I used to think that the more invasive genetic testing was primarily for deciding whether or not to abort…until my first daughter was diagnosed with partial ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency. I hear you sister! 1. I also will correct the other inaccuracies, one of which I did doublecheck (the eye goop) and still got outdated information. What happens when your labour is induced The delivery nurse who had been sitting beside me as I laboured kept her face glued to the screen displaying my and the baby’s vital signs throughout the labour. If you aren’t ready to introduce your baby to the world quite yet or you still need some time to process everything before seeing your loved ones, you can absolutely refuse to have visitors at the hospital. Most women labor in bed and give birth on their back. I DID always want to give birth naturally, though. What is this 20 wk one for? If having a stranger assist you go to the bathroom is too awkward for you to handle, you can request some alone time to get the job done. “It’s just a stimulus response to baby moving quickly through the birth canal,” says Martin. 15 things that happens during labor and birth that nobody tells you about: Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. And those new mothers will hear an array of stories and explore their philosophy, excpectations and flexibility. The natural birth babies were so much more alert and active, and I wanted to be wholly present for my newborn. I had had a lot of time to read a greater variety of stuff. cmom says: 08/08/13 at 7:16 am I think there should be another thread about crap husands pull after the baby is born. You should not feel pressured to take or refuse pain relief during labor. Have you noticed that we haven’t met anyone walking these halls? That is a completely unhealthy choice to advocate for. I’m only semi-crunchy (probably less than that). Now I’m just taking the OTC version. Labor induction — also known as inducing labor — is the stimulation of uterine contractions during pregnancy before labor begins on its own to achieve a vaginal birth. We do allow ultrasounds and, unlike some friends, I don’t worry about them too much. Why have eye goop when you and your Christian spouse have only ever been with each other? My first – water broke a week early, had pitocin, back labor, couldn’t relax & open, had the epidural to get him out “in time”. If you don’t feel like you can talk about things like this w/ your “assembly line” OB, maybe you can switch to another OB. I mean, everyone thought that ddt and roundup ready was great for a long time. Prenatal vitamins were recommended. Here’s another thing to refuse — “purple” pushing to the count of ten (or whatever). I know many women who share your beliefs that have found themselves choosing to let their precious babies go. I would have thought they’d do the standard measurements at the 18 week one, but perhaps that was a week early. So if you are sleeping, try alternating from from far right to, far left every hour. I saw this on Pinterest. The great thing about my midwife is that he spent a full hour in the hospital and another hour at my six-week checkup listening to me sob and rant about it and promising that he would not let this happen to another mother and baby who had so little need for intervention. Was it as natural as I wanted? We like to be in charge too much, I think. and I still remember and have photographs of the first time that I saw my daughter… I was in love. The risk is not minuscale, and the babies are very sick, and many of them don’t survive. My longest labor was just over six hours. Doctors and scientists continue to study the risks of a trial of labor after cesarean (TOLAC) over an elective repeat cesarean (ERCS). If women were more open to talking, they could process their negative feelings with supportive NON-pregnant women and start healing. , How low do your levels get? It was very hard to find anyone that agreed with me and I AGREE with everything you said. ” Well said. My first birth was induced, antibiotics, anasthesia, then c-section delivery and believe it or not, I had a healthy, normal baby. Acupressure - In addition to alleviating morning sickness and stopping bleeding or spotting in the early months of pregnancy, acupressure massages can also induce labor. (Not that I’d wish it on anyone.) My second was set to be a homebirth. Thank you for chiming in! While having your baby come and go is usually standard procedure during your postpartum hospital stay, you can politely decline other trips to the nursery that aren’t medically necessary. While I would never judge anyone else’s painful decision, I’m hurt that you would judge mine. Did breast pump, which started labor, but once I was done it would stop (along with walking, herbal teas, castor oil, folley, stairs, more walking, more breast pump) and nothing worked. heather, Just to clear up any misconceptions — ultrasounds do not involve any radiation whatsoever. Only your doctor can say for sure, but there’s a few things to keep in mind. Some gynecologists routinely test for STDs without telling you. James, if i had not had an ultrasound at 12 weeks, we would not have known what complications i had and would not have been nearly as prepared. Yes, If These Things Happen, 10 Breastfeeding Products That Make A Nursing Mom's Life So Much Easier. Thanks! HI – All good points. Going through labor is no easy task, and it’s important to keep your hospital room as calm and as peaceful as possible. Serving up the hottest food trends and the inside scoop on restaurants worldwide. Oh what a great post… I thought I