So it's another month and I'm still in one piece. Wow, 37 weeks, I never thought I'd get here! Very happily married for almost a whole month now and things are going great between The Man Thing and I.
Mr Squigglebum is still squiggling around in there quite happily though I think his living quarters are starting to get a bit cramped. Now some of the movements that he tries to do really hurt! Especially when I get an entire limb feel like it's trying to escape out through my side!
Still getting lots and lots of Braxton Hicks contractions which are a pain in the butt. They haven't managed to keep me awake at night in a little while but according to The Man Thing I'm now whimpering and making funny pain noises in the middle of the night, loud enough and frequently enough to wake him from a dead sleep!
Last week I had my cervix checked out visually to see if there was any remnants of the cerclage still hanging around and remove them if needed but the Obstetrician (not my usual one) couldn't see anything which is awesome. Hopefully that means that when this ship is ready she'll take off *Wink*
I also have 2 lovely med students following my pregnancy now and how everything is going to turn out. After last time where things didn't quite go to plan I'm quite happy that this time everything -should- work out, fingers crossed!
I also had another med student in on the last appointment with the OB, checking my cervix. She was lovely and I'm quite happy that I gave her the opportunity to learn *Smile* Gosh I just love being a guinea pig don't I!!
I've asked my two med students if they would like to sit in on the birth and they both said that they would love to. I don't mind having a couple of quiet spectators or even a couple more hands if required lol, and I'm hoping to get one of them to video or at least take pictures of the birth so really they would be doing ME a favour!
I've also been writing out the draft for my final birth plan, the one that is going to go with me to the hospital. It will be short and sweet and basically say "I know what pain relief is available to me, please do not offer me pain relief, if I require it I will ask for it" and "If a cesarean under a general anaesthetic should be required I would like my husband, The Man Thing, to have skin to skin time as soon as physically possible, if he wishes" and that's something I'm going to talk to him about too.
I have a new midwife. My last one has left the hospital to return to her home country and now I have a lovely lady who I feel just as comfortable with. I guess from spending a lot of time in the hospital as a child I got quite accustomed to new faces in my health care.
My back pain has been coming and going. It's usually a lot better after The Man Thing gives me a back massage, something I've been asking for a lot lately. Pity he isn't home tonight to give me one because I can feel my back starting to tighten up already.
I've started drinking Raspberry Leaf Tea to get my uterus in tip top condition. I'm wondering if it's going to make my Braxton Hicks contractions worse or if they will just stay the same. I've slowly increased my consumption from one cup of RLT a day to three as of today. I'm also going to get some Evening Primrose Oil capsules. Even if they don't do anything, well the tea tastes quite nice and the EPO caps make my skin look amazing. I know, I used to use them every day to help lessen PMS symptoms and ease the skin conditions I've been troubled with for years.
Anyway, I think that's enough from me for now. I'd better see what's for dinner and so on.
Showing posts with label Birth Plan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Birth Plan. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Birth Plans
Something that I keep seeing in my cyber travels around all sorts of different birth/baby blogs and even in some books is talk of Birth Plans. What is a birth plan?
Now understand I can only describe a birth plan from my point of view but I will describe some of the purported Birth Plans that apparently cause medical staff to laugh in peoples faces.
My kind of birth plan is pretty specific in that I dont beat around the bush and make it flowery, but it's not all demanding either. I like to think that my birth plan is pretty fair.
It states things in terms of "I would prefer..." rather than "This is the way it's going down, bitches!!"
I understand that emergencies happen which is why my birth plan covers many contingencies, even the possibility that I could have a cesarean. It doesn't say anything like "A cesarean is the LAST thing that I want" it simply says that if a cesarean is required I wish for the man thing to have skin to skin as soon as possible, if he so wishes.
Nothing too confrontational about that now is there?
Stuff like this *Click Me* is rather counter-intuitive. See, a birth plan isn't actually a PLAN, or at least it shouldn't be because of course birth cant actually be PLANNED. Things can be considered though and those things can be PLANNED for.
A birth plan shouldn't read "I want to turn up at the hospital, be checked and found to be 7cm dilated, I want to have an Epidural placed 10 minutes later that works perfectly and then 3 hours later I want to be checked again, found to be 10cm dilated and then directed how to push. Pushing will take no more than 1 hour and my baby will slip out with no problems, perfect APGARs and then latch immediately. I will have no tears or need for an episiotomy."
That is the kind of birth plan that is definately going to make a health care providers hackles rise. Hell, just writing it is making MY hackles rise!
