If you read this blog, you know our goal is a non-medicated, natural birth. Some people think that's crazy, but I'm not sure why anyone would think that. Yes, it will be harder (pain-wise) on me, but it will be so much better for Liam. I'm willing to endure that pain because it's what's best for him. Plus, the epidural scares me more than the pain. I've never been in the hospital or been given heavy narcotic medication, and I don't know how my body will react to it. The most important moment of my life is not when I want to find out.
I had talked to my doctor some about my wishes for a non-medicated birth. Her reaction was that, yes, I could do that, but I would be be asked several times if I wanted the epidural. Most of the women she delivers get the epidural, so that is what's normal for her. There would also be a time limit on labor, meaning that if I labor a long time, I would be pushed to speed things up. Also, my one position option for delivery would be on my back on the bed. Now, they obviously can't FORCE me to do anything I don't want to do (except the delivery position). My fear is that I would get bothered so much about these things and I might be in such an emotional and physically exhausted state that I might give in. I would rather not be in such a situation.
So, we finally decided we needed to make a change...at 31 weeks pregnant. We had known for a while that a midwife would be a better choice for us. I just didn't know how to switch or if it would even be possible to switch. The first thing we did was call some birth centers, since we figured that would be the only type of place to get a midwife. All of them were pretty much booked up for May, but were willing to meet with us and possibly take us on. Then my doctor informed me I was a carrier of Group B Strep. It doesn't mean I have an infection, just the bacteria that can cause it. It does mean that I will have to get antibiotics by IV when I am in labor because it can be bad news if a baby were to get the infection while being birthed. My doctor and nurse informed me it was not a big deal at all. However, with that information we decided we would feel more comfortable delivering at a hospital just in case something were to happen. I just figured I would stick with my doctor and hope for the best outcome.
Then our Bradley instructor told us about a midwife who delivers at a hospital (big Baylor). She said this midwife was wonderful and that Baylor was the most non-medicated birth friendly hospital in the area. I called the midwife's office, explained my situation, and set up a meeting with her. She is the only midwife in an office of doctors, which means she is covered in network by our insurance. I met with her last Wednesday and absolutely loved her. She answered all my questions the way I wanted them to be answered. She didn't hesitate to become my midwife, and she referred to my son by his name throughout the meeting. I loved that! Before I left, she checked his heartbeat and felt him. She said his heart sounded perfect and that it felt like he was currently in a head down position. I left there feeling great about making the decision to switch! I will not be asked if I want an epidural. I will be allowed to labor AND deliver in any position I want. I can labor in water or walk around outside if I want to. Yay!
Today, we took the maternity tour at Baylor and I feel 100% sure we made the right decision to switch. They advocate no separation between mother and child (unless, of course, it's necessary). They are super supportive of breastfeeding, with 90% of mothers there choosing to do so. Everything the instructor said was what I wanted to hear. I am actually excited about giving birth there. Our new midwife was even there in the Labor and Delivery area because she had just delivered an 8 pound, 10 ounce baby naturally...on a Saturday. That baby was not scheduled! Will got to meet her.
I am so much more at ease with our choice now. I'm actually looking forward to the labor and delivery of our son!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
30 Week Update
I am 3/4 of the way through this pregnancy (assuming I last until 40 weeks). By the grace of God, everything is still going amazingly well!
I had my 30 week appointment a few days ago. Baby Liam is doing well. He had a strong heartbeat and has grown since the last appointment. I did pass my glucose test and my iron levels were "awesome" according to the nurse. She asked me if I ate a lot of red meat. I told her I hadn't had red meat in about 5 years because I'm a vegetarian. She was very impressed. So it is totally possible to be a vegetarian and perfectly healthy while pregnant.
As we come into the final couple months before Liam's birth, I have to admit that I am not yet ready for his arrival. The next 6 weeks or so are going to be crazy busy. Will has to travel for work, I'll have two baby showers, and we will move to a new apartment. I will not feel really settled and ready until we are completely moved into the new place. Add work on top of all of that and the weeks are going to fly right by. Our plan is to start packing this weekend. I've been snagging paper boxes from work.
We are trying to make Liam's birth the best it can be, which is why at 30 (almost 31) weeks, I am trying to switch from my current doctor to a midwife. At first, I thought my doctor would be fine with a natural birth, but now I'm not so sure. She says she's fine with it, but I don't think she has much experience with it. My fear is that I will be pressured into doing something I don't want to do at the hospital out of fear or ignorance. SO, I have an appointment Monday with a midwife who practices in a doctor's office and delivers at a hospital. I'm praying it's the best of both worlds. I got my medical records from my current doctor today, and I'm hoping the midwife agrees to take me on as a patient. I like knowing he would be delivered by someone totally committed to natural birth, and if something were to go wrong, then we'd be at supposedly the best hospital in DFW (Big Baylor). That also means I got to see all my pregnancy-related medical records. It's confirmation that everything really is going well.
