O2

Lucia arranged for rental of an oxygen tank in case we need it. It was delivered today. It is somewhat larger than I expected...


I was going to get him to put it in the office where we have the birthing pool stashed. After he told me it weighs 80 kilos I decided it might be a better idea to put it a little closer to where we will be.

Sigh of Relief

Today Lucia came over and we completed (oral vit k excluded) the preparations for the birth!! It feels GREAT!

We checked that the hose fit my shower- it didn't- and got an adapter which does the trick. I now have the birthing pool at my house. It will fit just fine in the space we have planned for it.

We also got the medical supplies on her list such as sterile gloves, gauze, syringes, IV equipment and syntocinon. These things are in case of postpartum hemorrhage and for repairs. Hoping none of it will be necessary! But glad to be prepared. The docs will bring instruments and oxygen and whatnot, and Lucia will bring a bunch of other things from flashlight to birthing stool to fetal doppler. Quite a lot of stuff, really.

It was good with Lucia. I felt like I made a good impression, one of health and organization and rationality and caring. Which I think is good for our birth team. While I'm not the first to have a home birth in their care, it's still far from common and I recognize the effort they are going to on my behalf. I'm glad for every bit of confidence I can build in them about my commitment to this.

She hadn't spoken to Dr. Lopez I guess, and I didn't bring up the non stress test, so that was averted. Phew. I have an appointment for tomorrow. I think I'll pray that the NST slips his mind so we just don't even have to have the conversation.

So, all that's left is for my Mom to get here. Six more days! I'm excited to show off my nice organized piles of birth and baby stuff, and to talk through how I see the birth going. Andrew doesn't have quite the same interest in these types of details :)

The birth and brand new baby corner. Two mesh bags with all my birth supplies, and the diaper bag full of brand new baby stuff like clothes and receiving blankets. Car seat and playpen. Planning to use the bassinet for baby to sleep in beside our bed.

Baby Shelves. Diapers, and bins of clothes ready to be washed up once we know whether it's a boy or a girl!

Birth Attendant Home Visit

Lucia and the pediatrician, Dr. Luis Flores, just left. Dr. Lopez didn't come because he's still recovering from his back surgery. That worries me a bit, and I'll discuss it more later on in the post.

Let me start with an on-the-record apology to my family. I slept in a bit this morning and during that time I dreamed that the team came over for this meeting but the house was a wreak and I was so upset and embarrassed. The bed wasn't even made. The playroom was a disaster. And Andrew had decided to revamp the living room configuration into something that was hugely aesthetically displeasing. I was mad at my family and mad at myself for letting it happen and the anger carried right into my real morning. Sorry family, for being so grumpy and impatient and curt this morning. I shouldn't have slept in if I was so concerned about getting the house in shape for visitors. I really wanted the house to look orderly and clean for this visit, because these people are doing something out of the ordinary on our behalf and I wanted them to feel very comfortable with their decision to attend our home birth.

Anyway we got the house cleaned up to my satisfaction, the kids went to Xochi's house to play while we had the meeting, and the meeting itself went quite well. We went over the list of supplies and who was responsible for what items. Then we toured the house. I had thought that we would put the tub in the front entrance but we decided to put it in our walk-in closet. Not as weird as it might sound. It's actually a walk-through closet. We walk through it from our bedroom on the way to our bathroom. Which means that I have shower, toilet and bed all nearby, and it's a nice intimate setting. Not the best for photos unfortunately. But I'm confident my highly motivated husband will figure something out. I'm sure it will include hanging some sort of backdrop. I can see it now... it's 3am, I'm in the throes of labour, and Andrew is hammering nails into the cement walls so he can get nice photos. Which of course I'll be glad we have after the fact, but possibly not so much at the time.

The neighbors also might not be so happy with this plan if I give birth in the middle of the night. But I've put up with a party or two so they can put up with some birthing noises (and some hammering) ;)

The pediatrician seemed quite relaxed with the home birth and with my low-intervention preferences. He thought it would be fine to wait on the vitamin K injection and just watch baby for any sign of hemorrhage. When I mentioned oral vitamin K he put it in my court so I am going to follow up on that. The oral application seems like a good compromise to me, plus ensuring that I have lots of vitamin K rich food in my diet.

