By Katrina Love, USA
PROM at 13 weeksDelivery at 33 weeks + 2 days.
Story added: 2000-04-23

I found out I was pregnant when I was about 8 weeks pregnant. At 12 weeks I began to bleed. I went to see the doctor and they put me on bed rest and told me that it could be a sign of miscarriage. 3 days later I stopped bleeding. I seen the doctor again and they told me that I could go back to work. The day I was suppose to go back to work, I started having cramps. So, they told me to stay out of work for a few more days. But, over the weekend, I was in bed and I felt a gush of fluid. I have a 10-year-old daughter and my water broke with her (full-term) so I knew what it felt like. I called my doctor and they asked me if I was sure that I did not pee on myself. I told them I was sure and they told me to come in on that Monday. I was 13 weeks.

When I went in I had an ultrasound and it determined that I had lost a lot of fluid. So, they put me back on bed rest, for a week and told me to come back. The next week, I went back in and they said that my fluid was still low. I was still leaking fluid. They proceeded to tell me all of the things that could go wrong and they pretty much sent me home to miscarry. I was sent back on bed rest and had appointments every week. About week 16 or 17 they decided to send me to a perinatologist. When I seen the peri they told me pretty much what the doctors had told me. But, they also said that the baby looked normal and they also told me all the things that could go wrong-that I could miscarry or get an infection and all kinds of other stuff. So, my husband and myself had a hard decision to make. Were we going to terminate the pregnancy like they told us we should or are we going to go all the way, no matter what effect that this may have on the baby or on us?

Well, we decided to go all the way. So, I was on bed rest for the duration of the pregnancy. I was put on antibiotics at about 16 weeks, but, the antibiotics made me sick and I had to stop taking them 4 days after I started. I was given no other antibiotics. I had been on bed rest since October 5th, 1999 and was looking to be on it until April 20, 2000-my due date. I took the test that would tell if the baby would have spina bifida or Down syndrome. The test came back with a high possibility for spina bifida. But, the peri said that the test was like that because of the ruptured membrane, but there was still a possibility. This was very scary.

I was told that since my rupture was so early that I would not be admitted into the hospital until 28 weeks. Because of all of the stress on the baby from the rupture my baby would die if born before then. And still could possibly die at full term because I had no measurable fluid from around week 16 until week 28. My body continued to make the fluid and it would leak out everyday!! The doctors talked about termination all the way up until Christmas. We still had the option of termination until New Years. We still did not want to do it as long as there was a heart beat. We knew that God was sustaining us and we had to listen to our hearts and keep in prayer no matter what the outcome.

I was put into the hospital at 28 week. When I had that ultrasound before being admitted, I had 8 cm of fluid-the most I ever had after rupture. My husband and myself were so happy. But, 8 cm is still really low. It stayed at 8 cm for 3 weeks and then went back down. When I was admitted into the hospital, I had 1 series of steroids. I had the next series at 32 weeks. Also, the day I was admitted into the hospital, all of the movement and everything caused me to have some irregular contractions and I had to have a brethine shot to stop the contractions. The brethine shot worked. I got blood work done about 3 times during my stay in the hospital. I was in the hospital for 6 weeks. I had the gestational diabetes test and the Group B Strep, and had my white blood cells checked to make sure I had no infections. The whole time I was on bed rest for the 22 weeks (6 being in the hospital) I took my temperature 2 times a day and the nurses checked about 4 times a day and I was on the monitor while in the hospital 2 times a day for 1 hour.

The week after I was admitted into the hospital, I got the flu. I had not been sick the whole time I was at home. Then I go to the hospital and get sick. Who would have thought!!! My temp went sky high! The nurses were freaking out because they thought that I had an infection. But, I assured them that I had the flu and I believe that I caught it from one of the doctors! They checked my blood and it was fine. I was sick for 2 weeks it made being in the hospital even worse.

I also have a 10-year-old daughter (Full term baby). She had to go stay with her grandparents while I was in the hospital so that I would not be stressed from worrying about her. I missed her a lot!

The day I was 32.6 weeks I collected some amnion for the doctors so they could check to see if my baby's lungs were developed from the shots. I could not get an amniocentesis because I did not have enough fluid at any given time to collect. So, I had to collect it like I was giving a urine sample. The next day (33 weeks) the tests came back that the baby's lungs were not matured. That scared me a little. But, I thought if I can last this long… maybe I will last till full term and that may make a difference.

But…2 days later, (33.2 weeks), I woke up at around 2 o'clock in the morning and I was having bad back labor. I was not sure what to do. So, tried to go to sleep. But, it got worse. So, at around 5 am I called the nurse and told her. She put me on the monitor but the contractions were not showing. I assured her that I was having back labor. She called the doctor and the doctor came to see me. She brought the ultrasound machine with her and gave me an exam. She saw that the baby was okay, and was still in a breech position. Because the baby was in a breech position and the low fluid-we did not know if we were having a girl or a boy. She also gave me a vaginal exam-the first one that I had had since I ruptured. She said I was not dilated and that was good, since I was having a c-section, if I was in labor they needed me not to dilate so there would be no other complications. After repositioning the monitor about 25 times, they finally could measure the contractions. They were coming every 6 minutes and they gave me brethine again and that did not stop the contractions. So, I was taken to get a c-section --about 1 hour after they actually could see the contractions on the monitor.

When I was getting the c-section I could do nothing but, pray and talk to my Lord. When they took the baby out my doctor says, "it's a girl" the next thing I hear is her crying. The doctor says " she's got a nice set of lungs on her… she is breathing on her own." After they evaluated her they brought her to the head of the table and let me see her and kiss her. Then they took her to the NICU. After, about 45 minutes the Neonatologist that was there for delivery came and talked to us. He said that our daughter was a little miracle and that she was breathing on her own. She had no deformities, NO spina bifida! She was breathing a little fast right at birth, but that quickly stopped. They had to give her an IV (sugar water) so they could regulate her blood sugar (Because almost all preemies cannot regulate their blood sugar level) After a 6 to 12 hour period she was able to do it on her own. She also needed the IV for vitamins. After being, in the NICU for a couple of days for observation she got put in a step down NICU. She stayed in the hospital for 3 weeks-she needed to drink from her bottles before she could come home. She did not have the suck swallow and breathe down yet. She would drink a little and get really tired. So she was in the NICU so she could eat. When she was born she weighed 4pds 4 ozs. A week after she came home she weighed 6 pds! Now she's almost 7 pds. It's only been 3 weeks since she has been home. Although a little small, she is like a full term baby. Ready to eat every 2 ½ to 3 hours. She is our special little gift from God.

Just think! What if we would have terminated when they told us that we would possibly miscarry?! We have our sweet baby girl home with us…

Kassia Kindle Love is her name!
Her name means "The scent of the anointing of God fires up/stirs up LOVE." I would do it all over again… even the almost 6 months of bed rest! Thank you LORD…you are the great…



I AM!

Katrina Love --29 years old
Bed rest @ 12 weeks (Due to bleeding for 3 days)
22 weeks of bed rest
PROM @ 13 weeks
Ruptured/leaking and low fluid from week 13 till Delivery
Delivered a healthy daughter --Kassia Kindle at 33.2 weeks...
(Weighed 4pds 4 ozs)
Now weighs 6 pds and no problems or complications also, mother to daughter
--Keiana Latasha/10 yrs old (PTL but, was born fullterm)