I leave you with a picture of shoes. We bought Liam his first pair of Simple shoes this week (with a coupon!). Here's one of Will's Simple shoes next to Liam's little one. There's going to be two tiny feet in this house soon!
I had my 30 week appointment a few days ago. Baby Liam is doing well. He had a strong heartbeat and has grown since the last appointment. I did pass my glucose test and my iron levels were "awesome" according to the nurse. She asked me if I ate a lot of red meat. I told her I hadn't had red meat in about 5 years because I'm a vegetarian. She was very impressed. So it is totally possible to be a vegetarian and perfectly healthy while pregnant.
As we come into the final couple months before Liam's birth, I have to admit that I am not yet ready for his arrival. The next 6 weeks or so are going to be crazy busy. Will has to travel for work, I'll have two baby showers, and we will move to a new apartment. I will not feel really settled and ready until we are completely moved into the new place. Add work on top of all of that and the weeks are going to fly right by. Our plan is to start packing this weekend. I've been snagging paper boxes from work.
We are trying to make Liam's birth the best it can be, which is why at 30 (almost 31) weeks, I am trying to switch from my current doctor to a midwife. At first, I thought my doctor would be fine with a natural birth, but now I'm not so sure. She says she's fine with it, but I don't think she has much experience with it. My fear is that I will be pressured into doing something I don't want to do at the hospital out of fear or ignorance. SO, I have an appointment Monday with a midwife who practices in a doctor's office and delivers at a hospital. I'm praying it's the best of both worlds. I got my medical records from my current doctor today, and I'm hoping the midwife agrees to take me on as a patient. I like knowing he would be delivered by someone totally committed to natural birth, and if something were to go wrong, then we'd be at supposedly the best hospital in DFW (Big Baylor). That also means I got to see all my pregnancy-related medical records. It's confirmation that everything really is going well.
I leave you with a picture of shoes. We bought Liam his first pair of Simple shoes this week (with a coupon!). Here's one of Will's Simple shoes next to Liam's little one. There's going to be two tiny feet in this house soon!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Last Week of the Twenties
Today, I'm 29 weeks pregnant, which means next Sunday I hit the 30 week mark. 30 weeks! This second half of pregnancy is going by just as fast as the first.
I had a doctor's appointment Thursday. I had to take the 1 hour glucose test. I don't know yet if I passed or not. Of course, I'm really hoping I passed it...unless I actually do have gestational diabetes. Then we need to find out as quickly as possible. It's crazy that it really has no symptoms. I'm hoping they tell me tomorrow or Tuesday if I failed or passed.
Other than that possibility, everything is going perfectly fine. My blood pressure was still normal, although it was slightly elevated for me. The nurse said the glucose drink can do that to some people. I got to hear Liam's heartbeat, and the doctor said it was good and strong at 135 beats per minute. I wish she listened to it longer. I could probably listen all day. I guess the good news is that I don't have to wait a whole month to hear it again. I have to go to the doctor every two weeks now! I guess my belly is measuring fine. She never comments on the size of it.
This past Wednesday, we started our Bradley method childbirth classes! The Bradley Method Our goal is to have a natural, non-medicated birth. We have to learn how to do that, so we're taking a class. I think it will be a great resource for us. In the first class, we learned the exercises I need to do everyday to prepare my body for it, a relaxation technique, and proper nutrition. Thankfully, I already knew some of that because my friend Crystal is a Bradley instructor and has told me some stuff, plus I've read Dr. Bradley's book, "Husband-Coached Childbirth." I'm taking it seriously and doing my exercises everyday. I'm getting 80 - 100 grams of protein everyday (on a balanced, vegetarian diet). I like it so far because Will has to be super involved as well. Liam is his child too and Will wants the best for him. I think Will would prefer I give birth at home with a midwife, but I'm not on board with that this time. I do have the "What if something goes wrong?" thoughts. Hopefully for the second child (God-willing) when I know more about how labor and delivery works, we can do that. We are thinking about hiring a doula for this birth. So I will be giving birth in a regular hospital. I know that will make it harder to get the natural birth I want, but it's not impossible. They can't MAKE me get an epidural. BUT, if it starts hurting really bad, I might want to cave and get one since it would be so convenient. That's where Will comes in to help me through the pain and help me stick to the natural decision we've made. A natural birth will be impossible without him. There will be pain. Childbirth is meant to be painful. Through this class, we'll learn how to manage the pain. I'm really excited about this class! Of course, there's always the possibility I will have to have a c-section for some reason. Some of them are actually necessary (not all, but some). I would be cheating myself and Liam if I didn't prepare for the best way, though. And I pray everyday that I won't have to have a c-section. But if it ends up being best for Liam and for me to have one, then that's how it will be.