About the OB. He had his surgery 2.5 weeks ago. I spoke to him a week later and he was feeling great and said that his recovery was ahead of schedule. He expected to be back in action two weeks after his surgery. So I was surprised to hear that he couldn't be here today. I think he may have overdone it or something in the last few days. Yikes. Of course I wish him a full and speedy recovery for his own sake. And also of course I'm a little concerned about what this might mean for my birth, especially if Wee3 decides to come a little earlier than we expect.

But there's not much I can (/will) do to influence Wee3's birth day and there's nothing I can do to influence Dr. Lopez's recovery. All I can do is continue to pray that God blesses this birth. I think we do have a backup OB, but I don't really like that element of the unknown. That said, Andrew expressed again that he is more than willing to protect our birth plans if things start to go off track without good medical reason.

On Tuesday Lucia will pop by with the hose from the tub so we can make sure that it fits my plumbing. The following Tuesday we will pick up the tub and stash it here in the house.

Before Lucia left I had her check baby's position again. It was the same as last time... at first she thought that baby was breech. Then she really dug in low and felt fairly sure that she had identified a head. I believe it that Baby's head is really low because I am feeling it in my ligaments, muscles and nerves. I sometimes get shooting pains down my thighs and I have to be a little careful how I move and turn otherwise I get very sore in my groin area.

Wee3, we trust you and our Lord to choose the perfect birth date. We will do our best to provide you with a gentle, peaceful, safe entry to this world, and we trust that God is in control even if the circumstances aren't exactly as we planned. We love you so much and we can't wait to meet you!

A Cautious WhooHOO!!

Yesterday I used Melissa's trick: I laid on my back with my hips elevated and had the kids talk and sing to the bottom of my belly. My two didn't get such a kick out of it as Melissa's two. But Wee3 did, it seems. Afterward my belly and pelvis felt different. Instead of a shelf, I now have a steep slope. And it just feels a little different in my pelvis area. Seemed to me that meant the baby had settled in. And hopefully head down!! The other thing I noticed was movement up under my ribs, something I had never felt before, just movements in the upper quadrant. So I was hopeful that meant longer reach and therefore legs up!

Naturally I poked and prodded extensively. Seemed to me that the lump I felt at my fundus was just too big and a little too soft feeling to be a head. But I couldn't find a head down low.

So I called Lucia to ask if I could pop by for her to check. Con todo gusto, she replied. She had a feel and at first said that it was the head at the top. Then she did more feeling around, and had to really dig but thought she finally felt the head deep in my pelvis. What it comes down to is that she can't say with 100% certainty but she is inclined to believe that Wee3 is now head down and well engaged in my pelvis. (!!!!!)

She mentioned that baby felt big... well no surprise there given that Eva and Micah were 8 and 9 lbs respectively. I told her I wasn't scared of a big baby. She didn't seem worried either. I feel good!

Praise God for today's special blessings: cooler weather and a very possibly head down baby!

A Little Worked Up

I'm feeling much better today, but the last few days I have been a little stressed. I've been trying, semi-successfully, to keep it under control. Then yesterday a friend suggested that perhaps I might have polyhydramnios (excess amniotic fluid) given that I seem large for dates, I have trouble figuring out baby's position, and baby has been breech. A reasonable suggestion, and one I appreciated her bringing up, from the point of view that it's something I would want to know before going into labour.

So I've been praying and I've been researching and I've been looking forward to today's visit with Lucia.

The prayers helped... by the time I got up this morning I was feeling much more peaceful.

