bedrest tips/advice??

bride2be.austin

hi ladies - i popped in months ago at 10wks pg when i had some cerclage questions.  I'm now 23wks and due to some sudden cervix changes (dropping from a steady 3 to a 1.8 i'm now on bedrest).  the full story is on my blog...link in siggy.

Any tips/advice for home bedrest?  anything that has helped you make it through the long days and stay full of hope/faith?  (i was on bedrest with my last pregnancy but that was for 2 weeks in the hosptial - and was a much more critical situtation).

 ALSO - any one else on here with a similar "shrinking cervix bedrest story?  success? has it helped keep your cervix stable?  would love to hear.....

April320

I've been on bedrest for 8 weeks now due to a shortened cervix, hoping to keep our twins in for at least 7-8 more.   In a nutshell, I'm 28 weeks pregnant with b/g twins.  My cervix was found to have shortened to 2.5 cm at 20 weeks.  I spent a night in L&D to make sure I wasn't having contractions (thankfully I was not), then was sent home on strict bedrest.  After staying stable for nearly 7 weeks, my cervix dropped to 1.5 cm with funneling at my 27 week u/s last week.  I spent 2 nights in L&D, got steroid shots, found out I was having some contractions, got 2 shots and 2 oral doses of terb (which my body did not like, but which stopped the contractions), and finally was sent back home on super strict bedrest.  When I went back a week later (this Monday), my cervix was back to 2.4 cm with no funneling!  I'm really hoping the dip was an abberation and it continues to hold around 2.5.  So, other than last week, bedrest does seem to be keeping my cervix stable.  Do you have a cerclage?  I wasn't a candidate (too far along w/ twins when they found it).

As for keeping your sanity on bedrest, I think one of the most important things is to have a routine/schedule for your day.  I stay in bed in the morning, doing stuff on the laptop or reading, then I shower mid-day and move to the couch for the afternoon to watch TV/movies or read more.  Even just that basic pattern to the day helps it feel like it's moving along.  Do you have Netflix?  They have lots of TV series you can stream, including lots of the HBO/Showtime series, which are a great way to kill lots of time.  I've watched 5 seasons of Weeds in the past couple weeks.  I've also done a lot of online shopping for the nursery.  With DH's help, we've managed to get the nursery pretty much done with me on bedrest.  And I just ordered baby books for the twins and figured I'd use this time to start filling those out, since I know we'll be too busy when they come. 

In my experience, the first couple of weeks were the toughest.  After that, you sort of get used to it, and while it's still boring and frustrating, it's not a scary or difficult as it first seems.  Good luck!

carlymn

I agree, a schedule helps the days go by much faster. I'm lucky in that I can now work remotely on my computer for a few hrs, also. I would be lost without my computer
As for success stories, we discovered my shortened/funneling cervix at 26w and it measured 6.8mm, and at 28w when I was discharged from hospital bedrest to continue at home, it measured 1.5cm so bedrest definitely has helped! We're not sure what it is measuring now because they want to keep anything/everything out of my vagina LOL! I was originally told I wouldn't make it past 28w and now they say I could go full term because the procardia has worked in keeping the contractions away.
Best of luck to you!

bride2be.austin

April320:

I've been on bedrest for 8 weeks now due to a shortened cervix, hoping to keep our twins in for at least 7-8 more.   In a nutshell, I'm 28 weeks pregnant with b/g twins.  My cervix was found to have shortened to 2.5 cm at 20 weeks.  I spent a night in L&D to make sure I wasn't having contractions (thankfully I was not), then was sent home on strict bedrest.  After staying stable for nearly 7 weeks, my cervix dropped to 1.5 cm with funneling at my 27 week u/s last week.  I spent 2 nights in L&D, got steroid shots, found out I was having some contractions, got 2 shots and 2 oral doses of terb (which my body did not like, but which stopped the contractions), and finally was sent back home on super strict bedrest.  When I went back a week later (this Monday), my cervix was back to 2.4 cm with no funneling!  I'm really hoping the dip was an abberation and it continues to hold around 2.5.  So, other than last week, bedrest does seem to be keeping my cervix stable.  Do you have a cerclage?  I wasn't a candidate (too far along w/ twins when they found it).

In my experience, the first couple of weeks were the toughest.  After that, you sort of get used to it, and while it's still boring and frustrating, it's not a scary or difficult as it first seems.  Good luck!

oh my gosh..thank you sooo much for sharing!  wow..what a story.  so do they know what it was that too your cervix back up from a 1.5 to a 2.5?  what's an abberation?  also...are you on p17 shots?...i've been on those weekly since my cerclage at 13 weeks - and she just upped it so i have to do progesterone suppostitories now too.

 thank you for the tips on routine. that helps a lot.  i was on bedrest with my last pregnancy (when they found me at 17weeks dilated to a 5 with water bulging).  i was there for 2 weeks when suddenly my water ruptured.  so the hospital bedrest was a lot different - as i was not even able to get up to pee..etc.  i did have books and visitors and thankfully my laptop.  just feel at home is a lttle different and have to prepare for the long haul.

