn’t a way to know for sure until it progresses further. She said I did the right thing with the resting and that resting will actually be the best thing to do if it IS real labor too. She said often people start to feel those early contractions then walk around like crazy to try to get things going but that it will tire you out and make labor tougher so the more rest I can get, the better!
She checked me and was very surprised by how little progress I’ve made. Which didn’t really surprise me…sure i’ve felt a TON of pressure and had 10 hours of contractions non-stop yesterday…but I just had a feeling that I’d be like nothing haha. I was 2 cm dilated, 50% effaced, cervix still thick, and baby at a -3 station. At my 37 week visit with Kye I was 1 cm dilated, 80% effaced, cervix very thin, and -1 station (he was super low). I know it’s typical for a first baby to drop sooner and for effacement to be higher than with future pregnancies. Usually babies don’t drop until delivery when it’s your 2nd, 3rd, etc baby! So it didn’t surprise me AT ALL that this baby is still so high. Although the pressure I feel is crazy so it’s hard to believe it’s only going to get more intense! At my 37 week appointment with Britt I was also 2 cm dilated, but I was 70% effaced, cervix was thinner than it was today, and she was lower than this baby is as she was at a -2 station.
I had Britt only 3 days prior to my due date so it does make me feel like this baby may stay in there longer since I’m less far along than I was with her at this point! I was relieved because Zach doesn’t get home from out of town until this evening…but when I said “whew! no baby today!” Stacy laughed and reminded me that it really doesn’t mean much of anything. I could EASILY have a baby today. Or tomorrow. Or anytime now! I’m officially full term and who knows when it’s gonna happen!
I told her I’ve been taking the Evening Primrose Oil once a day orally and she said at 38 weeks to go ahead and start taking two a day…so that’s a week from now!
I also asked her about the whole packet thing and how it says intercourse is okay whenever you feel ready after delivery?!?! She went and got a packet and said they do NOT recommend that. The packet needs to be changed to say that intercourse is okay once you no longer feel sore AND no longer have any bleeding. Which is typically around the time of the 6 week postpartum visit anyways which is when they usually tell people to wait until that visit.
My ears have been feeling very strange…almost like I’m under water? I asked her to look at them and she said they look beautiful (my kids must have inherited my ears b/c the drs ALWAYS say they have “beautiful” ears and it’s funny that’s the same term she used with me!) and that I can take some sudafed and it may help clear that up.
I also have a random spot on my foot that’s kinda like a bump and of course with all this Mr. Rusty worries I got concerned about it. She looked at that too and said it’s nothing to be worried about and should go away on it’s own!
She also mentioned my group B strep test was negative, which it always has been negative with each pregnancy!
The heartbeat sounded great. I usually take a video of it and usually know the number but I didn’t even look this time b/c I was more focused on getting checked! The check was NOT pleasant. The baby being so high (it’s the highest one of my babies has ever been at a check I believe!) made it very, very uncomfortable and I actually and to put down on my upper belly to help her be able to feel the baby’s head! I have had both spotting and increased discharge since the check, which I know both are very normal and to be expected.
She said since my cervix is still so thick (I think that’s what surprised her the most) that I will probably be feeling a good bit more contracting and with increased pain in order to get things going the way they need to go! No pain…no gain 😉
Overall it was a good appointment. I don’t feel in a rush to get this baby here. Ideally I’d like to be at least 38 weeks so I don’t feel like I need to be attempting any tricks to naturally induce, etc. But at the same time if he or she does arrive now I’m pumped for that too 🙂 Either way I’m good! I know some people have told me not to get checked b/c it doesn’t really mean all that much and can get you excited or disappointed over nothing. But I know that it’s not a big deal whatever they say when they check me so I just like to know! It doesn’t cause me to feel worried or frustrated or anything like that. I DO think it’s super interesting that of all three babies this one is the HIGHEST at this point and that my cervix is thicker than it’s ever been at this point too!
Oh and I keep forgetting to mention that my blood type is 0+. I don’t think I ever knew that but I noticed it’s on my white slip to take with me to all my appointments and to the hospital 😉
You can see notes from my 37th week appt with Kye here and the ones from my 37th week appt with Britt here! Britt is the only pregnancy where I got checked at 36 weeks (I skipped the 36 week appt with Leo and with Kye I opted not to be checked). At my 36 week visit with Britt I was a -3 station, 0% effaced and 0 cm dilated. I made a pretty significant change in one week with her so I’m interested to see my progress next week!
For my next appointment I scheduled it on Thursday of next week. Technically I’ll still be 37 weeks and not 38 but Mr. Rusty’s biopsy is next Friday (please continue to be in prayer for him!) so I didn’t want to schedule my appt that day.
Overall a great appointment and I’m just SO THANKFUL I was able to be at the appointment rather than be at the hospital having a baby without my husband 😉