The research in some ways eased my mind and in other ways worried me more. Many cases of polyhydramnios are for reasons unknown. Other causes could be any number of conditions of the central nervous system, heart or kidneys, in which the baby either can't swallow properly or produces too much urine. Whatever the reason, polyhydramnios can lead to premature labour/rupture of membranes, prolapsed cord, placental abruption... all very not good things. Signs of polyhydramnios include shiny, tight belly (doesn't describe mine), breech baby (because baby can float around so easily), difficulty identifying baby parts during palpation (I think I am just inexperienced and not gifted at this vs not being able to find baby parts. Neither Lucia nor Dr. Lopez has had any difficulty identifying baby's position), difficulty finding a heartbeat (never a problem), heartburn (not a problem), swollen legs (mine get slightly swollen, but not extreme and it only makes sense that it is heat related given the heat here), varicose veins (not a problem).

Of course the idea that my baby might have an abnormality is stressful, and the idea that it might cause problems during birth is disconcerting to say the least. But the good news is that most women with polyhydramnios go on to deliver healthy babies.

We saw Lucia today. She palpated and quickly discovered that the baby was full on head up. She laid a rebozo (a rectangular piece of fabric traditionally used as a shawl or a baby sling) on the floor and had me lay on my back on top of it. She and Andrew each took an end, lifted my bottom/middle about a foot off the floor, gave it a little shake to disengage the baby from my pelvis, then wiggled me by alternately pulling on the ends of the rebozo, for about 10 strokes. Lucia checked after that and baby had rotated a quarter turn! Cool.

She didn't express any concerns about my size or how my belly felt, and she seemed fairly relaxed about baby's position. Obviously we'd all be reassured if baby were in a favorable position, but it is good news I think that baby doesn't seem to be locked into breech.

I asked her a little more about everyone's role at the birth. Lucia will be a doula. She will be concerned with my emotional and physical well being- comfort measures, making sure I'm hydrated and fed, etc. She will spend the most time with us. Dr. Lopez will be there, I assume from the time active labour gets well underway, for medical support. He will watch for any developing complications, suture if needed, etc. The pediatrician will be called when the birth is imminent, and will be there for the baby, to give medical attention to the baby if needed, and to perform the newborn exam.

I'm feeling a little better about not having met the pedi yet. Andrew is totally on board with what I want and more than willing to run interference if the pedi (or Dr. Lopez for that matter) wants to take baby before I'm ready or perform some sort of intervention I don't want.

I did mention to Lucia that I don't want the baby vigorously cleaned up after the birth, just covered to stay warm (like that will be a problem if this heat continues!). I've seen lots of birth videos where baby is briskly rubbed, wailing, and imagine that is not a happy time for baby. There's no harm in leaving the babe vernixy and even a little bloody. In fact, from what I understand the vernix is terrific skin conditioner. :)

We talked also about home birth supplies and I'm in pretty good shape. I got the absorbent bed pads at the store yesterday, and Lucia told me that Depends make great postpartum pads. She thought we might be able to get the pharmacy at the entrance to our area to have an order ready for pickup if we need it, so we wouldn't have to purchase things we wouldn't necessarily need. She told me to get a 30cm wide tensor bandage for belly binding so that answers that question. I also tried the plastic sheet yesterday and it covers the bottom half of the bed completely so I think that will be good.

We'll have our care provider meeting here at the house a week from Sunday. I will be 36.5 weeks. A little closer than I'd like but I think it will be fine. It gives me a little more time to get the house a bit more organized as well.

So, I left feeling pretty good. I'll still be curious like crazy to know about baby's position but there are things that we can do to encourage baby to turn vertex and then I'll just have to leave the rest of it in God's hands.

Prenatal Class

Today was a speedy class because one of our classmates is in labour and Lucia had to head out to support her. She is 40 weeks today. She was VERY ready to meet her baby and has been hoping labour would start sooner than later. I saw her today at the doctor's office and she was still status quo, but by the time I got to class at 7pm she was heading for the hospital. How exciting!

