30 weeks - worried that they might arrive early...

[FestiveDigestive]

Hiya everyone,

I am almost 30 weeks with dcda twins. I felt one of the heads go down on Sunday (to the extent that it feels like it's going to fall out & I am waddling when I walk!). I started having sharp pains around my cervix and bum that day.

I then started having more uncomfortable braxton hicks that evening but they stopped after a few hours, then came back in the night. This has carried on for a few nights, sometimes getting to every 15 minutes for an hour or so. Every time I start thinking I might need to call somemne, it stops!

On Thursday morning I woke up with a tiny amount in spotting mixed in with discharge. I phoned the midwife (hoping she would tell me not to worry & to stay at home!) but she sent me over to be checked, which I suppose is understandable. I was admitted for 24 hours. The monitor picked up a couple of the 'contractions' I was feeling but the Drs are quite happy that they are braxton hicks and are not worried.

My cervix is closed which is more good news. The consultant found that twin 1 has got it's head fully down which explains the pressure & decided to give me steroids just in case they do turn up in the next few weeks - although she stressed that there is no way of predicting whether this will happen or not! She also said that the head being engaged is not a prediction of labour on it's own. They couldn't do an FFN because of spotting.

So, I am at home with instructions to take things easy this weekend & am going back for another steroid injection today.

I know that no-one else can predict when they will arrive & I keep reminding myself that I could easily get to 37 weeks. The head feels SO low though, I don't know I'd this is normal for twins. My DS didn't engage until 40 weeks (and when he did, my waters went immediately!) and I don't think DD did at all (elective section) so I don't have anything to compare the feeling to.

Does anyone have a story to share with me please? The Dr said that babies born after 30 weeks generally do very well & that the steroids will make a really big difference if they come in the next couple of weeks. I am so scared at the idea of what it would be like to have babies in special care. I know it sounds pathetic (especially since so many people on these boards have been through it & at earlier gestation as well) but I just keep thinking that I wouldn't cope with being separated from my babies and that it is just the one thing I couldn't do.

[TwelveLeggedWalk]

Aww, just seen this. Love love LOVE the names! Completely awesome, they will be destined for great things!

[harrygracejessica]

Ahhh congratulations, with my boys I had one with me and one in scbu and found that harder to deal with than our girls who were 7 weeks early and both in scbu.

Hope you get them home soon :-)

[TwelveLeggedWalk]

Oh congratulations Festive, 36 weeks is just fantastic, and lovely weights too.

My boy was on CPAP & ventilator for a while and he is now a 15 month whirlwind. Seriously - we went to stay with some friends whose baby is older, taller, and more mobile and they had to up the childproofing because DS is so active and into everything!

Good luck with the expressing, it is hard but so worth it. Don't be demoralised by the tiny amounts you get to start with, it will suddenly pick up. I had EMCS under GA as well and actually took Domperidone after a few weeks to bolster my supply, so there are options there, but if you've tried a little bf with your DD already you'll likely do just fine without it!

[mrsdaisaku]

Congratulations Festive, well done on getting to 36 weeks, exactly the same as myself and well done on getting through the birth. Now you can enjoy your little bundles.

Great weights :) What have you called them? Please keep us updated on how your little blue bundle gets on, it must be awful to not be able to be with him.

[gardenpixies32]

Congratulations Festive, Lovely news! I am so excited for you!

You did well to get to 36 weeks and lovely weights.

Look after yourself and you will soon be with both your lovely little pink & blue bundles :)

[FestiveDigestive]

Well, I made it to exactly 36 weeks! My waters broke yesterday afternoon & I started having back to back contractions that were horrendous, so I dilated to 6cm in 2 hours... I had to be put to sleep for an emergency section, it was all pretty scary

We've got a boy (6lb 2oz) & a girl (5lb 3oz), no names as yet. My little girl is with me & has even managed a little feed but I haven't seen my boy yet . He is in neo-natal having CPAP (I don't even really know what that is) & my husband stayed with him all night. He might be on a ventilator now, I'm waiting to hear what's happening. I managed to express a tiny bit & that's been taken to him (he has only had sugary water so far though) and we are waiting for blood results because apparently he is very lethargic. I feel so guilty that I haven't seen him yet & am hoping to get up there later this morning.

[gardenpixies32]

Do come and join us on the under one thread...

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/multiple_births/1538378-The-under-over-around-1-Twins-thread-for-support-tips-on-how-to-survive-and-enjoy-twin-parenthood

Our ladies are 12 weeks apart.

[gardenpixies32]

Ah how lovely Mrsdaisaku. I love twin birth news. Lovely names and lovely weights. Huge congratulations. It is such a special thing :)

[FestiveDigestive]

Gorgeous names for your girls! - they sound perfect together as well.

