Friday scare: 2.3 cm cervix at 13 weeks...

superlowamh · January 2015

Hi All,

I haven't posted all that much on the board, but I was wondering if anybody had an experience with a shortened cervix so early in the second trimester. I am only 13 weeks 2 days and my cervix on Friday measure 2.3 cm... Everything was perfect with the baby, but this measurement freaked me out completely. I didn't have any complications of this sort with my daughter 2 years ago, and no additional procedures since she was born so I definitely didn't expect news like this.

I'll be seeing a high risk doctor on Tuesday. I hope they'll suggest cerclage but what if they say it's not a big deal?

If you have any experience with this, please share. I am so scared...

niknak1208 · January 2015

I lost at 20 weeks in 2011. We aren't sure if my cervix opened or what but we think it did. I did makena injections with my daughter in 2012 which was successful. I'm doing them now with this pregnancy too. They generally go from week 16-17 through week 37. Every week. I never had to do a cerclage because the injections kept it under control.

At minimum, I would make sure they are monitoring your length often!

A high risk doc should be able to give you some insight and suggestions.

Good luck to you! I hope everything ends up ok.

superlowamh · January 2015

Thank you so much, niknak1208. I am so sorry about your loss - I've heard about so many of those :-((. I will definitely ask about those injections, too. I am still terrified, but hopefully my Tuesday visit will help calm my fear...

Is your current pregnancy also considered high risk?

HouseofSept · January 2015

No experience here but just wanted say Good luck! I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers!

superlowamh · January 2015

Thank you, HouseofSept!!

Guennie · January 2015

I have no experience either but I've had my own scares so I can imagine how you must be feeling. Just want to send good vibes to you!

NeonNoon · January 2015

Good luck on Tuesday! Let us know how it goes.

superlowamh · January 2015

Thank you, NeonNeon, I will sure update.

And thank you, Guennie, I am rooting for you, too! I so hope our babies will get a sibling!

niknak1208 · January 2015

Good luck tomorrow!! I hope your appointment goes well!

Yes, technically I'm still considered high risk. My water broke in 2011 and it started as a trickle and then just full out broke. The frustrating part for me was that I had been to triage several times complaining that things didn't seem right and that I was having a funky discharge and they never did anything. They kept telling me that I had a 'sensitive cervix' or a 'broken blood vessel' etc. Eventually, they diagnosed me with vaginosis and put me on flagyl so at first I thought well maybe that's causing it but I still didn't feel right so I went back to triage. Nothing. never did an ultrasound. Didn't want to check me internally because they didn't want to 'irritate my cervix'. So we really aren't sure what happened. The head of maternal fetal medicine thinks that my cervix shortened and slightly opened and allowed my bag of water to slip through and break.

So fast forward to 2012- we had really no solid proof of what happened so I had heard about these injections from a friend of mine who went through a similar situation. My high risk doc agreed that it was a good idea. My daughter always checked out fine. My cervix never changed and I had a couple of bleeding scares but they went away and she was fine. We don't know for certain that the injections resolved the issue but we think so.

Because of that and because of my history of loss.. we're doing injections again this time.

So I would just make sure that they at minimum they are measuring your cervical length often!! I would ask them about doing a preventative cerclage and I would also ask them about injections and see what their thoughts are. I just know that if I could turn back time.. I would have MADE them check my cervix and I would have demanded a cerclage.

Good luck! I know it's really scary and hard not to worry.

superlowamh · January 2015

Thank you so much, Niknak1208!! You confirmed my intuitions.... and it feels good to have a plan for tomorrow... I am prepared to fight the doctors, and make sure that they don't dismiss my worries....

I almost lost my daughter in 2013 because of my doctor.... It was past my due date, and I had some mild contractions at night. In the morning, I started to bleed. Not too much, not a hemorrhage, but not spotting - read blood flowing out of me...

Went to the hospital, the doctor saw that I wasn't dilated, and told me to go back home.... I told him I wasn't going anywhere. After two hours, he said - okay, we can start the induction. Then I threatened him with a bad mental breakdown - I was going insane of fear anyway.

Poor mental state of the patient was why he agreed to do the c-section.... it turned out I had a partial placental abruption and the baby would most likely not survive the induction - the doctor admitted it himself...

