What Being on Bed Rest is Really Like:
So you were told by your Doctor that Bed Rest is what’s Best for you and Baby.
Questions swirling around this unwanted statement from your doctor could be:
What does that mean? How Long will I be on Bed Rest? Will I get to stay at Home or do I need to be in the Hospital on Bed Rest? What is Antepartum? At what point could it be necessary to be on Bed Rest in Antepartum?
My story:
I went in for my 20 week ultrasound. My husband was there and our son as well. Today was to be the confirmation we were having a baby girl! As my exam went on my doctor looked low on my cervix. Which is something that is not commonly done at a 20 week ultrasound. He noticed some thinning and took the exam further. As my doctor finished he asked that I get dressed and come into his office. Common practice for him, therefore I didn’t think anything was wrong at this point.
He then let me know that my cervix was thinning and I was dilated to a 2.5. He said he would like me to go into the hospital right away for bed rest and to be monitored closely by the doctors and nurses. SHOCK.
My husband had to finish some work so I took our son home to pack him a bag to stay with his NANA and to pack myself a bag. Not knowing how long I would be in the hospital or how long my son would be with his Nana I didn’t know what to pack.
All that prep took a couple hours and we made our way to the hospital to be admitted into the Antepartum Wing. Not sure about you but I had never hear of Antepartum wing before. Actually all this was new. Antepartum in definition is: occurring not long before childbirth.
So what happens when your in the hospital on bed rest?
A lot actually, depending on your level of anticipated birth. You can expect everything from being hooked up to an IV, regular if not constant listening to the babies heartbeat. I had this sock that was around my calf that came on and off every few minutes that would help my blood circulation which the nurse would change it from right leg to left leg every few hours. The sock around my calf and not being able to shower were my two least favorite things. Sometimes they allow you to shower and get up to use the bathroom. For me I was on strict bed rest which included a catheter and sponge baths.
Also, if the doctor puts in orders for your blood to be draw to check your levels do not expect for that to necessarily be during the day, more than likely it will be at night and yes the lab technician will turn on the light at midnight or 2 or 3 in the morning. You can look at it this way your baby is going to wake you at all hours of the night so they are just helping you get used to the idea of being woken up – There Your Welcome!
Now at the hospital I was in, a food service worker comes in and takes your food order after every meal for the next meal. I mean talk about 5 star service, am i right! Choices, choices, choices!
Yes you will be bugged out of your mind by nurses, technicians and food service. You may also be visited by a number of Specialists as well. You may have an ultrasound tech come to your room or you maybe taken to the ultrasound tech.
Ultrasound Technicians do not “technically” read the ultrasound, they send it to a doctor that will “read” it, make notes and send to your doctor. This all takes time, sometimes too much time, but I say ask the Tech what they see. Maybe they will tell you (because really they know what they are seeing) or maybe they will not interpret the results for you. Either way waiting for results can be super stressful and lets face it just being on bed rest let alone on hospital bed rest is stressful enough. So speak up and ask questions, lots of them. You never know who may answer you and what information you may get.
In a nut shell this was my experience with bed rest. I was in Antepartum for a total of 8 nights before my baby girl decided to grace us with her presence. As hard as it was to away from my son, my husband, my life being on bed rest monitored by nurses and doctors afforded me the result of bring home my daughter.
Sometimes the Greatest Rewards First Require Sacrifice!
What have you sacrificed that ended in reward?