How poorly would a baby be born at 34 weeks?

[NatalieJane]

I do have reasons for asking this, but is it really too early, or is it just preferable to go a bit further?

I don't mind telling you (because I've told everything else about me!!!) even those three hours would make all the difference at the moment, I got an hour and half all in last night, makes a grand total of about 13 and a half hours since Thursday! It is worse than having a new born! And the amount of times I have had to really concentrate not to just break down in tears today is quite scary, I don't even want to think about how much worse it is going to be by tomorrow with another practically sleepless night.

i had my twins @ 34 wks.went in2 prem labour and had it stopped then it restarted.i was in hospital for bed rest due to the problems i already had with ds2(child 3)he was a prem baby with problems born @ 36 wks.having had 3 children previous to the twins i totally missed my show so you cant always relie on that..aemilia nearly five years on is still under the consultant of the neonatal unit.she was twin one weighing 3lb 14oz whilst her twin weighed 5lb 8. if you are in any doubt ring your local labour ward,they will moniter you if need be yo dont have to wait to see your midwife or consultant.dont take any risks best to be safe no matter how silly you may feel they would perfer it that way.good luck hope all goes well.

Yes, that is what the m/w today said, if the contractions come as regular again as last night, to not wait till tomorrow to see the consultant but to get to hospital a.s.a.p.

The one thing I don't understand, is she said if I ended up in the hospital tonight, she said they would use the same instrument they use in a smear test to open me up so they can visually look at my cervix to see if anything is happening. Do I have to agree to this? I really don't like the idea of it, surely it is just asking for an infection? And, when I was in having DS they put two belts around my bump that were linked to a machine (don't know the name of it) one measuring his heart rate, the other measuring the contractions, why can't they just do that again? Surely a normal internal would tell them all they need to know about my cervix?

yes i had that,it is like a smear test but in the case i had it with my ds2(3rd child)it was to see where the bleeding was coming from and if any placenta had come away.i had placenta previa with him along with seeing how soft the cervix was.it caused no problems with infection etc just rather embarressing has good looking guy done mine lol but that is a very small risk.i personally found the machines uncomfortable and you do have the right not to agree but i personally would urge you to do what is best for you and the baby.

Well yes, if it was what was best for the baby then I don't have a problem at all with it, it just seems an odd way of doing it, when I know there is other less invasive ways of doing it!

Only on MN could I be having this conversation with a perfect stranger!! LOL

lol its np sometimes better that way.i just hope you enjoy the rest of your pregnancy you can only take each day has it comes, and congrats on your orthcoming new arrival.any other advise needed dont hesitate to ask me,hoping my experience of being a mother of five comes in use.

Thanks, again I will let you all know when we know anything

DD was born at 29wks weighing less than 2lb 11oz after having two steriod injections and a few days on a ventilator after C Sect. She is now a beautiful healthy 11yr old with no probs at all, how lucky am I? I hope it all goes well for you NatalieJane, hold on as long as possible, even older ones than mine sometimes need help. Feeling excited for you, my baby days are sadly over

When I had ds2 I went in after 3 days of contractons only to be told "you are only 3cm etc" but she had to have a feel around with her fingers and that done something, by the time we got home the contractions were really strong and I was hallucinating (she also gave me dehydricodiene).

Sooo....we drove all the way back (this took in total around 35 mins) and by time I got to hospital it was time to push. No pain relief

Hopefully something will start soon. Or stop soon. not sure what I mean

Hi NJ, my friend gave birth at 33.5 wks with her 1st. Her waters broke at a meeting at work (!) and when she went to the hospital they monitored and found she was having reg. contractions (she couldn't feel them). They made her stay in and 2 days later hr DD was born - she was about 4lbs and fine. Some diffs. with jaundice and feeding, but nothing that couldn't be put right easily. She's now doing really well! Thinking of you - hope yu get some sleep tongith!!

Well I am still here, the contractions are just taking the piss, they are stronger than last night, bad enough that I can't speak through them, but they are very irregular, might have 20 minutes of nothing and then 2 in 5 minutes. I honestly don't think I can carry on like this for much longer, I can't sit on the sofa, I can't lie down on the bed, I can't walk, I can barely eat, I can't even give DS a proper hug FGS! The only place I can sit fairly comfortably is on one of my hard dining room chairs, but I can't try to bloody sleep on it! I am dreading another night of watching the clock tick and then carrying on the same tomorrow.

