I guess I will expound more upon the care model I have chosen, my birth plan, etc., for those of you who are curious. I'm really not certain when I decided this but sometime ago (10 years or so), I became very intrigued about natural childbirth (i.e., epidural-free). I did some research but not as much as I would do as I got closer and closer to having to make those decisions for myself. I am happy that I had a bit of an influence over my sister having two of her children naturally. I was able to be present for one of them and the more and more I'm exposed to it, the more obvious it is to me that it's definitely the best way to go (for everyone, in my opinion, but I won't judge you if you decide to get an epidural, etc.). What changed the most over that time was that I went from seeing that epidurals are not the only intervention that can be harmful to a laboring woman and her baby. With all of this, I decided that I did not feel totally comfortable and safe giving birth in a hospital. I didn't think I wanted a home birth and I was discouraged that we don't have any birth centers in our area. When I got pregnant, I was hoping I could have a hospital birth and still have all my desires carried out. I planned to hire a doula and employ the midwives at one of the local prenatal offices. Unfortunately, it became very evident right away that this was still not the ideal situation for me. When I met with the doula for the first time and we discussed my wishes for a natural, intervention-free birth, she introduced me to a birth center in Rocky Mount, VA. The only drawback of this was that it was located about an hour and a half from my house. I had heard of people traveling an hour to a birth center, but never an hour and a half. I decided to contact the midwife and arrange a visit anyways. I really liked it and it seemed like a really good fit. By this point, I was also considering home birth as a viable option for us and I emailed the homebirth midwives that work out of Lynchburg. The major difference between these two is that the midwife at the birth center is a CNM (Certified Nurse Midwife) and may administer medications in case of emergency and the homebirth midwives are CPMs (Certified Professional Midwives) and the state of VA does not allow them to carry or administer medications. Being a nurse myself, and living about 20-30 minutes from the hospital, I did not like the idea of being stuck without emergency medications in case of an emergency. So, we decided to go with the birth center. I really think I have made the right decision. I am very happy with my midwife, my doula and my entire birth team, plan and setting.
If you're concerned about me not being in a hospital for my birth, please check out this article that I just found on Facebook. It articulates my feelings about the whole thing succinctly and very well.
As far as how I'm feeling, I'll list my symptoms below in my stats section but overall, I can't really complain. I have started having more contractions since last week's post but still nothing "painful" or regular. Otherwise, I'm not showing any real symptoms of imminent labor. When I had my prenatal appointment on Monday, the midwife checked my cervix and I was barely dilated and about 75% effaced. Everything else continues to look good, baby is head down (usually in a lopsided position with her butt sticking out on the left upper side of my abdomen), my vitals were good, baby's heartbeat was strong and regular with good variability, etc. Here is my growing belly and below are my stats:
How far along? 39 weeks
Baby is the size of a: small watermelon
Symptoms: Fatigue alternating with "nesting" energy, low-back pain, numbness in my hand(s) (mostly the right), mild swelling of ankles and hands (worse in my ankles), frequent urination, more frequent Braxton-Hicks contractions, heartburn, inability to eat a full meal, shortness of breath with exertion, difficulty sleeping, pelvic pressure/discomfort, ...
Sleep: Definitely becoming less enjoyable, haha. Last night, I had to get up to pee every 2 hours (at least) and it's more and more difficult for me to fall asleep in the first place.
Number of times I get up to pee each night: As I just mentioned, it's pretty darn frequent these days (which is a little crazy since she hasn't dropped, as far as I can tell).
Best moment this week: Nothing too crazy happened this week so I'm going to go with my prenatal appointment and hearing her heartbeat again.
Miss anything? Being able to put my socks and shoes on with ease.
Food cravings: Pretty much just sweets at this point...and french fries, maybe, but nothing new!
Anything making you queasy or sick? No.
Movement: Yes! They say it slows down at this point but she's still pretty active in there. And like I mentioned above, she likes to sit in some pretty weird positions sometimes. Jeff and I thoroughly enjoy trying to figure out what in the world she's doing in there!
Stretch marks? Nope!
Belly button - in or out? Fairly flat (almost non-existent) most of the time and poking out on top sometimes (depending on baby's position).
Wedding rings - on or off? On still; they have started to feel a bit snug over the past week but I've still been able to wear them fairly comfortably.
Mood: Pretty good overall!
Looking forward to: Meeting this little girl!
Baby preparations: I know you're all anxiously waiting for the grand nursery reveal. I still have to hang the blinds & curtains and then, it will be all done! I hope to do this in the next few days!
What the baby is up to this week according to Babycenter.com: Your baby's waiting to greet the world! She continues to build a layer of fat to help control her body temperature after birth, but it's likely she already measures about 20 inches and weighs a bit over 7 pounds, about the size of a mini-watermelon. (Boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls.) The outer layers of her skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath.
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