Bradley Method vs. Hypnobirthing?

Argh, I can't make up my mind. I am really interested in taking classes to prepare Dad and me as best as possible for a natural childbirth. There are two notable methods that are taught these days, each with obvious "pros" over the other. I can't make up my mind - but have to very soon. In fact, a lot of the week-end Bradley Method classes that I have been looking into today are already fully booked up.

Anyway, I wanted to keep track of a web site with a great conversation string where mothers weigh in with their experiences with either or both of these methods. What I have gotten from these mainly is that the Bradley method is a child birthing class while the Hypnobirthing class is more about learning how to relax properly and overcome one's fears of birthing. The Bradley method classes include much more peripheral yet relevant information on, for example, proper nutrition, pre-natal exercise, developing a birth plan, and preparing for breast feeding. Although it does emphasize the *necessity* of relaxation during childbirth, many mothers write that it doesn't do such a good job of teaching it (spending only a superficial 15-20 minutes on it).

Meanwhile hypnobirthing is more of a relaxation class, which ultimately is apparently the most important factor in learning how to overcome/withstand labor contractions without feeling a need for medication. If relaxation/avoiding meds is your main objective, than the hypnobirthing class seems to be considered more effective. But if carrying out a well-rounded pregnancy - from good pre-natal health, helpful birthing techniques, and adequate preparation for breastfeeding afterwards - Bradley seems the better way to go.

Obviously there are clear advantages to learning both methods. If I were wealthy, I would just sign up and take both sets of classes. But at about $300 per registration - and with the Bradley class involving a time commitment of 12 weeks of meetings - it seems too extravagant for us to do something like that - especially given our pitiful budget. Also, while reading about the first two methods described above, I learned that their is a third method called "Birthing from Within," which lots of people are also raving about. And there is something called "hypno babies" and even "hypbirth" - which are both already different from "hypnobirthing" and, etc. etc. etc. It's all so overwhelming....

Meanwhile, Scott and I just visited some friends with a 6-week old newborn, and they warn us that we will spend months and months preparing for the actual birth, but then Boom - all of a sudden the birthing portion of having a baby is over, suddenly the parents face the arduous path of taking the baby home, adjusting to the baby, a new life of sleeplessness, and the psychological tolls of self-doubt and "good" parenting. So, in addition to the classes on birthing, it seems more classes on breastfeeding and childcare might be mandatory. ... (?)

Not to mention that I had originally wanted to hire a Doula to help us get through the whole process too...

Amniocentesis: Part II

So, I want to just skip to the good stuff: when preparing for the amnio, we found out that our baby is a BOY!!! (I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!) =)

To conduct the amnio, an ultrasound has to be performed so that the doctor can see where the baby is. The point is to avoid pricking the fetus when inserting the needle to pull out some of the amniotic fluid. In other words, the ultrasound shows the doctor where it is safe to prick the belly and puncture the amniotic sack without ever touching the baby inside.

At first, the person doing the ultrasound couldn't figure out what sex he was because his umbilical cord was sitting right in between his legs, and we couldn't get a good view. It seemed like it took a long time, but finally the technician was able to jiggle the baby enough so that we could see. (Incidentally, the technician informed us that we had a really active baby in there. He was moving all over the place) I had tears in my eyes when I learned. Of course, I think this is because I was really happy to hear that we had a boy. But also, it just made our having a baby (inside me!) that much more Real~!

This is one of the many pictures we got after the ultrasound. The baby is about 5.5 inches long here. The line shooting up from his face is his left arm, which he always happens to have in the "air" when we do our ultrasounds! We got a couple of other pictures, which I won't put up here. First, we got one of the babies testicles with an arrow pointing to them. I figure I don't want the kid to grow up mad at me for showing the world his privates, so that pictures is staying under wraps. Also, we got a 3-D picture of the baby too. I won't put that one up because, to be honest, he just doesn't look too great in that picture. - What I mean to say is, that the image is kind of spooky. The image is just clear enough to make out a lot - but still weird/vague enough to give everything this kind of gooey, macabre edge to it. I think it's an image that only a mom and dad (and maybe close relatives) would want to see anyway.

So, in addition to announcing our baby's sex, I also wanted to describe what the amnio was like. I have to say that it wasn't nearly as bad as I was anticipating. I'm usually not that squeamish about these things, but I had been pricked one too many times in the arm recently for the many pre-natal blood tests, and I was starting to get really tired of that. (It was starting to really hurt! More and more every time!) Another reason I was all frightened was because I had done a lot of reading, and descriptions of the procedure seemed so vivid and dramatic. I had also seen a video of amniocentesis on YouTube, and it was really graphic. (I don't recommend anyone watching any of those videos before going in for an amnio - really, it doesn't help at all) Apparently the procedure shown on YouTube is from the 80s, and it isn't accurate anymore anyway. But knowing that didn't make me feel any more relieved about how awful the test looked. Finally, I knew that there was a chance of miscarriage. And with that in mind, I thought there must be no way that this procedure could be minor, routine, harmless, or "unpainful".

