@@@/TW: Understanding Mechanisms Which Cause Preterm Labor

[hamster]

Feb 18, 2019 15:44:23 GMT -5 hopecounts said:

Discuss the aspirin protocol with your doctor it’s has a good bit of success.

Pre-E is placenta related so in your case I wouldn’t be surprised if placenta was crapping out which led to pre-term delivery and your PP Pre-E

On it! I view it as stacking my odds and hoping for the best. My anxiety doesn't like it, but not much else I can do.

[aurora]

Feb 18, 2019 13:36:48 GMT -5 isabel said:

Feb 18, 2019 12:59:43 GMT -5 VillainV said:

Daughter and sister of research ethicists here — the ethics of researching children, babies, and pregnant women make it really challenging to perform actual controlled studies. If you think about it, having a control group means you could actually be withholding lifesaving treatment from a fetus, baby, child, pregnant woman, etc. The ethics of that are different from doing similar research on consenting non-pregnant adult subjects. Sometimes the best they can do is try to collect data after-the-fact, but it’s not as controlled and won’t be as accurate.

I definitely understand that, but it seems that there has been minimal effort to do research, never mind the challenges.

There is definitely a gendered element for this. Many of the questions raised in the article make clear that we don't even know why a lot of this stuff happens, never mind how to treat it! The fact that for centuries men have dominated decisions in medical research absolutely means that problems impacting women have been lower priority. Most men didn't even want to think about labor and childbirth, much less try to understand it better!

[seeyalater52]

Feb 18, 2019 18:29:13 GMT -5 aurora said:

Feb 18, 2019 13:36:48 GMT -5 isabel said:

I definitely understand that, but it seems that there has been minimal effort to do research, never mind the challenges.

There is definitely a gendered element for this. Many of the questions raised in the article make clear that we don't even know why a lot of this stuff happens, never mind how to treat it! The fact that for centuries men have dominated decisions in medical research absolutely means that problems impacting women have been lower priority. Most men didn't even want to think about labor and childbirth, much less try to understand it better!

And miscarriage. No one seems to know shit about what causes early miscarriage. Am I bitter? You’d fucking bet I am. If men could get pregnant there’s no way the medical community would just sit around and shake their heads and tell them to keep trying despite having multiple losses because there’s just nothing they can do and they don’t know why it’s happening.

[aurora]

Definitely, seeyalater52.

Sending hugs your way.

[bowies]

Feb 18, 2019 18:45:03 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Feb 18, 2019 18:29:13 GMT -5 aurora said:

There is definitely a gendered element for this. Many of the questions raised in the article make clear that we don't even know why a lot of this stuff happens, never mind how to treat it! The fact that for centuries men have dominated decisions in medical research absolutely means that problems impacting women have been lower priority. Most men didn't even want to think about labor and childbirth, much less try to understand it better!

And miscarriage. No one seems to know shit about what causes early miscarriage. Am I bitter? You’d fucking bet I am. If men could get pregnant there’s no way the medical community would just sit around and shake their heads and tell them to keep trying despite having multiple losses because there’s just nothing they can do and they don’t know why it’s happening.

I don’t want to step out of bounds here so feel free to tell me to kick rocks, but has your doctor run a full blood panel on you to test for clotting disorders? They’re surprisingly common (I have one) but a lot of doctors won’t do testing unless pushed.

[seeyalater52]

Feb 18, 2019 19:00:19 GMT -5 bowies said:

Feb 18, 2019 18:45:03 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

And miscarriage. No one seems to know shit about what causes early miscarriage. Am I bitter? You’d fucking bet I am. If men could get pregnant there’s no way the medical community would just sit around and shake their heads and tell them to keep trying despite having multiple losses because there’s just nothing they can do and they don’t know why it’s happening.

I don’t want to step out of bounds here so feel free to tell me to kick rocks, but has your doctor run a full blood panel on you to test for clotting disorders? They’re surprisingly common (I have one) but a lot of doctors won’t do testing unless pushed.

Yes. I’ve had panels for everything imaginable, a hysteroscopy, specialized uterine testing, full karyotype.... the works (the benefit of being with a specialist.) Not a single thing has come back abnormal. The “solution” in these cases is usually to do IVF, except I already had to do that to get pregnant in the first place.

[bowies]

Feb 18, 2019 19:03:08 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Feb 18, 2019 19:00:19 GMT -5 bowies said:

I don’t want to step out of bounds here so feel free to tell me to kick rocks, but has your doctor run a full blood panel on you to test for clotting disorders? They’re surprisingly common (I have one) but a lot of doctors won’t do testing unless pushed.

Yes. I’ve had panels for everything imaginable, a hysteroscopy, specialized uterine testing, full karyotype.... the works (the benefit of being with a specialist.) Not a single thing has come back abnormal. The “solution” in these cases is usually to do IVF, except I already had to do that to get pregnant in the first place.