The info part of today's class was a video of a c-section. I had a lot of trouble watching. I felt stressed, tense, and upset. I felt bad subjecting Wee3 to those stress hormones. There were two aspects to my feelings. The first was empathy for the baby and mother. The film didn't even show the mother's face until right at the end. All we saw was the surgical site. I felt terrible that she was so detached from what was happening. I know that in some hospitals they will lower the drape so Mom can see the baby emerge. Then I felt bad for the baby who was pulled out, immediately detached from his/her lifeline and mother, handed to a stranger, suctioned, scrubbed clean, left laying alone between procedures. I longed on behalf of that baby for some skin-to-skin contact, some warmth, some familiarity. What an abrupt and I'd imagine frightening transition to this world! The other reason I got upset was thinking about how things could be for me and my baby if we ended up needing a surgical delivery. I asked Dr. Lopez a little about it today; in particular whether Andrew could be in the OR during surgery. He said he would have no problem with it but hospital policy is no. He did say that it might be possible to request an exception. The idea of undergoing emergency surgery all alone upsets me greatly. I know that I would cope by detaching emotionally and I don't know how easy it would be to re-engage and bond with our new baby. And the idea that Andrew wouldn't be there to hold my hand and then advocate for the baby... turns my stomach.

These are things that we will address during our meeting with our attendants so we can have as much influence as possible on procedures and protocols, and provide our baby with as gentle a birth as possible under the circumstances. Until then I won't stress about it. But I do want to address it so that we can have an opportunity to choose where choice exists.

26 Weeks

Your baby now weighs about 2 pounds and is about 13 inches long. You’ve reached the end of your second trimester and now time may seem to crawl along as you wait through these final weeks. Just remember that soon you will have a new little one to hold and love!

This week the eyes are opening and beginning to blink. Before now, the eyes have been sealed shut so that they can continue to develop the retina. Baby’s eye color, depending on their coloring and ethnic background, may be dark or brown, or they could be grayish blue. Depending on your baby their eyes may change colors during the first few months after birth. Eyelashes are growing now, as is the hair on their head.

Taste buds are continuing to develop and they are improving their sucking and swallowing motions. Brain waves become stronger this week, which affects the vision and hearing. The smooth brain is now forming grooves and valleys.

The bronchial tract develops this week and the lungs are growing. If your baby were born now, it would have an 85% chance of survival, but the lungs are still very immature. Little boy’s testes have completely descended at this point and although your baby is rapidly putting fat on their body, the skin is still very thin and the veins are visible.

Almost finished the second trimester! Belly continues to expand at a rapid pace. The weather has been relatively cool and I have been feeling pretty great. On the weekend my hips started to feel a bit sticky and today I was almost limping. I have been using the birth ball and hopefully that will work it out. I just feel like I have to find the right stretch or something and they'll unlock. I'm glad for yoga and for the childbirth classes because both do movements that are so beneficial to the pregnant bod.

Starting to get comments about baby's gender. Pretty much universally declared a boy. The other night baby was moving around so I put Andrew's hand on my belly. The baby put on a show for Daddy! I have not felt this baby move so much as she or he did while Andrew's big warm hand was on there. It was fun. All the activity made him think it was a boy. It's true I'm carrying basketball-style, just like I did with Micah. (But I'm also not as heavy as I was with Eva and my hips haven't opened up yet like they did with her the moment I conceived). The timing of conception leans toward boy. But we both thought that Eva was a girl and let ourselves get talked out of it by other people. I'm going to go with Eva's declaration and continue to assume it is a girl, but not be surprised if it's a boy.

We have been kicking around names a lot more lately. Haven't settled on anything but it feels good to get serious about the names.

Yesterday in class we heard that one of the students had her baby that morning. A three hour painless labour. Her husband didn't even make it- he was still putting on his scrubs when the baby emerged. She was hoping for a waterbirth but there was no time for that. She was very pleased with how her birth went. Faster isn't always better (it can be harder on Mom and baby) but this one went really well.

We saw a number of water birth videos today. I think it opened some students' eyes to the possibilities. Most of the women moved around quite a bit according to what their bodies were telling them. All of the women held their babies immediately. The births felt so... simple. Straightforward. No bustling around, no special tools. Just Mom working hard, Dad supporting, and baby finding its way to the outside world. Sometimes the midwife/doctor would pass the baby to Mom, sometimes Mom and/or Dad would catch the baby.

