Today was not as uneventful as I had hoped it would be. I had an increase in the frequency and intensity of my contractions this morning, to the consternation of my apparently newly-educated nurse. She appeared so flustered by my contractions that she kept rushing in and out of my room to consult with the doctor about the appropriate next step. She had me so worried that I was about to be transferred back to the Labor and Delivery Department that I called Jim at work and gave him the heads-up that he had picked the wrong day to finally go back to work! Fortunately, the doctor (well, a first-year resident, but one of my favorite staff members at the hospital) came in and calmed everybody down. She did a quick check and found I hadn’t dilated any more (praise God!), and so simply ordered a subcutaneous shot of Terbutaline to knock the wind out of the contractions, which it did beautifully. My nurse regained her composure and seemed quite relieved that she was soon going to be handing my care over to the next shift. I felt a bit sorry for the poor thing – I surmised she hadn’t been a nurse for very long, and I hoped I didn’t usher her out of her chosen profession!
Everything has been blissfully quiet since then, I am glad to report. The girls are kicking mightily, although I still haven’t solved the puzzle of who is kicking me. I feel all the kicks in the same area of my abdomen – so whether there are two sets of footsies there or not, I’m not sure. But I do know that every once in a while, one or both of the girls conspire to sit on my bladder with all the force that one and a half pounds can muster. Per the doctor’s orders, I’m practically drinking my body weight in water every hour, so the combination of increased fluid intake with increased bladder trampoline activity make for an insane number of bathroom trips. Those trips pretty much defeat the purpose of bedrest…but at least it gives me a change of scenery!
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