would I would be the easiest mum and just go with the flow and do whatever needed to be done until I realized that the very first step in the medical path is just the start of a long long road of potential disasters. No. We went ahead a did a free dna test the hospital offered since I was so angry at even being accused by the nurse of adultery. It seems that no matter the test result, there is still a risk of GBS since it can colonize after your routine test at 35-37 weeks. And I healed up quickly. Now that I’ve been through it once maybe I’ll have an easier time waiting. So please don’t say its not possible I feel bad for any mother who has to go through what I went through because of this false information. The reason it’s standard is that doctors are never 100% sure who the father is. This could prevent complications in future pregnancies due to blood incompatibility. I was so grateful that she stripped me because my baby was well over 9 lbs and if she had not done it, I may have been facing a c-section. Maybe that is the same as doctor…but I went about 2 weeks past the “due” date and I kept getting asked to be induced. My thoughts on that are, “How do we know?”. I’m fortunate to have one who’s not put off by the sight of blood, but even so, he was thrilled when I had the epidural, although he had also supported me in not having it the first time. Any woman who feels this is not right for her should find another doctor and stand up for what is best for her situation. I was dead set on not having an epidural with my newest little blessing, #6. I was offered genetic testing for Others have already corrected the inaccuracies I noticed immediately – quite unusual for you, the big researcher! Katie. If your personal morals rule out abortion as an option for you, I agree that it just doesn’t make sense to expose yourself and your baby to the additional risk of infection or complications. I appreciate your forthrightness in stating what you believe–regardless. Yes, actually, toilet paper is needed. Too many unknowns, too many false positives requiring invasive interventions such as amnios. Others develop meningitis and can suffer from mental retartdation. One of the biggest things with pregnancy and making your decisions, is to be informed. Because we live in Germany, while I do buy mostly organic meat and sometimes from the local farms, I do not have to worry about hormones (ie, when we eat out) b/c the practice is illegal in Germany. But this wouldn’t protect you in the unlikely event that you were exposed during your pregnancy. The federal Fair Labor Standards Act equires that employees, unless specifically exempted—such as managers, certain sales employees and professionals—must be paid overtime if they work more than 40 hours in one week. I only opted for the 20 week one as well, as there is some research out there that too many can be detrimental. As with many of these decisions, “Nothing unnecessary” quickly became my mantra. Thanks for the great post. I think it is so important to let women know of their options and what is not necessary. I know that THAT sounds judgy, and when it comes to you’re child, you have every right to choose what YOU believe is best for them… It is tough deciding. It’s your right and your choice to deny the use of pain medication of any kind. Good luck . Trusting your gut is crucial to getting the most out of the birthing process while staying true to yourself. Prenatal diagnosis will make the difference between life and death for her children–and not because of abortion. For my first pregnancy I did not feel the contractions that much. I have been blessed to have miraculous pitocin induced natural labors and hope that baby number 5 will come out even faster!! For some reason, they found differences in a male support person and a female. Katie. Not long after you give birth, the nurses will encourage you to use the restroom…but you’ll probably be a little surprised when she stands there and watches you. Here are 5 important things you should know about probationers in Malaysia. Guess where I found it, among dozens of places? I’m sure you’ll find something to help battle the GBS. I got home, lost my mucus plug that night and “spotted” pretty badly. Exactly. What have you said “No” to that most folks see as standard procedure? And, wow, way to go on the cloth diaper switch! When in labor, every woman becomes bitchy for the reason that she is in tremendous pain, moron! My midwife doesn’t give Pitocin unless it’s needed. It fascinates me, too! Sometimes labour can be induced if your baby is overdue or there's any risk to you or your baby's health. I never heard anything about prenatal vitamins before! Ultrasounds can be used to check for most survivable genetic conditions (e.g., Down Syndrome), so families can use that less-invasive method if they would want additional time to prepare for raising a child with a disability. The first birth lasted 24 hours from first real contraction to baby arriving. Your employer can’t penalize you for following workplace health and safety laws and for obeying a Ministry of Labour inspector’s order. Sounded to me like there wasn’t a whole lot of reasons that I needed to use it. Awesome! It has nothing to do with STDs except that one possible cause of abnormal cells (and even cancer) is the sexually transmitted Human Papilloma Virus, but the pap is not a test for that virus. We have a Multi-pur filter but live in Germany where fluoride and chlorine are not added anyway. She also talks about the options in antibiotics if you choose to go that route to minimize complications even more. Wow, it’s scary how fast you