Lucia did go over some of the benefits. I wished that she would have provided a little more information. The other students and husbands sometimes ask questions, but I wonder how many questions are left unasked and unanswered. That said, maybe Lucia's mission is not to provide all the answers but rather to expose people to the possibilities. And hopefully the couples pursue the options that speak to them. It's tough, because many of these couples have doctors who are not very open to changing the ways that they have traditionally managed birth. And it is hard to change your OB partway through a pregnancy. But I'm sure the classes have a positive impact on the experience of some couples and that is awesome.

Prenatal Class

I enjoyed today's class a lot. I enjoyed the exercise/relaxation part (and the massage part, naturally) more than yesterday. Now that I knew what to expect, I didn't feel like I was fumbling around trying to keep up at an aerobics class.

The information part was a natural childbirth movie which I thought was quite good. Covered a lot of bases in a short period of time. I was glad that the first-timers at class had the opportunity to be exposed to the many options and variations and to see what a natural birth can be like. Quite a bit of time was spent going over how the baby comes through the pelvis, and it really struck me just how much work birth is for the baby too! I'll be cheering this baby on when our time comes. It's a team effort! I also want to pay specific attention (assuming I have the presence of mind) to the movements of the baby throughout the labour and birth process.

Check out this cool animation of childbirth (it is not graphic):



Lucia and I went over my birth plan today. She referred to herself as a doula so from now on that is how I will refer to her. I believe she is certified as a nurse-midwife and I wanted to acknowledge that, but given my understanding of her role in the birth process, "doula" is the best fit. I loved it when she said that, to her, the labouring mother is a queen. Yessssssss.

Anyway she said she was completely in agreement with all of my desires. She thought I might have some work to do with the OB regarding cervical checks. She has two pediatricians in mind. One is a woman who lived in England for a time. She will most likely be ok with all of my requests pertaining to newborn care. However she works at the seguro social (public hospital) and wouldn't be able to miss work if my birth happens during her shift. The other pediatrician might be more resistent to my requests. I think Lucia was planning on talking to them very soon so I might know where we're at in short order. The good news is that they both speak English so I'd be able to forward English language literature to support my requests.

25 Weeks

Your baby is now about 1 ½ pounds and measures around 12 inches long. You are closely approaching your third trimester and the final stretch of your pregnancy. Now is a great time to investigate and start birthing classes if you haven’t already done so. By now, people may be noticing that you are pregnant. Maternity clothes may be a necessity, although you may still fit into some of your pre-pregnancy, looser clothing.


[So... can you notice I'm pregnant? Ha hahahahaha]

Taste buds are developing at this point and the baby even is able to distinguish sweet tastes. Blood vessels are developing in the lungs to prepare for their vital function after birth, but for now they are filled with amniotic fluid and are practicing breathing movements. Breathing is controlled by the nervous system.

If you were to shine a flashlight on your abdomen, the baby will turn their head toward the light because the optic nerve is now working. Fingerprints, toenails and fingernails are fully formed and the spine is straightening out. Bones are continuing to harden at this time.

Vernix, the waxy substance that covers your baby, is forming at a rapid pace. This protects their skin and helps regulate body temperature.

I started attending my midwife's childbirth education classes this week. It is very interesting, as it is very unlike a class I'd expect to take in Canada. But I think it's very worthwhile for building my relationship with her and also to learn about the birthing culture in Mexico!

The classes are twice a week for 2.5 hours per classs. I'm unclear how many weeks there are in total. Four? Nine? I can only make two weeks/four classes. The first hour and a half is light exercise, breathing exercises (hee hee hee haw lamaze type breathing), massage and relaxation. The last hour is the talk. Yesterday she covered the reproductive systems and typical traditional hospital birth. It creeped me out to see the images of women flat on their backs, legs in stirrups, fully draped, only betadine-scrubbed perineum visible. Um, doctors, there's a woman attached to that vagina!

Tomorrow we'll cover a natural birth and note the contrast.

I asked Lucia how many births here in Mexico are like the traditional hospital birth she discussed. She said the majority! Then she said well actually, most of them are c-section. She looked back in her log and probably 75% of recent students ended up with c-sections. The WHO guideline is about 10% c-section rate.

