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Dehydration, premature labor and hospitalization yesterday, thanks to the flu.


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So the title of this post pretty much sums up my day yesterday. And fwiw, this is purely a sympathy post.:o

 

I came down with the stomach flu all of a sudden around noon on Wednesday. By Wednesday night I had lost so much fluid that I started contracting every 4-6 minutes all night long. I called the head nurse early Thursday a.m so she would get the message as soon as she came into work yesterday. I was still contracting when she called, so she told me to come in to the office immediately (and she scolded me for not calling the on-call Dr during the night). They sat me in a chair to monitor my contractions. After less than 10 minutes they took me to have the Fetal Fibronectin test done and my cervix checked because my contractions were coming too quickly. Also, little junior had dropped and it was hard to get his heartbeat because he was so low. After checking my cervix, which thankfully was still closed and thick, and swabbing for the Fetal Fibronectin test, they transferred me over to the hospital for continued contraction monitoring, as well as giving me some IV's. They wanted to give me Terbutaline to stop the contractions, but I asked if we could just see if the rehydration through the IV would work first. They agreed. I'm glad I suggested that because it seemed to slow them down after a few hours and a liter and half of liquid. The Fetal Fibronectin test came back negative which was a huge relief.

 

I'm still contracting, though not nearly as often, and as of this am, I've lost 11 pounds. They didn't weigh me yesterday (which would have shown an 8lb loss), so we never talked about that being a factor. I am a little nervous about that though. I'm sure it's all water and will come back (and then some), when I'm past this flu bug, which I don't appear to be quite over. :( Do you think the weight loss is dangerous (not that there's anything I can do about it at this point)?

 

Who knew the stomach flu could a.) come on so fast, and b.) cause so much pregnancy turmoil? Ugh!

 

Thanks for "listening".

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I hope you get better soon..

Take care of yourself :)

 

 

I was having a few contractions(with some pain on my left side) the other night so called the Dr yesterday and come to find out I have an infection, so I'm taking meds for that. I hate taking meds but oh well, I need to get rid of this infection before it really is time..

 

Hopefully this weekend, you can rest up and get better :)

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The same thing happened to me with my now 16 yos. Do the drs know you are still contracting? My drs prescribed Terbutaline (or something similiar) for me to take after I was discharged. I thought I was fine b/c the contractions were very weak, irregular, and not frequent. (so I didn't take them) When I went in for my next non-stress test the next day (this pregnancy was conceived 6 weeks after a full term stillbirth), the nurse was watching the monitor and became alarmed. The contractions I could barely feel were strong according to the monitor. I ended up being 5 cm dialated and I had no idea I was even having bad contractions. Thankfully I was near the end of my 36th week so he wasn't that early.

 

I don't post that to alarm you, but if your contractions continue even though you are well hydrated, you might want to at the minimum call and let your drs know.

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It is a homeopathic medicine for flu. It is good stuff. Seriously, you can get it at your local health food store.

 

It has become popular enough around here that I find it at my local Walgreens, as well as most grocery stores.

 

Praying for you and your little one, Janna!

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I don't post that to alarm you, but if your contractions continue even though you are well hydrated, you might want to at the minimum call and let your drs know.

 

No reason not to be completely forthcoming with information at this point.

 

Janna, honey, I'm SO sorry you've been in this situation. Goodness, this has been a trying pregnancy for you. Please know that I'm holding you in my heart here -- you and the baby! -- and hoping you recover quickly.

 

FWIW, I'm a big oscillococcinium fan, but I'm not sure it's meant for stomach flu. My understanding was that it was more for the "other" flu. But, good electrolyte drinks, broths, and nutrient foods should get you back to "fighting weight" in no time.

 

Hugs of sympathy,

Doran

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FWIW, I'm a big oscillococcinium fan, but I'm not sure it's meant for stomach flu. My understanding was that it was more for the "other" flu. But, good electrolyte drinks, broths, and nutrient foods should get you back to "fighting weight" in no time.

 

Hugs of sympathy,

Doran

 

 

It is for the achy flu.

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Arsenicum album, Ipecac, and Nux Vomica are all strong possibilities for the stomach flu. I had *unbelievable* success with Arsenicum Album when a norovirus swept through our family. (I started taking it before I was sure I was really coming down with the bug; everyone else took it after they knew they were sick. They were helped, but not as much as I was.)

 

Arsenicum Album might be indicated if you're restless, anxious, have burning pain anywhere, and/or are very chilled. (You might be a little irritable as well, but not neccessarily)

 

Ipecac might be indicated if you have terrible constant nausea not relieved by vomiting, feel worse with warmth and better with open air, have a lot of abdominal cramping, and/or hate even the smell of food. You might be irritable, hard to please, and/or wanting something but not sure what it is.

 

Nux Vomica might be indicated if you're very focused on business, are being particularly 'type A', are very irritable and impatient, have a heightened sensitivity to light, noise, sound, or other stimuli, , possibly with stiffness/soreness in your muscles, are chilled, and/or feel a little better after throwing up or a bout of diarrhea.

 

I'm oversimplifying a bit, but these are some of the general indications.

 

Thanks for the info. We have used homeopathic Ipecac with great results but it is nice to have the other info too.

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And was admitted overnight. I had had a ton of phenergan early in that pregnancy because of long-term morning sickness (lost 15 pounds I didn't have to spare, and ended up seriously dehydrated), so I didn't have any qualms about taking more.

 

It helped, rest helped, keeping as much liquid down as I could helped. And he was none the worse for wear. ;) My OB (whom I called at home! eek!) said that that sort of thing doesn't affect the baby at all except to the extent of the mom being badly dehydrated, which they fix with IV fluids if it comes to that. If you're still getting contractions I would call and see if that might be an issue they need to address.

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How are you doing, Janna? You've been on my mind all day. I had the flu and all of your other symptoms when I was near the end of my pregnancy with my last son. It was scary and miserable. I hope you called your doctor about the continued contractions. I'll keep you and the baby in my prayers. For me, they were able to hold off labor for an extra week with IV fluids and terbutilaine (sp?). My son was five weeks early, but perfectly healthy. Please take care of yourself.

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Please keep touching base w/ your dr's office. They can't help if they don't know. *end lecture here* :)

 

You'll be back, as I saw it phrased farther up the thread, "to fighting weight" soon, just rest, take care of yourself. Let others take care of you. It's hard to be down w/ the flu when you aren't pg. - but man, oh, man, those little ones sure keep us off balance sometimes! I'm glad you're home and recovering now.

 

Dy

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Thanks for the well-wishes everyone! I am finally, today, feeling much better. Tired, but MUCH better. I have a Dr. appt. on Wednesday and I'm sure we'll talk more about what happened and my current state. I still have contractions daily, but I think at this point, being 7.5 months along, it's normal.

 

Thanks again! You all are so sweet to me! :)

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