From one concern to another.

So for those of you who have been pregnant, you know that pregnancy can be one worry after another, especially when it comes to the first pregnancy because you don't always know what is normal and what is not. As new moms-to-be we spend a lot of time looking up all the aches and pains on google and calling our doctors about our new found symptoms.

Now that I have reached full term most of those worries have gone away. Reaching week 39 has alleviated a lot of concerns as I just sit back and wait for those telling signs of labor. Last night, however, I found myself laying in bed surrounded by a whole bunch of new concerns.

I often go back and forth between feeling ready for labor and delivery and completely terrified. Of course its the fear of the unknown ... I have no idea what is going to happen in that room. Every mom in the world could share her experience and I could still experience something very different. The pain that I might feel also scares me, even though I plan to have an epidural. Also tearing scares me for obvious reasons. But I am also aware that I will be surrounded by the best support I could ask for. Josh's hand will be in mine for as long and as much as I need it, my parents and sister will be there to cheer me on and encourage me to keep going when I am completely exhausted and my doctor, whom I trust beyond words, will be there to talk me through the whole process. So while I am scared at times, I am also confident that I can get through the whole labor and delivery without a problem.

Something new that I have started worrying about as the big day approaches are my abilities as a mom. Babysitting was never really my thing, though I did it often. Crying babies have always made me uncomfortable. What if James has a crying day ... how do respond if he doesn't respond to any kind of soothing? I know that it will be different because he is my child ... but I want the best for my son and wouldn't want to see him sad or uncomfortable.
I know that these are common concerns among new moms, so I am trying to let it go and understand that it will be a learning process and as I get to know James I will learn what soothing techniques work and what don't.

Having said all of that ... I am ready for James to arrive ... so James, we are just waiting for you little buddy :)

False Alarm

Yesterday was a whole new adventure in pregnancy ... not one that I really enjoyed, to be perfectly honest.

Josh got up to get ready for work at 6:30am. I woke up at 7am with what felt like menstrual cramping. I paid no attention to it at first because the Doctor told me that it could be due to dehydration which happens more in the mornings now that I am a snorer  :-/  So after sleeping for a little while longer I got up to drink some water thinking that it would ease my discomfort ... it didn't.
I continued about my morning with no real change to the cramping. So I text Josh just so that he was aware of what was going on just in case it was real labor. I started paying more attention to pain to see if it got worse and if there was any pattern to the frequency ... there wasn't any pattern and the pain stayed the exact same all day long.
The pain was in my lower abdominal and lower back ... but I had no bloody-show, no more mucus plug shedding and no water breaking, so I wasn't quite sure what was going on. I did decide to go to work, but only made it through 1.5 classes, after which Coach Elly took over so that I could go home.
The discomfort continued and settled in my middle/upper back for the evening. Thankfully Josh was able to give me a back rub. After going to bed I did have to get up to walk around a little bit before turning out the light to try ease the back pain so that I could get comfortable. It wasn't until about 3am or 4am that the cramping finally stopped. So I dealt with the cramping for just a few hours short of 24 hours. I understand that actual labor will be worse etc, but at least it will be worth it because I will get to hold my son when its all over. When this false labor was all over, all I got was relief with that nagging feeling that that wasn't the last time I would be dealing with that.

Here is a little bit of information on False Labor ... something that I didn't really know about or pay attention to until yesterday.

Signs of false labor include:

• Irregular and unpredictable contractions (for example, intervals between contractions of ten minutes, six minutes, two minutes, eight minutes, etc.)
• There is no progression of labor
• Contractions are felt as a generalized abdominal tightening
• Change in activity or body position causes contractions to slow down or stop
• There is no evidence of bloody show
• Membranes have not ruptured

Where do you feel the contractions? With true labor, the pain tends to begin high in your abdomen, radiating throughout your entire abdomen and lower back, or visa versa. In the case of false labor the contractions are often concentrated in the lower abdomen and groin.
http://www.americanpregnancy.org/labornbirth/falselabor.html

Needless to say, I feel like a whole new woman today and got lots of stuff done around the house etc. I have had two or three contractions all day long and nothing more than that. And I do look foward to real labor so that James can come out and into this world  :)   It wont be long now!

Cankles don't look good on anyone.

Cankles don't look good on anyone ... so it's a good thing I can only see mine when I bend over.

It has been quite the roller coaster week! The week started off well, with an awesome pregnancy photo shoot with our cousin Jeni Allen  <3. The photos from that day look amazing and will be memories that we can share with James when he is older :)

However, the week went downhill from there. I started getting sensations in my lower abdomen that felt very different than the Braxton-Hicks contractions I started getting a few weeks ago. They started feeling more like menstrual cramps ... for my male readers, menstrual cramping is like a dull, achy and at times throbbing pain in your lower abdomen and lower back. These are the pains that we are told to watch out for as pregnant ladies ... these are the pains that should they become more painful, rhythmic, and closer together usually tell us that are heading into labor. But mine weren't at all rhythmic and the times they lasted for varied widely. So I lay on the couch trying to decide if they were just a new level of Braxton-Hicks or if they were indeed labor contraction. But after about 30-45 minutes, the pain slowly wore off and I was fine for the rest of the night. So I decided to stay home.

Along with the new abdominal pains, I have also been experiencing intestinal cramping (like I really need to go to the bathroom), some nausea and sharp stomach pains and an increase in water retention (nothing like toxemia, just more that I was having before). When I wake up during the night or first thing in the morning my knuckles are sore from the swelling trapping the nerves. My feet are also sore to walk on first thing in the morning and I haven't seen my ankles in quite some time. If I am standing at work too long, my feet, ankles and shins start to feel really tight from the swelling, which tells me that it is time to start cutting back on my working hours.

So yeah, it has definitely been a week of discomfort. Also because I am quite a small person and James is about 5pounds now and continuing to grow, most of his movements are sore. His kicks are no longer cute and tickly, they are sometimes downright painful and at times it feels like he will make his way out the side of my body.

I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow so it will be interesting to see what he has to say about all these new symptoms etc. I have a feeling he will tell me to work less. He will no doubt check my cervix to see if I have dilated at all (which will be normal) with having had the menstrual cramping. But we shall see!

All I can say is that I look forward to seeing my ankles again really soon!