I appreciated how she took a holistic approach to discussing pregnancy; instead of isolating it as a condition, she also discussed anatomy, menstruation, conception, and sterilization. I didn't agree with her assertion that you need to do 'retraction exercises' to an uncircumcized boy's foreskin. She was very pro-breastfeeding which I appreciated, though she did state that women need to toughen up their nipples leading up to birth (the source of any pain during nursing is actually an incorrect latch, not sensitive nipples).

There was some discussion of ultrasound; she mentioned that I had declined because of my concerns about risk to the baby. She asked one of the Dads, who is a doctor, what his opinion was about that. He said that there are no conclusive studies of risk/damage to the baby (true) but that there is some evidence of a link between ultrasounds and reflux. Lucia told me later that she's believed that all along and was gratified to hear a doctor acknowledge it.

I just wrote my birth plan and emailed it off to Lucia. It will be very interesting to see what kind of objections and debate it raises with the OB and pediatrician (whom I haven't yet met). I'm not going to stress about it... I'm not going to stress about it.... ;) I'm actually glad for the opportunity to get everything out in the open and work out any conflicts well ahead of time. All of my requests are evidence-based and I can provide them with studies and papers to back it up.

Now that the weather has cooled off a bit, I am feeling fantastic. Sleeping great, good energy, good attitude.

Clothing is a bit of a problem right now. Almost all of my maternity pants are baggy and/or unflattering. Many of my tops either don't cover my whole belly or are baggy and unflattering. I did buy a cheap t-shirt to cut off and use as a shirt extender which works quite nicely. I have some one-size-up regular pants which I wore post-partum last time which look good but start feeling pinchy in the waist after a few hours. I have some extremely comfortable but pilly goucho sweats which I wear a lot around the house, and I have a couple of maternity skirts which are quite comfortable but not appropriate for every occasion. All that said, I'm grateful to have a collection of mat clothing at all, and it's only a short time more that I'll need them, really.

Care Situation

I met with a midwife today. I believe she is the only one practicing here in Torreon. She also gives natural childbirth classes. It was a good meeting.

I feel that she is coming from the same place as me in terms of trusting birth and God's design for our bodies. She will attend me, but not as a midwife in the sense that I understand midwifery, because there will also be a doctor there whose role will be the second stage (when the baby emerges).

That said, I haven't met the doctor she recommended yet, so maybe- hopefully- I can have a great, trusting relationship with him! She said that he is fairly sensitive and open. I will make an appointment with him in the next couple of weeks.

I have met the other OB she works with and had a pretty good impression of him. I know a woman who had two babies with him and was delighted with both births. But Lucia also told me a story which disturbed me. At one birth the nurse had forgotten to put the scissors on the instrument tray. And he felt like it was so important to cut the cord quickly that he tore it with his fingers! Eww. He is interested in natural birth but doesn't appear to really believe in it. Perhaps he sees it more as a novelty. Or another angle for getting patients? This despite the fact that Lucia said he has attended some wonderful natural births with her.

We talked about my options for the location of the birth and they seem to be pretty open. She recommended a number of hospitals, including one in which we could have a water birth. I will definitely investigate that option further as I think it can be an opportunity to have a very gentle birth for the mother, and for gentle transition for the baby. It also allows the mother to move around more easily than on dry land and therefore help the baby to move through the pelvis more easily. And of course it is a wonderful comfort measure to many moms.

I would also like to look into the option of home birth. I have some interest in that though I'm not married to the idea either. All the ducks would really have to be in a row for it to be the right choice, I think.

I have so many questions for the OB I choose. I pray he is receptive to my wishes. I am however prepared for some uphill battles. Praying that I can be convincing about those things with which he doesn't agree initially!

Lucia gave me some homemade- from her own trees- orange blossom tea to help me sleep better. I am having a cup right now. We'll see how it goes! Last night went slightly better. I brought an extra pillow to bed and propped my legs up on it and that gave me a bit of relief from the restless feelings I've been having.

I'm feeling pretty tired these last days, but it could be the poor sleep that's getting to me. Having some nausea, but very minor. Overall, feeling good!