January 22, 2008 – 1:09 am
One of the fun things about childbirth is playing with the toys you can get for pain relief. Mines a TENS machine; that’s Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation, as recommended by midwives. You place four sticky pads with a mild electrical current running through them on your back. A machine with a little hand held button allows you to order either a ‘burst’ or a ‘continuous’ surge of electrical impulses to the area of pain. The instructions recommend you test run your machine before going into labour by attaching the pads to your arm or leg. So I placed the pads on my left forearm. I switched on the machine and slowly turned up the controls to increase the pulse rate … it’s pretty impressive; like buzzing pins and needles on a focussed area of your skin. BUT, if you’re curious and want to explore the machines potential…(Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus)…WATCH OUT! You WILL feel as though plugged into the national grid.
I tried this on both the ‘burst’ (advised) and ‘continuous’ (not recommended) mode. The ‘burst’ mode, as it suggests, delivers a pulsating electrical current. On increasing the surge rate, the pins and needles become more like repeated electrical shocks which unwontedly instructed my hand to flex and jump in rhythm with the surges. A Carry-On moment followed as my hand (no longer my own), repeatedly grabbed at the air as if trying to squeeze an invisible breast. Trying this on ‘continuous’ mode however was admittedly plain stupid! Within a spilt second of turning it on my ass leapt out of the seat and my heart jumped into my throat - Christ. SHOCK is the word!
Having done my research, I am now as you can imagine looking forward to applying my new found skills to the real thing - Labour. Bring it on! I’m armed and ready with my boost button. Man, I’m gunna be wired!
January 16, 2008 – 7:24 pm
I think I timed my leave just about right. Finishing work before Christmas has given me one month of freedom before our little guy arrives in the world. These last few days are passing so quickly. After being utterly pampered at Christmas by family and friends, I return to London to race around the shops with Pau in our last bid to find essentials for the the home and the all important hospital bag which sits patiently by the door. Now we can put those pressures to rest I’m on a mission to sleep for the remainder of my term…
It’s now the final countdown. With only eight days to go until my due date.
O H M Y G O D!
If I’m honest I’m feeling relaxed and ready to get on with the big heave ho. I just can’t wait to meet this guy!
January 10, 2008 – 6:20 pm
Hunger ache
I’ve just eaten ‘spaghetti mama’ (not a concious association at the time) with a glass of red … Deep fried mushrooms to start. I need, I mean NEED!! to eat. Everything about the food is sensuous, satisfying, fulfilling YUM. Trouble is, my stomach gets packed way before my mouth is ready to stop. End up in the difficult position of still looking at the temptation in front of me but not being able to accommodate it…
It’s a bit disappointing when even small bite-size sandwiches feel like a brick has landed but I suppose this some how brings some control into the management of hunger pangs. If I were always this hungry or lets say keen to taste, I’d be HUGE. Baby helps limit the amount I can physically consume by stealing all the space in there.
January 7, 2008 – 10:37 pm
I’m reading a great book; The new Pregnancy and Childbirth (’97 edition) by Sheila Kitzinger on loan from a friend whose just had her third… (Thanks Linda). It’s an informative read being a little bit more in depth than the ‘pregnancy bible’ the hospital hand out!
Weirdly, I’m quite looking forward to the whole experience… (and therein lies the evidence of utter inexperience). I’m talking about labour - It sounds barking and most likely is, how I can possibly be looking forward to feeling as though my middle section, being split in two for the arrival of a living, breathing mini me (POP!) will somehow be a pleasurable experience? – I presume this is romantic naivety working it’s magic. Delusion (too many years working in mental health) has become one of my favourite pass times.
Still, the pregnancy is going well. I had a period of six weeks feeling icky on a daily basis, which thankfully disappeared almost as the textbooks say on week 12. This was closely connected to a feeling of desperate hunger, which meant I had a good appetite and has consequently led toward a womanlier figure (always the late developer). Since then, I’ve had a great pregnancy, feeling happy and positive and enjoying knowing that I’ll be a mum soon.