40 Week 1 Day Update

Baby Ticker countdown thingy is no more. It went from 0 weeks 0 days to 1 week 1 day. I was not pleased with that... so its gone. :)

Last night I had my first 'false labor' experience. I don't know if that is really the right term, but I definitely had some contraction action. I immediately thought, Hmm what would my midwife tell me to do. So I drank some water and took a warm shower. It wasn't painful, but there was definitely a lot of discomfort. After about 12 minutes in the shower, all subsided, and I was able to go to sleep.

Then today I had my 40 week appointment. I told my midwife, Denise, about last night and she said that she calls that simmering... where the body is just kind of getting in labor mode. Unfortunately that doesn't tell us much about when this baby could be coming. All else looked good. In addition to the progress we knew about already... it looks like I have begun to dilate a bit. Not much, but more than a week ago... to me that is progress!

And I had lost track of my weight gain... but apparently I am up to 28 pounds. Denise was very happy with that number, and so am I. Oh and she guessed baby's weight to be about 8 lbs.

We also had a brief conversation about how different people handle labor. Denise asked how I handle stress in my day to day life. Without hesitation... I said, I cry. Well she said that how you handle stress is usually what is reflected during labor. If you cuss and get angry... that's usually what happens in labor... or if you just kind of withdraw... same thing in labor. Over the past almost 11 years, Nathan has probably dealt with enough of my tears to fill an Olympic size swimming pool... so he should be able to handle my tears in labor without a problem.

Oh and we also had a discussion about drugs. My goal is a natural labor. I am very determined, but still feel like I need to stay flexible. However, I do not want any drugs that will alter my state of mind. I don't want anything that is going to make me feel loopy or tipsy. I don't like how strong pain meds have made me feel in the past... just out of it and nauseous. So I wanted to make sure I could go straight to an intrathecal without having to mess around with the other drugs. And sure enough that is fine with them.

And I'm finding things to keep my mind busy. I'm hoping to finish my jigsaw puzzle today and I started a new book last night. So I feel much better than I did the few days before my due date. I'm still anxious to meet this baby, but feeling much more relaxed again.