Sunday, June 10, 2012

Is this It?

So here I sit, on my fit ball at 2.35 am on Sunday knowing this is not It but wondering if it will develop into It this time. Not that I'm a hurry to see this baby into the world enough to medically intervene, but my bladder would really like some more room and my pelvis would like a little break from the pushes and shoves of a developing foetus.

So the reason I sit here is because at my last anti-natal appointment the midwife suggested that if I started to get niggles in the middle of the night again I may want to get up and work with them to see if I can get them to go somewhere. After being woken up by the Bright Spark at about 1.30 am, for a drink and a dummy, I went back to bed with the niggles. A little cramping, a few Braxton-Hicks tightenings.


So there I lay feeling the niggles for about three quarters of an hour. And here I am now still feeling them, every now and then...

2.41 am

I know that each labour is different and that second labour are suposed to be faster than the first. The Bright Spark entered this world about six and a half hours after my first contraction and I'm hoping that his brother will be faster, but I'm not going to put money on it. He's stayed in longer, making us wonder whether the obstetricians jokes about induction will become actual plans. I'm not against medical intervention where necessary, access to the best medical technology is one of the reasons we chose to live in a big city during my childbearing years and have made the financial sacrifices of engaging a private obstetrician...

2.55 am (there was one in between but I had to take a quick toilet break)

...but I would like to avoid the potential cascade of interventions that can follow an induction and failure to progress. I have faith in my body's ability to push out a child. I got through labour last time, albeit with a little help to get the Bright Spark out at the end due to foetal distress (we joke that he was pulled out with salad tongs). I had an intense but short labour, aided by an epidural after the 3rd hour.

This time I would like to avoid the epidural. This is my Everest and I'm planning to summit without oxygen. I'll have it there in my pack, just in case I get stuck an a storm near the peak. I know most people taking my route use oxygen but I hear that the view from the peak is better without it. My support team knows my plans and I have come a little more prepared than last time. I've got a good Sherpa, he's a little concerned but I know if I fall into a glacier he'll be there on my belay line to pull me out. Sure, I'm a little trepidatious about the journey, but many people have summitted before me and I'll keep them in mind as I make the journey.

3.10 am

It does seem though that the journey will not start tonight though. I feel like I'm stuck at base camp, ready to go but I'm happy for a few more days of preparation before I set of. It seems tonight's niggles were just another training run, and I'm going to retire to my tent for a few hours sleep before the Bright Spark wakes me with in a few hours for cuddles and books.

3.19 am

I'll go back to drinking my Raspberry leaf tea and sitting in my fit ball and practising affirmations and visualisations. I may even start to consider a few other natural ways to get things moving, although the Husband and I will have to get a little creative with positions in the bedroom if we're going to try that tried and tested method.

So for now this is not It but I'll keep you posted.

3.26 am

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