Preterm Labor? How I Ended up in the Hospital at 29 Weeks Pregnant

Hi friends, this isn’t a post that I’d planned on writing, but, here we are! A preterm labor scare isn’t something any pregnant woman wants to experience, but life happens + I’m so grateful for how the last week or so has transpired for me + for our sweet baby…who is still in my stomach + healthy.

In an effort to shed light on what this has looked like for me + to hopefully empower other moms or moms-to-be to go with their gut, I want to share my story:

How it Started

I’m around 29 weeks pregnant + had been struggling with (what I thought were) Braxton Hicks contractions for nearly 2 weeks when this all started. I’d get this strange tightening all across the front of my stomach + my belly would literally change shape, becoming high + round + circular. They’d been happening sporadically since 20 or so weeks, but had REALLY ramped up since week 26 or so. I’d read online how normal Braxton Hicks were, but was surprised by all of the articles that said many women couldn’t even feel them. Mine were coming sometimes every few minutes for hours on end + were uncomfortable enough that I found myself swaying my hips or breathing through them.

I’m not the type to sit + worry about health stuff at home alone, especially not with a tiny baby involved, so I did call my maternity hospital to confirm what the internet told me about these contractions. The triage line at our maternity ward had assured me 3 or 4 times over the last 2 weeks that what I was experiencing was most likely nothing and to just keep an eye on my symptoms – if they got stronger, closer together or were accompanied by anything else to call back without hesitation.

I don’t know if it was “mother’s intuition” or the fact that I’ve spent decades listening to my own body while trying to advocate for my health, but I just couldn’t shake the feeling that something felt…off. Not right.

And so I paid attention + when I started getting really strong cramping in my back, like my period was coming, I called again.

At 10PM on Tuesday night, when I called and spoke to the triage nurse, we decided it was probably worthwhile at this point to get tested for a UTI. I’d had one only a month ago + a potential infection really did explain a lot of my symptoms. She said that I could head in right then for a test or wait until the next morning to do it. Mark and I decided to sleep on it since it didn’t sound urgent + I got up and drove over to the hospital first thing on Wednesday morning expecting to be told I needed another antibiotic + sent home.

Maternity Day Assessment

The hospital team at the maternity day assessment unit are used to checking women over for various concerns. They’d even taken a few of those phone calls of mine that I mentioned earlier + so I really felt in good hands. I arrived at the hospital, had my vitals taken, gave a urine sample to test for a UTI + got hooked up to the CTG machine. The CTG is basically a non-stress test, but it monitors both the baby’s heart rate and any change in the tension in the uterus (contractions) to give the doctors a holistic picture of how the baby is doing in there.

After my tests, I waited for the doctor.

“Teddy” was how my doctor introduced himself. He came to see me + I felt immediately at ease. He explained that they wouldn’t have the lab’s results from the urine culture for a few days, but that I did have elevated white blood cells. He suggested, based on my symptoms, that we proceed as if an infection was present + also, just to be absolutely sure everything was fine, that we check my cervix for dilation and run a FFN test because I was having frequent contractions according to the CTG.

FFN is a Fetal Fibronectin Test + I’d never heard of one before. Fetal fibronectin is a protein that’s believed to help keep the amniotic sac “glued” to the lining of the uterus. The amniotic sac is the fluid-filled membrane that cushions your baby in the uterus. An FFN test is a swab, up near the cervix, to test for the presence of this protein. Women between 22 and 35 weeks pregnant shouldn’t have it present in their vaginal canal. As you get closer to labor (over 35 weeks), the levels rise as your body prepares to deliver.

Teddy explained that this test is a really great way to rule out preterm labor. If the test came back negative, I had less than a 1% chance of going into preterm labor in the next 2 weeks based on the evidence + wouldn’t need to undergo any unnecessary interventions. That felt reassuring + so we went ahead!

FFN Results

After doing the swab + visually confirming that my cervix was NOT dilating (whew), I sat and waited 10 minutes or so for the results of my FFN test.

When Teddy came back to talk to me, his first words were, “I’m so glad we did this.” He went on to calmly explain to me that a positive FFN test, indicating a risk of preterm labor, requires a score of 50 ng/ml of FFN present. Anything over 200 ng/ml is considered to be high risk for preterm labor in the next 7-14 days.

My results came back at 356 ng/ml.

I’m not sure how, but I managed to stay really calm + listen to Teddy explain what all of this meant – for me, for the baby, for the rest of the day + potentially of my pregnancy. I asked questions about his plan + he explained everything to me as an equal, validating my concerns + explaining his reasoning for his choices. I can’t tell you how much that meant to me right then.

He explained that they were admitting me immediately to the hospital since my risk of going into labor was high. We would start treatment right away + monitor me + the baby for 72 hours before making a further plan.