i'm thankful that you are holding out well with little change and increased cervical length.  8 weeks is a long bedrest - (way to go).  i will gladly welcome it if it keeps this baby cookin!

bride2be.austin

carlymn:

I agree, a schedule helps the days go by much faster. I'm lucky in that I can now work remotely on my computer for a few hrs, also. I would be lost without my computer
As for success stories, we discovered my shortened/funneling cervix at 26w and it measured 6.8mm, and at 28w when I was discharged from hospital bedrest to continue at home, it measured 1.5cm so bedrest definitely has helped! We're not sure what it is measuring now because they want to keep anything/everything out of my vagina LOL! I was originally told I wouldn't make it past 28w and now they say I could go full term because the procardia has worked in keeping the contractions away.
Best of luck to you!

awesome!  where you having contractions?...is that what sent you in at 26w?  yeah...when they found me dilated to a 5 with water bulging last pregnancy at 17 weeks...they never did get a chance to check me cause she didn't want anything up there affter the rescue cerlage.  i think this is different cause i wasn't dialted and it was a profilactic cerclage.

so are you still a 1.5 now and on home strict bedrest?

carlymn

I ended up finding out because I lost a good part of my MP and it was bloody. My dr had me come in and he did the fFN test and checked to see if the blood was coming from my cervix and it was. I went in for a transvag u/s the next day and my cervix measured 1.2cm then and I was immediately sent to L&D where they gave me the steroid shots, etc. That night was when I started contracting every 3-4 mins - they gave me the terb shot and it worked. The next day I was transferred to a different hospital with a high-level NICU (4 hrs away) and had some random contractions, but after that the nifedipine/procardia has knocked them out. They did another u/s there and my cervix had gone down to 6.8mm. But after the 2 weeks of hospital bedrest it went up to 1.5cm so that was when I was released to bedrest at my sister's house. I am still 4 hrs from home unfortunately but they want me to stay close to the high-level NICU just in case.
I hope the cerclage does its job for you and your baby stays put!  

April320

bride2be.austin:

oh my gosh..thank you sooo much for sharing!  wow..what a story.  so do they know what it was that too your cervix back up from a 1.5 to a 2.5?  what's an abberation?  also...are you on p17 shots?...i've been on those weekly since my cerclage at 13 weeks - and she just upped it so i have to do progesterone suppostitories now too.

I have no idea why it went back up, and the doctors' didn't say anything about why, but the cervix is a dynamic muscle, so it can change.  My personal theory is that one of the babies got into a position where he/she was putting a lot of pressure on my cervix and that may have caused it to shorten - I was feeling a lot of pelvic/vaginal pressure for a few days before and after that measurement, but it went away after a couple days when Baby B flipped over.  By abberation, I just mean that I'm hoping the 1.5 measurement is an outlier and that it won't fluctuate back down again.  I'm on progesterone suppositories once a day, but not the shots.

frogluver54

I've been on bed rest for 3 weeks now and thankfully I have not gotten TOO bored. My friends have given me a lot of things to do (books, magazines, TV shows on DVDS, etc) and I keep busy with those. I generally take a nap once during the day too. One of my favorite things I have had during this bed rest has been my iPod touch, it's been my saving grace. I have downloaded a ton of apps on it and I entertain myself a lot playing little games on it. I don't know what I would do without it...or facebook, haha. Just find whatever it is that helps you pass the time and stick with it! These 3 weeks have been flying by thankfully, and every minute my little one is in there still is enough for me to stay positive .

bmp84

I'm only on day 4 of strict bedrest, so I'm a total newb to this. I was on modified bedrest 2 weeks prior, but I had so many privileges, that I don't really count it. Now, I only can get up to refill my water jug or go to the bathroom. One thing that has really saved my sanity this week is my mom. She comes by around 3 and keeps me company and does any little things that need to be done (toss in a load of laundry, load the dishwasher, tidy up, etc) and she stays for 2 hours until my DH gets home from work. Tonight she is bringing dinner as well as prepping a bunch of stuff to freeze that I can toss in the crockpot for dinners while I'm up getting water or going to the bathroom. GL!

bride2be.austin

bmp84:

I'm only on day 4 of strict bedrest, so I'm a total newb to this. I was on modified bedrest 2 weeks prior, but I had so many privileges, that I don't really count it. Now, I only can get up to refill my water jug or go to the bathroom. One thing that has really saved my sanity this week is my mom. She comes by around 3 and keeps me company and does any little things that need to be done (toss in a load of laundry, load the dishwasher, tidy up, etc) and she stays for 2 hours until my DH gets home from work. Tonight she is bringing dinner as well as prepping a bunch of stuff to freeze that I can toss in the crockpot for dinners while I'm up getting water or going to the bathroom. GL!

ohhh.. great idea on having stuff preped for crock pot.  thank you!  and that's awesome about your mom.  too bad all of my family live many states away!