Topic Archive: labor

October 21, 2011

Choosing an OB

A lot of women struggle with the question of what kind of health care to get when they’re pregnant. They often interview multiple OBs, or hire a doula, or talk to a midwife.  It’s a big decision, so it’s understandable that people would put a lot of thought into it.

For me though, there was never any question. I knew who my OB was going to be years before I got pregnant: she had been my primary care provider since I started having annual exams back in high school. She was also a friend of the family, so close in fact that my father performed her marriage ceremony. Since I lost my dad a few years ago, having her present at the birth of his grandson seemed like a fitting and logical choice.

Besides, during my annual exam the year after I got married, she told me that every time she considered not doing deliveries any more, she’d think to herself, “But I have to stick around long enough to deliver Zoe’s baby!” And when a woman has postponed retirement for your child, how could you possibly go elsewhere?!

Unfortunately this wasn’t exactly the most practical of choices. Her office is a 30-minute drive away from our house, which at the end of my pregnancy meant an awful lot of driving. But I didn’t mind, as the individual attention and care she gave me was well worth the extra time in the car. Even when it was really uncomfortable to sit for that long. (more…)

September 17, 2011

Birth Fear

This is pregnancy #3 for me. I should be an old pro by now, right? Perhaps that is true in certain regards, but in other ways, I’m not sure any woman will ever feel like a pro when it comes to birth. Even after labor and delivery twice before, and having two pretty ideal experiences, I still have a few fears. What’s the biggest one? That my luck has run out.

I know they say the third time is the charm, but with kids, anything goes. Before even becoming pregnant with this one, I wondered if I would be pressing my luck with another delivery. I’ve experienced two natural births that have been quite low on interventions. And I’m very pleased with that fact. Still I can’t help but wonder how this one will go. Will I be able to once again avoid the interventions I fear? Will I make it through this delivery without a c-section? (more…)

September 16, 2011

Being Open to a Flexible Birth Plan

I’m coming down to the wire as I have only 3 weeks left in my pregnancy.  This second pregnancy has been different from the first – although not vastly so – there have been clear distinctions.  First, I’m having a girl.  Not sure if this is THE differentiating factor in what I’m experiencing this second time around but it’s definitely different.  Second, I am “healthier.”  While I continue to be reminded that I’m a mother of “advanced maternal age” (41 years old – I was barely 37 when I had my first), this time around, I haven’t experienced any high blood pressure or low amniotic fluid, which was what sent me to to get induced and what led to the slippery slope of an “emergency” c-section with Henry (high fetal heart rate I was told).  Even my low placenta, which was a concern in my first pregnancy seems to have moved up to the arbitrarily so-called safe zone of 2+cm (away from the cervix).

So, am I in the clear to have a VBAC?  Not really.  One of my goals this pregnancy was to try for a VBAC since I never experienced real childbirth.  With Henry, I was induced, on a pitocin drip for 12 hours, yet, still never felt any true, active labor.  Heck, we weren’t even sure if my water had broke!  My belief is that I ended up with an emergency c-section because the doctor-on-call was getting off shift and just wanted my baby to come out (I checked in at 7am and delivered at 12:15am the next morning).  (more…)

Episode 230 | August 16, 2011

Top 10 Labor and Delivery Fears

Nobody ever said childbirth was going to be easy. In fact, most of us probably think about the worse case scenarios as our due date draws near. That’s exactly what TheBump.com explores in their recent article. So, what’s your biggest fear when it comes to labor and delivery? (more…)

Episode 228 | August 2, 2011

Theresa’s C-Section

PregTASTIC Panelist Theresa is back to share her birth story. Did she succeed at a planned VBAC? What was her husband’s clever way of sharing the birthing experience with family and friends around the country? How is their older son adapting to the family’s new (more…)