36 week update and waterbirth question

[cjra]

Had my homevisit and 36 week appt last night and all is well :). Heart
beating strongly, BP still good, baby still in position although this
time he/she was straight, like a torpedo aiming to head out..... he/she
has been head down for ages.

I hadn't planned a waterbirth, only because I figured we'd have no
place for the birthing pool and it'd be kind of a hassle to deal with.
The thought appeals to me, and I LOVE soaking in our pop-up pool these
days to relieve my aching back. My midwife mentioned there was plenty
of space and it'd be little hassle. So, for those who've had a
waterbirth, any thoughts? Is this a no-brainer and I'm just trying to
use my brain too much? Not sure why I'm hesitating, just thinking of
water splashing all over the floor (hardwoods we've just refinished)...

And on another point, after so many people filling me with their horror
stories of childbirth, I feel like a weirdo. I am *so* looking forward
to this. Not only to having the baby, but the actual childbirth
process, which just fascinates me. I feel like I've been on this 9
month scientific experiment and now's the final experiment. Learning
how the body functions and how both I and the baby respond to it all -
labor, contractions, the placenta coming out...it is simply
fascinating! I'm so curious about how it will all work when it happens.
My midwife agrees, my DH thinks I'm just too much of a scientist, and
other people think I'm just not being realistic. But oh well. I'll
stick to being excited. And of course I'm excited to meet this little
alien creature that's been inside me for awhile. :)

[Nikki]

"cjra" > wrote in message

So, for those who've had a
> waterbirth, any thoughts?

I've never had a water birth but I have soaked in the tub during labor *and
there is nothing better!!!* :-) I would absolutely go for a water birth if
that was an option.

> Not sure why I'm hesitating, just thinking of
> water splashing all over the floor (hardwoods we've just refinished)...

Lol. Put a painting plastic an towels under it or something. Have someone
else be in charge of putting it up and taking it down. If you know someone
is in charge of that it may be an easier decision to make.

> I am *so* looking forward
> to this.<snip> But oh well. I'll
> stick to being excited.

Good for you! It will be work but it is very empowering. Nothing else
quite matches it. I've never had a c-section but I imagine that seems
empowering too because your body creates another human being and that
doesn't really hit home for me until they are actually in my arms...even
with subsequent babies.


--
Nikki, mama to
Hunter 4/99
Luke 4/01
Brock 4/06
Ben 4/06

[Anne Rogers]

what is a pop up pool?

if it's deep enough, could you not use it for the birth?

Anne

[Anne Rogers]

> I've never had a c-section but I imagine that seems empowering too
> because your body creates another human being and that doesn't really hit
> home for me until they are actually in my arms...even with subsequent
> babies.

Neither have I, but what I have heard is that it can be the opposite, women
can feel very disconnected and particularly if it is emergency, under a
general, rather than something planned and prepared for in advance can find
it very wierd and strange when they first hold the baby and that kind of
thing

Anne

[cjra]

Anne Rogers wrote:
> what is a pop up pool?
>
> if it's deep enough, could you not use it for the birth?
>
> Anne

It's outdoors, so no ;-)

It's 3ft deep and 15 ft in diameter. Basically you fill it with water
and the ring around the top helps it to keep it's shape.
Like this only ours is deeper and bigger-
http://www.poolcenter.com/images/aboveground_pools_10_footer.jpg

It's been a godsend lately, although keeping it clean is near
impossible.

[cjra]

Nikki wrote:
> "cjra" > wrote in message
>
> So, for those who've had a
> > waterbirth, any thoughts?
>
> I've never had a water birth but I have soaked in the tub during labor *and
> there is nothing better!!!* :-) I would absolutely go for a water birth if
> that was an option.

Hmm, DH just said "If I was the one giving birth I'd have a
waterbirth."

>
> > Not sure why I'm hesitating, just thinking of
> > water splashing all over the floor (hardwoods we've just refinished)...
>
> Lol. Put a painting plastic an towels under it or something. Have someone
> else be in charge of putting it up and taking it down. If you know someone
> is in charge of that it may be an easier decision to make.

It'll be DH's job, so I guess this one is easy afterall :)

On another note, my suggestion that DH record my contractions on a
spreadsheet so we can look at pretty graphs was met with a big fat NO!
;-)

> > I am *so* looking forward
> > to this.<snip> But oh well. I'll
> > stick to being excited.
>
> Good for you! It will be work but it is very empowering. Nothing else
> quite matches it.

My midwife was warning DH that it's ok if I say "I can't do this!" and
to just continue to be supportive. DH laughed and said more likely it
would be the opposite - I am so stubborn that I'll be saying "I AM
DOING THIS!" no matter how bad it gets.