Ugh. I’m sorry. My hill to die on is the disinterested OB/GYN - so many are out there and it enrages me how many women just suffer for it. It sounds strange to say, but I wish that was the case for you.

[seeyalater52]

Feb 18, 2019 19:13:07 GMT -5 bowies said:

Feb 18, 2019 19:03:08 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Yes. I’ve had panels for everything imaginable, a hysteroscopy, specialized uterine testing, full karyotype.... the works (the benefit of being with a specialist.) Not a single thing has come back abnormal. The “solution” in these cases is usually to do IVF, except I already had to do that to get pregnant in the first place.

Ugh. I’m sorry. My hill to die on is the disinterested OB/GYN - so many are out there and it enrages me how many women just suffer for it. It sounds strange to say, but I wish that was the case for you.

You have no idea how much I wish that was my problem. My RE, while a specialist, has also gone above and beyond with my case being super proactive and awesome. She isn’t the issue. I can only assume there is something wrong that isn’t able to be identified yet.

The literature on this sucks, it’s mindblowing to me how much they still don’t know about getting and keeping peoppe pregnant.

[katfco]

Another issue related to this is the psychological damage that’s so often ignored. When my daughter was born, they put me in a room that was right across from the nursery. I had to walk by all the healthy babies any time I wanted to go to the NICU.

They don’t prepare you for the emotional trauma and recovery of preterm birth, especially when the baby ends up “fine.”

I can’t personally speak to how it is with women who’ve suffered miscarriages, but from my observations, it seems as though it’s the same.

It goes to the old idea of women just being the baby receptacles.

[dcrunnergirl52]

Feb 18, 2019 19:22:57 GMT -5 katfco said:

Another issue related to this is the psychological damage that’s so often ignored. When my daughter was born, they put me in a room that was right across from the nursery. I had to walk by all the healthy babies any time I wanted to go to the NICU.

They don’t prepare you for the emotional trauma and recovery of preterm birth, especially when the baby ends up “fine.”

I can’t personally speak to how it is with women who’ve suffered miscarriages, but from my observations, it seems as though it’s the same.

It goes to the old idea of women just being the baby receptacles.

This is so true. When I was on hospital bedrest with my twins starting at 28w and we didn't know how far I'd make it, my room was right across from the nursery, so I could hear and see happy parents with their babies all day long.

Even worse, when I had my cerclage with my second pregnancy, I was in recovery in the women's surgical PACU. They were monitoring DS2's heartbeat, and in the curtain next to me was a woman who just had a miscarriage and D&C. You could also hear the cries of newborns with their mothers in the maternity recovery area.

The poor woman next to me could hear those baby cries and hear my baby's heartbeat on the monitor. I was horrified that the recovery area was set up like that. Thankfully, they rebuilt that section by the time I had my cerclage with DS3, and the recovery areas were much more private.

[redheadbaker]

Feb 18, 2019 19:22:57 GMT -5 katfco said:

Another issue related to this is the psychological damage that’s so often ignored. When my daughter was born, they put me in a room that was right across from the nursery. I had to walk by all the healthy babies any time I wanted to go to the NICU.

They don’t prepare you for the emotional trauma and recovery of preterm birth, especially when the baby ends up “fine.”

I can’t personally speak to how it is with women who’ve suffered miscarriages, but from my observations, it seems as though it’s the same.

It goes to the old idea of women just being the baby receptacles.

I was told I was "lucky" that there was a spot open on the floor where women recover from bladder/urinary surgeries. Otherwise, I would've had to go to a room on the maternity floor. 

[kdubs923]

Feb 18, 2019 19:31:01 GMT -5 dcrunnergirl52 said:

Feb 18, 2019 19:22:57 GMT -5 katfco said:

Another issue related to this is the psychological damage that’s so often ignored. When my daughter was born, they put me in a room that was right across from the nursery. I had to walk by all the healthy babies any time I wanted to go to the NICU.

They don’t prepare you for the emotional trauma and recovery of preterm birth, especially when the baby ends up “fine.”

I can’t personally speak to how it is with women who’ve suffered miscarriages, but from my observations, it seems as though it’s the same.

It goes to the old idea of women just being the baby receptacles.

This is so true. When I was on hospital bedrest with my twins starting at 28w and we didn't know how far I'd make it, my room was right across from the nursery, so I could hear and see happy parents with their babies all day long.

Even worse, when I had my cerclage with my second pregnancy, I was in recovery in the women's surgical PACU. They were monitoring DS2's heartbeat, and in the curtain next to me was a woman who just had a miscarriage and D&C. You could also hear the cries of newborns with their mothers in the maternity recovery area.

