Turn a Negative into a Positive!

Today marked a very important milestone in my journey towards a natural Hypnobirth.  In previous posts, you may remember me mentioning that I was tested for Group B Strep last week.  Group B Strep is a bacteria that can exist on your skin that is normally present and harmless.  If this bacteria is present in your birth, it can be passed onto your baby as he is being born and it can cause infection.  For women who are tested positive for Group B Strep, they are required to get an IV after their water breaks.  The IV contains antibiotics so it can protect the baby from the bacteria.
This is significant to me because I have always seen my labor going in two different directions, based on whether or not I turn out to be Group B Strep positive.  If I am positive, then that means that as soon as my water breaks, I have to go to the hospital and start my antibiotic IV - regardless of whether or not I am in labor.  If I haven't had any contractions, it could mean that I spend a lot of time laboring without the resources I was looking for, which is an untethered experience where I can take a bath or walk around and move freely.  If I am negative, then if my water breaks, I can stay at home for up to 24 hours with the hopes that I am able to progress in my dilatation so I can spend the least amount of time possible in the hospital before I am at a 10.  I worked really hard in imagining the possibilities of the two paths to be positive in either sense... although I worried a lot about how I was going to manage through with an IV knowing how much I wanted to be able to move freely as I labored.  I also didn't want to rush into the hospital.  To be completely honest, I was really stressed about it.  

I was tested for the bacteria on Friday last week by my Midwife, and she told me that my results would be available a week later, or today.  I went into my appointment today with Arthur knowing that I would find out as soon as we went back.  They called my name and Arthur and I went back to get my vitals.  They weighed me, and I had gained 3 lbs in 1 week.  Yikes!  Finn is growing and so am I.  This is ok because I know that I can't beat myself up for something that I have little control over.  She then took my blood pressure, and told me it was on the lower end, which is good.  She then asked me if I wanted to know my Group B Strep results.  I nearly screamed YES!

She fumbled for a second trying to find them and mumbled a bit about how they have had trouble over the past few days getting the results quickly from the lab.  She then said that she had found them.  She says "It looks like you are negative!  Congratulations!"  I started to cry.  I was so happy.  I saw my entire natural birth flash before my eyes and I was overjoyed.  It was as if I had won the lottery.  Arthur laughed at me a bit because of how emotional I got, but I can blame the hormones.  :)

The rest of the day I have been on cloud 9.  All of the stress I was feeling about my water breaking, and about being able to labor in a tub, and having to have an IV was gone.

This experience has reinforced my desire to be successful in my goal for a natural Hypnobirth.  Instead of feeling anxious and nervous about Finn getting ready to be here, I am just now more excited.  It's almost like a surprise, like waiting for something I'm wanting to come in the mail, or that feeling you get when you're meeting a blind date for the first time.  Is that a crazy comparison?  I don't know if I care, I'm just happy that today was such a great day!  :)

My Favorite Hypnobirth Video

I've done great with updating my blog every day this month!  I don't always post that I've updated on Facebook, so I suggest that you bookmark my blog and check back if you're interested in reading it without notification.  :)  My URL is http://theminersonline.blogspot.com/

Anyway, on to the topic for the day!  :)  Every night before bed, Arthur and I are practicing our Hypnobirth exercises.  It's crucial that I am able to move into a state of complete relaxation when I start having my early labor contractions.

I find that breathing and relaxing is really easy for me, and so I feel like my Hypnobirth will be successful.  One of the first examples I saw of Hypnobirthing was on YouTube.  I found a really great example of a hospital Hypnobirth when I was first researching it. 

Some of the things that really stood out to me was the fact that she was so far dilated, and she wasn't screaming in pain or on her back.  I also was surprised that she wasn't holding her breath during pushing.  This was really different from all of the stories I had heard of birthing.  How would the baby even move if she wasn't bearing down?  I didn't understand.

Now that I've been through the class, and I understand how breathing can deliver the baby for you, it is something I am really excited for.

The other thing I loved about this example was how alert the baby was after, and how agile the mom is, walking around so freely and not hurting or exhausted.  I will have this!

I decided to share this cool video of my favorite hospital Hypnobirth example.  Let me know what you think!
   

60th Post!

As promised last weekend, here is the update blog!  :)  Better late than never, I say! This is my 60th post!  How great is that?!  I'll try to make it amazing for you...

Things are going well, I'm feeling really good and I'm getting very excited about how close I am to Finn's arrival.  The time really does start to fly by after hitting the 20 week mark.  I think having that ultrasound when you're halfway really makes worrying about milestones a thing of the past. 

Pregnancy (and Trying to Conceive) is really just a very complicated and annoying waiting game.  Every month that Arthur and I were trying, I was constantly frustrated with how many things I had to wait for.  Waiting for my period to come, waiting for my ovulation date, waiting for my period to come again... so many things!  Then, when I was finally pregnant, I had more things to wait for.  Waiting for the day we would tell our family, waiting for our first doctor's appointment and hearing the heartbeat.  Waiting to find out the sex of the baby, and then waiting to confirm it at the first official ultrasound.  Waiting to hear if my baby was generally healthy enough at the 20 week ultrasound, and then waiting for the final countdown to labor and delivery.

