Bed rest - day 1

If you had told me yesterday morning that today I would be limited to just getting up to use the bathroom, I wouldn't have believed you. But 24 hours ago, my next three weeks took an abrupt change.

Yesterday began like any other day. I woke up and went for a swim at the YMCA and then began my work day. My back was sore, but I had gone for a long walk on Tuesday and my desk chair has not been feeling super comfy so that was easily explained. What I couldn't explain was the cramping that I started to feel around 3:30 in the afternoon, which wasn't seeming to go away, so I called my doctor's office and they recommended I go in and get checked to make sure I wasn't experiencing preterm labor. This scared me, but I really just assumed we were being over cautious, and hey, better safe than sorry!

So I called my husband who was on the road for work, but en route home at least, and left him a voicemail that I was going into the hospital to get checked out. I was annoyed that his phone had gone straight to voicemail and planned to have a talk with him about how he couldn't let his battery die anymore since we were getting kind of close to being parents ... but then he called me back when I was in the waiting room at the Glens Falls Snuggery and let me know it was just a fluke and his phone never rang. Another reason to get rid of the Palm Treo. It doesn't always ring, freezes, it doesn't always sync, in general, it sucks. But I digress ...

The nurse came and got me from the waiting room and brought me to a room where I had to change into a gurney (so stylish) and pee in a cup. I did as I was told and then waited to be examined by the midwife on duty. When she came in, I immediately felt relieved because it was my favorite midwife from the practice. She's kind, but not too bubbly; honest and to the point, but with a great bedside manner. During her exam, she looked at me and said, "well, I'm very glad you came in to get checked out because you're 2 cm dilated." Ok, not so relieved anymore.

At less than 36 weeks (I'll be 33 weeks tomorrow), I should definitely not be dilated because that baby shouldn't be anywhere close to thinking about making its entry into the world. She explained that our number one priority now is for me to stay pregnant for at least another three weeks, so I would likely have to be on bedrest. How restrictive that would be would depend on the doctor's ruling and that we needed to wait for. So while we waited, they monitored me for contractions, which I was having (hence the cramping), and I was told to drink a ton of water and chill with terrible television. In the meantime, my husband arrived - thank God! - and we watched the news and waited to see how bad my jail sentence would be. I was still pretty freaked out at this point because our 7 weekends left was likely going to be less, and that to-do list I wanted to accomplish? Well, I was probably not going to be allowed to touch it. So not only will we be parents sooner than expected most likely, but I wouldn't be allowed to nest to help prepare for that ... to me, that felt like a HUGE yikes.

After chilling at the hospital for almost 2 hours, my contractions pretty much went away and I received my sentence. Level 3 bedrest (Level 4 is staying in the hospital) so no driving, no cooking, no cleaning, no shopping, no more than doing one level of stairs per day (one up and one down), and basically don't get up unless I have to use the bathroom. Rationally, I'm fine with all of this because all I want is a healthy baby. And it's only three weeks because that's how long we have until I'm 36 weeks. Irrationally, being told I can't nest definitely freaks me out, and in general, I'm just really terrible at relying on others to take care of me or my to-do list. It bugs me and I'm bad at doing nothing. But, obviously I will.

So why did this happen? Who knows. Sometimes it just does, and in my case, they have no idea why. Maybe having a super active weekend contributed to it? Maybe taking a long walk on Tuesday did? But who knows ... the fact is, it did happen and now we have a new plan to ensure that the little one comes out when it's ready to live in this world. And it's totally possible, although I don't believe probable, that I go full term too, or maybe even late! So I could be 41 weeks pregnant and cursing the heat and humidity on July 24 that I'm still pregnant. Or we could have a baby in just over 3 weeks ... only time will tell!

In the meantime, I am constantly reminded of how awesome my husband is. After the hospital last night, he went to the grocery store with a list and came home with all of those things and a huge bouquet of flowers :-) And then today he's been an absolute gem. Getting me breakfast in bed, setting me up on the couch with lots of snacks, drinks, etc all within arms reach, coming home to get me lunch ... and I know the list will just get longer and longer. He is a rockstar and will be a GREAT dad.