The poor woman next to me could hear those baby cries and hear my baby's heartbeat on the monitor. I was horrified that the recovery area was set up like that. Thankfully, they rebuilt that section by the time I had my cerclage with DS3, and the recovery areas were much more private.

This was my experience as well. The pre-op area for my D&C (for my missed mc that was discovered during my NT scan) was the same pre-op for those having a scheduled C-section. Same waiting room, too. I'm sitting with DH, sobbing & waiting for my D&C... With a woman next to me with a full belly and had her husband charging up the camera ready to capture the birth of their child. I was shocked the hospital (which is specificly for only issues & procedures for women & babies), thought this was an adequate set up.

My next two pregnancies I needed scheduled C-sections, so I found myself in the same waiting room & pre-op area. It was such a mind fuck that morning, to be so excited to finally meet my baby, but sitting in the same chair, having such strong negative memories of the same place just a year before.

[raangoli]

Feb 18, 2019 19:22:57 GMT -5 katfco said:

Another issue related to this is the psychological damage that’s so often ignored. When my daughter was born, they put me in a room that was right across from the nursery. I had to walk by all the healthy babies any time I wanted to go to the NICU.

They don’t prepare you for the emotional trauma and recovery of preterm birth, especially when the baby ends up “fine.”

I can’t personally speak to how it is with women who’ve suffered miscarriages, but from my observations, it seems as though it’s the same.

It goes to the old idea of women just being the baby receptacles.

I had the same experience when BB was in the NICU. I had to walk by the nursery and last a bunch of patient rooms since my room had been in a corner. To add insult to injury, the NICU was down two of the effing longest hallways and past other patient rooms. I asked the nurses in the NICU whose brilliant idea was it to set the NICU so far from mother/baby. They agreed it was a terrible set up.

I never had a social worker come talk to me while BB was in the NICU until I lost my damn mind on a nurse who wouldn’t leave me alone about breast feeding. I guess bc I snapped they finally had someone come talk to me.

I’ll always remember being discharged from the hospital and going down to the atrium and then needing to take a seat. MH asked me if I was ok because I was so shell shocked. It was like re-emerging into the world and I wasn’t ready. It was an out of body experience. What didn’t help was that for the second time in a year and a half I was leaving the hospital without a baby. I had my D&C in the same hospital I had BB. It really messed with me.

[katfco]

Feb 18, 2019 21:14:27 GMT -5 raangoli said:

Feb 18, 2019 19:22:57 GMT -5 katfco said:

Another issue related to this is the psychological damage that’s so often ignored. When my daughter was born, they put me in a room that was right across from the nursery. I had to walk by all the healthy babies any time I wanted to go to the NICU.

They don’t prepare you for the emotional trauma and recovery of preterm birth, especially when the baby ends up “fine.”

I can’t personally speak to how it is with women who’ve suffered miscarriages, but from my observations, it seems as though it’s the same.

It goes to the old idea of women just being the baby receptacles.

I had the same experience when BB was in the NICU. I had to walk by the nursery and last a bunch of patient rooms since my room had been in a corner. To add insult to injury, the NICU was down two of the effing longest hallways and past other patient rooms. I asked the nurses in the NICU whose brilliant idea was it to set the NICU so far from mother/baby. They agreed it was a terrible set up.

I never had a social worker come talk to me while BB was in the NICU until I lost my damn mind on a nurse who wouldn’t leave me alone about breast feeding. I guess bc I snapped they finally had someone come talk to me.

I’ll always remember being discharged from the hospital and going down to the atrium and then needing to take a seat. MH asked me if I was ok because I was so shell shocked. It was like re-emerging into the world and I wasn’t ready. It was an out of body experience. What didn’t help was that for the second time in a year and a half I was leaving the hospital without a baby. I had my D&C in the same hospital I had BB. It really messed with me.

When I had my daughter, the NICU was on another floor, in another wing. It felt like the longest trek of my life. And when I got there, they had strict visiting hours, and no one told me parents didn't have to follow the visiting hours. In fact, a doctor asked me to leave a few minutes into my visit the day after she was born because he'd decided to do his rounds a few minutes early and I would be "in the way." 

Fortunately, she was transferred to Children's hospital a few days into it, which was much more parent-friendly, but the focus was always on the child, naturally. Once I was discharged, I was allegedly "fine" and it was all about the baby. 

[aprilsails]

My local university is doing a study on placental health and it is fascinating. I may join in if I qualify. The crazy part is that the whole thing has to be observation based only, so you live your life as you would and record what you eat and your general activity levels, job, stress, medication intake, etc. When you go into labour they are alerted and then will show up to collect a sample of the placenta within 30 minutes of birth. They then follow up on post partum health outcomes and the baby’s health and learning outcomes to the age of 8 or something.

