I found out that I was pregnant on
October 17, 2001. My husband and I
were so excited as this was our first
pregnancy and we conceived very
quickly. Our due date was June 24,
2002, which is also our 7th
anniversary--we were thrilled! The
first 12 weeks were great. I had very
few pregnancy symtpoms. We first
heard the heartbeat and had our first
ultrasound at 10 weeks. Since I had
very few pregnancy symptoms, I was
thrilled to be able to hear the
heartbeat and to see the baby for the
first time. The doctor said that once
you hear the heartbeat you have a less
than 5% chance of a miscarriage so I
thought that everything would continue
to be perfect.
At 12.5 weeks I began to bleed. An
ultrasound revealed that the baby was
fine and an exam revealed that I was
not dilated and the bleeding was not
coming from my cervix. I was put on
bedrest for a threatened miscarriage
and I was scheduled for weekly
appointments with my doctor. I
continued to bleed, but the weekly
ultrasounds and dopplers indicated
that the baby was fine.
At 15 weeks, I woke up in the middle
of the night soaked in blood. I had
been bleeding everyday since the
bleeding started, but this was by far
the worst. A trip to the ER again
confirmed that the baby was fine and
that I was not miscarrying at that
time, but was told that a miscarriage
could be imminent. It was then that
my doctor referred me to a high risk
specialist since I was still bleeding
and my doctor could not detect
anything on his U/S. The U/S at the
Maternal Fetal Medicine center did
reveal a fairly large blood clot at
the top of the placenta, and so I was
diagnosed with a placental abruption.
Strict bedrest was the order. Even
though some abruptions do respond very
well to bedrest, they could not tell
me if mine would. It was at this
appointment that we found out we were
having and a girl, and we were
thrilled!
At 17 weeks, I began to hemorrhage.
Again, I was bleeding heavily all
along, but this was another very bad
episode. It was a Saturday afternoon
and this time the blood was gushing.
We called the doctor, but also called
911 because the bleeding was so bad.
Another trip to the ER once again
confirmed that the baby was fine, that
I was not dilated and that the
bleeding was not coming from my
cervix. The bleeding was very bad,
but the doctor said that it was
consistent with a placental
abruption. I was again sent on my way
but was told to remain on strict
bedrest which I did.
The bleeding continued for the next
two weeks. At the end of my 19th
week, the bleeding miraculously
stopped, so I thought. For two days,
I did not have any bleeding. For the
first time in seven weeks I was
beginning to become hopeful. Even
though I did not have any bleeding for
those two days, with the absence of
blood I noticed a vaginal discharge
that I wasn't sure was normal and I
had external vaginal swelling. I
suspected an infection and I reported
these syptoms to my doctor at my
weekly appointment, but he did not
examine me. I was told not to worry
about it, but if the symptoms did not
clear up in a few days I should come
back in. He also neglected to do an
U/S, and opted for the doppler device
instead. The baby's heartbeat was
very strong, and I was told that as
long as we heard the heartbeat that is
all that mattered.
I woke up two days later to discover
that the bleeding returned. I was
devastated because I was hoping that
things would be getting better. This
time the bleeding was very bad again
and I was sick! I was also having
contractions. We called the doctor
and they told us to come in right
away. My regular doctor was off that
day, so I was seen by the other doctor
in the practice. This time the U/S
was not good. I was told that there
was no amniotic fluid and an exam
further revealed that my membranes had
ruptured. I did not even notice
because I was bleeding so badly, and
because I was sick things were worse.
I was referred back to the high risk
specialist who also confirmed that
there was no amniotic fluid and
because of my symptoms infection was
very likely and there were no options
except to deliver the baby. I was
immediately
admitted to L&D and my daughter,
Madison Leigh, was born still on
January 31, 2002 at 1:38AM. She was
absolutely beautiful and so very
perfect! We were devastated.
Examination of the placenta revealed
chorioamnionitis and a placental
abruption. I was told that blood
clots had developed between the
placenta and the uterus causing the
placenta to separate prematurely and
that the prolonged bleeding most
likely weakened the membranes causing
them to rupture. They are not sure
whether the chorioamnionitis occurred
after my membranes ruptured or if a
had an infection beforehand (which I
suspected but my doctor ingored) that
could have also contributed to my
PPROM.
I am still in the early stages of my
grief, and I am finding all of this so
hard to believe. We were already so
in love with our daughter. She has
impacted our lives in a way that no
one else could have. She has brought
me and my husband so much closer
together, and she has shown us a love
that we never knew existed! To think
that God loves her even more is
unimaginable, but we know that He does
and we know that she is with Him now.
I know that I will see my daughter
again one day, and oh how I look
forward to that day! If anyone would
like to talk or share their story,
please feel free to email me.
Fran
Mommy to ^i^ Madison Leigh 1-31-02
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