At 21 weeks I had some spotting (after
moving furniture). We went to hospital
and they discovered I was partially
dilated (1-2cms), so I was in hospital
for a week to ensure I had complete
bedrest and did not keep dilating. They
thought I may have had an incompetent
cervix, but ultrasounds revealed all the
be ok. It was explained away as just
"one of those things" and I was told
to take life a little slower and easier,
with lots of rest and no heavy physical
work. Scans taken during my stay at 21
weeks had revealed more amniotic fluid
than "normal" but it was nothing to
worry about.At 28 weeks I started to
just balloon - my fundal height was 30cm
and they decided to watch me a little
closely to check I didn't do anything
dramatic. I had an ultrasound which
showed I had too much amniotic fluid and
that the baby was big, so we were warned
that I was at risk of premature labour.
At 30 weeks I was back in hospital with
more spotting. The ECG monitors also
revealed that I was having contractions
every 2-3mins! I had such severe
ligament pain because I was so big that
I had just thought the pains were part
of that. I was on IV ventalin for 24
hours which didn't completely stop the
contractions, so I also had a muscle
relaxant suppository (mm I know, lots of
fun) which seemed to do the trick. I was
back in hospital at 31 weeks again with
threatened prem labour - this time I was
just put into ante natal and monitored -
the contractions did stop on their own
accord. The 30 week incident was a
complete shock, the 31 week incident
happenned in extremely hot weather and
my husband had disclocated his knee at
work so we were driving around taking
him to doctors, ultrasounds and xrays.
By the time I got to the labour ward I
was so dehydrated it was off the scale
and incredibly stressed about my husband
and that I hadn't felt the baby move
since the day before. I was also at the
stage where I couldn't do ANYTHING
without triggering contractions - and
regardless of what I did during the day
I always had a run of contractions at
night for anywhere between 1-3 hours.
By this stage my fundal height was
44cms and it was off to the fetal health
ultrasound specialist. I was officially
diagnosed with polyhydramnios and told
that if I got to 35 weeks it would be a
miracle. We were told of the options (an
amnio to drain off some of the fluid was
the main one), told to go home and do
nothing (again) and to review me in 2
weeks. In the meantime I had the
complete test for gestational diabetes
which came back clear - so it was all
explained away as I was having a big
baby. We were told it could have
occurred because of a genetic defect in
the baby but that that would be "highly
unlikely". My 34 week scan showed all
to have "settled down" so, while I
could still handle being so huge (and
therefore so uncomfortable) we would let
me go. We were reminded that if I got to
35 weeks it would be amazing. Three days
later my membranes ruptured. I was soooo
glad I was at home - there was so much
fluid it literally poured out of me
continuously for 5 minutes - I FLOODED
our bathroom! Anyway, labour never
really established itself and it was
down to the ante natal ward for me (I
almost had my own bed!).
Five days later, labour well and
truly started and 3hours and 47minutes
later Oscar James was in the world. He
had bilateral choanal atresia which
meant both of his nasal passages were
completely blocked, a very low
birthweight which was attributed to the
nose problem and the fact that he also
has a chromosone abnormality. He had a
partial trisomy on chromosone 4 -
apparently this is very rare. Areas it
affects are Cranio facial (his nose),
cardio (he has a heart anomaly but it
does not affect how it performs),
kidneys (his kidneys are small - 10th
percentile - but they function properly,
physical size and intellect. The last
two will obviously just reveal
themselves overtime as to whether they
have been affected at all. I classify
ourselves as very lucky as he could have
had a major heart defect, no kidneys or
something much more severe than blocked
nasal passages. As it was, his nasal
passages were just blocked by membrane,
not bone. After 6 weeks in hospital and
3 operations our Oscar is home. He is
breastfeeding (I much prefer him to an
electric pump!) and growing big and
strong. It still amazes me how this time
has been so joyous while also being
incredibly heartbreaking and traumatic.
We all just dream of having the perfect
child, taking them home a few days after
they're born and living the dream of
domestic bliss. We were so utterly
devastated when we were told about his
chromosone abnormality - I mean his nose
could be fixed, this was in every cell
in his body. He was so perfect to us, so
innocent, it just seemed incredibly
unfair.
But you know, he is perfect, he has
filled our lives with such laughter and
tears we can't imagine how we lived
without him. I think we are only dealt
what we can bear and while at the time
we feel we can't keep going, we have an
inner strength which differentiates us
from those with full termers. Oscar is
home now, and as we take each day at a
time, I thank God for this amazing gift
he has given us.
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