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[kellybeth]

Originally Posted by Teles 

I didn't realize there was anything that could be done about it but my doctor is so unpredictable with how cooperative she's going to be that I really don't know if it's worth the fight this close to delivery. Plus I have a tendency to get various infections (kidney, yeast, etc) and I feel like the next 2.5 week (or however long until baby comes) will be walking a tightrope trying to avoid infecting anything, so I'm not sure if it's worth testing ways to get rid of the bacteria. I would really like to, but I worry that I'll end up with something worse somehow.

I realize this belongs in another thread, but I need a moment to rant about my doctor after having yet another shitty appointment with her today. I chose her because she seemed reasonably well informed and appeared to work in statistics rather than just emotional beliefs when making decisions, but it's been my experience so far that she's insanely inconsistent with this. She gives me studies and numbers sometimes, then will throw me a curve ball when she announces that if I don't get a flu shot I could risk letting my baby get sick and possibly even die (!) without any empirical support. When I asked her about any possible alternatives with the antibiotics with the GBS she got really snappy and serious with me and just said "no." straight up without any other explanation or further discussion. She's also going on vacation starting next Friday when she'll be gone for over a week (returning just shy of my due date) and didn't even mention it, so I was surprised to learn that I have to see a different doctor for my next appointment.

I just finished watching the labour and delivery story of a woman that I had been following on youtube who just had her daughter and even though she tried to be in good spirits about the whole thing, her birth experience was pretty horrible from first being admitted to her eventual c-section, and was even bullied into supplementing with formula by one particularly pushy nurse (part one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLxAAs-irVE&feature=youtu.be and part two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKxgEbksBoQ if anyone wants to see). I know that the hospital I'm going to is really forward-thinking and seem to be really balanced and reasonable, but I am absolutely terrified of a similar thing happening to me and having my doctor be so inconsistent certainly isn't making me feel any better about it. The thought of how much fighting I might have to do in such a vulnerable state is starting to overshadow an experience that I was actually looking forward to.

I hope you all have negative results so you don't have to worry about this antibiotic stuff

thinking of you, teles. 

[Teles]

Originally Posted by kellybeth 

thinking of you, teles. 

Thanks. I'm admittedly in a bit of a dark place right now due to this nonsense mixed with the fact that I'm still dragging my very pregnant body to and from work every day in the absolutely freezing, blizzard weather while dealing with a bit of a head cold, but I'm just taking everything a day at a time and trying to enjoy her little squirms and kicks while I still can.

[CamoShades]

Teles- I'm with you. I just found out tonight (36w1d) that I am GBS positive. This is my third, and I've never tested positive before. I don't know what to do. I have a feeling my doctor isn't going to be too receptive to the idea of a retest in a few weeks. My biggest concern is what this does for my birth plan. This will be my second VBAC, and while I've done it before, in the eyes of the hospital, I'm still a VBAC. So my plan (as I did with DD2) was to get to the hospital late in labor and push out this baby; I don't want anything to ruin my chances of having a successful vaginal birth. Don't the abx need to be administered four hours prior to delivery? I didn't plan on being at the hospital for that long. I also worry about the effects of the abx on the baby (thrush, allergies, etc.) and me. Ugh. I don't know why, but I just had a feeling my results would be positive this time.

[Teles]

Originally Posted by CamoShades 

Teles- I'm with you. I just found out tonight (36w1d) that I am GBS positive. This is my third, and I've never tested positive before. I don't know what to do. I have a feeling my doctor isn't going to be too receptive to the idea of a retest in a few weeks. My biggest concern is what this does for my birth plan. This will be my second VBAC, and while I've done it before, in the eyes of the hospital, I'm still a VBAC. So my plan (as I did with DD2) was to get to the hospital late in labor and push out this baby; I don't want anything to ruin my chances of having a successful vaginal birth. Don't the abx need to be administered four hours prior to delivery? I didn't plan on being at the hospital for that long. I also worry about the effects of the abx on the baby (thrush, allergies, etc.) and me. Ugh. I don't know why, but I just had a feeling my results would be positive this time.

I had the same feeling where I had no real reason to think I'd be positive, I just knew I would. Somehow it manages to be just as disappointing when it's confirmed, though.

I've been trying to keep it all in perspective, since there are so many things that could go wrong in creating a baby and bringing him/her to term that a little penicillin for GBS isn't so terrible. My doctor was pretty dismissive when I asked how the antibiotics may impact the baby, but my scouring of the internet and polling of people indicates that it's much more likely that they'll be absolutely fine than that there will be some kind of thrush or allergy issue. If you Google search you can find some scary things so I don't recommend it, but you (I) just have to remember that people only post about and remember things that are emotionally charged, so for every one person who writes about a negative outcome, there are several where nothing happened at all and everyone was happy and healthy.

