Preemies
What to expect
Hi ladies. I'm new to the board so I'll start with a little back story. At my last dr's appointment I received the news that there is almost a guarantee that my baby will be born in the next 2-3 weeks. I've already been taken to the hospital twice to have my labor stopped and was basically told that they probably can't do it again and next time I will have to have her. My husband and I have begun to accept the fact that our daughter is going to be born premature, but we don't really know anybody who has gone through this to ask for advice. Can you ladies give me any ideas of what to expect?
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Re: What to expect
I would second what most PP have said. My water broke at 31w 5 days with no reason given. I was placed on hospital bedrest until 34 weeks when I was induced. My LO was born healthy at 5lbs 12 oz.
He was in the NICU for 16 days. Mostly he was a feeder/grower (that young they don't have mastery of the breathe/suck reflexes) and had a NG tube and some issues with jaundice.
My biggest concern while I was in the hospital was the negative information that I got from some Dr's and some members of the NICU staff. I mean they are required to tell you what could happen--but IMO I found that in many instances they stated that these things were a guarantee (needing CPAP, Oxygen, NG tubes, regulating temp). I mean I found it helpful to remain optimistic, accept the fact that your baby will need help but think that he will be in the best hands. Try not to focus and stress on the what if's of your baby's condition. Instead, just relax and know that you will be taken care of regardless.
Try and not stress and GL!
It's hard to say what to expect. My LO was born at 36.5 weeks and weighed 5.5lbs. She had a bit of jaundice and showed no real interest in eating the first couple of days. We also had to stay at the hospital for two days (born on Saturday morning, left Monday morning).
What my husband and I did was we came up with a plan before I went into labor, so that we knew exactly what we wanted and the answers to decisions we may have had to make in a moment's notice. In the end, my labor went smoothly (minus the earliness of it), but it was nice to know that we had everything ready in case it didn't go as planned.