Week 26, and our baby is now the size of a head of lettuce (or, since she's measuring small, maybe a large cauliflower) By the end of the week, we will be rounding into third (trimester, that is) and we will have entered into that magic phase where baby's chances of survival, should she be born prematurely, raise to a very acceptable 80 - 95% (depending on various factors)
As to me, I'm feeling a little more sluggish recently. I've been sleeping in a little more, running around a little less during the day and often falling asleep in my chair towards the end of the evening. This week, I have been experiencing hot flushes more often, which are certainly no fun when I'm stuck wearing a fleece to protect baby from the cold atmosphere of our store. And I've had frequent moments of light headedness during the day, despite my blood pressure raising to more comfortable levels. At this stage, I'm feeling very grateful that I have such a supportive partner and for the care and consideration of my colleagues.
Finally got in our consultant's appointment on the last day of week 25. I went on my own for this one, since it was mainly to do with my health and less about the baby's. We had a short discussion about the reasons I had been referred (namely my kidney and the family history of diabetes) and I had blood drawn to assess kidney function. It will be another week before we know the lab results but when I mentioned that we were hoping to transfer to the birthing centre, she [the consultant] didn't say anything discouraging. In fact, she was quite enthusiastic about the experience there, with only a minor mention of transfer times if medical intervention should become necessary and the fact that epidurals are not an option there.
Obviously, we can't say for sure what the birth experience will be like for us. I know that it's possible to get some idea by looking at my mother's birth experiences (the ones that were delivered naturally, anyway) and on the whole, it looks promising if genetics are any indicator. All my mothers pregnancies were strong and healthy (which is good, since my first seems to be mirroring hers) As far as girls are concerned, both I and my sister were significantly smaller than average (approximately the same as little Felix is estimated to be) and were delivered in under an hour on gas and air. In ideal circumstances, I would most like to have a home birth (although A prefers the idea of having medical assistance close to hand) The NHS is very discouraging of home births for first time mothers - and I can understand their point of view, I'm not completely without common sense - but still, I would feel much more comfortable with an experience as close to a home birth as we can get. And that is why it means so much to us, me in particular, to get that transfer. The birthing centre is a home from home. They even have beds available for partners to stay over. The transfer time is currently under 30 mins, if medical intervention were required - which we both consider acceptable - and as to epidural...I'm pretty squeamish still about epi, spinal block and the like.
On the birth plan we've started to draw up, we've decided to have an open mind on the subject of pain relief. We've stated that we are willing to follow medical advice wherever necessary for the health of myself and the baby but that we would rather pain meds not extend to procedures which restrict my movement. I've never liked being on my back and feel something close to anxiety if I'm in that position for more than a moment or two. I also believe that this is certainly not the most effective position for birthing. We are currently researching active birthing classes in our area.
Monday 29 September 2014
Friday 19 September 2014
Getting into the flow (24 weeks 6 days)
And wonder of wonders, we have a bump!
I discovered the evidence of an expanding tummy earlier this week. Feeling hormonal from work stress and lack of sleep, I turned to A looking for love and sympathy. Well, what I actually did was walk out of the bedroom, moaning "my zipper wont stay up. I'm getting faaaatttt!"
And A - my wonderful, sensitive, loyal partner. The woman I plan to spend the rest of my days with and raise children with. The love of my life - replied: "Don't complain. You wanted a belly and now you have one." Hands up. Who can spot the clanger that set the hormonal pregnant lady off?
(For the record, A did later apologise and offer cheesecake in penance)
But to add insult to injury - later that day, the button holding up my trousers flew off and I was forced to suffer the indignity of asking the boss if he had a spare safety pin.
For the rest of the working week, I've had to make do with a pair of trousers from home that still fit me. The maternity trousers our company provides are clearly designed by a man: they are basically regular size trousers with a ginormous non-elasticated waistband. Even with the understanding that I'm going to get bigger, I think it's pretty clear by now that I'm never going to reach those proportions. And even if I did, I would still want an elasticated waistband.
So far, it's only my work trousers that I have had to give up (thanks to a life-long preference for 'boys fit' clothes, I have plenty of room in most outfits) but as time marches on, I'm planning on buying belly bands to make my regular clothes last a bit longer.
