Have you been put on bedrest?
June 20, 2008 by Marijke Durning, RN
Filed under Women's Health
Being told you have to be on bedrest can be very upsetting – especially if you already have children at home who depend on you. However, if you’re told that you should be on bedrest, you should take that advice seriously or risk the consequences.
Why would someone be put on bedrest?
There are several reasons why a woman may be ordered to stay off her feet and the type of bedrest and amount of time varies according to the reason and the stage of pregnancy.
Some reasons are:
- Risk of premature delivery
- Incompetent cervix (is opening and risking miscarriage)
- High blood pressure
Although doctors and midwives may differ on their opinions regarding what you can and cannot do during anything but strict bedrest, here are the three more common types:
- Modified bedrest: With modified bedrest, your orders can be anything from you can move about the house as long as you sit or lie in bed as much as possible. No outside activities or anything strenuous.
- Strict bedrest: No moving about the house to do things, limited showering or bathing. You may be able to change from the bed to the couch and back, but this depends on the doctor
- Complete bedrest: Complete bedrest means exactly that. You cannot get out of bed, not even to use the bathroom; you will need to use a bedpan.
Bedrest can be only short-term, until the initial problem is resolved, or it may be until your baby or babies are delivered.
Have you had to go on bedrest or are you on bedrest now? Would you share your story with us in the comment section?
Next week, we’ll talk about some things you can do to make bedrest a bit more bearable.
Image: Newscom
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I was put on bedrest for the last two weeks of my pregnancy because of elevated blood pressure and severe swelling in my calves, ankles & feet….It’s been hard to follow his orders though, since I wasn’t able to afford being off work yet. So, I’ve kept my feet elevated at me desk, hoping the swelling would go down. Unfortunately, that hasn’t helped much…my husband says my feet look like two loaves of bread with toes sticking out of it!! What a sweetheart huh?!!
I’m 22 weeks pregnant and have been put on modified bed rest since we lost one of our twins at 20 weeks. It’s been a little tough especially now that it’s right in the middle of the hot summer but it’s totally worth it. We thought we were going to lose our boy but he is a fighter and hung on so I’m willing to sit on my butt for the rest of the pregnancy if that’s what it takes!
Is there any way of getting out of bedrest for having low amniotic fluids? Theres no way i can afford to be out of work i will lose everything!!!!!