Having a second baby

Have you had a second baby since your first preemie/NICU baby? I’m not ready yet but I know I want a second baby eventually. But I am so scared after everything with my first. I went from a normal healthy pregnancy to having severe preeclampsia in matter of days resulting in having my daughter via emergency C-section at 28 weeks. Do I talk to my doctor before even considering trying for a second? I don’t know if I could handle going through the same or similar situation a second time…or what if something worse happens? Is it even worth the risks?

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Hi, I lost my very first baby at 34 weeks and I didn’t try again for another 3 years because I was so scared when I did get pregnant I had to have her at 34 weeks via c section because I had a fast developing case of severe preeclampsia before we tried we talked to a maternal doctor about it and what risks would be involved we also contacted a therapist to talk about any fears we have it didn’t make the process a whole easier knowing it was still a risky pregnancy but the constant monitoring my birth team gave me I had a little extra peace knowing if something were to happen we would know right away

I had a baby boy at 34 weeks (almost 2 years ago) who was in NICU and have just had my daughter who was born at 32 weeks and again was in NICU. I found it easier this time as I knew what to expect and knew however hard it was it wouldn’t last forever and would soon be a distant memory. Just helped me to deal with it a bit better.

I would speak to your doctor and also possibly a consultant obstetrician. It is less likely to get pre-eclampsia in your next pregnancy and the consultant can talk through this with you.

I have this fear as well. A lot of women end up repeat preemie moms some may go a little longer if they had a baby less than 30 weeks first go round they may get past 30 weeks is the trend I’m seeing online. I did my research n it said to wait 18 months to allow ur body to fully heal. With preeclampsia u can talk to an OB they may give u BP meds when u get pregnant from the beginning to reduce the risk.

Initially after having my 32weeker, I couldn't fathom having another kid. I always wanted a big family, and I felt like that opportunity had been taken away from me. We had such a terrifying pregnancy, birth and postpartum, so it took me a long time to even think about our journey without crying. I didn't get the opportunity to talk to a specialist, but I would highly recommend speaking to someone. During pregnancy and nicu, I just had to bottle it and stay brave. Afterwards it all overflowed and i was a mess. But once I worked through it all, I started feeling better overall. And slowly with time, the wounds started healing. Now we're actually a few weeks away from starting to try for our second. Should things go south again, we will be brave and deal with it, but will likely cap our family at 2kids. It's worth the risk to us. But chat with your OB/midwife and see what your next pregnancy could look like.

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I opted for the foley balloon which was inserted at 8am Saturday morning, I had to stay in hospital due to hypertension and protein urine however usually you can just go home once this has been done. The insertion of the balloon was not painful, was slightly uncomfortable as there was slight pressure. I actually found having the cervix checked prior to be worse (again not painful at this point just uncomfortable) The balloon had little effect and after having it removed I was still only 1cm. Removal also was pain free and hardly even noticeable.

I then had my first dose of the gel and definitely noticed a difference, I started experiencing period like cramps almost immediately however they were light and manageable. After 6 hours I had another cervix check and although my cervix was soft it was still only 1cm and was only open at the front. I had another dose of the gel and felt an increase in pressure and more intense cramping where I now required pain relief (codeine). After another 6 hours I had another cervix check and I had now dilated to 2-3cm however was still quite difficult to get all the way through so a third gel was recommended which I agreed to.

Almost immediately I noticed the difference and was in considerable pain, I had paracetamol and codeine however the contractions had now become intense and a lot closer together (around 3 minutes apart). After a couple of hours I had my last cervix check and was 4cm and taken down to the Labour ward to have my waters broken and an epidural.

I had been in my room for approx 20minutes when my waters broke by themselves and I was now 10cm and actively pushing…. There was no time for the epidural and my beautiful girl arrived into the world within 2 minutes of pushing.

All in all I would say the cramps/contractions were manageable up until the third gel where it became pretty unbearable however it was for a very short time a gas and air helped take the edge off. The worst part about any of it was actually the later cervix checks where after stimulating the cervix my contractions were at their most painful.

If I had to be induced again I would skip the balloon and opt for the gels immediately as thy had a quicker effect and I would have been out a lot sooner if I had done this to begin with.

One more thing, I’ve never believed when people say “you forget the pain once they’re here” but I can honestly say this is true. It’s been 4 days and I would do it all again in a heartbeat.

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