Apparently it’s the first study of its kind in Canada. They have a team of 8 research students since they need to be able to get all over the city fast to collect the placenta materials.

Eta link: thewalrus.ca/what-the-placenta-can-tell-us-about-human-health/?fbclid=IwAR36xCko8XmMyhKZjv-8t3Ec3vDakv2zZgoX7MIt2sDd47kRaAEKW2qyWcM

[Susie]

Feb 18, 2019 21:14:27 GMT -5 raangoli said:

the NICU was down two of the effing longest hallways and past other patient rooms. I asked the nurses in the NICU whose brilliant idea was it to set the NICU so far from mother/baby. They agreed it was a terrible set up.

YES.  My DD was only in the NICU for a short stay, and she had been full term, but she gave us a brief scare.  The setup was horrible.  I remember walking alone from my room to the NICU in the MOTN, less than 24 hours after delivering, wasn't even allowed to shower yet... but sure, great idea to be walking alone down this long damn hall, out of the mother/baby unit, past the public L&D waiting room (I felt SO healthy and presentable...), down another long hall, to get to the NICU to try to BF multiple times a night.  The NICU nurses would call my cell when DD woke up, and my nurses never knew or seemed to check where I was.  Calvin was home with our dogs.

It all eventually turned out ok but I can't remember a time when I ever felt so lonely and scared.  I'll be having #2 in the same hospital in a few months, and those nights loom large in my mind.  It could have been so much better.

[hamster]

Our NICU is on the same floor, but pretty far away. I definitely needed a wheelchair post c section for the first couple of days. But I was down there so much I felt like I was basically staying in a (really bad) hotel room in mom/baby unit.

I don't recall anybody asking how I was doing until a state social worker came in to do a survey. By then it was day 5. My kid was still in the NICU, and I was then under watch for pre-e. I was not in a good place, and gave her an earful. I dont know what score she gave me for that question but I suspect I failed.

[loira]

Feb 18, 2019 20:05:19 GMT -5 redheadbaker said:

Feb 18, 2019 19:22:57 GMT -5 katfco said:

Another issue related to this is the psychological damage that’s so often ignored. When my daughter was born, they put me in a room that was right across from the nursery. I had to walk by all the healthy babies any time I wanted to go to the NICU.

They don’t prepare you for the emotional trauma and recovery of preterm birth, especially when the baby ends up “fine.”

I can’t personally speak to how it is with women who’ve suffered miscarriages, but from my observations, it seems as though it’s the same.

It goes to the old idea of women just being the baby receptacles.

I was told I was "lucky" that there was a spot open on the floor where women recover from bladder/urinary surgeries. Otherwise, I would've had to go to a room on the maternity floor. 

I had to deliver V in the maternity ward. They had a room that was sort of away from other rooms but it didn't matter. I could hear everything. The screams of women in labour and worst of all, the cries when babies were born. My labour took a long time, over 30 hours, and it was genuine hell no matter how nice the midwives were. It was all part of the trauma, but it would have been traumatic no matter where it happened. I'm glad you didn't have to deliver in maternity, but I can't believe they told you you were lucky. Nothing about what happened to you is lucky. Huge hugs to you.

[aprilsails]

loira my parents had a similar experience to you before me. My Mom won’t talk about it and my Dad still describes it as the most difficult day of his entire life, and it’s been 35 years. Similarly they were on the maternity ward and it’s crazy to think that hospitals don’t have another method of accommodating these patients after all this time.

[UMaineTeach]

So sorry for all of your experiences. Mine was relatively positive, or as positive as a NICU stay can be. Much more positive than other times I’ve had interactions with this same hospital.

I had PROM that resulted in delivery at 34/2, that involved two hospitals and an ambulance transfer. I am so thankful that the maternity floor had just been remodeled. The recovery room was a ways from the NICU, but only down a hallway that didn’t pass any term babies. Labor, recovery, and NICU rooms were private.

I did notice the shift once I was discharged, (after less than 2 days, because my delivery was a little before midnight, so that counted as one of my two days) to the baby being the patient, but there were amenities for parents to stay in the room.

The nurses even scaffolded our involvement in her care, from doing most of it to having us do more. The doctor was the same the whole time, we fell in the right shift class cycle. There were team meetings daily that parents were a part of and the only time I was asked to leave was during the hearing test to make the room as quiet as possible. I was seen by a social worker twice without asking. The billing department came to us and the birth registry quickly corrected their error on the birth certificate.

I did get the same line about not sure knowing why an uncomplicated pregnancy went wrong. I was even at a regular OB appointment the day before, where nothing was concerning. Less than 24 hours later I was leaking fluid. I don’t even think they are investigating or running tests. These things just happen, I’m told.