In other news, we had an appointment with the midwife (W) on Tuesday. We had to breeze through things as we had arrived late but we did get to hear baby's heartbeat for the first time. We're starting to figure out that now she has full range of movement, she really doesn't like being spied on and will do everything she can to make it harder to check in on her. The minute the Doppler hit my belly, she was twisting and turning cartwheels and kicking at the source of her frustration with everything she had. We all had a laugh at how stubborn she could be. Eventually, we got to hear a few moments of healthy heartbeat that satisfied W and left A and I in tears.
During that whistle-stop appointment, we had the usual urine and blood pressure checks, and W asked about fetal movement. For the moment, all that is important is establishing that there is some daily movement, which we get plenty of. Baby has recently graduated to hiccups, which means that she has started breathing and swallowing amniotic fluid in preparation for the outside world. She gets them a lot and seems to blame me for them, as I get a tiny foot in my gut right after each one. My blood pressure has changed from booking in: from 110/72 to 98/62, which is healthy but slightly low which may mean I'll be feeling light headed and/or dizzy and may lead to passing out. This isn't a problem. I've had periods of low blood pressure on account of my one kidney for as long as I can remember. W (and mum) recommend I avoid taking long, warm baths on my own for a while (which is a shame, as it's something I've always enjoyed. Still, safety first.)
We also asked again about transferring to the birthing centre and were told that it would have to be reviewed further into third trimester (which is just around the corner!)
I discovered the evidence of an expanding tummy earlier this week. Feeling hormonal from work stress and lack of sleep, I turned to A looking for love and sympathy. Well, what I actually did was walk out of the bedroom, moaning "my zipper wont stay up. I'm getting faaaatttt!"
And A - my wonderful, sensitive, loyal partner. The woman I plan to spend the rest of my days with and raise children with. The love of my life - replied: "Don't complain. You wanted a belly and now you have one." Hands up. Who can spot the clanger that set the hormonal pregnant lady off?
(For the record, A did later apologise and offer cheesecake in penance)
But to add insult to injury - later that day, the button holding up my trousers flew off and I was forced to suffer the indignity of asking the boss if he had a spare safety pin.
For the rest of the working week, I've had to make do with a pair of trousers from home that still fit me. The maternity trousers our company provides are clearly designed by a man: they are basically regular size trousers with a ginormous non-elasticated waistband. Even with the understanding that I'm going to get bigger, I think it's pretty clear by now that I'm never going to reach those proportions. And even if I did, I would still want an elasticated waistband.
So far, it's only my work trousers that I have had to give up (thanks to a life-long preference for 'boys fit' clothes, I have plenty of room in most outfits) but as time marches on, I'm planning on buying belly bands to make my regular clothes last a bit longer.
In other news, we had an appointment with the midwife (W) on Tuesday. We had to breeze through things as we had arrived late but we did get to hear baby's heartbeat for the first time. We're starting to figure out that now she has full range of movement, she really doesn't like being spied on and will do everything she can to make it harder to check in on her. The minute the Doppler hit my belly, she was twisting and turning cartwheels and kicking at the source of her frustration with everything she had. We all had a laugh at how stubborn she could be. Eventually, we got to hear a few moments of healthy heartbeat that satisfied W and left A and I in tears.
During that whistle-stop appointment, we had the usual urine and blood pressure checks, and W asked about fetal movement. For the moment, all that is important is establishing that there is some daily movement, which we get plenty of. Baby has recently graduated to hiccups, which means that she has started breathing and swallowing amniotic fluid in preparation for the outside world. She gets them a lot and seems to blame me for them, as I get a tiny foot in my gut right after each one. My blood pressure has changed from booking in: from 110/72 to 98/62, which is healthy but slightly low which may mean I'll be feeling light headed and/or dizzy and may lead to passing out. This isn't a problem. I've had periods of low blood pressure on account of my one kidney for as long as I can remember. W (and mum) recommend I avoid taking long, warm baths on my own for a while (which is a shame, as it's something I've always enjoyed. Still, safety first.)
We also asked again about transferring to the birthing centre and were told that it would have to be reviewed further into third trimester (which is just around the corner!)
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