By Sarah, Middlemount, QLD Australia
PROM at 32 weeks + 2 days. Delivery at 32 weeks + 4 days.
Story added: 2007-01-02

this was my 4th pregnancy, and so far my worst! from the very beginning i had been sick, tired (doesnt help being pg 3 months after birth of last baby) and just didnt feel right!
by the time i hit the half way mark i had had enough and had a feeling this kid was gonna come earlier than his borhter (and he was a 38 weeker) i actually thought i wouldnt make it to december - Christmas Day being his due date (and his brothers birthday being the 15th) so i told my self to be ready by the end of november!

well did things take a turn! at 29 weeks we attended a friends wedding at which i lost a bit of my plug! i didnt think to much of it and had put my off feelings down to just another bout of being sick and tired! well the monday following, i had my best frind visiting (thankfully) and i was sick, i had a fever and by 10am that morning was having contractions (dont ask my why, but i kept it to my self till dh got home and by then they both picked up on something not being right and away we went to the hospital - who figured out i was dehydrated and had an infection - i believe kidney was the conclusion! and so after threats of being sent to another hospital (better equipted for preemie this young) my contractions stopped and i wasnt dilating!! and after a few more days in fluids and antibotics, i was free to go home, but was to return 2 weeks later for scans and appointment with high risk doc!

those 2 weeks came and went, did the doc thing, went home and bam at 32 weeks 2 days ( the 1st of November!) my water broke, thankfully while the other 2 kids were having there naps! and so back off to the hospital we trek, awaiting contractions (which started naturally last time round!) 2 days later after 30+ hours of induction failed, i was wheeled in for an emergency c-sect, and out came little hayden, not breathing of course! so he was rushed off with dad in tow. (we were told 4 weeks min stay in nicu)

by the time i got to see bubs he was already off cpap (spent about 5 hours on there) and was in a incubator on normal air!, the only issues we have had were jaundice, and were told once he could suck feed and was gaining weight he could go home, and on day 3 he had his first breast feed (thanks to a very nice nurse that hid us! shhhhhh! and after a few days under the uv lights i was feeding him every 6 hours, then 3 during the day and then finally the day came and i was told to come back and room i with him, ( he was 9 days old!, by 11 days we had our discharge doc checkup and were told sorry not going home today, hes a bit yellow!, so back he went to the nicu under the lights, and then on day 12 we finally left the hospital - with a biliblanket! (horrid thing) but that was only needed for a day before his levels had droped to normal limits.

and now he is 8 weeks old, (1 week adjusted) and i swear is never gonna grow up!