[mrsdaisaku]

gardenpixies Thankyou, I named them Poppy Ann and Violet Faye, they really are beautiful and can definitely see what people mean by we are blessed to be twin Mummies :)

festive Again thank you, feeling great, painful tummy for the first few days, but you soon bounce back (probably helps that I didn't need any surgery etc). Violet weighed 6lbs and Poppy weighed 4lbs 14oz :) So great weights. Definitely glad to be holding them instead of waddling around with the big bump. I hope your wait isn't too much longer...

[FestiveDigestive]

Hi gardenpixies - I am back at home now - no more bleeding thankfully so just waiting now and hoping I will be at home to eat Christmas dinner! After that I don't mind

MrsDaisaku - Congratulations!!! That's amazing news. I'm happy you had such a straightforward birth. How are you feeling now? What did your girls weigh?

I can't wait for it to my turn now so I can actually meet my babies after all this time, having two babies to snuggle must be so much nicer than waddling around with a big bump!mm

[gardenpixies32]

Wow mrsdaisaku congratulations! Such lovely news and well done you on the excellent birth!

What did you name the ladies?

[mrsdaisaku]

Festive Good luck, you posted on my thread about being fed up with twin pregnancy. Definitely 'sounds' like things are imminent for you, how exciting. I hope everything goes really smoothly for you and the babies arrive happy and healthy without needing any extra care,

I also went into hospital last friday as I was leaking pinky fluid... they kept me in for observation and I had my darling twin girls sunday morning at 36 + 5. Straight forward natural birth with no pain killers and labour lasted 2hrs 46mins in total, a breeze compared to the actual pregnancy. I hope this gives you some reassurance. Thinking of you...

[gardenpixies32]

Thanks for the update festive. It is very exciting that you might meet your babies soon! Fingers crossed that you can keep them baking for a few more days.

Let us know how things progress. I love twin birth news!

[FestiveDigestive]

Hi All!

I am now 33+6 and still going, I'm happy to have made it to here. I'm back in hospital again (my second home now ). I came in on Friday with regular contractions that were more painful. I had an internal that showed the my cervix had thinned out & opened to one cm (the week before it had been long and closed). They sent me home with painkillers.

Yesterday I started bleeding a bit with period type cramps - I assumed the internal had disturbed things a bit & decided to stay at home. In the evening though it carried on and filled a pad with some red blood as well as old blood - so we headed back over to hospital again. Monitoring shows the babies are happy which is the main thing. The Dr didn't want to examine me again so I've stayed in just in case things progress - as they still don't have neo-natal cots available & will need to move me if the babies are definitely coming.

I'm spent the night roaming about in the hospital, with a bit more bleeding and then (sorry for tmi here!) big lumps of green mucusy/bloody mucus. I haven't had one but from what I've read I'm assuming this is what people call "a show". Contractions/braxton hicks still coming and going with lots of pressure...Sometimes painful & sometimes not at all. I haven't got a clue if this all means they are going to arrive soon or not.

I can't help feeling a bit frustrated with the hospital as they always say: "Come straight in if you bleed" so I've come in but the Dr didn't even bother looking at the pads I'd had in & he also said to me that, in obstretrics, only a "crystal ball" could predict if labour is imminent sometimes. Not really what I want to hear!

Anyway, moan over. I hope you & your babies are all well and you are looking forward to Christmas.

[gardenpixies32]

Glad to hear all is well festive. Keep resting and grow your babies.

Twelve has given you some good advice and has much more experience than me!

My dts stayed in the SCBU for 13 days. 3 days in the NICU and 5 days in the SCBU nursery. My hospital has a neo natal transitional ward for mother with prem babies. If you need to establish feeding you stay there with them until they are feeding, whether FF or BF. I was trying to establish BF with them so stayed on that ward for another 5 days. In the SCBU they needed a feeding tube and help with maintaining their temperatures. There were much smaller babies who needed lots of help so I felt very thankful that mine were such a good size.

Enjoy the rest of your pregnancy :)

[TwelveLeggedWalk]

Hey Festive
Lovely to hear from you, glad all is going well.
I think being well prepared for an early delivery would be such a help - we did EVERYTHING wrong: DH was abroad, we'd just started what was supposed to be a 6 week major building project on the house, I had my final biggest and most stressful contract of the year to finish... We had literally got NOTHING ready for the babies, hadn't written a birth plan, and had only been to one one-day antenatal course. So they arrived, and we spent 7 weeks not only with the stress of them being in hospital but also in complete chaos!! Looking back I don't know how we got through it, (and our two ended up split up for a week with one 2 hours away... but I won't dwell on that right now!) but it seriously didn't have to be that bad.
If you are at home with your feet up you can do loads of reading on here about breast feeding, co-sleeping, etc. The La Leche book will be useful no matter what kind of bf you do - I never got to exclusive breastfeeding but mixed fed for over 6 months, you might surprise yourself!
Order any bits and pieces you still need (John Lewis were my saviours for things like moses baskets, car seats etc). Get online supermarket shopping set up for deliveries of ready meals etc Oh, and send your DH to the bank with a few notes and get a big stack of change for parking meters!
The one thing I did do beforehand that I found useful was request the hospital protocols on C-Section and multiple deliveries - I phoned the Midwife Supervisor and she sent it out straight away. It might be something you've already gone over with your consultant but I felt better-informed for having read it.
Fire any more questions you have at us - and then come and join the 'under/over/around one twins' thread in about 8 weeks time when you finally have them!

