UPDATE: Foot breech + shortened cervix at 31+4. TMI. LONG POST. PLEASE HELP.

I apologize for the long post, but I’m currently sitting in a hospital freaking out and I really need to know someone has gone through something similar and had a positive outcome.

As the title says, I’m 31w4d. I’m currently on vacation 4.5 hours away from home. I had my maternity photos scheduled for 6am this morning to have them taken at sunrise on the beach. I woke up at 5am and when I went to pee, the toilet was filled with blood. I’ll be honest, DH and I had intercourse last night, but I knew in my gut something wasn’t right. I haven’t been feeling very well in general this week and I chalked it up to spending the week with my in-laws and being dehydrated from spending so much time on the beach. I decided to put a pad on to see if I’d soak through it and go ahead with my photos. I did not soak through the pad, but at the end of my session I felt awful. My back was killing me, I was having what felt like intense muscle spasms in my vagina region. This is baby #3 so I knew it wasn’t contractions. DH and I dropped our kids off with the in-laws and told them what was happening and headed out to find an urgent care that was open so early. Unfortunately, the 2 urgent care centers in the area didn’t open for another hour, so we made our way to the closest hospital. Upon arrival, a dr came to inform us that they were a small hospital and were happy to check me out, but they did not have any OB/GYN attendings or residents and were not equipped to deliver a baby if it became necessary. We figured all of my symptoms were caused by intercourse, so we decided to stay at the small hospital for a quick exam, hoped they’d tell us there was nothing to worry about and send me on my way. That was not the case.

While mine (and baby’s) vitals were great, an ultrasound suggested she was “foot breech” (a term I’d never heard) and there was an issue with my cervix and umbilical cord. The dr in charge said while he is not an OB and didn’t feel confident enough to explain the situation, he felt confident this was an emergency situation and wanted to air lift me to the closest hospital for an emergency c-section. Literally within 10 minutes, personnel from the other hospital showed up ready to transport me via ambulance (they explained the helicopter was being used and ambulance would be quicker), and they took me away.

I was admitted at this current hospital around 12pm and was immediately placed in a labor and delivery room (for comfort) to be thoroughly exalted by an actual OB/GYN. After being given a pelvic exam, abdominal ultrasound and transnational ultrasound, followed by a ton of blood being drawn for tests, they have concluded that baby is in fact “foot breech”- meaning she is laying sideways in my belly, with one foot right at my cervix, and between the foot and my cervix is part of the umbilical cord. I also have a shortened and funneling cervix. Basically, if she kicks down hard enough, she could push the cord right out of me, which could be fatal to her. (Medical professionals please feel free to chime in, this was exactly how it was explained to me and I would love for someone to tell me that it can’t really happen.) I was also told my cervix length is only at 1.5cm, whereas at 31 weeks they like to see it at 3-5cm. I was told that 1.5cm or less is a strong indicator that preterm labor will likely take place anywhere between 24 hours-a week from now. They have started steroid shots in case I need to deliver early or have an emergency c-section to give baby’s lungs the best chance outside the womb.

I’m not kidding when I say I am hysterical right now. I am terrified. I have been shaking and crying and have been told to expect to be here for at least a week. Has anyone else gone through this? I desperately need some reassurance that everything will be okay. Both of my previous pregnancies were absolute breezes with no complications and regular vaginal births. I’m terrified of the idea of a c-section (I’ve literally never had any kind of surgery so the thought of being sedated like the dr said would happen in the event of an emergency c-section has me shaking with fear).

Thank you if you took the time to read this post! Oddly enough just putting it all in words to read over helped a little.

*Update: Thank you to everyone who took the time to read! I had to go back and fix a ton of typos, but I was extremely scared and sleep-deprived when typing my post. I was able to get some sleep and as of right now, I am in no pain and the bleeding has *almost* stopped, it’s just light spotting now. I’m waiting on the doctor to come and do an ultrasound, but it is only 6am so I assume I’ll be waiting a while. I’m missing my kids like crazy and I think that’s the hardest part right now. I also did a ton of research on the hospital I’m in, and it really seems like I’m in the perfect hospital for my situation, so I can breathe easier about that. DH has been amazing and has not left my side other than to go get food. Thank you everyone for your well wishes and sharing your personal experiences with me! I hope to be able to give a positive update later today!