A birth plan which I think would be better recieved by the health care professionals (be they a midwife, nurse, OB) would be one along the lines of;
I would prefer Intermittent monitoring over continuous monitoring.
I CANNOT have an Epidural so please do not offer this to me.
I wish to have Entonox avaliable at my request.
I wish to have a birthing tub avaliable for my use if I so desire during labour.
I would prefer to avoid an episiotomy and would rather tear naturally.
I would prefer that the cord not be clamped or cut until it ceases pulsating.
I would prefer a physiologic third stage of labour.
Now some people may think that that sounds a little too pleading but it plainly states how I feel about all of the above. Now, barring an emergency I cant see why any of those "requests" would be ignored. Of course, here in New Zealand the environment and all the attitudes seem to be vastly different to those in the USA where most of the Birth Plan issues seem to stem from.
I have already talked over many of these things with either my midwife or the antenatal classes that I have been attending. I have a little checklist in my notes that states my preferences to things like monitoring and cord clamping/third stage. Still, I wont know what is really going to happen until I'm actually in the process of labouring/birthing so we will have to wait and see how it all turns out.
Now understand I can only describe a birth plan from my point of view but I will describe some of the purported Birth Plans that apparently cause medical staff to laugh in peoples faces.
My kind of birth plan is pretty specific in that I dont beat around the bush and make it flowery, but it's not all demanding either. I like to think that my birth plan is pretty fair.
It states things in terms of "I would prefer..." rather than "This is the way it's going down, bitches!!"
I understand that emergencies happen which is why my birth plan covers many contingencies, even the possibility that I could have a cesarean. It doesn't say anything like "A cesarean is the LAST thing that I want" it simply says that if a cesarean is required I wish for the man thing to have skin to skin as soon as possible, if he so wishes.
Nothing too confrontational about that now is there?
Stuff like this *Click Me* is rather counter-intuitive. See, a birth plan isn't actually a PLAN, or at least it shouldn't be because of course birth cant actually be PLANNED. Things can be considered though and those things can be PLANNED for.
A birth plan shouldn't read "I want to turn up at the hospital, be checked and found to be 7cm dilated, I want to have an Epidural placed 10 minutes later that works perfectly and then 3 hours later I want to be checked again, found to be 10cm dilated and then directed how to push. Pushing will take no more than 1 hour and my baby will slip out with no problems, perfect APGARs and then latch immediately. I will have no tears or need for an episiotomy."
That is the kind of birth plan that is definately going to make a health care providers hackles rise. Hell, just writing it is making MY hackles rise!
A birth plan which I think would be better recieved by the health care professionals (be they a midwife, nurse, OB) would be one along the lines of;
I would prefer Intermittent monitoring over continuous monitoring.
I CANNOT have an Epidural so please do not offer this to me.
I wish to have Entonox avaliable at my request.
I wish to have a birthing tub avaliable for my use if I so desire during labour.
I would prefer to avoid an episiotomy and would rather tear naturally.
I would prefer that the cord not be clamped or cut until it ceases pulsating.
I would prefer a physiologic third stage of labour.
Now some people may think that that sounds a little too pleading but it plainly states how I feel about all of the above. Now, barring an emergency I cant see why any of those "requests" would be ignored. Of course, here in New Zealand the environment and all the attitudes seem to be vastly different to those in the USA where most of the Birth Plan issues seem to stem from.
I have already talked over many of these things with either my midwife or the antenatal classes that I have been attending. I have a little checklist in my notes that states my preferences to things like monitoring and cord clamping/third stage. Still, I wont know what is really going to happen until I'm actually in the process of labouring/birthing so we will have to wait and see how it all turns out.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
They're going to hate me
*cheeky grin*
No, seriously, doctors, nurses and midwives are going to hate me.
At my last midwife appointment I asked my midwife about the routines, policies and procedures in the Delivery Suite. She looked a bit suprised and simply replied, "We talk about things like that when we talk about your birth plan"
Hmph. I'm already WRITING and INVESTIGATING my birth plan.
She didn't seem to like it when I told her THAT.
Yeah... They're going to hate me.
No, seriously, doctors, nurses and midwives are going to hate me.
At my last midwife appointment I asked my midwife about the routines, policies and procedures in the Delivery Suite. She looked a bit suprised and simply replied, "We talk about things like that when we talk about your birth plan"
Hmph. I'm already WRITING and INVESTIGATING my birth plan.
She didn't seem to like it when I told her THAT.
Yeah... They're going to hate me.
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