WEEK 24 : Week by Week Incompetent Cervix Pregnancy Guide - VIABILITY!

NOTE : For the regular advice on Week 24, I suppose there are hundreds of other websites to tell you how it goes. This blog serves to supplement those sites, my personal favourites being What To Expect, Baby Centre UK and Parents. Do take note, however that I am not a professional physician, I practise law for a living and the only thing I know about incompetent cervix is through my own experience as a mother of 2 and a 22 week old baking in the oven! :)  The purpose of this blog then is just to simply share the joys and heartaches, the blessings and curses, the sadness and happiness and the disappointments and the pleasant surprises of our journey as a mom with an incompetent cervix.
 
 
REALLY??? We are in Week 24 already? Well, we made it to viability!

Ok, so what is this viability all about? What does it mean? Does it mean my baby will definitely survive if he/she is born now? Does that mean I don't have to restrict my activities anymore and there are no more worries? 

Well, the good news is... Yes, your baby will have a chance for survival if she/he is born now, and if you do go into preterm labour, your doctor will probably take all the necessary steps (do whatever they can) to save the baby.  Before this... well... before this, they may just tell you 'that there is nothing that they can do', which translates to : If your baby is not yet 24 weeks, they will just consider it an unfortunate miscarriage which they can't do anything about.  But now if you do go into preterm labour, they will do everything that they can to save the baby!

 (Source : http://www.mamasaidknockyouup.com/2013/02/fetal-survival-rates-week-to-week.html)

The bad news is... the baby is still terribly premature. 24 weeks is about 6 months... we are still 3 months short, and there is a good reason why nature requires a 9-month period of gestation, not 6.  In fact, in normal pregnancies, these women are told to watch out for signs of preterm labour as from now till Week 37, our babies are still considered premature and will have to be confined to NICU for a while.  

So, NO, viability just means that the doctors may try to save our babies, and our babies have a better chance at surviving and then go on to live happy healthy lives, but that doesn't mean you are off the hooks.  Why take unncessary risk when you can help it? Stay off your feet still - bedrest isn't all that bad (Read Week 23 here).  Ask any mom who have had a premature baby, and you will know the tears and heartache which you will have to go through before your little one can finally go home.  I mean, wouldn't it be a truly happy occassion if your baby can actually latch on and feed off your breasts right after he/she is born and to be able to breathe on his/her own without painful tubes all over them? Both my boys were jaundiced when they were born, and seeing them naked under the phototherapy is painful enough to watch, what more if they have to breathe and feed through tubes.  So ladies.... hang in there.  After all we have made it so far so why take risks?

But on the psychological side, yes, you can mentally relax.  Stop fretting over every single tingle and twitch, and start to enjoy the pregnancy from now onwards.  Enjoy your healthy meals (and those no-so-healthy tub of ice cream and 3 pieces of crunchy deep fried chicken) and enjoy bonding with your little baby who by now is creating a little gymnasium of his/her own in your tummy.  Take comfort in the fact that if the worst happens and the little one is born now, there is at least a 50% chance for survival, unless the previous weeks.  Anxiety is NOT a healthy part of pregnancy, and many believe that it will affect your baby's mental wellbeing as well.  Try to smile more to dear hubby who has been so supportive all these weeks (eventhough some days they may not SEEM to be so TO YOU, but truly, they HAVE BEEN).  Believe me... I know.

This is a good week. And congratulations that you have made it to this date.  Before you knew it, the 3 months would have sailed by and you will have your little bundle of joy in your arms.