can go from “what’s wrong?” to 10 days in the NICU! Our second child is due in February and I would choose another homebirth in a heartbeat, but my husband (who is also my birth coach) is still shook up about the aftermath of the first birth so we’re compromising with a midwife in a hospital. I knew she had booked her vacation around my due date but I didn’t think she’d stoop so low as to try to induce labour so early in a very healthy/normal pregnancy. I remember whispering to my husband, don’t you think it’s awfully quiet in here (a full maternity ward)? At 40 weeks gestation, there’s no evidence to suggest induction is necessary in a normal healthy pregnancy. I refused doctors and hospitals and went with a homebirth. I think the problem is that in the US all this extra “help” women are told they need is not help at all. Drugs just aren’t for me. So far, I’ve been able to advocate for myself on almost every issue – like when I arrived for no. However, case law does distinguish between a confirmed employee and a probationer. And my daughter is as healthy as a horse, and I do not have to worry about her infecting an innocent young child who can’t choose for themselves with a disease that should have been stamped out had people chosen to vaccinate their children. My water ended up breaking without me being in labor yet, so I ended up going on pitocin due to the risk of infection. Radiation is term that means one of two things: subatomic particles or electromagnetic waves. Which meant the baby was born with a fever of 102.9. Thanks for sharing. Cassie, In places where it was required I went ahead and did the HIV test because it wasn’t any more invasive- they just do it all at once with the same poke when they do the pregnancy blood work. Starting at 39 Weeks: Foods and Gentle Induction Methods. can they refuse  to give you an epidural A doctor, midwife, or other health professional is always benefitted by knowing if a baby will have special needs at birth, whether or not the expectant parents would do anything with the results. If you seem to be in a constant battle with one of the nurses assigned to your team, don’t let it get you down. (They should be, but they may not be…), where she shares stuff she either created herself or loved from others. Research and read. So until my newborn baby starts hanging out at brothels and shooting up, s/he is not at risk of Hep B and the vaccine can be put off until MUCH later (for our family that would be many years!! For pregnant and or non pregnant people . I’ve only met a couple of women who have had low platelets during pregnancy so it’s neat to see I’m not alone! But praise God your children were spared any consequences and that forgiveness was shared between you; that speaks volumes to your good relationship. This might be just a touch “green” and mostly my faith speaking, but it’s definitely something I refuse. Not immediately, but much later. Given that she was overdue, I think having my membranes stripped was a far better option than drugs. A good resource for making decisions about labor and early parenting is “Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering”. When I declined genetic testing, my OB/GYN said, “I think that’s very sensible. Roughly one-third of all births are via Cesarean sections. So I had meds to start labour and made sure to stress to all who came in to the room that I was a midwife, homebirth, no meds in my house, cloth diaper kinda girl and please don’t offer me anything unless I ask for it. I think trying to keep things brief made that paragraph a bit confusing – I was wary of the prescription prenatals, which were the ones with artificial coloring, and also the ones packed so tightly that they probably don’t get assimilated very well. I have been there for friends with and without Pitocin and there is a huge difference. We took Bradley Birth classes and saw videos of babies after birth with drugs and after natural births. Speaking of refusing medical advice, my doctor thought I was completely crazy because I wouldn’t allow her to test for HIV during my last pregnancy. MY second pregnancy of twins was a whole different story – extra vitamins, no exercise, bed rest, and c-section and pain definitely did not go away immediately, and not natural. Please keep in mind that I’m not a professional (of any kind), and these are simply my experiences, based on research I have done over the past 5 years. 2 and told them, “No, I do not want to go to triage, I need a room.” They didn’t believe me, but my repeated, “I need a roooooooom!” convinced them. Pushing too hard and too fast is part of the reason women tear so often. You will get all kinds of crazy, seriously. I refused, and was told: ok, than you’ll both have to stay 24 hours. Healthy mom, healthy baby. Hopefully baby number two will have a smoother entrance (whenever THAT happens!). examples of crazy crap your husbands pulled while you were in labor. I also have had friends who have had the Strep B drip during labor and had great nursing relationships with their newborns. I figured even though it wasn’t “my” money directly, I didn’t want to generate wasteful spending or literal waste from extra tests. I had a hellish time trying to breastfeed my newborn son (turns out … I am a grandmother and had a completely natural delivery first time I was adamant about the ‘extras’ that are not really required. Moral of the story: Being “crunchy” is all well and good, but check with your state laws well before birth to see if your choices are actually legal. But some states require doctors and midwives to recommend the tests during pregnancy just in case.