childbirth education class #4...

We had our fourth and final Prepared Childbirth class last night.  We talked more about labor and delivery, specifically what happens if a c-section is needed.  Though I'm not a fan of needing a c-section -- I don't know who is really (unless they had serious complications in previous births or something like that) -- but I know that if one is needed, it will only be because it will be in my best interest & that of my child.

With that being said, having a c-section seems like a cake walk compared to a vaginal birth!  Now, I know there are more issues with recovery in the case of a c-section, a longer stay in the hospital, etc.  But the work is done mostly by the hospital staff with a c-section, according to what we learned.  Surgery is surgery, however, and the emotional issues that go along with a c-section HAVE to factor in, I'm sure.

Once we wrapped up the eduction portion, we got to take a tour of the hospital, those areas that we would be utilizing in the labor & delivery of our child.  It was pretty interesting seeing all the different places, and I got lost pretty fast but there are plenty of folks around to direct you where you need to go.  :)  What I liked about the hospital is that it doesn't feel so much like a hospital.  They've done a good job of making the rooms feel more like bedrooms, despite the little bit of medical equipment, etc. that's necessary.

The labor & delivery rooms (vs. the recovery/postpartum rooms) were kind of scary, though.  Only because Jackie flipped on the "delivery lights" (2 huge spotlights!),  took apart the bed and brought out the stirrups and such and I think it just kind of hit me right.then. that I would be going through "all this" in 2 months time.  It, um...well, it kind of...it was a healthy dose of reality.  We'll just say that.

The recovery/postpartum rooms on the mother & baby floor I've seen before after visiting some friends in the hospital after giving birth.  They're pretty nice.  Once we get to that point, it will be better.  I think.  :)

Jeff and I are really glad that we signed up for this class.  Jackie was an excellent teacher and I think we learned some really valuable things through this class.  We have 2 more classes to attend this month, one on breastfeeding and one on baby care.  After those, we'll be pros, right??

childbirth education class #3...

Our 3rd childbirth education class was last night and it was just as informative as the other 2 have been.  We talked about a lot of different things last night revolving around a vaginal birth (I can hear the sound of some of you closing out of your web browser right...about...now.).

For those who are still with me, we talked about a couple of different breathing techniques: the slow, deep breaths -- in through the nose, out through the mouth -- that we use to "breathe through a contraction", and the short, shallow breaths -- like "panting" -- that we use to keep from pushing when we feel the urge before it's time.

As an exercise, Jackie gave us each a clothespin, daddies included, to put on our ear to assimilate the pain of a contraction, though, she warned us it's NOTHING like contraction pain.  10-4.  We only wish that's as bad as it was gonna get...

Anyway, Jackie would tell us that a contraction was starting and we'd clip the clothespin to our ear and then breathe those slow, deep breaths while she timed it for a minute.  Then we we'd take the clothespin off our ear because the contraction was over.  We did that a couple of times.  Piece of cake.  :)

We also talked about different exercises/positions that would be helpful once we got into labor contractions.  She mentioned that the ab ball was a wonderful tool to take the pressure off the lower back.  Also, to apply counter-pressure during a contraction around the hips was always helpful.  She said our husbands/coaches/whoever could do that by pressing in with hands on either side of our hips or by tying a sheet or piece of fabric around our hips and "cinching" it during a contraction.  Interesting.

But not as interesting as this little nugget of wisdom: she calls it the "labor dance" -- I called it the "middle school dance" in my notes.  :)  You know how you used to dance with a boy in middle school?  You basically had your hands resting on his shoulders and he had his hands resting on your waist (unless he was a good dancer and then he would pull you in close -- never dropping his hands inappropriately, mind you -- and you'd be able to just snuggle in...uh, but I never did that kind of dancing in middle school, nosirree.  I promise, Momma. :)

Aaaaanyways, this, in essence, is the "labor dance".  Jackie says the swaying motion, coupled with the gentle pressure that your husband/coach/whoever applies to your hips during a contraction is very helpful.  

And massages.  Yes, please. 

Jackie had us give our husbands a short massage last night to give them an idea of how WE would want to be massaged, etc. and then they turned around and did the same to us.  Kinda.  Gonna have to coach Jeff on that one a little bit.  :)  He gets in a hurry and goes too fast and the faster he goes, the more pressure he applies.  Okay, babe, not...so...don't be...so...OKAY, JUST STOP.  STOP.  Thanks for trying.  :)

After this fun, Jackie went into more detail about what happens postpartum after the delivery, including cleaning & stimulating the baby while having skin-to-skin contact, breastfeeding within the first hour, giving the baby a bath after about an hour and a half, if we choose, etc.  It was all very informative.

Next week will be our last class in this Prepared Childbirth series.  We'll talk about c-section deliveries, some other miscellaneous things and then we'll take a tour of the hospital facility.  We're both looking forward to that.  Incidentally, we have to walk by the newborn nursery every week to get to our classroom so we know where that is.  And we always stop to admire the brand new babies -- so sweet.  :)

childbirth education class #2...

We went to our 2nd childbirth education class last night.  Everyone that was there last week came back so that was good.  We only scared off the sister-in-law that I mentioned in this post.  :)

Again, there was a lot of information covered in this class.  We talked about things to pack for our stay in the hospital, both for before & during delivery, as well as after delivery.  There were lists in the books that we got last week, but Jackie sited specific things that she thought were really helpful.  I made a special note of those.  Especially the one about the "hair tie for long hair".  :)

We also talked about different tools that we may or may not see during the process.  AND it was show-and-tell.  Yes, Jackie brought out things like an IV tube/syringe, an IUPC (internal uterine pressure catheter), a vacuum, a fetal scalp electrode...

It was not a real upbeat time in the class.  And then we went through some of the reasons for induction.

Kind of a downer -- even Jackie said that -- but still, it's a part of being informed and prepared and I'm glad to have the knowledge we learned last night.  Even if it's not all *rainbows & butterflies*.

Jackie did cover pediatricians in the area, too, and had nothing but good, positive things to say about each of them.  I think we've decided on our pediatrician -- one in the Hampstead area so it will be relatively close for us.  That, and we know other kids (and their parents) who are patients there.

childbirth education class #1...

Jeff and I went to our first childbirth education class last night, Prepared Childbirth.  This was the first of a 4-week series of one-hour classes at the lovely (no, really) Women's & Children's Hospital of New Hanover Regional Medical Center.

Our friend -- and phenomenal (so I've heard :) labor & delivery nurse -- Jackie is teaching the class and she did great!  I wondered how she felt about 1) teaching her SS teacher and 2) talking about such things as vaginas & discharge in front of him.  She said it was a little awkward, of course, but she's a professional so she did what she needed to do and told us what we needed to know.

It was a FULL hour's worth of information she threw at us so before we knew it, it was 8:30pm and time to go.  We talked about some of the basic terms involved with childbirth (anatomy, birthing terms, etc.), the different stages of labor, what to look for/note if this or that should happen, etc.  She gave us a book with the information so we had that to take our own notes in if we chose to.

I enjoyed the class and at this point, don't have anything to fear yet.  She was very upfront with how hard this childbirth thing is and how it is painful, but even with that, I'm not panicking.  Yet.

We still have 3 classes to go, so there's still time to scare me out of my wits.

There were about 15 folks in the class -- only one who was there by herself.  I was proud of the soon-to-be daddies that came with their mommies (including mine :) -- there were 5 of those.  One of the girls brought her mom since her husband had to work, and another girl brought her sister-in-law since her husband was also working.  Incidentally, her SIL made a good point: "This is an excellent class to take to KEEP you from getting pregnant!"  :)