Pausing Again.... For a Book Giveaway!

This is a cross-post from my birth blog... Just thought some of you might be interested!

Kathy Peterson, of the blog Woman to Woman Childbirth Education, my all-time favorite childbirth-ed blog/website (check it out!), is celebrating her 100,000-blog-hit anniversary (congratulations, Kathy!) with a book give-away! The book is (drumroll, please).....

a copy of the book Breastfeeding with Comfort and Joy: A Photographic Guide for Mom and Those Who Help Her, by Laura Keegan!

Check out the book at its website here!

I unfortunately have not yet had the chance to read this book, but I hope to do so soon! I definitely could have used it. As a lot of you know, breastfeeding is NOT easy. My early days of breastfeeding were fairly disastrous. I had an unhappy baby who was losing weight, continuous blocked ducts (couldn't clear one up before the next one started) and multiple milk blisters. (If you don't know what a milk blister is, count your blessings. Nursing with a milk blister feels like baby is biting hard - with teeth - all the time you're nursing! Aah!!) Thankfully our pediatrician was able to set me right on technique, but many women understandably give it up as a bad job. I am so thankful we were able to work things out, because long-term nursing has been great for us. Any book that promotes successful breastfeeding has all of my support!

So visit Kathy's website here and learn about what you need to do to enter!

Pregnant mamas, please do not visit Kathy's blog on this coming Tuesday. Any other day, but not Tuesday. I can explain privately if you have questions.

Gorgeous Birth Video!

This is the first time I've put a video in my blog, and I'm so stinking proud of myself it's perfectly ridiculous!

This is an absolutely gorgeous birth - one of the most respectful hospital births I've ever seen - and a waterbirth, too! My favorite!! (Hopefully preview of coming attractions for Yours Truly....)

Not that this has anything to do with hyperemesis... And this really should go on my other blog! But I was in a hurry, and this will do as well as anything. Besides, whenever I see a beautiful birth video I'm chomping at the bit to share it with everyone! There's nothing more beautiful in the world.

Enjoy!

Just for fun....

I really do have a blog entry ready (in my mind) and waiting to be typed out, but having gotten up an hour and a half late, today is not going to be the day!! So instead, I wanted to post the birth pics of a birth-circle friend of mine, who just had her fifth baby. Congratulations, Stephanie! May my next birth be as easy as this one was!! (But with 5 kiddos, she's earned an easy birth!!)

http://www.soderblom.net/kasey/kaseybirth.htm

I am such a huge fan of birth stories and pictures and videos - hopefully I can get pictures as good as this next time!! (Ours were quite dark and grainy.... The effects of a really bad camera used in a big hurry.)

The Business of Being Born

This week I have an excuse for neglecting my blog!! Houseguests - my parents. They're in town to help us restart the home-search process for the umpteenth time. (*Sigh*)

But anyhow, I had to take a minute to post this link, because I am so excited about it.

Last fall, we went to see a screening of "The Business of Being Born," which is about the modern maternity and childbirth scene. It was an absolutely amazing, life-changing film, and we both loved it. This website has now posted the movie, so it can be viewed in its entirety - for free!!! I'm so excited. Here it is!!

http://quicksilvers%20creen.com/%20watch?video=

Movies like this are so awesome because they're informational as well as highly interesting and entertaining. I wish everyone could see this film!!!

Just for fun :)

Today I thought I'd take (another) break from hyperemesis gravidarum and try to post my birth story. Why? Because it's fun!!!! I love birth stories. When I was pregnant I read them compulsively (still do, actually, whenever I can get a minute). Just as a matter of form, here's my favorite site for birth stories:

http://www.birthdiaries.com/

Anyhow, my birth story. I don't think I'll get very far, as it's almost time for C. to get up, but it's worth a try - I can always do two installments.

I'm also going to write from memory rather than copying my own official birth story - something for which my faithful readership should be extremely grateful, considering that my "official" birth story is something like 15 pages, typed (or more!).

And those who are squeamish about birth stories should feel completely justified in moving on to the next entry and skipping this one. But I'll keep it modest. :)

We had my last prenatal on Monday, June 20, 2006 - my due date. We were worried because Wendi was leaving the country for six weeks that Saturday, and didn't want to have to have another midwife if we were a few days late. Wendi, bless her, wasn't a bit worried, and she was right. I lost my mucous plug the next day, so things were in motion.

