39-week midwife visit.

[rivka]

Despite my frustration, there has indeed been progress: I'm 3cm dilated (!!!) and 60% effaced, and the baby has moved down even yet still further, to -1 station (only 1 cm above the ischial spines of the pelvis). The size of my belly has shrunk since last week, even though the baby has grown - further evidence that she's way down in the pelvis, getting ready to be born. For perspective: a lot of women don't get to 3cm dilated until they've been in labor for a few hours.

Everything else looks fine: good blood pressure, good fetal movement and fetal heart rate, minimal swelling.

The midwife encouraged me to pay a little less attention to early contractions. If I start having contractions, she wants me to try lying down or taking a bath to see if they go away. If it's really labor, she explained, I won't be able to stop it. That was helpful advice, because I've tended to hyperfocus on anything that might be a sign of labor, and I've worried about not doing anything to slow down contractions. The result is that I get (a) hyped up, and (b) worn out. I'm going to try to be a little more Zen about it.

(Those of you who know me well can stop laughing any time now.)

Comments

[wiredferret.livejournal.com]

Yay, 3 cm. I am envious.

I will tell you that exhausted is the worst thing to be. This advice does you no good whatsoever, but I am obligated by the law of nosy people to mention it.

My midwives suggested (and I managed) that I sleep through early labor. In fact, when I got sent home from the hospital, they told me to take the muscle relaxants and go to sleep.

Mmm, sleep.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I will tell you that exhausted is the worst thing to be. This advice does you no good whatsoever, but I am obligated by the law of nosy people to mention it.

That's why I stopped working. saoba caught me at the end of the workday, when I was utterly exhausted and wrung out, and said, "I keep wondering what's going to happen if you come home from work on a day like this and go into labor." I had to agree that it didn't sound feasible.

I'm napping some, but still pretty damn tired by the end of the day. Ever since the baby really moved down into the pelvis, I've been having trouble sleeping because of the pressure on my hips.

[adrian-turtle.livejournal.com]

That's what happened with the local preschooler. (Or perhaps I should say it happened to her mother, WINOLJ. Wow, the child can almost read. Turn around, turn around, turn around.) Anyhow, she came home from an exhausting day at work, saying "I'm so glad I have the weekend to catch up on sleep!" She went into labor a little after 8 on Friday evening, and had the baby late Saturday. She was fine, the baby was fine. One of our friends said of the sleep deprivation, "best to begin as you mean to go on."

[kightp.livejournal.com]

Smart lady, that saoba. But you knew that when you asked her to come out and help, right?

I find myself amused but not surprised at the increasing possibility that your babe could be born on her actual due date.