Last night, we experienced the first time moms presale at Divine Consign, a huge baby/child consignment sale. I guess I didn't really know what to expect since I don't frequent consignment sales. I thought we had a leg up since we got to go to the presale before the general public, but those who actually put items in the sale got to start shopping 2 hours earlier. They pretty much bought all the good stuff. We were hoping to find a changing table, but no luck. Everything that was halfway decent already had a pink Sold sticker on it. There were people everywhere with carts and strollers and laundry baskets piled high with baby clothes and other items. It was overwhelming to me. Somehow we ended up buying 4 things: a pair of baby shoes, a tummy time mat, a gently used Baby Bjorn carrier, and a fabric sling that was only $7. The tummy time mat and Baby Bjorn were things I had actually registered for (I took them off the list), so it was not a complete failure. However, the long check out line almost made us want to give up before we even started.
I had a doctor's appointment Thursday. I had to take the 1 hour glucose test. I don't know yet if I passed or not. Of course, I'm really hoping I passed it...unless I actually do have gestational diabetes. Then we need to find out as quickly as possible. It's crazy that it really has no symptoms. I'm hoping they tell me tomorrow or Tuesday if I failed or passed.
Other than that possibility, everything is going perfectly fine. My blood pressure was still normal, although it was slightly elevated for me. The nurse said the glucose drink can do that to some people. I got to hear Liam's heartbeat, and the doctor said it was good and strong at 135 beats per minute. I wish she listened to it longer. I could probably listen all day. I guess the good news is that I don't have to wait a whole month to hear it again. I have to go to the doctor every two weeks now! I guess my belly is measuring fine. She never comments on the size of it.
This past Wednesday, we started our Bradley method childbirth classes! The Bradley Method Our goal is to have a natural, non-medicated birth. We have to learn how to do that, so we're taking a class. I think it will be a great resource for us. In the first class, we learned the exercises I need to do everyday to prepare my body for it, a relaxation technique, and proper nutrition. Thankfully, I already knew some of that because my friend Crystal is a Bradley instructor and has told me some stuff, plus I've read Dr. Bradley's book, "Husband-Coached Childbirth." I'm taking it seriously and doing my exercises everyday. I'm getting 80 - 100 grams of protein everyday (on a balanced, vegetarian diet). I like it so far because Will has to be super involved as well. Liam is his child too and Will wants the best for him. I think Will would prefer I give birth at home with a midwife, but I'm not on board with that this time. I do have the "What if something goes wrong?" thoughts. Hopefully for the second child (God-willing) when I know more about how labor and delivery works, we can do that. We are thinking about hiring a doula for this birth. So I will be giving birth in a regular hospital. I know that will make it harder to get the natural birth I want, but it's not impossible. They can't MAKE me get an epidural. BUT, if it starts hurting really bad, I might want to cave and get one since it would be so convenient. That's where Will comes in to help me through the pain and help me stick to the natural decision we've made. A natural birth will be impossible without him. There will be pain. Childbirth is meant to be painful. Through this class, we'll learn how to manage the pain. I'm really excited about this class! Of course, there's always the possibility I will have to have a c-section for some reason. Some of them are actually necessary (not all, but some). I would be cheating myself and Liam if I didn't prepare for the best way, though. And I pray everyday that I won't have to have a c-section. But if it ends up being best for Liam and for me to have one, then that's how it will be.
Last night, we experienced the first time moms presale at Divine Consign, a huge baby/child consignment sale. I guess I didn't really know what to expect since I don't frequent consignment sales. I thought we had a leg up since we got to go to the presale before the general public, but those who actually put items in the sale got to start shopping 2 hours earlier. They pretty much bought all the good stuff. We were hoping to find a changing table, but no luck. Everything that was halfway decent already had a pink Sold sticker on it. There were people everywhere with carts and strollers and laundry baskets piled high with baby clothes and other items. It was overwhelming to me. Somehow we ended up buying 4 things: a pair of baby shoes, a tummy time mat, a gently used Baby Bjorn carrier, and a fabric sling that was only $7. The tummy time mat and Baby Bjorn were things I had actually registered for (I took them off the list), so it was not a complete failure. However, the long check out line almost made us want to give up before we even started.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)