Getting my Cervical Cerclage

What is a Cervical Cerclage?

A treatment for cervical incompetence in which the cervix is sewn closed during pregnancy.

I got my cerclage put in at 13 weeks gestation. Doctors recommend waiting till after the first trimester to make sure the pregnancy is nice and healthy and prevents further risks later on. I was given a spinal so that only the bottom half of my body was numb. Yes, I was awake during the whole procedureL. Not exactly what I wanted but my doctor said this was best for me and the baby. The whole procedure only took approximately 30 minutes, but I had to wait 5 hours in recovery waiting for my spinal to wear off. Once I was ready to go, my doctor proscribed me 600mg of Motrin and Vicodin for pain. I refused to take the Vicodin, I thought that was too aggressive to take while pregnant. I only needed to take one Motrin when I got home from the hospital. I did have some spotting post-surgery, but doctor said that was normal and that it would possibly last up to a week.

When to call your doctor:

·        Lower abdominal pain and back pain that can feel like labor pains.
·        Contractions
·        Fever over 100 F
·        Vaginal bleeding ( having to change your pad every hour or so)
·        Water breaking or leakage
·        Odd vaginal smell
·        Nausea or vomiting

     Since I have an IC I see my high risk doctor twice a month for routine cervical length checks. This is exciting for me because I get to see my little peanut every two weeks!  A normal cervical length is 4.0 cm.