MogiSola, for the past few days I feel very tensed/stressed about the tiredness and my inability to sleep and I’m also worried about the impact my internal stress might have on the baby. So in that regard (the internal stress) I would give myself 7 out of 10. For the past few days I also find it very difficult to relax and have a constant tense feeling in my body (especially around my stomach). I must remind myself every now and then to breathe deeply and relax. Other than that I don’t have any other stress in my life and are very happy.

So far I’ve only done some exercises at home, but not for the past 3 weeks (see my post to Kimmy). There is not a water aerobics class in my area but me and my H can certainly find the time to do some walking in the evening!

I am glad that you decided to stay on your meds. I took myself off once (when I thought I would just "get better") and it took about three months for my body to slowly slip back into its old habits. I have obsessive thought patterns (not hand-washing or light-switching).

The symptoms returned slowly...the anxiety, the inability to "let go" of a thought, the anxiousness...by the third month I was a wreck. I then called my doc and she read me the riot act and told me to get back on my meds. I now think of them as insulin for a diabetic. I need them to balance my psyche. It's not mental. It's physical. And I never want to go back to that feeling pre-meds again.

You'll make it. It's amazing how much our bodies endure through pregnancy. And our babies turn out just the way God intended them. If you can, enjoy it...challenges and all.

MS

^Bump for Thndrnltng^

Thndrnltng, I responded to you yesterday and also have some questions for you. I bump this thread just for in case you’ve missed my post between all my replies to the other ladies.

No, Suzet, I didn't miss it, and I'm sorry it's taking me so long. Yesterday I was doing intensive work with the home-schooled grandchild being Troll of the Day (there are 2 of them, and they take turns). I hope I don't need to say who won, in the end! . And once I took him across the pond to his mom, those bad daughters, Neak and Neaksis, fed me supper and then coerced me into staying and working on a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle until late. Neaksis was parked behind me, and wouldn't leave until she'd finished putting the lions together! :RollieEyes: I'm going to get ready for church but I'll be back this evening and will give your questions my full attention before I go to bed. In the meantime, my best advice for the day? Take a nap!

tl

Suzet - I had both of my sons later in life - the first at 36 and the second at 39 and they both came out fine, with a natural childbirth.

You should do just fine.

I had to look up your drugs--different names in different countries, as it turns out...except for the Imovane, which I'd never heard to before and isn't really commonly used in the US that I'm aware of. It, like Ambien is a non-benzodiazepine. Normison (Temazepam, or Restoril around here) is a benzodiazepine, and will show up on a routine urine drug test, should you have to take one. I don't know why you would, but if you do, it will.

All of these drugs are not recommended for pregnancy--not so much because they're known to cause harm, but more because there just haven't been enough studies to make a judgment. In the first trimester, the risk would be fetal malformation. That's not a problem for you right now, so that warning wouldn't apply. In the later part of pregnancy, especially taken regularly and in larger doses, there is a risk that the baby will have central nervous system depression (flaccid, sleepy, poor feeder, etc.) This would wear off, but wouldn't be a very happy start. That's why the doctor tells you to take it infrequently, so that it doesn't build up in the baby's system, and anything like that you take now will be long gone by the time the baby is due to be born. Atarax (Hydroxizine) is OK--too bad it didn't work well for you. Benadryl (Diphenhydramine) is OK also, but it's not as strong as the prescription drugs, which don't seem to be working that well either! :MrEEk: This is why being off work is such a good idea for you--you can be tired on your own schedule without any pressure!

As far as having a natural childbirth vs. cesarean? I think that depends less on your age and more on the size of your pelvis compared with the size of the baby. I have had 4 vaginal births, and 3 abdominal surgeries. I'd take the vaginal births, painwise, any day of the week and twice on Sundays...and that was back in the day when Believer was also having babies and all they gave you was a bullet to chew on. No, that's not true. I got Demerol with Neak. Lousy drug. Hated it passionately and it didn't help with the pain, either, so the next 3 were done natural. Nowadays, we have (cue heavenly music) epidurals so suffering is not mandatory. But even without an epidural, labor is a limited number of hours, and then it's over. A surgery has up to 8 wks. of recovery time, and you'll have an 8-inch slice across your abdomen, that (in my experience) DOES NOT FEEL GOOD!

Pregnancy, labor, and delivery have their risks at any age. 36 doesn't put you in a high-risk category, in and of itself. You can get some idea (but not a definite indicator) by your mother and sisters (if you have any) and their birth experiences. If everybody had C-sections because the babies wouldn't fit, then there's a good chance that small pelvic structures run in the family. If everybody just goes into labor and spits 'em out, then your chance of doing the same is reasonably good. It's those unpredictable variables that keep anybody from being able to say exactly, ahead of time, just how it's going to work out. That's what made L&D so interesting to me was its fascinating combination of "sameness" and variety.

tl

Dear thndrnltng,

Thanks very much for answering all my questions! It’s reassuring to know that older age for a first born child doesn’t really play a role in delivery. Thanks to you too Believer!

I started experiencing other side-effects from the Zoloft as well the past weekend e.g. nauseous and my appetite disappeared. I stopped taking the Zoloft as a result. IMO there is no point and it doesn’t make sense to use an Anti-Dep that have insomnia as a side-effect for me right now (all SSRI’s might have this as side-effect initially) while improvement in quality of sleep is the main thing I need right now. I have an appointment with my GO tomorrow to discuss the way forward and also more time-off from work (probably half day until we close-off in December). The few days I’m off at home this week has already done me a lot of good since I can rest whenever I feel like it! I don’t feel stressed/anxious anymore. Actually I feel very calm & relaxed and succeeded in taking 2 decent naps today where I could actually SLEEP for a while. It felt so good! I also try to stay away from any sleeping pill right now because I know it is best to not use during pregnancy and it doesn’t work well for me anyway. If I really feel the need to take one, I will take the Imovane since it seems the best choice and similar to Ambien. I tried to find out about Benadryl (or other “natural” sleeping aids safe for pregnancy in my country) but unfortunately Benadryl (or a similar natural sleeping aid safe for pregnancy) are not sold here. After all it seems my real solution at this stage is proper rest and relaxation and not necessarily medication. I've also given this some serious prayer, asked God for His help and I feel at rest and at peace.

