what a very good boy
Just got back from a midwife appointment (all is well with me), and I'm very pleased to say that our son is in the ideal birth position - head down and with his back slightly towards my left side. Of course his head isn't engaged yet so he could still end up elsewhere, but it makes me feel better to know that my couch slouching hasn't made him go into a back-to-back position. Recently, I have been using my exercise ball and making sure that I'm sitting up/forwards while I'm at work and watching TV, so maybe this has helped. For those not in the know, sometimes labour can be longer and more difficult if the baby has its back to yours.
I have been enjoying the book _The Thinking Woman's Guide to Better Birth_ by Henci Goer (thank you, Lisa!). When it comes to labour and birth, I strongly believe that knowledge is power. Although I am trying to avoid "information overload" (and I've thrown most of my pregnancy books out of the window in frustration), I want to learn about the alternatives, procedures, and drugs that I might be given during labour. I want to be able to make informed decisions rather than just go along with whatever the doctor or midwife on duty tells me is best. For example, now I'm certain that I'd rather wait to go into labour naturally than have my waters broken or be given a drug like oxytocin - and why. I understand that sometimes intervention is unavoidable, but if the baby (or myself) isn't in distress, why force a natural, involuntary process? I am definitely not saying that I refuse to have a certain type of birth - I will go with whatever's best for the baby - but I think we do have the power to make choices and request alternatives.
Oh, lookit me getting all hippy like.
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