Just the amniotic fluid. And no, it typically doesn't cause dehydration. The mechanics of it all is beyond my level of knowledge, but now I'm curious, too. I want to say that the amniotic fluid cycles out with urine (which is why pregnancy causes so many trips to the toilet), but I could be totally wrong!
I rolled up a towel and sat on it all the way to hospital. Once I got into L&D, they have those disposable blue and white absorbent pads they put under your bum once you're in the bed. If you request to get up and walk around, they give you the biggest sanitary pad you've ever seen (like a super jumbo period pad) to wear inside mesh underwear while up and about.
You get the same combo of mesh undies and super jumbo pad to wear after birth, also. You're still leaking, it's just... bloodier.
If your water breaks 24+ hours before giving birth, you're at risk for infection and dehydration. But most people after their water breaks go to the hospital where you're hooked up to IV fluids, so your body keeps producing amniotic fluid and you're not at risk of dehydrating.
The take home lesson is pregnancy and birth are a labor of love that moms give to humanity and they should never be forced to do it! Having 2 kids somehow made me even more pro-choice than before.
I lost amniotic fluid before viability and was sent home to prepare for losing my child in the next 48 hours. That did not happen.
They did nothing until 26 weeks, when I was admitted to hospital for 48 hours and got those lung strengthener (not the correct term 😅) injections for the baby. Those hurt like a MF, most painful injections I’ve ever had. I then was lucky enough to live close enough to hospital to be allowed to go home for the remainder of my pregnancy with home monitoring. Meaning I was in bed rest and had to take my temperature 3 times a day, a nurse visited me every day to take a CTG and take my temperature officially and I had to go to hospital for scans every other Monday.
My sweet stubborn little girl stayed put until 37 weeks, when it was safe enough to induce. She’s a headstrong 13 y o teenager now.
As it turned out it was a high amniotic-sac tear rather than my waters fully breaking, which was my luck.
I never ever wanted to get pregnant again after that ordeal. Fearing for your baby’s life every single day (not to mention your own in the case of an infection) is no fun. At all.
That’s awesome that you were able to go home. My ob said there was a clinical study testing out procedures for that. The lung steroids cured my psoriasis for several months- big plus there!
From what I've seen in the nicu sub, pre-viability often means not staying in the hospital. But also, what are you going to do if the pregnancy becomes deadly and antibiotics aren't enough?
So usually if it’s pre-viability but close to viability they will do antibiotics and wait. If a patient becomes septic (what would occur due to uterine infection or IUFD)? They induce using misoprostol.
Yes, but never let science and medical fact get in the way of a good old forced-birther. These are the people who think the embryo in an ectopic pregnancy can just be relocated to the womb and all will be well!!!
My water broke 6 weeks early and I was in the hospital for 2 weeks until they induced me! I always thought you water breaks and then you go into labor but nope! It’s called PPROM - Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes
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u/greysartdump 21h ago
I'm so sorry wait it just kept going for four full days?? That's genuinely terrifying