Placenta Previa

At 16 weeks I was diagnosed with partial placenta previa.

I was informed I would need to decrease my workout routine, and stop having sex, pelvic rest, no action from the waste down. Ummm lame. I was told that the odds were very high that it would just go away on it's own.

At 20 weeks they confirmed that it was still an issue and now it was complete instead of partial. Meaning my entire cervical opening was being covered by the placenta. The placenta cannot come out before the baby, this could lead to issues with the baby and possibly bleeding out for the mother.

At that point, I was officially considered high-risk. Lovely.

(Read here for more detail on Placenta Previa as I am not a doctor and cannot explain it as well as a medical expert can.)

Here is a quick visual which makes it pretty clear what it is:

Over the course of the pregnancy the doctor warned me that I should mentally prepare for a c-section.... at 36 weeks.... (this was a shock)

I was less concerned with that outcome as I was with the constant warnings of "BE CAREFUL!" Don't do this, don't do that, blah blah..bleeding out...blah blah...death...scary..

Um yikes.

So basically it was a pretty scary ride from that point on. I had to have extra ultrasounds to check progress. Constantly watch for any spotting. In the words of my doctor (who isn't an angstanator BTW just keeps it real) "spotting might be ok, BUT, it can turn bad really fast, so just call us immediately and pack up to leave for the hospital" Oh and "Don't ever plan to be out of a 20 mile radius from a hospital" and no flying, long list of no's, etc.

Um yikes again!

Needless to say I was pretty careful most of the pregnancy with staying within a safe distance from civilization, and tired VERY hard not to life anything too heavy, strain, anything along those lines.

BTW This was a huge challenge for me. I am the definition of a busy-body. I cannot sit still. This was seriously hard for me to do. I had to :: GASP :: actually ask for help sometimes. OMG it was a nightmare!! (of course worth it to keep the baby safe)

At 34 weeks I went in for an ultrasound. The placenta had moved a teensy bit, ever so slightly, in the right direction, but not anywhere near enough to make a difference. My doctor gave me the option of either scheduling the c-section in two weeks, OR coming in two weeks for a repeat ultrasound, with the caveat being I should be prepared for a c-section within a couple days of that.

At 36 weeks I came in for a VERY long ultrasound. The placenta had actually moved out of the way of my cervix!! I was totally shocked. It took forever to determine because my doctor made them look at it 5 times to make 100% sure that I was in the clear. And luckily I was given the green light to skip the c-section.

I suddenly realized that, holy shit, I had prepared for a c-section from basically like 20 weeks, I had not mentally prepared for a vaginal delivery. Que panic, this-is-happening-too-fast moment!

But I had a very lucky Placenta Previa story. For having complete previa for 1/2 my pregnancy I did not once even spot, have to go to the hospital, have a "scare". I consider that very lucky. I read numerous horror stories and even know people who've had their little(s) come very early because of this. I can't complain about my experience at all!