Overall, I will say that the hardest part of pregnancy is definitely the first half.  Now that I'm almost halfway through the second half, I will say that the second half is so much better. 

I think my next entry will probably be more information about my Trying to Conceive story and the things I did to help myself be physically ready to get pregnant.  It's not so easy, the way that some people think.  Even though I had an easier time than most, I still have a story to tell.  Whether or not it can help someone is the question.  I will write it regardless, because I feel like having it documented will really help me if I ever want to share it with someone who is also struggling with the same things I did.  That will definitely be the next entry.

I also will need to do an entry about my birth plan and the classes Arthur and I have been taking.  I remember when I posted a previous entry here about me not knowing what path I was going to take with my pregnancy.  I am such a different person now, after going through these classes.  I would like to (selectively) share some of the information I've learned in hopes that I can help someone else the way that it has helped me.  All I will say for now is that my perspective and perception of the way I want my birth to go is totally different than what I ever expected.  I'm looking forward to sharing some of the neat things I've learned.

Pregnancy-wise, things are moving forward well.  I've had monthly doctor's appointments since my 20 week ultrasound.  I haven't told many people, but I figured it's ok to blog about it now that I'm not as concerned with it.  In my 20 week ultrasound, the tech found a cyst sitting behind my cervix.  The tech wasn't sure if it is on my ovary or not, but because she couldn't find my right ovary, she assumed that it is there.  It's a simple cyst, which means that it's a harmless fluid-filled cyst that can sometimes come with pregnancy.  It's supposed to shrink and be gone by the time you get to 20 weeks.  It hadn't shrunk enough to assure the tech that it wasn't a concern, because it was 8 centimeters, or the size of a baseball.  When I heard her say that, it scared me a bit.  But when we talked to the doctor, he reassured me it was ok, and normal. 

We got to go back at 24 weeks and will go back again this Friday for 28 weeks to check it again.  I say it's a blessing that I've had this simple cyst because I've been able to have more ultrasounds than normal, and getting to see Finn more is always a good thing.

Here are some pictures of Finn at our 24 week ultrasound.  You'll see a picture of his profile, his arm and his face.  I love the one of his face! 

I'll keep everyone updated after this appointment on whether or not the cyst has grown or shrunk.  At my last appointment, it was approximately the same size.  I'm not worried about it at all, because it causes me no pain or discomfort.  :)

Finn-wise, Arthur got me a present for Valentine's Day to get a 4D ultrasound in my 28th week.  He and I are going to go sometime this week so we can see Finn's face.  I'm really excited for that.  In addition to the doctor's ultrasound, I'm pretty sure that it's going to be an amazing week. 

I'm feeling movement all of the time now.  From the second I wake up to the second I'm falling asleep, Finn is moving around, kicking and getting the hiccups.  At first, the kicks were really deliberate, and usually right in my bladder.  Don't get me wrong, they have never been annoying... now that they're less rough, I'm appreciating them a lot more.  I can usually feel him turning or rolling from the top of my stomach to the bottom.  It's pretty cool.

Size-wise, I get a lot of comments from people that I'm not as big as they would expect.  Seeing that I'll be 7 months this coming Thursday, most people can't believe that I'm not "popping" yet.  I think it's because it's my first pregnancy, I'm a bit taller, and my sister says that it's because we carry boys higher.  Regardless, I refuse to worry about how big he is because every ultrasound has proven that he is growing fine and that he looks healthy.  My favorite comment yet from the ultrasound tech is that he is one of the most symmetrical babies she's ever seen.  Wow!  What a compliment!  :)

Arthur and I have registered at a couple of different places for our baby shower, at Target and Babies R Us.  We have a lot of clothes already and we also have everything we need for the nursery including his crib, his dresser, and my rocker.  We want to paint the walls and get some cute decals to decorate with.  We are waiting for Mike to move out of his room so we can start getting it ready.  Mike moves out the first week in May so it will give us a couple of months to get everything ready.  I can't wait!  (I will be sad that Mike's leaving, though...)  :(

Work is going really well for me, for the most part.  Feeling better has helped me feel more productive at work.  I have applied for another position, and I'm waiting to hear back about getting a second interview.  I do have good days and bad days, like everyone does, but the fact that we got a new building has been a fun mix up of every day.  Having to drive back and forth between the new building and the old building has been tough, but I know that it's not for much longer.  This will be the 3rd (and final) week that I will have to commute back and forth.  Once I can settle in, I think I'll feel a lot more normal.