Getting Admitted

I pulled on my coat + went outside to call Mark. As soon as he answered the phone, the emotion of what was happening did really hit me. It took me a few shaky, tearful minutes just to explain to him what I’d heard + he said he’d be right over.

Mark and I sat and talked + silently prayed together while we waited for a bed to be made ready for me. And while we were obviously shaken, we actually found an incredible sense of peace too. It was like we needed a few minutes to be scared + then we were ready to step up and do what we needed to do for me + the baby.

We had some lunch, made a packing list for Mark to grab for me at home + took my bags up to my new bed.

The Hospital Stay

My stay at our local hospital was nothing short of wonderful. I know that sounds strange to say, but really it was. I felt so taken care of by the team there + honestly really, really liked every midwife who was a part of my care. Most of them were young women my age + so we talked all things baby + genuinely made the monitoring fun.

The hospital portion of this story really isn’t very exciting. I’m going to keep the ins/outs of my + baby’s treatment plan private since we’re still very much in the middle of it, but a few things we did experience:

• regular CTG’s to monitor my contractions + the baby
• treatment for both my infection + the baby
• ultrasounds to check on the baby’s growth + positioning in case of preterm delivery

Otherwise, I spent 3 days getting to know my sweet (also pregnant) roommate, praying over little nug + doing LOTS of resting. I found it challenging to be away from Mark (who would come see me for lunch and the evenings), but took a lot of comfort in knowing we were doing the best thing possible by keeping me there.

After almost 3 days of monitoring + treatment, my contractions had almost completely stopped + my symptoms of a UTI were subsiding, which was such a relief. We met with Teddy again on Friday + made a plan based on what we’d learned over the 3 days to continue care + I was sent home after one final monitoring of baby.

Funny story: that final monitoring of baby should have taken 15-20 minutes, but because our little baby was SO active in there, it took nearly 4 hours for the machine to get the info it needed, ha! The sensors were bouncing on my belly from it’s kicks! But we got there in the end + an active baby is a healthy one, they say.

What Happens Now

This is where we still feel some level of unknown. Because I’m still at a high risk for going into labor in the next week and a half, I’m at home on the strict instructions that if any of my previous symptoms return, I will be right back in the hospital, which is not what any of us want.

As far as what the next weeks will look like, we’re taking it day-by-day. I’ve been told that “bed rest” is not something doctors really recommend anymore, especially not in my case. However, I am finding that my contractions do tend to start up again doing certain activities (like walking, ha!) + that I can stop them by laying down + really focusing on deep breathing, so we’re just working on finding out the right balance of normal work + life + also plenty of extra rest for me + baby. I am SO grateful that I work for myself + can really space out my client work to make it something manageable for the next few months.

One of my ultrasound scans also flagged a condition called “Polyhydraminos” or excess amniotic fluid. My levels aren’t extremely elevated, just enough to warrant further investigation. I’ll be tested for gestational diabetes (not standard practice here in the UK for every woman) just to rule it out as a potential cause. Teddy assured me that most of the time this is nothing to worry about, with no particular cause + often resolves itself as the pregnancy progresses.

Because of what we’re cumulatively experiencing, we’ve also been told to be ready to have an early baby – as early as 35-36 weeks. That is often the outcome of situations similar to mine. This is not set in stone by any means + I PRAY that nug stays put until closer to 39 or 40 weeks, but we’re doing all we can to be ready either way. My own mother went into preterm labor with me at 33 weeks, delivering at 36 + then delivering her other 3 babies all preterm as well.

And so, we’re working on getting everything we need in place in case we have a baby in 5 or 6 weeks! (If baby comes after that, praise God. It just means we’ll have more time to rest together!) That means:

• prepping freezer meals like this Cheeseburger Chili, Lactation Cookies + Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal
• gathering all of the things that we still need for postpartum + for baby – I’m so grateful for this registry because it’s allowed me to keep a running list of what we still need/want, which is great for my brain right now, ha!
• ordering a bassinet (we just grabbed this one!)
• finishing our renovation: poor Mark, he’s about to start the monumental job of painting
• scheduling all of our follow-up appointments for extra ultrasounds, gestational diabetes testing + our normal appointments with our birthing team
• packing a hospital bag earlier rather than later, just in case! (And a diaper bag! Storksak graciously gifted me this gorgeous one!)
• Continuing to eat all of my calories (these are the weeks baby will fatten up), take my prenatals + drink lots too, which will help ward off another infection

I can’t thank each of you enough for the prayers and concern we’ve experienced over the last week. This baby is SO loved + we appreciate it more than we can say. I’ll continue to keep everyone as updated as I can over on instagram before Little Nug’s arrival.

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