The vault is starting to open

I had an unplanned visit to my ob/gyn today. I couldn't make it yesterday because of having to wait for my son's school bus, but I thought I might have a UTI since peeing was feeling funny. Also I was having a lot of contractions (around two or three every fifteen minutes). Anyway, I still felt like I was peeing funny today, although the contractions had slowed.

Fortunately, I don't have a UTI.

Strangely, while I was waiting it the examining room for the doctor, I was reading to my daughter, and I thought my nose was running. I got a Kleenex, and found it wasn't snot but blood. My nose was just leaking fresh, red blood. The only nose bleed I can recall I've had was when I broke my nose in a bicycle accident when I was about 14. I remember some kids used to get them a lot in kindergarten and first grade, but I couldn't remember if you tipped your head backward or forward to stop it. I asked a nurse. Apparently these days you keep your head upright and pinch the upper part of your nose together. It pretty much had stopped by the time the doctor came in. Well, bloody noses are a normal pregnancy thing so that was nothing. I didn't even get any blood on my parka (which has to be dry-cleaned) so that was okay.

The doctor did check for dilation and effacement. My cervix is now 50 percent thinned, and my cervix has dilated enough for one fingertip to fit in. I'm supposed to drink lots and lots of water to stave off the Braxton-Hicks contractions, which I guess brought me this far. I was given the option of going to a hospital room and getting an IV to fill me full of fluids. I'd rather get them through my mouth if that will work. If I go back into great masses of contractions again, I'll probably have to come back and get an IV. The doctor also ran a test that's results probably won't be back until later today. It was done with a swab stuck, well, guess where. It was rather like a pap smear. Anyway, the hope is it will indicate I am 99% likely to remain pregnant for two more weeks. I imagine I'll hear nothing it it comes back that way. The other result is that it looks like I will go in labor in the next two weeks. I'm guessing the doctor's office will contact me if it comes back with that result. I don't know what the test is called.

Anyway, I today I am 34 weeks pregnant. A baby born now would probably have to stay a while in the neo-natal intensive care unit at the hospital, but the chances of it both surviving and being completely okay are very good. Three more weeks, and I'm good to go for a full-term delivery.

While I didn't need antibiotics for a UTI, the doctor wrote me a prescription for what she thinks is a sinus infection. That's probably why the cold is giving me such trouble.

So, now I'm lazing around and drinking lots of water to keep the contractions away. Hopefully I won't need to see the doctor again until next week's regularly scheduled appointment on Thursday.