If you gave birth ~35 weeks

[meltoine]

How did your baby do the first several days?

ive been having contractions since 3pm. I went to L&D and I was 1cm so they sent me home. They died down for about two hours but appear to be picking up again. 

[Deleted]

Sending good vibes your way.

[undecidedowl]

My nephews were both born at 35 weeks. They spent time in the NICU while they learned to eat and grew but did wonderfully and were home after about a week each.

Thinking of you, hope things die down and you can get some rest. And if not, good luck!

[pugz]

DD was born at 35 and 5 but I got the steroid shots at 33 weeks so she had that extra boost for her lungs. She was 5lbs 12oz and had no NICU time.

good luck!!

[spk926]

DD was born at 36w1d. She spent no time in the NICU and went home on time with me. She had a little trouble regulating her blood sugar after birth but that was worked out and fine within 12 hours of her being born.

My sister had my nephew at 34 weeks and he spent 7 days in the NICU as he learned to regulate his body temperature, eat and gain weight. He's a happy, healthy and energetic 7 year old now.

Good luck!

[kershnic]

My girls were born at 34w3d. One was in the NICU for respiratory problems. The other breathed room air independently from the beginning but was in the NICU for IUGR. I had steroid shots at 32w. My nephews were born at 34w4d and both spent NICU time for respiratory problems. I don't know if you know the sex of your baby, but white males are known to be the most likely to have underdeveloped lungs.

I have seen online that many hospitals use 35 weeks as their cut off for an automatic NICU visit - so a 35 weeker will only go to the NICU if they have medical concerns rather than just for prematurity. For short term issues there's a pretty big range from none at all to a few weeks in the NICU. Long term 35 weekers do pretty much the same as full term babies.

Good luck, i hope you get to stay pregnant a few more weeks.

[mannah]

Thinking of you, and sending vibes for that baby to stay put a few more weeks!!

[starlily]

DD1 (35w exactly) had some breathing difficulties and went to NICU right away. She was on a vent for a few hours, then placed on just a nasal cannula. Cannula was out the next day, but she spent a total of 5 days in NICU due to jaundice and general cautiousness.

DD2 (35w 1d) showed some signs of irregular breathing, but they let her do skin-to-skin with me for a while and her breathing regulated, so they let her room-in with me. We were both discharged after 2 days.

ETA: I didn't have steroid shots either time. No long term issues with either girl. And as a pp mentioned, the head of Peds told me that at 35 weeks it really just depends on the baby whether NICU is warranted. They'll probably have a team on standby in your room, just in case though. Good luck with everything!

[meltoine]

Thanks so much for the encouraging anecdotes!

I'm still having cramping and pressure, but contractions have stopped. H doesn't gave to go to work until 2, so I'm resting this morning and hoping my uterus continues to calm down.

[sh10]

DS was born at 35 weeks, 3 days. My water broke spontaneous the night before, so I didn't have any steroids before. He didn't have any breathing issues, just trouble regulating his temp and keeping his sugars up so he was in the NICU for 18 hours. We had to give a little formula to help with the sugars, but we still breastfed to one. I wasn't able to do skin to skin and my DH wasn't able to cut the cord because they wanted him to be checked right away, but DH got to hold him before they took him to the NICU and DH was able to go with him and the doula stayed with me.

I'm glad your contractions have stopped.

[pooh8402]

In my hospital, we keep 35 week babies in the well baby nursery unless otherwise indicated. I would say it's about 70/30 whether it's warranted, with the 70 being the babies who do well without much extra help. We monitor them more closely of course, for temperatures and blood sugars, and we do a car seat study on them and they often need some feeding help, but by and large, 35 week babies do well.


Like a pp said, 35 weeks is our cut off for the automatic NICU admit.

[meggers]

We had zero complications with DD, who was born at 35 weeks.

[turtlegirl]

Hope you are getting some rest this morning and things have slowed down!

[imimahoney]

I'll answer for my SIL.

At 35+4 early labor started, spotting a d mild contractions. She was 1-2cm.

She was sent home to rest and then went into full blown labor at 35+5. Her son was born at 35+6 after an uneventful labor.

He was born at 6.6 and spent 2.5 weeks in the special care nursery (a step down from the nicu) due to jaundice at first, blood sugar regulation, and eventually breathing troubles.

Once he went home he had no issues at all and is now a perfectly happy and healthy 6 month old.

[boxerdog]

DS was born at 36w and spend 24 hours in the nicu, with some jaundice and low blood sugar. It was NBD.

My BFF had her baby at 34.5w and he spent about 2.5 weeks in the nicu, but he is perfect now.

Good luck and I hope baby stays put a little while longer!

[marclovesme]

I don't recall exactly, but I think DD was 35+4. My water broke spontaneously and she was born 4/5 hours later, no steroids given.

She was 4lbs15oz and 19.75", breathed on her own, 9/9 APGAR, no issues with feeding other than being sleepy. They kept her in the NICU because of gestational age (hospital policy), but she went home with me after 3 days.

It took her 2 months to get up on the growth charts for weight and she's been 25-50% ever since; height was always fine, 25%+. No delays and no issues other than mild jaundice after birth that they didn't do anything other than monitor.

She turns 5 in a few months and starts kindergarten in September!

[specialk]

DS was 35+5. He was perfectly healthy and required no NICU time. He had no jaundice or breathing issues. We did have to monitor his blood sugar levels for the first 24 hours with blood draws every couple of hours, but that was it. He was 6lbs 15 ounces, 21 inches long.

Good luck!