Everything is going well and my sleep has drastically improved during the past week (without any medication or sleeping pills) ! I've also visited my GO last week and he recommended (with a medical letter) that I only work half day for the 3rd trimester of my pregnancy. My line-managers were very understanding and they approved the recommendation. So when I do feel tired during the day now, I can take a rest in the afternoon at home or just relax.

Since the sleep has naturally improved during the past week and a half, my mood had also stabilized and I don’t feel stressed or anxious anymore. A while back I’ve spoken to a nurse at my church and she informed me that the severe insomnia and occasional anxiety and depressive episodes I’ve experienced during the past few months, were most probably “withdrawal effects” from stop taking the Anti-Dep earlier this year. She said sometimes it can take 2 – 4 months to start experiencing “withdrawal effects” from stopping the medication, but the good news is that the withdrawal effects will eventually pass too (which seems has already start to happen in my case – thank goodness! ).

During my visit to the GO last week he also did a 4D sonar of the baby’s face and it was so adorable to see! His weight was also 2,46 pound (1.1 kg) already.

I'm so pleased for you!

Yesterday was my son's b-day so I was thinking about L&D all day...

I hope come back to tell us your wonderful birth story!

I don't know that being older has nothing to do with the course of your labor. It's reasonable to assume that at 19 most women are more limber and supple than they're going to be in their mid-30s. However, I wasn't all that limber at 19, personally, being much more into reading and sewing, etc. than any kind of athletic (read, "sweaty") endeavors. I just mean that being older doesn't automatically doom you to a bad experience, any more than being younger guarantees you a day at the park, labor-wise.

Let's be Frank--I know, I know, I'm really Susan, but I'm going to be Frank anyway. There are a FEW women (hateful, hateful creatures--they really deserve to be beaten and then ostracized) who basically have no pain during labor. They have a hard time understanding why everybody else fusses so much. Don't count on being one of them. :RollieEyes: There are a FEW women, having first babies, who cruise through their labors in 2-4 hours. They come back to Lamaze class and tell everybody how easy it was, giving hope to all the other first-time mamas that they'll do the same. Let me tell you, there's only one of those per class. You're probably not going to be THAT one, either. (I wasn't in MY class, that's for doggone sure!) There are women who present themselves in labor and delivery at the top of their lungs, swearing, screaming, flailing, and sometimes biting. They're generally 1-2cm and dilated and unfortunate is the nurse whose turn it is for "next admit." You are unlikely to be at that extreme, either. I sincerely hope, for everybody's sake! :MrEEk:

Between those extremes lies the experience of most women having babies: a limited (8-12 hrs. for a first baby is normal, but mine was 24 and that was not abnormal) time of definitely painful sensations. Some women find the pushing stage less painful. I was one of those, but not everybody is. I was just glad to finally be able to DO something. I don't know how it is where you are. Here, some doctors will let their patients have epidurals as soon as they start to have pain, and there is research that supports the idea that early epidurals do not increase the risk of a C-section. Other doctors make the women wait till 4-5cm. You might want to know going in what your doctor's philosophy is on this, just so you have some idea of what to expect.

My point is this. Ignore everybody's horror stories. Maybe it's not the custom where YOU live, but around here pregnant women are regaled for MONTHS with every bad labor experience their friends and families have ever heard in their lives. It's no wonder they come into L&D just a wee tad apprehensive! Yes, it's going to hurt. No, it doesn't last forever. And you're a girl--you can handle it!

May they rot in h-e-double-hockey-sticks.

Ptooey! (spitting on the ground and making evil eye gesture)

I found holding the shower massage on my underbelly VERY soothing during labor...Spent 14 out of my 16 hours of the first labor in the shower.

I had epis for the last 2 - once you have that, you can't get up to shower (of course)...

Remember that your birth story is YOURS. It will be special no matter what!

- Kimmy, who loves birth stories

Kimmy-- You must've had dishpan body by the time you finally emerged from the soothing stream! I hope you at least turned off the water when it was time for your nurse to check your progress...:MrEEk:

tl

(sheepishly toeing the ground)

Should I have?

They said it was okay.

And dishpan body! LOL.

No. But I went through about a metric ton of lotion.

"So, Kimmy, what was your labor nurse like?"

"Um, well, moist-ish, actually..."

I repeat:

Baby's coming and wife is torn!

bestest thread title EVER

See what happens when you get a bunch of yummy mummys together, Suze?

We all degrade to silliness.

It's one of the perks.

Thndrnltng, my H and I started to attend pre-natal classes (information sessions on L&D, breastfeeding, in the womb stimulation for the baby etc.) a while ago. The classes are offered at the hospital where I will have my delivery. Last week’s session was about pain relief options during labor and we were informed that epidurals are given by them when a woman is in full labor and 4-5 cm dilated.

I understand what you are saying… I’ve spoken to some women about their experiences and most of them were actually very positive about their experiences and basically said the same thing than you e.g. that yes, it is very painful, but doesn’t last forever - that the pain are forgotten as soon as you experience the joy of holding the new little one in your arms!

... speaking of babies
awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

The LaMaze classes really helped me. Knowing that labor is normal and all the stages made it much easier.

And I will give kuddos to the nurses. They were THERE for me. What did the doc do, except catch the football?