It’s sad knowing this will most definitely be my final pregnancy post. Today is my estimate due date so baby’s arrival is getting closer by the day. Some friends have been asking how I’m been feeling, the truth is, I’m feeling great, in fact probably the best I have been throughout this entire pregnancy. I’m sleeping all through the night, still feeling able bodied and my mindset has been positive. The trial run set up of the birthing pool has been done. It took just 10 minutes to inflate and around 35 - 40 minutes to fill. I had midwife yesterday, she was concerned I was still measuring around 37 weeks and that there had been no change over a period. She decided to refer me to hospital for a growth scan for peace of mind, especially since I am planning a home birth. It was a bit of a crazy rushed day having to phone playgroup and let them know Max wouldn’t be in, then drive him over to my parents and get a lift to the hospital since parking is still a complete nightmare there. Long story short, all is well. I don’t think very much of those growth scans if I’m honest. I know too many people that have been told they are having big babies or small babies via regular growth scans which have turned out not to be. I’ve spent the last 4-5 days on a cleaning and organising mission. Everything is now in place for baby’s arrival and it’s just a case of staying on top of cleaning and tidying daily. Ideally, I don’t want this baby arriving until Sunday 1st at the very earliest. That’s when our dog gets dropped off at the dog hotel in Huntly for 2 weeks. There would be nothing more stressful than having a disobedient, loud hairy dog around while in labour. I can’t remember if I mentioned in earlier blog posts, but currently in Aberdeenshire there are 5 of us planning imminent home births. One in Westhill, one in Turriff and a couple of ladies in Huntly. It’s quite a big area that the midwifes cover, so hopefully none of us go into labour at the same time as that would mean the person who phoned last would be encouraged to make the trip into hospital. I don’t want to ship max off for the day or night when the time comes. I 100% want him nearby (obviously not in the same room as I don’t want to traumatise my 3-year-old) but once the baby is born I want him taken straight through to see me and meet his baby sister. Its a special moment I want captured on camera. So, it’s a big ask to get someone to come to our house at the last minute to entertain max, feed him, take him out for a walk and generally just make sure all his needs are met. Even if things kick off at night while he is in bed sleeping, we are required to have someone in the house that can be there to care for max in the morning should I need to be transferred into hospital at any given time. In other news, playgroup pickups are becoming quite eventful lately due to Max’s story telling. It seems Max has taken to telling the ladies each day that his dog Mindy bites him. What an absolute embarrassment! The truth is, Max is extremely rough with our dog and constantly tries to hit her and steal her toys. Since she can be an unpredictable dog, I’m forever telling him to stay away from her or she will bite him. I spend every minute of every day making sure they don’t annoy one another, which is completely draining and hard work, but they can never be left alone for even a split second as I have zero trust in my dog. It’s even more challenging now that the dog has taken to jumping over the baby gates and pleasing herself around the house. The dog is my number one stress in daily life and in all honesty, I do not know what will happen come baby’s arrival. Having the dog return home when baby’s here fills me dread and worry. I really want to enjoy the newborn stage and make the most of it as it could be the last time we have a baby and they grow up so fast! I feel extremely ready for birth now. I’m excited and looking forward to labour and being closer to meeting my little lady. I guess my next blog post will be her birth story. Until then, thanks for reading and being forgiving of my grammar Sharon x
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I'm 38weeks pregnant and literally cannot believe how quickly these last few months of pregnancy have flown by. It’s a strange feeling knowing that I’m full term and baby could arrive anytime within the next 4 weeks or so. I’m not focusing on the NHS estimate due date, as I know the date in which we conceived. Going by that date I would turn 40 weeks a whole 1 week past the NHS date, which would make sense to why I’m measuring a bit smaller. NHS standardise all babies as being at a certain gestation period (age) going by specific measurements (which is ludicrous given all babies are different shapes and sizes – no one size fits all). Our bodies are all different, some women also have longer pregnancies than others, so I don’t think focusing on a specific date is very useful at all. Baby will come when she is good and ready. Everything is now in place for a homebirth. The birthing pool has arrived, I have collected the midwife home birthing kit from Peterhead, drugs are the in the fridge and gases are in the garage. Fire brigade have been notified of the gases in the event of a fire and the ambulance service will be made aware of the home birth and on standby once I’m labouring. There’s a lot of planning and organising that goes into homebirths and initially I felt a bit overwhelmed by it all, but everything has fallen into place with very little effort required on my part. Within the next few days we will be doing a trail run set up of the birthing pool. I think it’s a good idea to know exactly how long it’s going to take to set up and fill the pool for when the special time arrives. Being organised and leaving nothing unknown helps with building confidence and will create a stress-free atmosphere or so I hope. I don’t have a birthing plan written down this pregnancy, however in my notes I’ve stated I will be using hypnobirthing techniques and I have several requests during labour, birth and post birth. · Minimum conversation, hushed voices · Minimum examinations unless requested · Picking baby out of water myself · Optimum cord clamping · Skin to skin Final payment has been made to the birth photographer, so she will now be on standby for the birth. Will be so nice to have photos to look back on. I had very little photos taken of my son’s birth and I really wish there had been more. I’m also finally at peace with the possibility of my birth choices changing last minute in the event of an emergency, which could result in a clinical hospitalised birth. What will be will be. All I can do is stay positive and prepare and plan for all birthing scenarios. Last pregnancy I was solely focused on the birth and didn’t give much thought to what life would be like caring for a new-born. I did so much birth preparation classes, researching and educating myself on birthing history, facts, statistics and choices that I didn’t see far past the birth itself. So, when my son was born I felt immediately lost, in a daze and a sadness that labour and birth were over. I got the gentle natural birth I had planned so long for, but was out of my comfort zone in unknown territory as a new mum and this scared me. I did not experience that immediate bond and connection with my son. In fact, it took near a week or so to feel that special mother and baby connection and rush of overwhelming love for him. Looking back, it all stemmed from focusing months on ensuring his arrival was well thought out and planned, that I neglected the thought of actually being a mum and how life would change for me. This pregnancy has been different in every sense. Although I’m just as prepared birth wise, I fully know what to expect and have imagined what family life will be like with the new addition. Something I never gave much thought to first time round. My midwife phoned on Wednesday to see how I was feeling and check I have all kit for the birth at home. She told me she is only on call this month on the 20th and 26th. I really hope that when the time does come that I get my own specific midwife and not someone I haven't met before. I suspect baby will make an appearance early October but I guess only time will tell. I feel super excited to meet baby and cannot wait to go into labour and experience it all over again. Baby still remains nameless at present though. My sons slowly coming round to the idea of having a baby sister. Quite a few of his pals have little sisters which helps, he seems quite intrigued by them. However, this purely depends on his mood that day. He still shouts and declares that he doesn't want a baby sister and she is going straight into the bucket. I was also informed recently of him poking dolls in the eyes. Definitely need to be on top of my game post birth to ensure he doesn't feel left out, but most importantly isn't ever left alone for even 1 second with the baby. |
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September 2017
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