It may mean that you'll have to get to the hospital a little sooner if this is not your first baby, since they prefer that the antibiotics are given within the four hours before baby is born. I'd call the hospital or ask your doctor about what this might mean for you specifically, though. I was told that since it's my first baby I shouldn't worry about coming any sooner than I would have otherwise, since it'll probably be a while. If you tend to have long labours they might say the same to you

[buko]

Just a note that you should be able to leave the hospital, too, if you get the abx and labor is slow/stalling for a while, as long as FHT are good...  just like you would if you were not +.  My very close friend was kinda forced into staying and getting pit when they said, if she hadn't been +, they would have sent her home.  Which makes little sense to me, as she had gotten her first round of abx, so...?  And it led to the typical cascade, including C/S (not that we know she wouldn't have had a C/S anyway, but I'm skeptical for a number of reasons I won't go into now).

Anyway.

I shoved some garlic up my hoo-ha last night, LOL.  I have an appointment in 6 days, at which point I'll be 36w5d (or 36w2d according to my MWs).  Not actually sure they'll test me then, or about 5-7 days later at the FOLLOWING appointment, but I thought I'd start figuring out the garlic thing now.  I cut the end off the top of the clove, sewed a string in and put it in there.  It wasn't all that secure, though I could have shoved it farther up.  Maybe a slight burning, but not bad.  I ended up taking it out the first time I woke up to pee...  Not so much because of burning, but because it was close to slipping out and I was annoyed and groggy.  Didn't check the clock, but it was probably only about 3-4 hours after it went in.  Didn't get the garlic taste in my mouth, which surprised me...

I'll try again tomorrow night.     

[HouseofPeace]

Originally Posted by buko 

Just a note that you should be able to leave the hospital, too, if you get the abx and labor is slow/stalling for a while, as long as FHT are good...  just like you would if you were not +.  My very close friend was kinda forced into staying and getting pit when they said, if she hadn't been +, they would have sent her home.  Which makes little sense to me, as she had gotten her first round of abx, so...?  And it led to the typical cascade, including C/S (not that we know she wouldn't have had a C/S anyway, but I'm skeptical for a number of reasons I won't go into now).

i did leave the hospital when + and getting abx.  i had my first dose, then stalled out, and since nothing happened i insisted on going home to rest and eat.  my mother and mw didn't approve, but my water hadn't broken and though they don't want you to miss the next dose and they really don't like to let you go.  my husband fought for me and made it happen.  it was also my 2nd.  it's hard to get out when you've started any labor treatments.

that said, i got my second dose, went home, ate a big bowl of gluten-free spaghetti carbonara, took a bath, went to sleep, woke up when my water broke and drove back JUST IN TIME for my 3rd dose.  my mw was very happy i made it back almost on the hour.  baby came really quickly after that.

[typebug]

So i talked to my MW about the test i did yesterday when i saw my OBGYN. She was a bit surprised I did the test and was very relaxed about what to do if we get a positive on the result next week. I guess in France they don't take this test result all that seriously and she's a hospital midwife there and it certainly doesn't sound like in that setting it's a big deal either. It was optional even here with my OBGYN. I figured everything was more neurotic here than in the US but not the glucose test or the strep test. Both were totally optional.

[CamoShades]

Originally Posted by buko 

Just a note that you should be able to leave the hospital, too, if you get the abx and labor is slow/stalling for a while, as long as FHT are good...  just like you would if you were not +.  My very close friend was kinda forced into staying and getting pit when they said, if she hadn't been +, they would have sent her home.  Which makes little sense to me, as she had gotten her first round of abx, so...?  And it led to the typical cascade, including C/S (not that we know she wouldn't have had a C/S anyway, but I'm skeptical for a number of reasons I won't go into now).

I don't know if that will work for me. Since I am a VBAC patient (even though this will be my second VBAC), I have a feeling they will not "let" me leave, so it would have to be AMA, and I really don't want to make those kind of waves. My first was a c-section at 38w for breech presentation and low fluid levels, so my 22-hour labor with DD2 was my first labor. I assume this one will go a bit faster, but who knows.

eta: Oh, and I live 45 minutes from the hospital I have to deliver at, so it's not like I can quickly leave and come back.

I actually was in the hospital Tuesday evening to be monitored for a while. My baby wasn't moving much at all on Tuesday, and by the evening I was getting pretty worried, so they had me come in. Everything was fine, but before they sent me home, I asked the RN about the GBS. She said they like to get two courses of abx in before delivery, so that would mean I'd need to be there for probably about five hours before delivery, something I DEFINITELY wasn't planning on doing. I kind of told her that, and I think she understood that even though I was only at the hospital for about three hours before DD2 was born, I had a long labor and just stayed home. She kind of smiled at me with one of those "Oh, so you're that type" of smiles. She did go on to tell me that while passing it on to baby is rare, it is very serious if passed on. She didn't say a whole lot more than that, I think because she figured I was going to do whatever I wanted anyway. I think I am going to wing it. I will talk to my OB tomorrow at my appointment, but I know she will be all, "Oh, you need to get there early" and use scare tactics. To this day I don't think she knows I labored at home (therefore unmonitored, unlike they want VBAC patients to be) for so long before heading to the hospital. It wasn't something I shared with her about my birth plan, and she wasn't there for delivery or even rounds in the hospital afterward.
Edited by CamoShades - 2/7/13 at 1:59pm

