I met with the midwife yesterday. Here’s the baby update:
- I’m measuring a little small but in the “normal” category (but I am a little small and I have a long torso so that’s to be expected, I think.)
- Baby’s back is on my left side and his head is down! 😀
- His feet are kicking my right side, so that’s what keeps poking out around there.
- His heart beat is normal.
My husband and I are taking a three-session, six-hours-in-all “childbirth education class.” After two two-hour sessions, I haven’t really learned anything that I haven’t read in a book. 😐 But it’s good all the same. It is clear that in Australia there is much less emphasis on epidurals and much more emphasis on active labor (i.e., moving around) and other pain control options (gas, which is illegal in the states, and some other stuff). At the same time, 50% of women in this particular hospital do get an epidural so it’s definitely an option. 🙂
For all of you who have gone through labor: they haven’t discussed “breathing” at all. I thought those “breathing” techniques were an important part of labor. Did you think so? That is something I haven’t read anything about and now they haven’t discussed it. Just curious what you think is important to know.
Here’s what other people are telling me this week (and my reaction):
- Well, you’re swelling up nicely! (How am I to respond to that?! Just wondering…)
- You are very tiny for 34 weeks. (What else is new?)
- You’re baby will surely be born sooner rather than later–you’re carrying low. (I thought I was just “small.”)
- You really popped out this week! (Actually, it was a few weeks ago that I grew a few cm in one week, but if you didn’t notice, that’s OK.)
- Well, there’s definitely a baby down there. (So that’s what that kicking from inside is…)
- You walk like a pregnant woman! (This is from my husband. Thank you for rubbing it in… 🙄 )
All in all, I am so very excited to meet this little guy. Pretty soon now. Six weeks is half the time it took to get our Australian visas. No sweat!
Hopefully, we’ll get our baby crib and nursery set up before he comes!
Well, since you asked:
I’m big on labor breathing. It is useful when your kids dent the car, when you have a job interview, when you have to add another username and password to your list, when your daughter gets engaged at 19, or when your family tells you they are moving to Australia. It is one of the most useful techniques I know. It is much better than holding your breath, yelling , or having a panic attack. I even used it when delivering babies: You inhale deeply through your nose and blow out slowly through your mouth. I highly recommend it. Mom
Yeah, the breathing part is really not too hard (how they do it in Full House is called hyperventilation). I think the best thing you can learn from the class is how to labor and manage pain before medication, should they say you’re not ready yet and send you home for 12 hours (which I guess happens a lot…).
Whatever I learned in the class, it basically didn’t make much difference because I got an epidural fairly early on. Then with the actual “pushing” part (1-1 1/2 hours for me), the nurses in labor and delivery told me how to breathe when pushing during contractions (and it was not what I learned in class)…it was hold breath for 10 seconds while bearing down, take a breath, repeat three times, and then rest until the next contraction. Really no sweat…(yeah right…it made me barf). Whatever you aren’t prepared for in advance, the L & D nurses will walk you through when the time comes.
Hooray! I’m so excited for Paul to be born!
This is the first time I have seen anyone use the percentage of doneness of the unborn grandchild. I guess it goes with having “one in the oven”! At any rate we are getting excited, I am now counting down my appointment dates as, “I see my dermatologist on Sept. 5,. That is 1 month minus 1 day until baby Paul is due.” One on the comments I hated most was, “Haven’t you had that baby yet?” Baby knows when he is “done” and will come on just the right date. Head down is a definite plus, although you tend to use the facilites more often and a vigorous turn can cause leakage you thought you had learned to control when you were 3! 😳 Thanks for the photos, it helps us feel more in touch.
As for breathing, if you are focused on measured breathing, you are less likely to scream, although 1 may escape occasionally. That’s o.k., the baby will take over screaming soon enough. You’re screaming will return during the teenage years, so take heart dear!