I'm currently 24 weeks pregnant with twins. I went to the doctors Thursday with contractions and after an examination they told me mucus was leaking from my cervix and that I needed to go to the hospital. I got there and was put on an IV of fluids and a monitor to watch my contractins. I was given 4 shots to stop the contractions and a steroid to mature the babies lungs if I was to deliver. The shots seemed to stop working after the 3rd one and by the 4th it made no difference. After being observed for almost 10 hours they said my cervix wasn't open and that I could go home but to keep my appointment for Monday and they would check my cervix again. I've been laying down unless I've needed to go to the bathroom or more water. The contractions show no regularity or pattern but are quiet frequent some painful and some just plain uncomfortable. But every time my stomach gets very firm like a softball on every one and stays that way for at least 30 seconds. Also the babies are not as active today and I have almost a locking feeling in my pelvic bone when I rollover. Is there anything I can do, or just wait it out until Monday.

If you have any concerns, call your dr. when my mom was pregnant with twins she ended up having to be in the hospital on bed rest towards the end of her pregnancy and she still ended up delivering early. Its always better safe than sorry.

You need to go back to the hospital. The shots you were given are as follows:

1) Terbutaline: this is usually given 0.25mg every 15 minutes to stop contractions. This is only given 4 times.
2) Betamethasone: given once then 24 hours later for maturation of the lung tissue.

24 weeks is the earliest level of viability in premature infants.

With twins you will feel more contraction-like pain as there is less room in your belly than if there were only one baby.

In the end, if you have not already, you should go back to the hospital.

Earlier when I called the hospital they told me I need to call my doctors office and leave a message for the doctor on call to see if I NEED to come in. They told me the "locking" pain was because of my exam on Thursday. I didn't feel it at all yesterday.

Please understand that I am not an OB, but rather one of the nurses you see when you got to the hospital. Can you describe the "locking pain" for me? I don't quite understand.

When I lay down for about 10minutes and go to move or roll over during a contraction, it's a pain that radiates like a menstral cramp where I got them as before I got pregnant (lower in the uterus) and radiates actually under my inner upper thigh into my pubic bone near the opening of my vagina. Almost like poking a really bad bruise, I know it sounds weird but I've never felt anything like this.

Oh, it doesn't sound weird, I hear this every night that I work. It's called round ligament pain. I'll try to describe it for you.

Our uterus and cervix are shaped like a light bulb. There are ligaments, think of them like rubber bands, that go from the inner thighs to the uterus. As the uterus expands, the ligaments stretch. This stretching causes pain.

Now, do you know how to time your contractions?

I was timing them from the time the cramping started and my stomach got real hard to the release time id put when the beginning was Id wait for it to subside in all areas then when itd start up again Id start all over.. They'll go from every 8 minutes to every 15 to 3 to 30 no real pattern but there are times where it'll be almost one after the other some less intense then others. The only ones raising an eye brow are ones that cause a back spasm along with it, other than that most are just uncomfortable. Am I right at timing them?

To time a contraction you start timing from the beginning of one to the beginning of the next.

If there is no real pattern it is probably not labor, but false labor. However, because you are pregnant with twins, I would recommend another visit to the hospital. If you have not had that second betamethasone shot to mature the lungs, you need to do this as soon as possible.

I want to make sure I have this right, I had one at 11:30 and ended 28 seconds later then another one began at 11:35 and stopped a minutelater then another one at 11:43 and only lasted a few seconds with a back spasm. Is that correct? I'm logging everything from this to when I go to the bathroom to what I've eaten so they know everything.

Don't count the time that it ends. If one started at 11:30 and the next began at 11:35, that means those two contractions were 5 minutes apart. Now, for the next one. One began at 11:35 and another at 11:43, they were 8 minutes apart.

This means your contractions are 5-8 minutes apart. If this is a consistent pattern, you need to get back to the hospital.

I really hope I made this clear enough for you to understand.