So, yeah, this last Friday I forced them to do a sonogram for me. I lied - i told them that I was bleeding for 2 days - and it was really a feeling that I really need to be checked. But they listened :-)

niknak1208 · January 2015

Honestly, I am not opposed to fibbing to the doctor if it's getting you the reassurance that you need. I'm really not. I think in my case, triage just hears that so much that they literally wrote me off as another overly concerned pregnant woman. I was livid. It got worse when I was admitted too. It all happened at work of all places. My office was less than sensitive to me and I drove myself to my OB because that's where triage said to go. My water had trickled twice by the time I got there, my OB sees me, says yes there's pooling.. you need to go triage.. i think your water broke. Awesome. I get back in the car.. again by myself.. take myself to triage. By the time I get to the hospital I am literally soaking wet. I've called my mom.. she's on her way. I've called my hubby but he's home with our son and had to wait until his mom could come get our son. Sooo.. I'm alone.. I'm terrified and I'm livid that I had been to triage FOUR times without any resolution.

I end up inpatient of course. While I'm in triage.. the on call OB actually has the nerve to whisper to the RN.. 'she wants to 'save' her baby'. Like uses air quotes. Really??? I was so mad.

They put me in a room. Broken bag of water. I don't get an IV or see a doc for FIVE hours!! The whole time everyone's talking to me like I'm stupid. Like I don't understand what it means to have a broken bag of water at almost 20 weeks.

I even had the anesthesiologist come in to do an epidural because I still had horrible labor pains.. she comes in and says.. ohhh what are we having?? all excited. I could not believe it.

So needless to say.. I ended up writing a long long email to the cheif of OB at the hospital. This hospital is one of the best in the country. It's supposed to be the place to be if you have trauma and I was deeply disappointed in my care and I let him know it.

From that moment on... I will never take what a doctor say as the end all be all truth.. I will always be an advocate for my health and the health of my family.

It was kind of ironic that the on call OB was who she was because she actually used to be my OB but had never seen me because she was always booking so far out. I saw her midwife for a pap and breast exam and she found a lump in my breast. I get no follow up.. no opinion.. nothing.. and I emailed the OB and said basically what's up with this? and she refuses to even say anything except.. schedule a time to see me.. which was like months and months away. I said ahh.. no thanks. lol I went somewhere else.

I really hope all works out for you!! Never be afraid to push or ask whatever questions you think you need to ask. They're doctors but they aren't perfect!

superlowamh · January 2015

Doctors are seriously criminals, way too often. The way you've been treated, I think that someone should end up in jail for this, well, if a 20 week old 'fetus' was believed to be a baby, which it obviously conveniently isn't. This makes me so unbelievably angry!

Did you receive an answer from the hospital or did they ignore you?

What state/city are you in? Your story makes me think you're maybe in the UK. The most horrendous stories I've heard about horrible doctors come from there...

niknak1208 · January 2015

I'm in Michigan. The cheif of OB did email me back. He apologized and asked to send it to the head of high risk. The head of high risk then emailed me asking if he could share it with his team. I said well obviously yes.. I can't change my outcome.. it happened.. it's over.. but I would like for you to NOT treat another pregnant woman going through a loss the way that you treated me.

A few months later I had an appt. with my RE to do some testing to see if there was another reason why I may have lost that late. Never found anything. All testing was normal. But he did say that he was present when my email was discussed and that the entire OB department had to go to a meeting and talk about it.

And I'm not a dummy.. I know what a broken bag of water means at 20 weeks. But my point to them was that.. there were things you could have done in triage.. things you could have done BEFORE my water actually broke that were never done. There were things you could have thought more carefully about saying to me in that moment that you didn't think about. And I don't know if any of it would have changed my outcome.. but I'll never know because you didn't do it.

I always make sure that any doctor I have is listening to me, is familiar with my chart, and has a constant open line of communication. If remember telling my RE.. hey listen.. I'm a little high maintenance and I like a very open line of communication so if you're not cool with that.. this isn't going to be a successful relationship. lol (which was hard because he looked exactly like Matthew McCaughnahey!)

superlowamh · January 2015

Well, I do hope that your story maybe saved the baby of another woman, because they learned their lesson... But how heartbreaking...

I really think you could probably sue them, they sure as hell deserve it. Oh well...

Thank you for sharing your story with me, it really helps me prepare for tomorrow, I very much appreciate it!

sidey1 · January 2015

No personal experience but just wanted to say good luck. I think seeing the high risk Dr right away is the right move and hopefullly you'll get some more insight.

superlowamh · January 2015

Thank you Sidey!

niknak1208 · January 2015

You're welcome!! I hope things go well for you tomorrow!! keep us posted.

niknak1208 · January 2015

Thank You! I felt like I had to reach out to the hospital. Any loss is traumatic and a woman losing her child is going through enough that they don't need their healthcare providing adding to the problem. Especially by being idiots and just not being prepared when they enter a patient's room. On top of all of that, they also told me that our baby was a boy. I chose to hold 'him' and they brought him in blue blankets and a blue hat. They gave me his footprints on a blue note card and we named him Benjamin. 2 days later.. my OB calls to tell me they were wrong and that our baby was actually a little girl!!! It was like losing all over again. It was awful.

