36 weeks is bringing lots of questions as to what warrants a call to the dr. i know you can be dilated, have contractions, feel pain, and so and not be in actual labor...but i learned today that you just don't mess around with decreased fetal movement.
this weekend i went into full force nest-cleaning mode. i spent hours on saturday doing laundry, vacuuming, mopping, and scrubbing. by saturday night i was in so much pain i couldn't sleep. i took a long shower to try and ease the frequent contractions and the feeling that the baby was breaking my hips apart and going to fall out at any moment. pressure like i felt when i was thinking about pushing last time. but then it went away and all i was left with was an entirely sleepless night. on sunday i rested and cleaned a bit more but realized by the evening that i hadn't felt the baby move in a number of hours. i often don't feel much during the day but by night time i always feel lots of movement, especially as i fall asleep. there was nothing, even after a few glasses of cold water and some external belly poking. i woke up this morning and still nothing so of course i got worried and called.
i was asked to come in for an nst and my dr. scolded me for not calling sooner. they take fetal movement pretty seriously, especially in the last few weeks as there is less room, potentially less fluid, and other issues. thankfully, the heartbeat was normal but no movement was being detected. my dr. noted that i was having contractions every 2 minutes (i couldn't feel them) but then i ate candy and started having "real" contractions and that caused the baby to move around. in the 30 minute nst i had two long, painful contractions and the baby moved enough that i could go home with orders to call again if i noticed less movement.
she also did a full exam just because i was already there. in good news, i lost 5 lbs since friday (i assume water weight and the different scales between the exam rooms!), am measuring right on track, and am 2 cm dilated. the baby is still head down, so he'll probably stay that way and i am right on track as far as early/false labors go. i've been having strong contractions all day but when i time them, they aren't getting closer together or forming a pattern. i can feel the baby very low and the pressure on my hips and groin is becoming unbearable for most of the day rather than just at night while laying down. so, i guess...welcome to the last month!!
(these maternity images were taken by mr. h3b, the husband who will put up with my nagging and critique. he got some wonderful shots by which to remember this pregnancy.)
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