More Walking in My Future

I came across this article the other day and found it really interesting. It talks about naturally preparing your body for childbirth by doing squats and walking. It explains the hunter/gatherer mentality of years ago and how today's lifestyle can keep us so sedentary that are bodies are not as physically in shape to deliver babies. The lady who wrote the article is all for natural, drug free, non-hospitalized births. I think it's great that women can choose how they want to birth their baby. However, in Alabama, midwives are legally not an option. I would have to cross state lines and give birth on a "birthing farm" in order to make this happen. That makes me uncomfortable. I want to deliver close to home and I love the doctors and hospital where I delivered Trent. While I may still consider drug free this time around, pending any major surprises, it will be another hospital birth.

Each time I get pregnant, I think about whether I want to use pain medication. Last time around, I had planned to go without pain medication, but ended up having an epidural. My water broke but contractions did not start so I was put on a pitocin drip to start the labor. Pitocin does its job to start contractions, but it gives you supersized, painful contractions (from what I've read/heard since I have only had pitocin induced contractions - hopefully after this next one, I'll have a comparison!). They are awful! I suffered through them for several hours, until the contractions made me sick. At that point, I decided to go for an epidural. Overall, my labor was fairly quick. From the time my water broke to the time I was holding Trent in my arms, was about 7 hours.

This pregnancy has been much different from my last pregnancy. I have had more morning sickness, my cravings are different, my belly is shaping up different. No two pregnancies are exactly the same. Only about 10% of women have their water break, so there is a good chance that this labor will start in an entirely different way than the last time.

I like the suggestions in the article for being physically fit for the pregnancy. I will be walking and squatting. I do body pump a couple of times a week and squats is one of the areas of focus. On the other days, I'll walk. This morning, Trent and I walked 5.2 miles. It was great - good weather, nice exercise, and we even had the chance to stop and play in the park for a while. :)