Thursday, February 01, 2007

My Delivery Plans

I'm going to have my partner and sister (a doula in training, she just needs to attend more births as a doula) at the delivery. My OB did mention it was partly up to the anaesthesiologist how many people we have in the room though. I'm thinking it will work out how I'd like though.

My doctor said he would lower the drape when they are going to pull baby out if I like. He said that the baby will stay in the room with us the entire time after the delivery (provided there aren't any issues needing extra care for him). My partner isn't interested in cutting the cord he has told me.

Actually my partner is rather liking the idea that he's going to be the first one to interact much with our baby boy. He tells me he's going to take him off to the side and get to know him and name him and eventually I'll get to be introduced. I think he knows that it's not totally up to him how it goes, and we will try to offer the breast to the baby soon after delivery.

I worry that trying to figure out nursing and the new baby with too many visitors is going to be a little overwelming. I'll probably be in the hospital for a few days, but my inclination is to send out an email to friends and family ahead of time letting them know what my expectations were about visitors. I just have a feeling that with my temperment I'm going to need some room to be able to figure out how to care for my baby without additional outside pressure and expectations.

For anyone reading who is also going to have a planned cesarean, The Essential C-Section Guide is a helpful book to read as it will run you through the paces of what to expect including breastfeeding post surgery.

My partner has struggled a little with the idea that my sister and mother will be included in the delivery and post-partum period (my mom's coming for 3 weeks and she's soooo excited about her first grandchild's arrival) but for me it just feels right. After talking to him more about it, and him talking with other female friends who have children, he's come to see that having a grandmother's help is a good thing, even if they might drive you a little crazy in the meantime. For me I feel like it helps take all the pressure off of me to have extra hands to help mother our baby boy -- and hopefully it will let me rest and heal better.

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Changing the topic slightly, the doctor's office called and my test results came back great. I tested negative for Strep B, my ferritin had jumped up from 7 in November to 13, and my hematocrit was up from 31 to 35.7. The nurse said that compared to many other woman at this late stage in pregnancy my blood work looked great. Its nice to know that taking all the vitamins is helping. I just wanted to be sure that things were looking okay prior to going in for surgery next week.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think you are very wise to tell everyone ahead of time of your wishes. I was also very worried about my first breastfeeding session. I had a csection as well. It is amazing how the baby just knew what to do. I was glad because I was learning as well. My sister told me that when the latch on to curl my toes and relax. When they latch is the only time you should feel some discomfort and curling the toes just helped. I don't know why maybe it kept my mind off of the discomfort- not pain. You will be an old pro before you know it! Good luck and I can't wait to see your little bundel of joy!
deb

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a great postpartum plan. We did not have a lot of visitors in the beginning, but DID have our Moms come in shifts and it was wonderful. My husband, especially, was relieved to have someone else there to grocery shop and cook and emotionally support HIM so that he could support ME.

And with the BFing... just remember that your body is meant to do it. BFing is, above all, a confidence game!! And a lot of support -- from everyone from DH to LLL or an LC -- will help things get back on track in case you have a rough start.