24 Weeks and Going Natural

It is hard to believe that I am almost 6 months along.  I am not sure if it is because this pregnancy seems to be going smoother than Moriah's did or because I am chasing a toddler around, but time has flown!  This past week we have made some big decisions about where and how to have this little guy.  

If you would have told me last year after having Moriah that I would have a goal to give birth to my next child without medication I would have told you that you were NUTS!  We had a great birth experience with Moriah.  We were in a hospital (the President's hospital, so you know it was a good one!) and I had an epidural.  There were no complications and she was a happy healthy little sweetie.  So, why change when things went so well?  God has truly brought me on a journey the past couple of months.

To start with, the hospital where I had Moriah is a 45 minute drive with no traffic, and 2 hours if there is traffic.  The thought of having to spend an entire day in the car and at the doctor's office with a toddler for every appointment did not sound appealing.  The only other option I knew of was to switch to have OB care closer to my home and have the baby in the county hospital.  I did my research and talked to other moms-to-be who were seeing the OB I was thinking about going to.  They all had great things to say about him.  My next step was to talk with moms I knew who had delivered at the county hospital.  They all had great things to say about their experience so we made the switch.  I have to say I was not totally thrilled about my OB, only for the typical doctor's office reasons.  I have had two cancelled and rescheduled appointments, waited for an hour past my appointment to see him and felt rushed out of my appointment and unable to really communicate to him what my desires for birth are.  Not too horrible, I have time and many more appointments to try and discuss these matters.

Then a friend of mine had her baby at the county hospital.  Since I did my mom survey they have changed their hospital policies.  They actually removed her nursing, hour old infant, from her breast for tests.  She didn't get her infant back for several hours and in the mean time her infant received formula from the nurses instead of being nursed.  WHAT?!  As I looked at her baby through the glass, I was shocked to hear a tour guide say to a group of expectant moms that this was STANDARD!  Are you kidding me?  That is my friend's baby and she is fully capable to feed her and the nurses are fully able to preform their tests on the baby in her room.  It was also sad for me to see a little baby behind the glass whose diaper had come undone.  I stood there for 5 minutes and no one even noticed.  How sad.  He was in there all exposed for anyone to see.  These tiny gifts had mommies and daddies who were aching to snuggle them and get to know them and they were being left alone, seemingly neglected.  It broke my heart and I decided then and there that my baby would not be born in that hospital.

Thus I began my search for an alternative hospital with better policies and who were fully supportive of me breastfeeding and keeping my baby in the room with me.  (For those of you who don't know, I had MAJOR issues with Moriah and nursing and she ended up on formula.  She is happy and healthy and I am just so thankful that there are good formulas out there for those who can't or choose not to breastfeed.  That being said it is VERY important to me to have a good beginning for breastfeeding and hopefully have better success this time.)  At this point I was still trying to figure out if I wanted an epidural again and was interested in finding out more about natural childbirth and a birthing center I heard about.  Long story short, I did more research (it's a big decision, so I wanted to be educated in all my options) and began to think that having this baby naturally was the best option for me and him.

We toured a birthing center this week and I LOVED it!  The hospital is right down the street from the center so if anything happens we are just a five minute ride away.  It is not the same county hospital either, so if I did for some reason have to go there my midwife would come with me and my little boy would not be taken from me after delivery.  I am very nervous about the whole no drugs thing but I know this is what God has called me to do for this birth so I know I can do it.  

I highly encourage all of you who are expecting to be educated in all your options.  Looking back on Moriah's birth, I was not educated in my options and what the risks were.  As I said, we ended up having a great experience but I know now that it wasn't the best one we could have had.  Some of the things I have become more educated about are delayed chord cutting, risks of medication to me and the baby, how to lower my chances for a c-section, relaxation techniques for managing pain during labor, and alternative pushing positions.  

Anyway, we are looking forward to our little guy arriving and what his birth will turn out to be.  God knows exactly how it will go and I am trusting in Him to give me the strength to bring our baby boy into this world.  I can't wait!!!  

Also, we still have not agreed on a name.  My vote is for Levi but we aren't unified in that yet.  Anyone have any great baby boy names you want to share?  We are open for suggestions, as long as you don't feel offended if we don't pick yours. =)  Names are very important to us and we pray long and hard about which one is right and what the meaning is behind the name, so it takes us more time to decide.  I will keep you posted!