I'm feeling rather uninspired lately. This has been the first week, since those really early weeks, that I've really felt 'hormonal'. No, I haven't been crying inexplicably or flying into frenzied fits, I'm just 'blue'. It might be because this is my first full week back after the babymoon and I hate my job. Whatever the reason I'm hoping the upcoming holiday and the prospect of QT with some girlfriends will help improve my disposition. The bright spot for the week was seeing 'belly rolls' for the first time. Charlie moves All. The. Time., especially in the evenings now (which makes it difficult to sleep, another contributing factor to my mood). The other night, Micha and I were laying in bed reading (how lame and 'married couple' do we sound?!) and my book 'jumped'. I pulled my shirt up to watch the action and pretty soon so was Micha. He was feeling the baby and saying to my stomach "Hey Baby, do something cool" and there it was, a foot or a hand pushing up just beside where Micha's hand was.
Aside from uninspired and cranky, I've been feeling under the gun. Being 26 weeks along means that in 11 to 14 weeks Charlie will be here. Holy shit! Even though I know it is irrational, I feel like there's a ton to do and we're running out of time. There isn't even paint on the walls in the baby's room (well there is, but not the paint I want.) We don't have enough money in the bank, we don't have all the 'stuff', we haven't talked about the birth plan or taken any classes or made any arrangements for Mumbles. I know that my usual obsessiveness coupled with the normal feelings we have as expectant mothers is the reason for my sudden sense of urgency, but I still feel rushed. I'm anxious for Charlie to get here but I'm even more anxious to be ready for Charlie to get here.
One thing I have done that was on my list of 'to-do's' was watch the Business of Being Born. It's a documentary style film done by Ricki Lake and her friend about child birth in America. It certainly explained, for me at least, why a growing number of women are choosing Midwives or Unassisted Home Births instead of the traditional OBGYN/Hospital route. I found that every time they showed a woman giving birth, I teared up a little. I think because my own first birth experience was not the experience I wanted to have or even knew I could have. Just goes to show; you don't know what you don't know. I don't know if I would ever choose to have a Midwife over an OBGYN but I do know that if we aren't proactive about pregnancy/labor/delivery it becomes something that happens to us instead of something we are apart of.
Cool stuff from the womb: Charlie is about 2 lbs and about 9 in. long. He's probably starting to look less 'lanky' and fill out a bit. Also, this week, his eyes will start to open.
Why would you choose not to have a midwife over an OB/GYN? If you are healthy and having a normal pregnancy, then midwife care is ideal. Obstetrics is a surgical specialty designed for complicated pregnancies/births. Midwives (for the most part) trust the woman's body and believe in a more-hands off approach, whereas most OBs prefer to manage the process, often leading to unnecessary interventions and worse outcomes. These are not unfounded generalizations, they are backed up by facts. In every other country in the world, the majority of babies are birthed with midwives, not doctors, in attendance, and have much better outcomes for mom AND baby than we do in the USA.
ReplyDeleteOne more thing - I'd encourage you not to fixate on "11 to 14 week" (aka, the baby's due date or 3 weeks before). Normal pregnancy can last 37-42 weeks, and it's best to let the baby pick his own birthday. Trying to artificially induce labor can cause many complications during the birth and down the road (Pitocin is now being linked to autism).
I support and respect a woman's right to have the birth experience that she desires. I only learned about midwifery after I found out I was pregnant again. It's certainly something I would consider for any future pregnancies. This time I chose an OB and a hospital because that's what my partner and I are familiar with and I knew there wouldn't be an issue with the insurance company. I've been very pleased with my care. My doctor understands what type of birth I want. He even suggested Hypnobabies, saying he was really impressed with the delivieries he's attended where the woman has used it. My hope is that this is a boring delivery for him and that the only thing he'll need to do is 'catch'. Heaven forbid that's not the case, I'm really glad he's 'the guy'.
ReplyDeleteAlso, thanks for pointing out that being 'overdue' is not disasterous, it's normal. What I meant, but maybe didn't convey, is that the baby 'could' arrive in that time frame. I agree 100% that he should pick his own birthday. My first was a week 'early'. Perhaps her brother will follow suit, perhaps not. Either way, I intend to let him come when he's good and ready! I was wondering where you found the information linking Pit to Autism. I'd be very interested in reading more about that.
Thank you for reading. I'm amazed that anyone is interested and blessed by the insightful and supportive comments.