Every day, I look forward to when I am going to get my time off for Finn's birth.  I have my sabbatical that my company gives me, that I've saved up after working for 5 years.  I didn't take it in the year I was eligible for it because I wanted to tack it onto the end of my maternity leave.  This should give me 16 weeks off, which equals out to be 4 months.  This makes me very happy.  I am sure I won't want to return to work, but giving myself 4 months to connect with Finn will be good.  I would love to be a stay at home mom, but I understand that I have a balance in life that I've chosen.  I believe that Arthur is the amazing person he is so I can feel ok with being a working mom.  Arthur does so much around the house and works hard at his full time job, so I can't feel like staying home is really the right thing to do for now.  Maybe someday, but not today.  :)

How far along:  27 Weeks, 3 Days
How much time left:  12 Weeks, 4 Days

Top two symptoms:  I had a bit of a foggy headache today, and I get that sometimes.  Other than that I guess I can say movement from Finn is a symptom, right?  :)

Favorite thing I ate today:  I craved chocolate today for the first time in awhile, which was kind of weird.  I did make myself some delicious mushroom risotto, which took me almost an hour to make.  I got the mix at Trader Joe's, it was absolutely delicious. 

Mood:  My mood most days is really good lately.  Occasionally I have a bad day, but today was a good day.  I was really productive and got a lot done.  Including this blog... :)

Worried about:  Since I started taking my birthing classes, I haven't worried too much about getting ready for Finn's arrival.  I'm actually really excited about the process! 

Excited for:  I'm excited for my baby showers coming up.  My team is throwing me one on May 2nd, and then I have one planned with my family in mid-May and then another one at the end of May in Boise with my mom's side.  Baby showers!  Yay!

23 Weeks and Feeling Great!

Long time no blog!  I have not been able to update anyone for awhile because I've been caught up in work stuff and other things that have prevented me from spending a few minutes blogging.  I promise to be better about it as I get farther along.  :)

Arthur made a cool video with Finn's 20 week ultrasound.  I love watching it and seeing his little movements and memorizing his face.  Arthur did a great job picking some good Owl City music to go with it.  :)

Here's the video Arthur made.  My favorite parts are at 4:52 and 8:30.



Our next ultrasound is going to be this coming Friday, March 22nd.  This time I've invited my mom to come and record the ultrasound since Arthur's mom came to the last ultrasound.  I do like to involve them so they can start to bond as early as possible with baby Finn.

Arthur and I have also been shopping quite a bit here and there when we see cute baby stuff.  When we were in Vegas, we found some clothes we couldn't pass up at Baby Gap.  Here are some pictures of some of the clothes we got.

We also found some furniture for Finn's nursery!  We looked everywhere for a crib that we both liked.  I was trying to avoid really dark brown wood, and I also didn't like super light wood.  We ended up finding a crib on Babies R Us that had really good reviews and it was the perfect color called Driftwood.

Here is a picture of the crib and dresser set we got:

It took about 2 weeks to have them shipped to the Babies R Us in Midvale.  We picked them up yesterday, and Arthur's dad let us borrow his truck.  It was a relief to finally have them loaded up to get home.  Mike is still our roommate until May, so it will be that long until we can get his nursery set up.  That's ok, though, because we love Mike living here.  :)

Here is Arthur loading up the crib and the dresser on the truck at Babies R Us:

Everything is coming together pretty well!  I'm super excited to start showing a bit more.  I'm wearing maternity pants all of the time now, and I can feel Finn moving multiple times a day.  It's awesome.  :)

How far along:  23 Weeks, 2 Days
How much time left:  16 Weeks, 5 Days

Top two symptoms:  Hunger and exhaustion at night.  I've been eating everything in sight.  My cravings have gotten a lot worse since the nausea went away.  I've had some good energy these days, which is really nice.  Exhaustion at night is pretty bad.  I pass out usually before 10:00 and don't wake up again until 5-5:30 AM.  I know I need to take advantage of the time before Finn gets here, because I hear I won't get much sleep then.  :)

I also had a random symptom the other day, my feet swelled up super big.  It hasn't happened since, and I think it was directly related to eating too much salt at one meal.  I put my feet up and they've been ok and haven't swelled again, thank goodness. 

Favorite thing I ate today:  Lately, I've been eating A LOT of french fries.  For some reason, that's my craving of choice.  :)

Mood:  My mood has been good lately!  Much more positive and focused on the good stuff.  I think it's because I'm feeling better and I have some good things to focus on.

Worried about:  I'm really not worried about too many things, aside from keeping up with work and staying focused on the right things before Finn gets here. 

Excited for:  I'm excited for a couple of things.  I'm excited for the HypnoBirthing class that Arthur and I are going to take starting next week.  It was supposed to start tonight, but it didn't end up happening because the lady that was teaching it had sick kids.  It goes for 6 weeks in a row, every Saturday night.  It's supposed to teach me how to focus through the pain and be as solitary as I can so I can avoid an epidural.  It has some pretty good reported numbers from 2009 - 2013:

• NO pain medications or epidural: 82%
• NO episiotomy: 96%
• NO elective medical labor induction: 94%
• NO labor augmentation with pitocin: 94%
• NO c-section: 92%

Pretty good stats!  :)  I'm also excited for my next ultrasound which is this coming Friday.  I get to see Finn again!  Woohoo!