Can you all tell I have had enough now! If it wasn't so shitty it would be bloody hilarious!

About the monitoring:

A CTG (belts round waist thing) will only tell them about the contractions & babies heartbeat. It has its place but won't tell them anything that is going on with your cervix.

I assume that by 'normal internal' you mean the one they do when you are are in labour. They will only do this if they have good reason to believe you are in labour (trust me I begged for reassurance when I was threatening pre-term labour) because it involves touching the cervix (obviously). Touching the cervix - even with a gloved hand carries a risk of infection (Drs opinion) & a risk of disturbing hte cervix physically (my opinion).

A speculum exam (like a smear) truely is the best option. The instrument is truely sterile & doesn't actually reach the cervix so the risk of infection is lower.

HTH

How are you at the moment ?
I had ds1 at 32wks,I had the injections for the lungs. He weighed in at 4lb 6oz. He was fine with his breathing,just needed to grow a bit we were able to bring him home 3wks later so he would have been 35wks.

Thanks Pumpkin that does explain it all a bit better, I have 'spoken' to other MNer's who have had the smear type thing as well, as I expected realy, a bit undignified and a bit uncomfortable, and nothing to worry about infection wise. It just seems a bit weird to me, I had never heard of them using such an examination in any thing like this!

Heavenis, same thing still, contractions are strong enough to stop me talking through them, my legs go weak, and I feel sick with them, if one starts and I am sat down I want to stand up, and if one starts while I am stood up I want to sit down, but it doesn't matter because I can't sodding move so I have to stay as I am! And when I am sat on my hard chair, and one comes, I can really feel the pressure in my bum, sorry!

Poor you. Do you think you might have to go to hospital tonight or do you think you can hang on until tomorrow.

The midwife said to go if they became as regular as they were last night (3-4 minutes apart), but she didn't seem too bothered about the strength of them. They haven't been regular tonight so I guess I am waiting it out here again. Half of me wants to go to the hospital to find out what the bloody hell is going on, but the other half doesn't want to because the chances are it will just be nothing and I will come away feeling even worse!

This wont be what you want to hear,I had so many false alarms with ds i lost count and spent last 6 weeks of pregnancy propped up on sofa trying to get a nights sleep......well,to cut a long story short ds ended up being 10 days late and induced...and there i was thinking i was in labour at 28 weeks

I think you know your own body and when something doesn't feel right.(even in the smallest way) I would say that if you have any concerns go to the hospital,that is what they are there for.
Hope your nigh isn't to long and you get some rest.

OMG!! I don't know how I would get through it lasting that long!

No worries had 6 speculum exams over 2 pregs (ended up with prem labour at at 27wks for DTDs & threatned prem labour at 24wks with DD3) I think they were a bit fed up with by the last & cranked it open as wide as they could to teach me a lesson .

I am sorry to nag but I don't like the sound of the pressure in your bum. Keep an eye on that.

You must be shattered both emotionally & physically.

Thanks Heavenis.

Everyone has been really helpful on this thread, and various others I have been on since this fiasco started, I think I would have been going out of my mind by now without MN - or at least racking up a huge bill on my DH's credit card!!

I would rather go to hospital and be sent home than not go at all.

Pumpkin, I have lost count of the number of times I have had to really concentrate on not crying today! I am dreading the appointment with the consultant tomorrow, I know having to explain it all again is going to set me off, and after another night of no sleep added on to how I am feeling now, I doubt very much I will have much control over it!

A mum who I don't talk to very much at school came over and said the normal 'Can't be long for you now', I could hardly muster a smile before moving to the other side of the play ground, I expect she thought I right silly cow!

Have to say I agree with Heavenis.

I would suspect one of 2 things will happen - and I don't think either are soo bad.

1. You will stay in and have baby
2. They will send you home telling you there is no sign of labour - carry on as you are. You might actually relax if you know nothing is happening.

Get your coat & car keys. You know it makes sense .

Whats your gestation now. You must be nearly 35wks?