Tuesday, January 31, 2006 04:34 p.m.
I'm pretty sure my water just broke! And I am really excited, because this means I may be able to avoid all the nasty labor-inducing drugs. At this point, I am just monitoring the situation at home... nothing else out of the ordinary is happening. I'm supposed to call my doctor back if/when something more interesting occurs.
If by some stroke of misfortune this is not "the real thing," I will be admitted to the hospital tomorrow at 6 PM and started on the labor-inducing drug regimen. Either way, I probably won't post again until I am back home with the baby. Thanks for all of your good wishes, etc. I'll be back with cheerier news soon.
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Friday, January 27, 2006 09:32 p.m.
On the upside, I am now officially on maternity leave. No work for 6 weeks! What a relief...
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Thursday, January 26, 2006 09:41 p.m.
I am officially one week past due. If I do not go into labor naturally sometime betweeen now and Wednesday, I will be admitted to the hospital Wednesday evening and my doctor will attempt to induce labor using a cocktail of drugs. While I would LOVE to not be pregnant anymore, the thought of using pharmaceuticals to tamper with the baby and my body makes me extremely unhappy. Also, I found out that I won't be able to deliver at my hospital of choice because my doctor won't be on call there Wednesday night. In other words, I need to alter my birth plan in order to accommodate my doctor's schedule. Is that completely fucked up, or what? I seem to be losing more and more control over my pregnancy/delivery with each passing day, and it's an indescribably scary and heartbreaking experience.
I am praying for natural labor, which is not completely outside the realm of possibility at this point. Please keep your fingers crossed for me!
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Sunday, January 22, 2006 04:25 a.m.
It's 4:25 AM on Sunday morning. No baby yet. This is the second time in 3 days that I have woken up at 3 AM and haven't been able to fall back asleep at all. I'm trying to remain calm, but it's almost impossible. I think T is starting to get anxious, too. At least he is able to sleep! We don't really know what to do with ourselves these days. We don't want to make plans to go anywhere in case I go into labor, but we're running out of things to do around the house that will take our minds off the waiting. I wish I felt something... anything... that would indicate that labor is soon forthcoming, but I don't. Even the Braxton-Hicks contractions, which I was experiencing quite regularly for a while, seem to have slowed down. NOTHING IS HAPPENING AND IT'S DRIVING ME MAD! Meanwhile, I'm sure the baby is getting bigger and bigger with each passing day... and truth be told, I'm beginning to worry about my ability to expel such a large infant from my loins.
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Thursday, January 19, 2006 07:42 a.m.
It's finally here.... my due date! Guess what's NOT here? You got it!
I think I'm gonna be extra good to myself today in order to avoid slipping into a baby-less depression. So what if I've been wearing the same pair of pants every day for three weeks? I'm gonna put on a sparkly, too-fancy-for-the-office shirt and rock that outfit! I may even brush my hair and wear a little lipstick today! Bring it on, baby! You may be stubborn, but that doesn't mean your mama has to continue looking like a washed-out hag.
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Monday, January 16, 2006 11:19 a.m.
I've been walking. I ate some curry. Still no baby. Sigh.
Thank you to everyone who has called lately to ask after me/us. Please forgive me if I don't call you back right away. While it may appear as though I would love to do nothing more than talk about this for hours on end with whomever will listen, the reality of the situation is that I don't really want to talk about it at all. Writing about it is easy, but talking? Not so much. Yes, I am happy and excited... but more than that, I am uncomfortable and frustrated and impatient and a wee bit frightened right now. It's pretty hard to put a positive spin on those things. I appreciate the support and I feel the love! I will continue to update my blogs as I am able and hopefully, I'll be calling everyone with good news VERY soon!
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Friday, January 13, 2006 06:45 a.m.
At my weekly OB appointment yesterday, the doctor said that (based upon physical appearance alone) it looks to her as though I'm carrying a boy. Doctors usually stay far away from old-wives-tale-ish statements like these (and for good reason!), so I was a little taken aback by her comment... even though at this point, nothing should surprise me about the doctors in this particular practice (to put it mildly, I'm not too psyched about the medical care/emotional support I have received from them thus far). I think I stammered a response something along the lines of, "that would be really odd, since we're expecting a girl," to which she replied, "well, just remember... we don't take returns!"
