A little scare….

So, on Thursday afternoon I had quite a bit of abdominal/vaginal pressure. I didn’t think much of it since Ethan is hanging out really low and I could feel his head DIRECTLY on my cervix. By Thursday night, I felt a familiar discomfort that caused my heart to race & my mind to wonder. I knew all too well what I needed to do…prop my feet up and drink plenty of water. I did both but the familiar discomfort remained. What familiar discomfort you might ask? I was contracting and they were nice and strong. My uterus was as hard as a brick.



I tried to act as normal as possible in the presence of my husband because I didn’t want to alarm him. However, he knew the look of concern on my face , which was everything BUT normal. He asked me what I was feeling. I quickly turned my face away from him and replied, “ Contractions” as I tried to hold back the tears. The usual questions followed…Are you ready to go to the hospital? Do you want to call Dr. G? I was totally numb emotionally and the only thing that I knew was well, NOTHING!



I went to bed, rubbed on Ethan for a while and prayed for peace and the absence of the contractions. I think there were some more important prayers on Gods mind because the peace never arrived & the contractions continued. Chris & I were both restless and really couldn’t find the right words to say. After tossing & turning for over 2 hours, I decided to try the recliner in hopes that the contractions would diminish, peace would arrive accompanied by my dear friend, Sleep! NO LUCK! The contractions continued and I stared into the darkness wondering “ how much longer can I do this”…


By 3:45am I woke up from a brief period of sleep & decided to sleep in our bed. Thankfully, I was able to sleep some what and the contractions were more tolerable.

I arrived to work on Friday and watched the clock like a hawk waiting for Dr. G’s office to open. I called at 8:56am and informed the receptionist ( who is very familiar with my history) of what was going on. She put me on hold for 30 seconds and returned to say” Dr. G. wants to see you NOW, how soon can you make it here?” I was beyond relieved! IMMEDIATLEY, I was out the door and making the 4 minute drive to his office.


I was taken back after a very short wait.I explained the events of Thursday night with the u/s tech and she proceeded with a vaginal u/s to check the cervix. Just as she starts the scan, I start contracting. I had her to feel my uterus so that she would know the feeling that I was describing. She says, “ OHHH YEEAAAHHH…that IS a contraction”

Scan continues and thank GOD, the cervix is firm & closed. The cerclage is in place. Cervix measures 4.5-5cm in length. Cervix does not respond to contractions of the uterus. All of these things were sweet music to my ears! Then the scan starts to check out Baby Ethan. He was a little wiggle worm and doing just fine as he was relaxing with his hand on his forehead. Heartbeat 145bpm. Amniotic fluid looked great. Everything was okay!

YET, I still had one MAJOR question. WHY IS MY UTERUS CONTRACTING?


The u/s tech really tried to find an answer but admitted that she really didn’t know but she was certain that Dr. G. would have answers. I saw Dr. G. and answers he did have.

1. My body is supposed to produce some type of inhibitor during pregnancy to block contractions…my inhibitor blocker is on vacation.

2. Because my band is placed so high, I am going to feel these contractions sooner than experienced in normal pregnancy & at a higher frequency/intensity.

I could deal with these answers. So, the plan:

• Start the progesterone injections RIGHT AWAY! These are weekly intramuscular injections that are used to quiet the uterus.

• Listen to my body and rest when needed.

• Call him for anything if I am the least bit worried.

I LOVE Dr. G. He said that I could come see him everyday if I needed too..and he was serious. He calls me his favorite patient and HE IS my favorite ( earthly) doctor. :0)

I started the injections Friday afternoon to quiet the uterus but she’s been anything but quiet since the initiation of the injections. I’d like to put a sign on my uterus to say

” QUIET PLEASE” .Although the contractions continue, I’m okay with it as long as I know that this will be the “ NEW normal” for the remainder of the pregnancy. I will gladly endure this minor discomfort for it will eventually lead to a journey full of love and the life of Ethan!