[sgsnyder]

I tested positive at 37 weeks, and asked to be retested a week later since I really didn't want to deal with the antibiotics. I completely cut out sugar and white starches, started an intense probiotic regime, drank two kombuchas a day, stuffed scored garlic cloves up my hoo-ha, and did a twice-daily wash with midwife-prescribed Chinese herbs.

It didn't work: I retested positive. I must have a really persistent strain! Luckily, I'd had an appointment with my midwife the day before I learned that, and she kinda-sorta scaremongered me AND somehow simultaneously comforted me into being okay with the antibiotics. Even my super-alternative mother and sister, and my science-driven DH agreed that it was time for me to let it go. So I did. I'll just take tons of probiotics before I start the drip, and I'll be on a hep lock so I'll be able to move around the birthing center between doses. Like I keep saying (and hoping I'm not jinxing anything by doing so), I'm really lucky if that's the only intervention I face. And just so I don't get cocky and manifest more interventions, I think: I'm really lucky if I have a healthy baby.

I hope that all of you other mamas are feeling confident and at peace about your decisions and/or results re: GBS. I felt totally unprepared for the test and didn't even know what it was until after I swabbed the first time. I think it's just an added stressor that we don't need in late pregnancy!

[Brambleberry]

I'm relieved to have tested negative, but I'm still doing occasional probiotic tablets vaginally to make sure there's good flora in there when the babies pass through.  And I'm planning on giving the babies probiotics during the first few days by crushing a tablet and putting it on my nipples.  

[CamoShades]

I am coming to terms with it, I think. It's taken me over a week and a half to get here, though. I saw my OB's partner on Friday because my OB got called out to a delivery, and I talked to her for quite a while about the GBS. She wasn't pushy about anything, and I could tell she was a bit intimidated by a patient like me asking so many informed questions and knowing so much about it. She's young, and I'm guessing she hasn't encountered a whole lot of patients who actually question what their doctor tells them. Anyway, I got the whole "the evidence is high that abx take care of this" and "evidence doesn't support the effectiveness of natural remedies" blah, blah, blah. Um, yeah, that's because OBs don't use alternative treatments or read that kind of study. Grr. I was pretty frank with her about a lot of things, and I'm sure she was thinking I'm one of "those" patients. I definitely am much more suited to be a midwife's patient, and this is yet another reason I wish our insurance allowed it! I'm sure the doctor was thinking the same thing.

Anyway, I also emailed the doula I had with DD2, whom we didn't hire this time for monetary reasons, and she was kind enough to give me a bit of advice. This is what she said: "You can totally ask for a re-test but I've never seen an OB humor the request. They say the test is good for 5 weeks. You have the right to refuse or decline any procedure but this is the one (in Madison, in my observation) they push the hardest. You can ask for an alternative antibiotic, to use a hibiclens douche post-rupture (of membranes), or many other alternative therapies but most of the OBs and nurses are unfamiliar with or not knowledgeable about the alternatives and therefore not typically supportive. Midwives regularly use alternative protocols with excellent outcomes.
The deal is that they want the antibiotics in your system for 4 hours before you vaginally deliver. The baby is in a sterile environment until membranes rupture or it passes through the vagina. You may still be able to labor plenty at home first; 3rd babies are very unpredictable!"

So given what the doctor said and what the doula said, I'm not going to bother asking again for a retest (I brought it up to my OB's partner, but she almost ignored my question). My doctor is much more frank about things, and I know she'll say "no." I guess I will just try to get to the hospital a bit sooner this time. Grr. I really wish our insurance would just cover care with a midwife, but it's a bit late for that now.

[sgsnyder]

brambleberry, I love your ideas of using probiotics internally and opening a capsule to dust nipples. Thank you for sharing!

camoshades, I'm sending you big hugs. I wish your insurance wasn't so backwards! I got really lucky with my insurance (didn't have maternity coverage with my IBX plan, so had to get Medicaid) and actually ended up with midwives because of the switch. I had two options: One, I'd have to receive prenatal care in the clinic, then deliver in the hospital with the lowest-qualified OB; or Two, I'd go with the local birthplace for prenatal care and delivery. (I'm seriously lucky, even though they're adamant about the antibiotics anyway and I'm just letting them be.) I'm glad you've at least been through this before, because that'll give you the wisdom and courage to deal with mis/uninformed medical staff. Maybe getting to the hospital early will give you time to get into 'the zone' in that environment? I'm sure there's something good about it!