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I am sorry!! I would be upset if you asked them to check it and they didn't. If it was something they don't do, they should have told you. Could you start the steroids now just be safe?

I would immediately call and schedule an appointment with the OB and demand they do another check next week no matter what!

@Adira: I would be making a big stink for sure. I would be so upset if I couldn't get the epidural. And what if baby is breech and you need a c-section. You would think they would be watching it more.

@Adira: I didn't take a course! (if that helps). I read books and ALOT of really detailed homebirth stories (since I knew they were successfully unmedicated). Non-labor pain tolerance really has little to do with ability in birth... I've known moms that cried at the drop of a hat due to injury but were fine in labor & I can totally attest to pain in injury (in my case a fractured wrist) is WAY worse than labor b/c labor has PURPOSE. Trusting your body and your ability is key. Fear = pain, so learning what you can about the process of birth and what your body & baby will be doing will make a huge difference!

Here's a nice pdf I found when I was pregnant!
http://www.childbirthconnection.org/pdfs/comfort-in-labor-simkin.pdf

Hopefully you're Dr. will step up, or you can find another one (NEVER feel like you have to stay with a provider you don't trust) and you won't "need" these techniques. Even if you don't though they'll definitely help you get more enjoyment out of the whole process. =)

@Adira: That is AWFUL! I'd do everything in my power to get it resolved so that you can have the birth you want. Epidurals are AWESOME if that's what you choose.

But since it looks like you may not get to choose one, I would really suggest finding some way to learn some natural birthing/pain coping techniques. I used hypnobabies for the first half of my labor, and their techniques were an amazing help. I think I could have done the rest, but I needed a lot of shitty interventions and a lot of pitocin. There are books, home study courses, 1 on 1 coaching, a ton of stuff. If you find a method that interests you, I would bet anything that you could find a book, a dvd, a personal coach over the phone, a woman like me to share wisdom. Whatever! Any thing to help you cope with the potential that you may not get the epidural you want.

I would also say that I'm a big wuss, and I too found that it didn't have anything to do with labor pain. With that, you just do it, it kind of sucks (sometimes major sucks), and you get through it. It's not more than you can handle. I was on max pitocin with a failed epidural, and it sucked. But it wasn't more than I could handle. I'd do it again tomorrow gladly if I were pregnant again.

@Adira: Girl, do what you need to do to make yourself feel comfortable. If that means playing the 'crying pregnant lady' card go for it. I would tell my OB asap about my concerns and ask how this could be missed etc.

@Adira: Please keep us updated on how your OB responds!

There is no reason to wait until your next appt to raise a stink about this. Call your OB office and have them do a blood draw today! Then at your appt, take the time to calmly and rationally explain your concerns and how they can help you plan for your needs over the next many weeks until you deliver. Come with written questions and leave with clear notes - your end and their end. Now's the time to be proactive about your health concerns... You can do it!

As far as labor/birth preparation, posters above are right... Your wishes for a certain kind of birth might not happen. If you start to prepare now for pain management, and if you end up not able to get an epidural, you and your partner will at least have some tips/techniques prepared. Do not rely on the nursing staff to be able to fully guide and support you in this arena... Depending on what's going on in L&D the day you are in labor, someone might be able to support you with pain management techniques -or- they might be so busy with births, that there is no one able to stay close, but only check in periodically. What would you do in between each hour that they come into check in with you, when contractions are coming every couple minutes?? If you aren't prepared, you will be panicking and freaking out most likely. Having the confidence that you can handle the pain thru positioning, calming techniques, massage, pressure points, what movements can help, visualization... all this things can and will help you, but you have to learn them first to know what to pick/choose what works for you when your time comes.

Since you are already well into your 3rd trimester, what about contacting a doula to come to your house and do some one-to-one tutoring with you on birth preparation? Schedule 1-2 sessions with just you two, and another 1-2 sessions for yourself + partner with her so she can do labor support techniques with you.

Better yet, consider hiring a doula for your birth, if you are open to it, as a doula's main mission is to stay at your side and support you (and your partner) during labor and delivery alongside your birth team of nurses and OB. You can't depend on a nurse to be available, though it is sometimes possible, there is no guarantee. Why not set this up for self to have for sure?

Best wishes for more support these next coming weeks from your birth team!

Wow, that really sucks. But if you needed an emergency c-section, isn't that not really optional regardless of platelet count? I assume they would give you something then for clotting or whatever else is the concern from having low platelets... I think you're justified in raising a big stink and it probably wouldn't hurt to read up on methods of coping with pain, just in case. Also I wouldn't put too much hope in I/V meds--they did nothing for me with kidney stone pain during pregnancy so I can't imagine them working better for labor! Plus they turn them down before you push.

Oh, and a doula is a great idea. Of course, I'm training to be a doula, so obviously I'm going to say that, haha. And the plus side of being without an epi is that you get to be mobile during labor and that makes handling your contractions so much easier, as well as makes your labor more efficient.

My labors were 26 and 25 hours long. Sure, that's a concern, but it really happens very rarely. I voiced the same concern to my midwife in the middle of the 7 hard, hard hours that it took to get from 7 cm. to 10 and she was so encouraging, said I would definitely have the strength to push when it came, things were not going to stall because I was tired. And she was completely right. When it comes to pushing itself, you get a whole new surge of energy. Unless maybe you've been in labor for 50 hours or something.

Oh, and IF you really can't get the epidural, don't be afraid and don't fight the pain, that makes it 10x worse. Just focusing on riding along with each wave makes it easier- for you and your body and your baby. Lol, future childbirth educator here, trying to hit all the important last-minute points for you. If you want to do any reading to prepare for the possibility of not being able to get the epi, if you only read one book, I would highly recommend Ina May's Guide To Natural Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin. It's not a huge book, but lots of stories and GREAT information.

So sorry! I'm sure it's extremely frustrating/worrying to not feel looked after by your doctors. I find it so weird that they didn't do any platelet checks. I actually had my platelet count checked when they did my GD test at 26 weeks, and I don't even have ITP. It's standard at my office, so I figured they did it everywhere.

I hope that your counts go up or they can get you the steroids in time. I'm on team epidural, so I totally get it!!