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Thanks for stopping by! My name is Suzan Mayumi Turner. I'm a happy stay at home (expat) mom who does photography and theatre every time I get a chance. Here you'll find some glimpses of my life (now in Spain), my art, and my work. Feel free to drop me a line or two. I'd love to hear from you and make new friends!

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

My birth plan


I'm almost 27 weeks and still feeling great! Last week we went to the doc and every thing seemed to be fine! My blood pressure, my belly measurement, and the baby's heart beat are all perfect as the doc said. Keith mentioned about me being very energetic! The doc told us it's a rare thing that some pregnant women go through, and that I should enjoy it while it lasts! Later, Keith smiled at me and kept repeating the "rare thing"... he said it's not a surprise that I'd find myself in a "rare situation" since I'm not a common girl. I like the idea of not being common so I take that as a compliment!


Last week I also made Keith watch "A Baby Story" from TLC. It's a show about the labor process. Unfortunately, that day they showed only the ones that had an epidural. Very funny though how all those moms have the same comments after getting one: they were in heaven, or walking on rainbow.... Keith laughed and after that he was very fan of me getting one! He worries that the pain will drive me to call him names.... Well, we talked about the possibilities we have. I told him after reading many books and blogs and talking to many people, I conclude there are two extreme ends. One that is totally against to an epidural, and the one that is totally favor. He asked me where I was and I said right in the middle! Honestly, I understand the two sides, but I think people can be stuck to one idea and when things don't go the way expected it becomes such a big deception! I  think for now my plan is to go and see what happens. If my labor progresses quickly I might not want an epidural, but if it takes too long, or if the pain is driving me to loose my mind I might get the drug :) I want to be open since I don't know what to expect. My mom went through all the labor pain for hours and at the end she needed a c-section. If she knew she'd end up with a c-section she'd choose the epidural from the beginning. I also have a friend that wanted a natural labor and couldn't get one cause the baby didn't turn. It was a big deception for her. So, I don't want the big day to become a deception if some thing doesn't go the way expected.  And if I give I look to my entire life, I know things almost never happened as I expected. There was most of the time a surprise waiting for me! Therefore, I want to see the big day as the best joyful (however I know is going to be painful) day of my life, so no matter how I'll have my baby, as long as I have a healthy one, I'll be content!


So, I guess that's my birth plan for now (things may change though since I still have three months ahead)! Now let's cross fingers and pray that I don't call my hubby names... well I told him not to take it personally if that happens :)



Estou com quase 27 semanas e me sentindo muito bem! Semana passada fomos no medico e tudo parece estar bem. Minha pressao, a medida da minha barriga, e o coracao do bebe estao perfeitos segundo o medico. Keith mencionou como tenho me sentido bem energetica e o medico disse que e uma coisa rara que algumas gravidas sentem. Depois Keith sorriu pra mim e ficou repetindo o que o medico falou... ele disse que nao e nenhuma surpresa ja que eu nao sou nada como uma mulher "comum"! Bom, como gosto da ideia de nao ser "comum" eu tomo isso como um elogio!

