I just got back from the Dr who we didn’t actually see because he was at a seminar or something, things here do not work on an appointment basis you can go and see the Dr whenever you want and you just wait your turn. Seeing as we were there I asked to see the delivery room and met one of the midwives, she seemed nice, but when I started asking questions I got the impression she was a little strict and set in her ways.
I was shown 3 different rooms, the first was the prep room where I will be when I am in the early stages of labour, here they will monitor the babies heart, I asked if I will be stuck in bed in that time and she said no, if I am ok I will be able to get up and walk around provided my water hasn’t broken. Then I was shown the second room which is where I will be for the hard labour, and guess what, they are going to make me put my legs in stirrups, I am not impressed, I asked if I could be on all fours or squat and she just kind of looked at me funny and said I shouldn’t be embarrassed to have my legs in stirrups and I will only be like that for the final 3 pushes. Plus it is necessary so the Dr can see what is going on and to prevent any complications like the umbilical cord coming out first or an arm etc, yeah right. I was then shown the 3rd room which is the recovery room where I will stay for about 3 days, it had a cot, some nice pictures on the wall a fridge a tv etc. I don’t really fancy being in there for 3 days no matter how nice they have tried to make it look.
I also asked the midwife a lot of the Q’s I meant to ask the Dr, firstly she said they don’t perform an episiotomy unless it is necessary, well if my legs are in bloudy stirrups as if it wont be necessary. She also said it is procedure to give the baby vitamin K, but nothing else at this stage. She said they will give me the baby straight away to feed if I want before they take him/her away to be cleaned up and put it in an incubator to warm up (not sure if that is necessary). But she said it is also noisy in the labour room at that point and so as not to shock the poor thing they do that to ease the blow of coming into the real world. Another thing I asked is what there procedure is if I am late and how long they will leave me before they induce me. She started to give me a massive speech about how it isn’t good for the baby to stay inside longer than 40 weeks because by that point everything that needs to has developed and something about the longer it stays in there the worse it is. However she also said it depends on where I am at, they will do various tests etc to see if they should induce me. I still have a lot of unanswered questions and am not really happy with a lot of the answers. I really don’t want to have my legs in stirrups. I am a little more worried then I was before now. Not sure what I am feeling, nervous, a little angry that it isn’t the way I want it to be.
I forgot to ask what the anaesthetic is that they give if I wanted it, not that I do, but it is always good to know.
The midwife was young so whatever she has learnt has been probably in the last 10 years. So as far as natural birth goes she probably knows nothing. She was sweet don’t get me wrong I’m just not sure if it is now what I want. But the problem is I don’t really have many other choices. And not many people understand my viewpoint. Yes Panos is on my side but at the same time he is a little naive to what is happening to my body and what will happen to our baby. I feel a little drained and very disappointed and very much out of control of the whole situation.
Friday, 7 November 2008
Thursday, 6 November 2008
Low Iron and Tiredness
My latest test results revealed I have low iron. That would explain the tiredness I have been feeling. I wake up late and still tired and within a couple of hours I am yawning again, this of course could also be down to the fact that I have restless sleep because of vivid dreams, waking to pee and not being able to get comfortable. My diet has gone from bad to worse over the past couple of months too due to the many life changes going on; moving house, going to England, living with the inlaws for a short while, during these times I wasn’t taking care of myself the way I should have been and adopted some bad habits. Daily almond milk stopped, fruit consumption declined and salads were scarce. I thought I was invincible forgetting that to remain healthy at such a demanding time on my body needs care and precision. However I have now been shaken back into shape. My Dr prescribed me iron tablets from the local pharmacist; anyone that knows me will know that there is no way I was going to take them. Firstly from a nutritional therapist point of view the iron in those tablets is in an unassimilated form therefore you may as well not take them at all because your body wont absorb them and of course everyone knows about the nasty side effect of constipation associated with standard iron tablets (something I don’t need right now). I am just glad he didn’t even suggest eating meat, which would have really disappointed me and made me see him in a different light. So my action plan is not to ignore the Dr’s orders all together so I have been taking a Solgar supplement which I know is a reputable company who constantly research vitamins and minerals and the most absorbable forms etc. Secondly I looked a little into what foods are best eaten to boost iron levels and as I suspected greens are number 1, so they have been featuring in my shopping trolley massively, I also discovered that pomegranates are also a high source of iron and particularly useful for pregnant or menstruating women. Guess what? They are in season too hooray. Oh and I read somewhere that beetroot is also a good blood tonic so good for iron levels.
My new action plan consists of raw almond milk every day, raw beetroot coleslaw made from beetroot, carrot and a little cabbage dressed in orange juice, flax oil and honey a couple of days a week, salads made with spinach, cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes and any other goodies I have at home dressed in flax and hempseed oil and lemon juice. And lettuce wraps made from mashed avocado, spinach, parsley and tomato wrapped in lettuce leaves from my motherinlaws garden yummy. I have also been eating tons of mandarins and fresh shelled walnuts. Oh and not forgetting pomegranate juice every day or so, sometimes diluted with sparkling water for a change, sometimes not.
