Brianna's Story
A short cervix.
Preterm labor at 30 weeks.
An unexpected hospital stay.
If this feels familiar, you’re not alone.

My husband and I went into our 20-week anatomy scan, ecstatic to see our baby boy, as any first-time parents would be. What we weren’t expecting was to find out that I had an extremely short cervix and was at high risk for preterm delivery. After that, my cervix was monitored weekly for some time. Since there was no change, I continued pelvic rest, progesterone, and weight restrictions.

Suddenly, one day at home, I went to the bathroom and found some blood. It didn’t really occur to me at the time that anything could be wrong. I called triage and went in, where they found I was having regular contractions and was 1 cm dilated at 30 weeks pregnant. In less than an hour, I progressed to 2 cm. This is where things got serious.

I was transferred from triage to labor and delivery and immediately started on magnesium. I got the steroid shots, and the NICU team came in to prepare us for what delivery and our baby would look like, as my contractions were consistently two minutes apart. Being on magnesium, I was in such a daze that none of it even felt real at the time.

Ultimately, I progressed to 4 cm, but thankfully, labor stopped. I stayed on magnesium for a few painful days. Then I was transferred to antepartum for about five more days of monitoring.

Those were some of the hardest days of my life. Sitting in my hospital bed all day, sharing a room, the unknown of what was to come. It was so hard watching my husband leave and go home every night.

My story thankfully has a happy ending, and by some miracle, I did not deliver until 39 weeks. My baby is now three months old, happy and healthy. Looking back, the whole experience was overwhelming and emotionally exhausting. I know I only made it through because of my support system.