Pregnant with Twins and Fasting

amother

Gold

Tue, Oct 11 2016, 11:21 am

I am expecting twins as well. Just started third trimester.
Bli ayin all good so far yet dr. Was pretty strong that I not fast.
Rav said to absolutely drink ... 1 oz every 9 mins or something like that. Regardless of how I am feeling. And at the first sign of contractions to pound the water!
These are my first so I actually am pretty nervous about it all... how will I know if contractions start!
So nerve wracking !

amother

Sienna

Tue, Oct 11 2016, 11:37 am

amother wrote:

I am in almost the exact same situation just started third trimester with twins had an appt yesterday and am somewhat dehydrated already no matter how much I drink. Dr doesn't want me doing shiurim but the rav said to at least try I'm getting nervous because I'm already dehydrated and considered very high risk dh said to do whatever I feel being that these are my first I can never figure out if I'm having contractions or just constipation pain (which has been a major issue)

amother

Chocolate

Tue, Oct 11 2016, 3:20 pm

amother wrote:

When I was pregnant with twins and did Shiurim, I could not tell I was having contractions. I went on a fetal monitor after the fast that was hooked up to a nursing agency and they told me I was having constant contractions. They told me I had to drink 40oz of water or go straight to the hospital..I probably should have drank more over the course of the day.

amother

Bisque

Tue, Oct 11 2016, 3:51 pm

amother wrote:

Your Rav told you to go against doctor's orders? Especially at the beginning of the third trimester, when preterm labor is a huge risk? And what does "try shiurim" mean? For an hour? For how long?

If you are high risk, your doctor told you not to do shiurim, and you are already dehydrated, then don't be hard on yourself if you try shiurim and soon realize it's not working. What I don't get is when women who have special high-risk circumstances are told to "try" fasting or shiurim, and then try really hard, and then only break their fast when they've already gotten contractions and, cvs, put their babies in danger. This seems to create a situation where both "evils" you are trying to avoid end up happening - fast is broken and danger created for the babies.

I would call the rav again and say pointedly - my doctor told me not to fast because I am very high risk and he thinks it poses significant danger. When you say to try shiurim, do you mean to do that until contractions begin? Or until the point where I think that I need to drink or eat to avoid going down that road.

I also dehydrated very easily with my twins and was very high risk. My OB was Jewish, not frum but served a lot of frum women. When asked, my LOR told me to follow doctor's orders to keep the baby safe. I ended up doing shiruim in the evening, but in the middle of the night I drank water. I did shiurim of power bars (ugh I hate those, but they were the max calories per bite) for the whole time, but ended up drinking more than shiurim of water and gatorade. I also stayed in bed pretty much all day and night.

debsey

Tue, Oct 11 2016, 4:11 pm

Because contractions are meaningless for me (I don't feel them even when they are strong, until it's too late, and by then the baby is coming out) my doctor is using dizziness/lightheadedness as an indicator. I can fast till chatzos UNLESS I feel dizzy. If I feel dizzy, I'm supposed to lie down. If that doesn't help the dizziness, I should drink shiurim (my rav says One shnaps glass which is about an oz full of any liquid) Dr. recommended alternating between gatorade, water, and if I get nauseous (even though I'm in my 7th month, I still get nauseous) try milk.
Obviously, if I feel contractions, faint, or anything else serious, I need to start drinking as much water as possible and if the contractions don't stop, don't call the doctor. Get to the ER and then call the dr.

amother

Bisque

Tue, Oct 11 2016, 4:22 pm

I want to do as Debsey did and emphasize that my "plan" was personal to me, as worked out with my doctor and LOR.

My doctor also told me that, if I did begin real contractions or have other "real" issues, that I should go straight to Labor and Delivery at the hospital, not the ER. At a certain point in the pregnancy, I forget how many weeks, they may want you to go straight into labor and delivery. So you may want to ask (though I realize it's getting late a little late to ask on the east coast now....)

I ended up having to do this with my twin pregnancy, not on YK, but very soon thereafter. I got a little sick, got dehydrated, and started to go into preterm labor. BH, I went to L&D and they got me rehydrated, managed to arrest the labor, and I just spent a long day/night there before getting released.