I am really enjoying the new seasons goodies. I can’t decide whether I prefer winter or summer? We have been indulging in walnuts, oranges and tangerines, persimmons, pomegranates, apples, pears, kiwis, chestnuts, lettuce, beetroot, spinach, spring onions and more. And even though the summer had delicious fruits available as well as plump tomatoes and cucumbers, the winter feels more satisfying at the moment maybe it is because I am welcoming the change in flavours or maybe it is because I am getting all the nutrients my body needs for this particular time in life.
As for baby Melissa it feels like his/her little foot has been wedged in my right ribcage for about a month now, so trying to sleep and sit comfortably has been fun. Movement is less but more predominant with my belly sometimes looking like something out of the film Alien. I am unsure if I am waddling yet, I don’t think so and I am not at the ‘holding my back when I sit down and get up’ stage. But I do have to roll out of bed and I do make a lot of noise when I have to get up off the couch.
Party mum went out this weekend both Friday and Saturday night, something I haven’t done for a long time. We just happened to take a walk into town on Friday night and bumped into some friends which turned into a late night. And Saturday night was a friends birthday, it was one of those nights which is full of conversation and laughter and has you looking at your watch at about 3am saying ‘cor blimey where did the time go!!’ We didn’t get home till 5am which was very extreme for a nearly 8 month pregnant woman. I didn’t feel it that night but for the whole of Sunday I had a headache like I’d drunk a bottle of whiskey all to myself and had no energy to do anything, serves me right ay. I think I will take it easy from now on. I guess I am soon to become a mommy I should start behaving like one and being a responsible adult, yeah right, I’ll take it easy but will still enjoy myself when I feel up to it.
The baby cot arrived yesterday and is ready for action on my side of the bed, we just need the baby to put in it now. I opted for a natural mattress called coco-mat we got it from Mothercare and it is made from coconut fibres, I was very impressed with the fact that such a thing is available in this tiny part of the world and the company is Greek, Yay to the Greeks they are finally getting it right. Apparently coconut fibres allow ventilation inside the mattress and it is very hygienic.
The company is also very eco-friendly using 100% bio-produced and 100% eco-processed materials, they do not use chemical materials and only use natural dyes.
My new action plan consists of raw almond milk every day, raw beetroot coleslaw made from beetroot, carrot and a little cabbage dressed in orange juice, flax oil and honey a couple of days a week, salads made with spinach, cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes and any other goodies I have at home dressed in flax and hempseed oil and lemon juice. And lettuce wraps made from mashed avocado, spinach, parsley and tomato wrapped in lettuce leaves from my motherinlaws garden yummy. I have also been eating tons of mandarins and fresh shelled walnuts. Oh and not forgetting pomegranate juice every day or so, sometimes diluted with sparkling water for a change, sometimes not.
I am really enjoying the new seasons goodies. I can’t decide whether I prefer winter or summer? We have been indulging in walnuts, oranges and tangerines, persimmons, pomegranates, apples, pears, kiwis, chestnuts, lettuce, beetroot, spinach, spring onions and more. And even though the summer had delicious fruits available as well as plump tomatoes and cucumbers, the winter feels more satisfying at the moment maybe it is because I am welcoming the change in flavours or maybe it is because I am getting all the nutrients my body needs for this particular time in life.
As for baby Melissa it feels like his/her little foot has been wedged in my right ribcage for about a month now, so trying to sleep and sit comfortably has been fun. Movement is less but more predominant with my belly sometimes looking like something out of the film Alien. I am unsure if I am waddling yet, I don’t think so and I am not at the ‘holding my back when I sit down and get up’ stage. But I do have to roll out of bed and I do make a lot of noise when I have to get up off the couch.
Party mum went out this weekend both Friday and Saturday night, something I haven’t done for a long time. We just happened to take a walk into town on Friday night and bumped into some friends which turned into a late night. And Saturday night was a friends birthday, it was one of those nights which is full of conversation and laughter and has you looking at your watch at about 3am saying ‘cor blimey where did the time go!!’ We didn’t get home till 5am which was very extreme for a nearly 8 month pregnant woman. I didn’t feel it that night but for the whole of Sunday I had a headache like I’d drunk a bottle of whiskey all to myself and had no energy to do anything, serves me right ay. I think I will take it easy from now on. I guess I am soon to become a mommy I should start behaving like one and being a responsible adult, yeah right, I’ll take it easy but will still enjoy myself when I feel up to it.
The baby cot arrived yesterday and is ready for action on my side of the bed, we just need the baby to put in it now. I opted for a natural mattress called coco-mat we got it from Mothercare and it is made from coconut fibres, I was very impressed with the fact that such a thing is available in this tiny part of the world and the company is Greek, Yay to the Greeks they are finally getting it right. Apparently coconut fibres allow ventilation inside the mattress and it is very hygienic.
The company is also very eco-friendly using 100% bio-produced and 100% eco-processed materials, they do not use chemical materials and only use natural dyes.
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