I'm fairly certain she didn't mean to freak me out - she was just making her version of polite chit-chat. Still, I'd be lying if I said that she didn't throw a curve ball straight into the middle of my baby girl fantasy world. I have been picturing a little girl in my mind since September, so it would definitely be a strange turn of events if a little boy came out instead. I know that the type of ultrasound I underwent is not 100% conclusive with regard to the baby's sex, and there has always been a chance that the baby is a boy. But if you're the kind of person who chooses to find out ahead of time what the sex is, you are are also likely to be the kind of person who will believe what the ultrasound technician tells you after two separate tests. If the baby turns out to be a boy, I will of course be equally as happy.... it's just not something I have spent much time considering. And let's be honest: I could give birth to an alien and be happy. Just let me give birth! Soon! Please! T and I have a boy name picked out "just in case."
Labor will be induced if it doesn't happen naturally by 42 weeks. In other words... worst case scenario is 3 more weeks of pregnancy. I really hope that it doesn't go on for that long. I wish I could be cheerier about it, but I am just too damn uncomfortable right now!
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Sunday, January 8, 2006 06:30 p.m.
From http://www.pregnancy.com.au:
Q: How can I avoid going overdue?
A: We have not got very much control over the actual length of pregnancy when waiting for labour to start naturally. Each woman and baby are biologically tuned for a certain length of pregnancy. Some women find their mother and other relatives routinely go two, three or more weeks over due. They themselves may be predisposed to a longer pregnancy.
However a number of alternative strategies have emerged that are aimed to stimulate labour, with varying degrees of success. Here are some of the commonly recommended strategies:
(1) Sweeping membranes: during a vaginal examination, the midwife or doctor gently separates the membranes from the opening of the uterus (Hmmmm..... this doesn't sound like much fun. KBG)
(2) Sexual activity (While this definitely sounds more appealing than "sweeping membranes," I kinda fear sex at this point. I can barely move as it is. KBG)
(3) Acupuncture or acupressure (Does my insurance plan cover this? Perhaps I shall investigate. KBG)
(4) Homeopathic remedies (Such as....????? KBG)
(5) Herbal preparations (Does pot count? KBG)
(6) Walking (Been there, done that. So far, it's a no go. KBG)
(7) Good hot bowl of curry (What the hell... I'll work some "good, hot curry" into the weekly menu and see what transpires. KBG)
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Thursday, January 5, 2006 08:39 p.m.
At my OB appointment this morning, I learned that my cervix is 50% effaced. In a nutshell: before the baby can leave my body, my cervix must become 50% thinner and softer (i.e. effaced) than it already is. I was also told that the baby's head is currently situated "very low" in my pelvis ... but believe me, I knew that already.
So although labor is not necessarily right around the corner as I have been hoping, all of the pieces are beginning to fall into place. It is so hard to be patient right now... or talk about anything else except pregnancy and childbirth, for that matter. Apologies. I promise to move on to much more fascinating topics once our little one is born, such as lack of sleep and poop.
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Monday, January 2, 2006 03:42 p.m.
I'm in a bit of a funk today, not sure why. For the first time since September, I have an extended chunk of free time on my hands... and instead of enjoying this rare opportunity I have been given to relax, I feel restless and bored. I have a ton of artsy little projects I've been wanting to start, a huge pile of books I've been meaning to read, a handful of movies waiting to be watched, and god knows I could stand to catch up on sleep... but for some reason, I don't feel like doing any of those things.
Maybe I've got a case of the pre-baby blues? While I am really excited to meet the baby and become a mom, I am also feeling really apprehensive today for some reason. As I lie on the couch, staring off into space, I find myself thinking things like, "am I really ready for this?" and "better enjoy this quiet, solo time while you have it, because your life is going to completely change forever as soon as the baby is born," and then I feel annoyed at myself for being depressed and moping around instead of making the most of these fleeting, spare moments. Maybe it's a hormonal thing?
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Sunday, January 1, 2006 09:16 a.m.
Happy 2006! Here's hoping you all had a fun New Year's Eve. Ours was extremely mellow and non-festive and relaxing. I cooked a delicious tofu quiche for dinner. T spent the majority of the evening downstairs setting up his office/workshop, while I lounged on the couch upstairs reading and listening to tunes. At around 10:45-ish, T came up and we watched Finding Neverland. After it ended, we looked at the clock and realized that we had completely missed the midnight-it's-a-new-year-yippee thing. To be honest, I didn't even care. I admit that I enjoy the false sense of "new slate" that comes along every January 1st, but I no longer feel the need to party like an animal on New Year's Eve. In fact, I think I prefer the quiet, homebody thing.
Now if only this baby would decide to come out of me, everything would be perfect...
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