[Sidheag McCormack]

cjra writes:

> On another note, my suggestion that DH record my contractions on a
> spreadsheet so we can look at pretty graphs was met with a big fat NO!
> ;-)

There's a palm application, and I'm sure you could import the data to a
spreadsheet afterwards - would that help? :-)

Missed the beginning, but if the question was "should I have water
available to labour in" my answer is YES YES a thousand times YES. Didn't
actually give birth in water (transferred to hospital) so can't speak for
that, but it would be good to have the option.

Sidheag
DS Colin Oct 27 2003

[cjra]

Sidheag McCormack wrote:
> cjra writes:
>
> > On another note, my suggestion that DH record my contractions on a
> > spreadsheet so we can look at pretty graphs was met with a big fat NO!
> > ;-)
>
> There's a palm application, and I'm sure you could import the data to a
> spreadsheet afterwards - would that help? :-)

DH's argument was "I deal with analysing data all day. I don't want to
do more!" (he's a scientist as well) He does have a point. He has
'accused' me of being too scientific about this sometimes, esp when I
said I was looking forward to a second pregnancy so I could compare
things - like the fact that this kid seems to hang out on my right side
all the time.

[PattyMomVA]

"cjra" wrote and I snipped:
> And on another point, after so many people filling me with their horror
> stories of childbirth, I feel like a weirdo. I am *so* looking forward
> to this. Not only to having the baby, but the actual childbirth
> process, which just fascinates me. I feel like I've been on this 9
> month scientific experiment and now's the final experiment. Learning
> how the body functions and how both I and the baby respond to it all -
> labor, contractions, the placenta coming out...it is simply
> fascinating! I'm so curious about how it will all work when it happens.
> My midwife agrees, my DH thinks I'm just too much of a scientist, and
> other people think I'm just not being realistic. But oh well. I'll
> stick to being excited. And of course I'm excited to meet this little
> alien creature that's been inside me for awhile. :)

I can so relate to what you've written. I'm an engineer, so fairly
scientifically minded. I had faith that my body would work the way it's
supposed to. I was a bit apprehensive about how I would handle labor the
first time, but I wouldn't describe it as being scared. Being scared of
pain, and then tensing up, can make the pain worse. So if you can be
relaxed about labor, not only will you have a better emotional experience,
you'll probably have a better physical experience too.

There was an article in _Mothering_ several years ago on the ecstasy of
birth. I experienced it with my second delivery. My labor support doula
thought my aura coming from the hospital could probably be seen from space!

Have a great time,
-Patty, mom of 1+2

[Anne Rogers]

> What's funny is I've been a complete stress case about *other* things
> in my life recently (work is insane, restoring our house has been
> crazy) and I've had a couple of near meltdowns probably brought on by
> hormones in conjunction with the above. But when I think of childbirth?
> I'm incredibly calm and relaxed. I'm a little more anxious when it
> comes to what to *do* with the baby once it's here, though ;-)

do you feel calm and relaxed but knowledgeable? obviously you can't predict
what is going to happen, but knowing how it happens (and you do seem to) is
usually part of being calm and relaxed, because those women who are calm and
relaxed but oblivious are in for a shock!

I admire you for the way you have you head round this, I wasn't petrified
first time, fearful wouldn't be the right word either, nervous might be, but
even so, I didn't have classic nervous feelings, I just wasn't calm, I don't
think you can know too much about it, knowledge empowers you. I think what
hindered me most was that I'd had threated preterm labour, I'd had
contractions that had made me scream, but I knew the real thing would be
worse as the contractions would be doing something, not just threatening to
do something. Using Bradley to prepare the 2nd time helped, but there was
still something inside me I just couldn't get my head round that no book or
class got near to touching and I can't even verbalise it to help others!

Anne

[rangitotogirl]

"cjra" > wrote in message
ups.com...

> And on another point, after so many people filling me with their horror
> stories of childbirth, I feel like a weirdo. I am *so* looking forward
> to this. Not only to having the baby, but the actual childbirth
> process, which just fascinates me. I feel like I've been on this 9
> month scientific experiment and now's the final experiment. Learning
> how the body functions and how both I and the baby respond to it all -
> labor, contractions, the placenta coming out...it is simply
> fascinating! I'm so curious about how it will all work when it happens.
> My midwife agrees, my DH thinks I'm just too much of a scientist, and
> other people think I'm just not being realistic. But oh well. I'll
> stick to being excited. And of course I'm excited to meet this little
> alien creature that's been inside me for awhile. :)
>
You're not a weirdo. I'm looking forward to it in a curious sort of way too.
We'll probably both change our minds once we've been through it, but you
described me down to a tee just then.