Here we go again

Ever since last Thursday, I've been writing down my contractions to sort of keep track of how often I'm having them and make sure they don't increase in frequency. In general, I was having somewhere between 3-5 per hour (that I noticed).

Yesterday at work I noticed that I was having more than usual. After lunch, I started writing them down and, sure enough, I had 9 in the next hour. Hmmmmm..... So, I thought it was probably a good idea to call my OB's office and see what she said. I had been drinking tons of water and getting plenty of sleep, so I knew that was not the issue.

When I talked to nurse, she said that my doctor wanted me to go back over the Hoag to be monitored again. So, off I went. Again.

I arrived at the hospital at about 4:30 and was quickly hooked up to fetal monitors. One monitor tracks the baby's heart beat and the other tracks my contractions. After about 45 minutes or so, the nurse said "So, how many contractions did you say you were feeling an hour?" I told her about 8 or 9 that afternoon. She said "Well, you are actually having a contraction every 2 minutes, so about 30 an hour." Holy smokes.

The contractions were mostly small contractions, which is why I didn't really even notice most of them, with a few big ones mixed in (the ones I was feeling). After watching the monitor, I started to notice what the small ones felt like too.

Next the nurse gave me an injection of Terbutaline, which is a drug used to prevent or delay premature labor. She warned me that it would cause my heart to beat faster. About 10 minutes later, my heart was racing and my hands were shaking, but my contractions had completely stopped. I felt like I had just downed about 5 red bulls.

They continued to monitor me and they also had me go for another quick ultrasound to check my cervix, which, thankfully, was not dilated or effaced. A very good thing.

I was still having some contractions on the monitor about an hour after my injection, so the nurse gave me one more, which caused my heart to race all over again. Jay said I was acting extremely hyper. After the second injection, I had to stay in bed being monitored for another hour. They brought me dinner (a dry turkey sandwich on wheat - something most people would hate but I actually liked) with some grapes and fruit juice. We hung out for an hour, after which the doctors and nurses were satisfied that I was no longer having contractions and I was discharged.

I was given a prescription for Procardia, another drug prescribed to stop contractions and premature labor. I am supposed to start taking it if I start feeling contractions again. So far, I haven't felt any.

I was also told not to go to work today or Monday and to get an appointment with my OB as soon as possible to discuss what sort of work privileges I would have for the next 3 weeks. The doctors are really only concerned with preventing premature labor until I reach 35 weeks. After that, if I start having real contractions they will not stop them, so going back to work might be allowed without restriction. I guess the next 3 weeks are just critical to get through.

Update: I got an appointment today at my OB's office at 2:45. I'll update on what she says after that.