(I should mention how I came to choose a midwife - When I got pregnant, we didn't have maternity coverage. In my cherubic innocence I thought that "no maternity coverage" meant that while our insurance wouldn't cover hospital birth, they would cover other services (such as homebirth midwifery). Well, I was wrong - they wouldn't cover any of it. But by that time I'd done enough research and read enough stories that I was hooked!!! I didn't care at that point - I knew I wanted a midwife.)

On Wednesday night I took a firm hold on Joe and told him that we were going to get our to-do list done, as I was tired of putting things off indefinitely. So we hung our clothesline, set up our bassinet, and did several other things. My one and only instance of nesting!!!

Thursday morning I awoke with a start at 4:28 a.m. with the odd dual sensations that (a) I really needed to use the restroom, and (b) I was already doing so! It didn't take me too long to realize that my water had broken. I was nervous and excited! I got up and cleaned like a maniac and then got dressed, being very careful to do my makeup and clothes nicely, since our midwives would be coming over! (Ha! As if that would last!!!)

My contractions immediately made themselves known. I had had rolling Braxton Hicks contractions since my second month of pregnancy, but as soon as my water broke they became much more intense and uncomfortable - labor had started.

When Joe got up, he immediately freaked out and insisted on calling Wendi. After that we had breakfast, and then I headed back to bed. Getting up at 4:30 a.m. and cleaning wildly had been tiring! So I slept lightly, waking up for contractions.

Sometime that morning the toilet decided to overflow, so there I was trying to help Joe clean up a flooded bathroom in between contractions. Rather amusing! We called for emergency maintenance help which, as expected, never came, so the carpet had to dry on its own. We were too busy to fuss with it anyway.

Our doula came over in the early afternoon. Sometime during the afternoon, Wendi came over to check on us. I asked her if I could labor in water, and she said yes, so I immediately headed to the bathroom and stayed there - first in the shower, and then in the bath.

I have to put in a plug here for laboring in water. This may sound weird, but when I got into the tub/shower, labor pain initially vanished. Completely. It was wonderful. Of course it built again from there, but I don't think I could have done it out of water. It is, after all, reputed to reduce labor pain by about 40%, and I highly concur.

Another amusing thing was my total loss of modesty. When I initially got in the tub and Joe asked if our doula could come in to say hi, I was really reluctant. Well, it went downhill from there! By the end of the night I was walking around stark naked in front of everyone and not caring a bit! So funny.

One thing I also learned about myself was that I am loud in labor. Very loud. Think male sea lion during mating season. Or maybe a wounded bull moose. Many women are. I'd read enough birth stories to know this, so I didn't try to fight it (couldn't have, probably, anyway). So I yelled my head off with each contraction! Thankfully, none of our neighbors seemed to notice.

Somewhere during early evening, Joe and Jennie set up the birth pool in our living room and filled it up with warm water. I immediately headed in there, and the relief was once again great. Wendi and her back-up, Sue, arrived about this time. However, I was never actually able to say hi to them. It is true that in labor you do loose a lot of functions you normally have - such as conversation. Your whole body is focused involuntarily on labor, and all extraneous functions cease. Makes sense.

However, after going through childbirth, I realize how important it is to have an advocate with one - an informed husband or doula. A woman is really helpless during a lot of childbirth - she is vulnerable to suggestion and unable to fight for her rights. If I'd been with an unscrupulous caregiver, he/she could have given me pitocin, an episiotomy, whatever they'd cared to, because I wouldn't have noticed and/or been able to stick up for what I wanted.

This last part of labor was not a lot of fun. Everyone just sat around quietly, giving support when needed, while I dealt with things (loudly!). During the worst part I had a massive throwing-up spell, signaling transition (gotta love it!). It was during this time that I broke out in the standard "I can't do this anymore, dang it!!!" lingo. However, I was giggling inwardly at being so stereotypical - breaking out the typical transition phraseology like I'd been reading it from a script!! LOL

Our cat was totally freaking out. She had no idea what was going on - we have some great pics of her going around sniffing everything.