Semana passada tambem fiz o Keith assistir um show sobre partos. Infelizmente, so mostraram aqueles feito com epidural (anestesia que vai na coluna pra nao sentir dor durante o parto). Foi engracado ver como as maes depois que receberam a anestesia faziam os mesmos tipos de comentarios: Oh parece que estou no ceu ou andando num arcoiris! Keith deu risada e depois disso ele estava totalmente a favor de eu ter a anestesia. Ele se preocupa que vou xinga-lo... hahaha! Bom, nos conversamos sobre as alternativas que temos e depois de ler varios livros e blogs e conversar com varias pessoas, eu disse-lhe que ha dois tipos de pensamento: Aqueles que sao totalmente a favor da anestesia e aqueles que sao contra. Ele me perguntou em qual me encontrava e disse-lhe que no meio. Honestamente eu entendo os dois lados, mas acho que as pessoas podem ficar "encalhadas" numa ideia fixa e quando as coisas nao vao de acordo com que esperava se tornam uma grande decepcao! Acho que por agora meu plano e ver o que vai acontecer. Se meu parto nao durar muito tempo e capaz que nao tenha a anestesia, mas se durar muitas horas ou se a dor estiver me levando a loucura talvez eu possa pedir a anestesia! Quero estar aberta ja que nao sei como sera. Minha mae passou por todas as dores de parto e no final teve que fazer uma cesariana. Se ela soubesse desde o principio, teria pedido a epidural. Minha amiga tambem queria muito ter o um parto natural mas teve que ter cesariana. Foi uma grande decepcao pra ela .Entao, eu nao quero que o grande dia  se torne uma decepcao se nao decorrer de acordo com o esperado. E se eu olhar pra traz na minha vida, verei que na maioria das vezes as coisas nao aconteceram como esperado! Havia sempre uma surpresa me esperando! Por isso, eu quero ver esse dia como o mais alegre (e doloroso ao mesmo tempo) da minha vida! Nao importa como sera meu parto desde que tenha um bebe saudavel eu estarei contente!

Entao, acho que esse e meu plano por agora! Vamos orar pra que eu nao xingue meu marido...hehehe... disse-lhe pra nao tomar nada pessoal se casao aconteca!

5 comments:

  1. No matter what decision you make, it will all be okay--even if you do call your hubby names. He'll be so proud of you and all your hard work--that's why it's called labor!--he won't even remember what you call him :-)

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  2. Well - let me just say what my experience was.
    I was totally agains epidural - my birth plan said no drugs - and at my room's door there was this great paper saying "don't offer me drugs"

    and I did great - up to 8,5 cms. At that point I couldn't breath and relax enought to keep it up and I was bagging for the drugs - I took very little, just enought to the baby to go thru the birth canal - really! and it was great - I never did more (they actually give you a button you can push yourself when you want more drugs) and I was walking within 2 hours from birth.

    Noah I wanted to go farther if I could and yet at 9 cm he became an emergency C-Section so I didn't have a chance to do a drug free birth.
    And as much as I adore mamas that can do a drug free birth it wasn't for me and my birth was perfect! I woudn't change anything!

    so just listen do your body and see how far can you do being confortable. your baby will be fine either way - its just about how much will you be confortable to enjoy this magical moment!
    bonding will be there either way! =)

    it's amazing - you being brewing for a while - so it's inevitable, does that make sense? hehe
    hope it helps!

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  3. Thanks for your input guys!
    Lilian, thanks for sharing. Yeah, I think I'll do the same... see if I can handle the pain and If I can't, I'll ask for drugs without shame. And if for some reason I end up with a c-section... well, no shame in that too! I was born from one and I turned out okay!hehehe...
    As Mom Kenda said, it all be okay at the end!
    I thought was very funny the sign on the door! I might maybe have one saying, "Don't offer me drugs, unless I beg like a maniac for them!"

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  4. Did Keith tell you about the phone conversation we had about birth plans??
    I didn't want an epidural but by the end I was asking for it...but they wouldn't give it to me! However, they did give me a local anesthetic to numb "down there" when she was coming out!
    I agree, I think you have to have an open mind and just go with the flow. Being informed and knowing what your options are and what you'd like if possible is great, though. (Was the birth book helpful??) Gives you a sense of ownership and power in the process..but in the end the goal is to just have a healthy baby and mom who is not too exhausted..

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  5. yes, Keith mentioned!

    The book was very cool. Although I think the writers were more inclined to the drug free birth, I really like reading it. As you said, it's great to know all the options and the book does a good job to explain in details all of them. I really wish I could be that mom drinking wine in a tub while having contractions... (I don't know if you remember that example), but I think that will be only my "labor dream" hehehe...

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