I just could not bare to have that happen to someone else. I had to speak up.

bashfulbird · January 2015

@SuperIowamh Rest well and good luck tomorrow, keeping fingers crossed for you and yours.

@niknak1208 I admire your courage. You are an inspiration.

superlowamh · January 2015

Thanks, everyone, for your kind words, and thoughts and prayers.

I'm back home.

They did a super detailed ultrasound which was awesome: I am so in love with that tiny baby...

And everything with the baby seemed perfect.

The cervix measured around 2.6 mm. So not worse, slightly better.

The doctor wasn't too concerned and said I seem to be borderline: we could do cerclage or not. She left the decision to me. I of course told her I want the cerclage.

She said once its there and successful she doesn't think I'd need anything else, and she doesn't think I need bedrest, maybe just take things easy. Not sure what exactly taking things easy means - I assume I shouldn't be lifting my heavy toddler even if the cerclage is successful, and so on. I am just happy that I work online - what a blessing that I turned down an on ground part time job...

So now I'm back in bed waiting for the phone call to schedule the procedure. I feel more at peace because the doctor seemed pretty confident, but I know I will still want to be overcautious. This is a miracle baby for me, and it's my last miracle baby. There will be no more, because I wouldn't be able to go through all the misery again with fertility treatments and fear...

Oh boy, I feel like a tractor run over me or something, totally exhausted... but relieved, too. The waiting was horrible.

Just worried about our other board members with scary circumstances...

NeonNoon · January 2015

Glad to hear you have a plan in place and things are looking good

superlowamh · January 2015

Thank you :-))

niknak1208 · January 2015

Great news!!! I'm so glad it went well today.

GASuzuki · January 2015

Good news! Thank you for the update!

ewenner · January 2015

So glad to hear everything went well! Thanks for the update.

KateLouise · January 2015

I'm so glad you've got a really positive sounding plan. Thanks for the update, I hope everything goes smoothly from here.

superlowamh · January 2015

Thank you so much, ladies!

superlowamh · January 2015

Back from my cerclage - I mean, I got back yesterday, but today I finally feel alive again.
It was much harder than I expected.

I mean, people at the hospital were super nice and it's always such a great experience, very uplifting, really.

The surgery itself was fine, too. (And the doctor said she is super happy with how it went.)

But very soon after, when the epidural started to wear off, the worst pain possible also started. It got to the point where it was as bad as labor pains. They gave me narcotics and those didn't help in the least. Eventually, and after quite a long time, they figured they should give me indocin to stop the contractions, and that finally helped.

I'm still in quite a bit of pain, but it's manageable.

The funny (or maybe not so funny) thing is that I just found out that my 46 year old sister who is 25 weeks pregnant back in my home country - was just put on bedrest because her cervix shortened to 2.4 cm! Same as mine! We are in the very same situation, except that she is further along. Too bad we can be on bed rest in the same room :-)

They told her she is too far along for a cerclage, and will give her a pessary. I don't know anything about it: I hope it's good enough to help...

niknak1208 · January 2015

I'm so glad it went well!! I hope you start feeling better soon. Did they bed rest you too?

superlowamh · January 2015

The doctor told me to do a pretty strict bedrest till my first check up which will be this Friday. And then we'll see how what cervix is behaving.

I still have lots of pains - but mainly related to my bladder. I am a bit concerned and hope it didn't get damaged...

niknak1208 · January 2015

Ooh I hope it didn't get damaged either. That's the last thing you need! I was kind of freakin about my cervix last week at my appt... because I was told they would be monitoring every 2 weeks but I had only been checked internally once over a month ago. So I asked at my last appt. and apparently the tech at my ultrasound scan did measure my cervix and it was still a 4.1! I was excited to hear that and excited to hear that they really were checking! It's just too close to the same time of my loss so I tend to get a little anxious until I hit 24-28 weeks.

I hope your appt goes well!

superlowamh · January 2015

Thanks, @niknak1208!

Wow 4.1 - what a super nice behaving cervix you got there, congratulations!!!! :-)

This is really awesome!

And I am glad to hear that they are checking it.

I don't think those internal exams are enough - you need regular sonograms to measure the length..

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