Labor, childbirth, and socks. Our questions answered.

So we had our class today. And I must say – I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. There was a lot of information for us, all relevant.

This is going to be a bit of a data dump as a result – I want to make sure I write all of it down so I can remember it.

We got there at 8am and made our way to the classroom, where I was happy to see reclineable chairs and bouncy balls to put our feet up on. I was the person who was least far along – most everyone else was between 32 and 37 weeks.

There obviously was a lot of focus on what the last few weeks of pregnancy would be like, as well as the signs of real labor versus “fake” contractions. (I didn’t know, for example, the difference between bloody show and the mucous plug. I know, it’s silly. But I thought it was one in the same!) They showed us a graph of the typical labor progression for a woman who is delivering her first child. I was also happy to hear that the position of the baby through 35 weeks didn’t matter, since I am almost positive that Squishy is head up at this point in my pregnancy – that more likely it’s the position after 35 weeks which will dictate the neccessity for a C-section or not.

Assuming a vaginal delivery, though, we also got some specific instructions on when to come to the hospital, which was great. Because we live so far from Big City Hospital, I was a little worried that I’d read too much into my early labor signs and end up walking the halls of the hospital instead of laboring at home. Our instructions? Wait at home until I’m experiencing a full HOUR where my contractions are about 5 minutes apart, last 45-60 seconds in duration, and I can’t speak or walk through them… or if my water breaks.

We also did a little bit of practice breathing and pain management, which was great. They gave both of us ice to hold in our hand, to squeeze in our hand really hard. Funny – it HURT! Immediately I tensed up (my back was killing me at that point too!) and the pain made me almost breathless. Until she told us to focus on breathing – all of a sudden the pain was more tolerable. And when she had J rub my other hand with some lotion, the pain was nearly non-existent. Was pretty cool.

We also talked about pain management. After hearing our options, I really want to avoid the use of any narcotics. I won’t rule out an epidural, but I’d like to see how far I can get before we get there. And, well, you know. I think we’re going to go into it just seeing where it takes us.

Some other things I found out about my hospital which really made me happy we chose the one we did, too. First of all, they recommend that we walk around and find positions which help me get through the labor pain. There is no restriction to laying around in bed – until, of course, we have the epidural. If a woman is going through an unassisted birth (i.e. no pain medication), whatever position she wants to deliver in – squatting, all fours, etc – is just fine.

And we of course spent a lot of time describing the different phases of labor and going through what a woman feels during each phase.

After lunch, we toured L&D, the ante-partum and post-partum rooms, and got to see the nursery (with an adorable little newborn boy as its sole occupant). I was happy to hear that, for a vaginal delivery, they immediately place the baby on the mother’s chest for as long as she wants it. If she wants to nurse, she can – in fact, the instructor told us that they usually want the baby to nurse within an hour of it being born. Provided of course that there’s nothing wrong with mom or baby. Because the baby warmer is in the birthing room, they have a lot more flexibility.

Then we went back to the classroom and watched The Video Of A Birth. Which, surprisingly, I did ok with – it was really the part I was dreading the most, really. It’s funny – there’s a part of me that really just didn’t want to know. Because I KNOW it’s going to suck. It’s going to be a LOT of pain. It won’t be easy.

But. The video we saw? It looks doable. (Course, not that I have much of a choice, eh?)

Best yet??? The hospital provides us with slipper socks. So. I can stop obsessing.

I came out of it feeling pretty good.

And still feeling like…

Wow, do we really get to do this?

I’m still amazed.

And starting to get really excited to meet our baby.