Angela Davids

AT 29 WEEKS INTO MY PREGNANCY WITH MY DAUGHTER, I HAD JUST A HANDFUL OF VERY PAINFUL CRAMPS, BUT I KNEW SOMETHING JUST WASN’T RIGHT. The pain felt like menstrual cramps, but why would I feel like I was getting my period now? I had lost my first pregnancy at 8 weeks, so I was scared. I went to the Labor and Delivery ward, where doctors examined me and found that my cervix had started to soften and dilate. “You’ll probably deliver at 36 weeks,” the doctor guessed. He didn’t appear concerned or offer any steps I could take to prolong my pregnancy. At 33 weeks into my pregnancy, as I stepped off the elevator to meet with one of my clients, I suddenly had the feeling that the baby could just drop right out. I had been having contractions all night, but I figured they were just those Braxton Hicks contractions you always hear about. I called my doctor’s office, while I felt my belly becoming solid then soft, solid then soft. “Do you feel pressure?” the nurse asked. “I feel like she's pushing on me, like she's right there.” With alarm in her voice, Nurse Paula replied, “Get to Labor and Delivery now.” Indeed, I was in labor. The baby was still high in the birth canal, fortunately, but I was having contractions three to five minutes apart. I was admitted to the hospital and given magnesium sulfate intravenously for nearly 48 hours to stop the contractions. The “mag,” as they call it, made me feel like I was burning up, like my skin was on fire. And it made me hallucinate. Because of the side effects, many obstetricians no longer give magnesium sulfate to stop labor or will use it only as a last resort. I learned this first-hand in April 2008 with my second fight against preterm labor.