When I would ask "Am I almost finished?", Wendi would wisely say, "Soon!" I'm so glad she didn't tell the truth - I couldn't have handled it. She also told me that the only way she could know for sure was to do a vaginal exam. I refused each time. I knew that I couldn't handle it emotionally if she said something like "2 centimeters!"

When my vocalizations changed from yelling to grunting, Wendi said she'd like to check to see how things were going. She did, and not only were we fully dilated, but Caleb was at a station of +4! Almost there!

I should say that it is one of the proudest points of my pregnancy that the first vaginal exam of my entire pregnancy was an hour before Caleb's birth. Wendi is so, so hands-off (not all midwives are), and I loved that about her. No fuss!!!!

She tried to help me push more effectively in the water, and then after a while suggested I get out. Wendi mentioned later that most primips (first-timers) don't end up giving birth in water, as they tend to find the lack of gravity confusing. I concur!

So we went in the bedroom and pushed in a variety of positions, ending up with seated. I pushed like heck for one or two hours. It hurt like anything!!!! At the very end I just gave up and pushed, because I wanted it to be over more than anything. And Caleb was born!! At 10:35 p.m. - 18 hours of labor. We'd refused prenatal ultrasound, so the first big excitement was finding out that he was a boy!! Joe had desperately wanted a girl, but he immediately fell in love with Caleb and hasn't looked back since.

We'd discovered mid-labor that our video recorder had quit, so our doula only caught the last minute or so on her camera. Big disappointment. Next time we're going to check it before labor starts!

One of my big disappointments was that I (through some odd act of divine intervention) missed out on the birth ecstasy - that "my baby, my baby!!" moment. I was really bummed. I wasn't actually that interested in Caleb. I just wanted to go to sleep! But he was pretty cute, and we spent the next couple of weeks falling in love.

Wendi and Sue and Jennie and Joe took turns cleaning up, getting rid of the birth pool, bathing Caleb, and doing a gentle newborn exam (we refused eye prophylaxis & vitamin K, and delayed newborn tests). I myself had only torn slightly (nothing to worry about), so I went and showered while they changed the sheets (after eating an enormous bowl of strawberries and cottage cheese, I should mention) and then went back to bed. They all left a couple of hours later.

(I should mention that midwives don't forbid eating during labor - in fact, they encourage it - but after breakfast, I hadn't wanted to eat anything. I just drank Gatorade. So I hadn't eaten since about 6 a.m. that morning!)

So that's my birth story! I have a feeling that I'm going to be coming back to my blog every couple of hours today to input little details I've forgotten, but that is the main!

Wonderful Water Birth Video

Someone posted this birth video on the Arizona Birth Network, and I just had to share it - it is one of the most beautiful births I've seen. (And the lighting is great, so it's clearer than most homebirth videos.) What's even greater is that it is a birth center birth, so it shows that institutional births don't have to be disrespectful and full of interventions. I was definitely crying by the end of this one:

http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=-ct8MyqhC2c

I'm a complete sucker for birth videos - I cry at them all. But I'm talking about the good ones - not the ones where the mother is strapped down to every device imaginable and the baby is basically manhandled by disrespectful delivery staff. Those make me cry too - but with rage rather than joy. Birth is the most (or at least one of the most) sacred moment in a woman's life, and attendants can really make or break it.

Anyhow, this is a keeper!! It's a waterbirth, and it's really rare to see waterbirths as clearly as you can see this one. Most waterbirths you only get to see the baby as it comes out of the water, but you get the whole show with this one, and it's just great. We tried to have a waterbirth with Caleb, but didn't quite make it. But I labored the entire time in water! I just got out for the last hour. Our midwife says we'll have a better chance next time - that primips sometimes have a hard time with waterbirth, but it's totally easy for multips. I hope so! That's definitely my goal for my next baby - a waterbirth. Not to mention that water is GREAT for easing pain. When I got into the labor pool it was totally like the contractions disappeared (for a while, that is!!!!!). I don't think I could do a birth without the help of water. After all, it is called "the midwife's epidural."

Well, gotta go! Toddler typing at the same time is NOT making this easy!!