But it was. First the doctor gave me a shot of anaesthetic, which really was harmless. As he was giving it to me, he informed me that that first prick was really going to be the extent of the pain... which was a big relief. Really, it was much less bothersome than the blood test pricks one gets when blood is drawn from the arm... The whole process only took about 3 minutes - if that. Also, I was very grateful, because my particular doctor tried to engage me with some light conversation, which helpfully distracted me from the actual process. Finally, when everything was all done, he stuck a bandaid on my tummy and told Scott to take me out to eat! : )

As for side-effects, I really didn't feel any of those either. The doctor said to be careful of cramping or bleeding mostly. But fortunately, I have felt quite normal since then (three days ago now). (Although I might mention that that night I slept extra long and hard - I really slept in the next day too!) I've been taking it easy for the past couple of days. The doctor warned me and Scott from my doing much exercise, lifting objects over 20 pounds, or doing practically anything that would put pressure on my belly. As far as I'm concerned, this so-called "bed rest" thing has been just fine with me though. I haven't really lifted a finger since the procedure - and it's been a great excuse for not having to exercise too : ) Finally today, though, I took a nice long walk so that I'll be ready for Yoga by next week. By the way, when I finally took my band-aid off a day-and-half later, one of the injection points was a little blue, like I had a small bruise there. It's already clearing up though.

Amniocentesis, Part I

Today Scott and I had an amniocentesis. It was a pretty nerve-wracking experience.

First of all, we were worried that our insurance was ultimately not going to cover it. Two days before the procedure, we got word from our insurance company that it would not cover an amnio unless the doctor deemed it a "medical necessity" in the paper work. We had never been told in those terms that it was a "necessity" so to speak. Our doctors and geneticist had simply explained that we faced high risks for having a genetically "flawed" baby, especially given our "advanced" ages (particular mine) over 35. We were told that the amnio was developed for parents in our "high risk" category of "advanced age" in order to determine that the state of health of our unborn baby. When I reported this to the insurance agency, I was told that this type of explanation did not clarify if the amnio was a "medical necessity." Making matters worse, the agent on the line emphasized to me that he could NOT guarantee that our insurance would reimburse any of the costs whatsoever.

How frustrating!!! (Someone could dedicate a whole blog to this topic of how obnoxious the insurance companies really are - but that will sidetrack me too much to start going off here, and now)

So anyway, to make a long story "short," we finally cleared that problem up with a few more phone calls and discussions. Finally we determined that on the insurance front, everything was probably going to be okay.

The second major quandary that we faced was stressing out about the safety of our fetus... (and even though the amnio is over now (and I feel fine) we're not quite out of the woods on this one yet.) Just yesterday a new acquaintance (with a newborn of 6 months) was telling me that she refused to have an amnio done - even though she was 41. She had had an experience witnessing a friend miscarry after having an amnio, and that had scarred her terribly. That was enough to make her decide not to put her own pregnancy in the same sort of jeopardy.

She kept asking me WHY I was going along with the amnio given the increased risk of miscarriage.

Personally, hearing about her friend's miscarriage immediately following her amnio just scared me to death. I started to really debate what exactly was the "medical necessity" of this procedure on various fronts - not just from the financial point of view of getting our insurance coverage.

I'm still not 100% decided on the answer to this. Should I have really put the pregnancy at risk - espeically knowing that our preliminary test results had been positive - and that neither Scott nor I had any major histories of genetic problems in our families. We thought about postpoining the amnio, so that we could deliberate the issues a bit longer. But we new that there was only a short window during the pregnancy when an amnio could be done at all. If we missed that window, then it would be too late. Finally, Scott and I decided to go ahead with the procedure anyway and to just try to keep as positive an outlook as possible.

More tomorrow on what the procedure was actually like - ugh!

The Baby Seat

Today Scott and I made our second "big" purchase for our baby: a baby seat. I got a great deal, which I found about 5 blocks away, advertised on craigslist. The babyseat we got was a Graco Car Seat SNUGRIDE in the gender neutral color of "WINDSOR- Green." It kind of looks like the image I included here.

The seat was only $35 - a steal - gratefully, since it will only work until our baby is 20 pounds. Then we will have to find yet another seat. Even though it was "used," it was practically brand new. I confirmed from the owner that it had never been in any accidents either.

The seat is really cute, but I was surprised how it, alone, already is kind of heavy. It's gonna be really heavy once we get a newborn in there!!

Another great feature about the seat is that it can be fitted up with a matching car-seat frame to make a stroller. I added this car-seat frame to one of the registries that we have been encouraged to set up. (More about our many on-line registries to follow.)