[FestiveDigestive]

Hi thereistheball - I do remember your babies arriving, I can't believe it was that long ago now as it seems much more recent! I'm glad you have got your boys safely home now, that must be such a relief. I will look at your thread you linked to, thanks.

Mandy, thank you for telling me about your twins. 27 weeks sounds so early to me now, it's amazing to hear that they only had to stay in for 8 weeks. It must have been horrible to be moved to a different hospital. That's one of my fears now as the hospitals mentioned to me recently are 1.5 or 3 hrs away.

Twelve legged - Thank you - I am 30 +3 today, the same as you were when your twins arrived! I am going to order the La Leche book now, hopefully it will be helpful even if I do make it to 37, I would love to breastfeed them both but am not too optimistic about it working out so maybe it would be good to look at the book now.

GardenPixies - I remember when yours arrived too! Your babies sound like good weights, do you mind if I ask why they had to stay in? I was thinking that if I get to 34 weeks then I should be allowed I bring them straight home with me but I should probably not expect that then..

I saw my consultant yesterday and told her that I am still getting strong Braxton Hicks all the time (I had to stop twice just walking down the corridor to my apt as the walk there triggered some really strong ones!). When the Dr was examining me, my bump went rock hard as soon as she touched it so she was able to see what I meant.

She said that I am measuring around 41 weeks in size (!) now so my uterus thinks it's a full term pregnancy and it just wants to contract. She said that having the steroids will make such a difference so she is not too worried and it is just a matter of resting & trying to prolong the pregnancy as long as possible from now on.

Thank you to all of you for taking the time to respond, it's hard because i don't meet many twin mums so I don't have many people in real life to compare things with.

I am reminding myself that I've got to a relatively 'safe' stage now and that there's not an awful lot I can do to control or predict when they will actually turn up. Hopefully I will be reporting back at 37 weeks to say that all the contractions were false alarms

[gardenpixies32]

Hey,

Mine weren't that early but arrived very unexpectedly at 34+5. I felt absolutely fine and went in for a routine 34 week scan to find that twin 1 had lost her fluid. I had no indication that this had been happening. They gave me the steroids over the next 2 days with a section planned for 2 days later. I started contracting the next day so had to have an EMCS that day.

The girls were good weights at 5lb7 & 6lb1. They spent 2 weeks in the SCBU and are now 7 weeks old.

[TwelveLeggedWalk]

Crikey, so many typos, sorry holding dd! Breast feeding obvs!

[TwelveLeggedWalk]

Tiddler, not toddler ...

[TwelveLeggedWalk]

Hey. My two came at 30+3, and are now 14 mo. They both walked before 1 corrected, and although we had a few issues with reflux etc that wasnt necessarily due to prematurity and the consultant saw them yesterday for a follow up and is super happy with both. They have bugs at the mo so dd is asleep on my lap and my arm has gone dead as she is now SO heavy, from the little sub-3lb toddler she was.
We were in for 7 weeks and it wasn't easy, but it goes quick. The fact you've had steroids is fab. If you have to go back for any check ups ask for a tour of NICU, we did it and found it really reassuring as the staff were do lovely and positive. If you're thinking of breadths mixed feeding the La Leche womanly art book and Mothering Multiples are really good on feeding early babies/multiples, expressing etc, and Tamba and Bliss both have good leaflets on it. Even if you have to leave them for a bit the pumping is a good practical thing you can do for them, but I do wish I'd done a bit of research into it beforehand.
And just relax, eat and sleep!

[Mandy21]

Hi there, just wanted to say that yes, the steroids make a real difference (and the fact that you've had them and the babies have had time to get them is a positive) and each day you get beyond 30 weeks is a bonus. It is really worrying and I think its probably harder when you have children already - that 'cut in half' feeling on wanting to be with babies but wanting to be there for your other children too - but as everyone has said, you get through it simply because you have to.

My twins came at 27+6, I went into labour at 27+4 but they stopped it for 48 hours and I managed to have the steriods. It was frigthening and they were whisked off to SCBU but the staff were unbelievably understanding and fantastic and helped us deal with the situation. My local hospital didn't have 2 x intensive care places so we ended up at St Marys in central Manchester which is a regional centre for neonates (regularly have 24 weekers etc) and a nurse told me relatively soon after their birth that my 27 weekers "weren't really early, they're just here to feed and grow". It does feel massively early to you when you've gone to term previously, but in medical circles, 30+ weeks is a reasonable gestation. I say that just to give you confidence that they'd be OK if they did come now.

My twins were in hospital for just over 8 weeks. They're 8 now and perfectly healthy, both bright, sporty, bicker like crazy, just normal twins.

Good luck

[thereistheball]

Here's my thread - lots of good hand-holding and advice on there.