The Journey to a Little One to Call Our Own

One gal's experiences dealing with IF, pregnancy, the birth of our first son, parenthood, and doing it all over again with our second son... here is our journey.


Thursday, May 26, 2011

Baby Classes

Mr. D and I started baby classes last night. Two-hour sessions for 6 consecutive Wednesdays.

The Pros? Well, our hospital is BEAUTIFUL. It was built a year-and-a-half ago, and it's gorgeous. Staff is AMAZING, and so is my Doctor. So, that's a plus. Our instructor is super nice, and we are in class with 10 other couples. The classes are intense - learning about everything from signs of labor, labor, delivery, breathing techniques, relaxation, newborn care, post-delivery care for mom, support help... you name it. The session cost $110, and judging from what we learned last night, that is definitely money well-spent.

Cons? Well, I am now completely stunned by the fact that I actually have to give birth. Mr. D keeps asking, "well, didn't you expect that you'd have to go into labor at some point?" Yes, but after seeing all the images I saw last night, visualizing how large my crotch is going to have to stretch, and giving it some thought, I am officially freaked. I know I posted that this is all out of my control, so why worry, right?

I need to get myself back to that spot... not worrying about what I can't control. It's going to hurt. A lot. But somehow, that baby has to come out, and although it won't be pleasant, I prefer it the natural way (with some help from drugs) and am going to fight like hell to make it happen The instructor showed us the "circle of pain" - basically, tension = fear = more pain, and the cycle continues. The key is to lower tension so that your body doesn't get scared and kick into thinking "oh-my-God-please-help-me-this-is-the-worst-pain-in-my-whole-life." Even though that may be true, the key is to keep your body from tensing up and getting scared.

Easier said than done. I have to learn how to talk myself out of getting tense.

I hope baby classes 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 teach me how.

4 comments:

  1. If you learn the magic trick to remain calm and tension-free, PLEASE pass it on!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh, that sounds scary. There is a part of me that just doesn't want to know abotu it, because then I will know what to worry about.
    Good luck getting those images out of your head!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hah, I am the exact same way. I know he has to come out, but omg it makes me very nervous. I'm hoping by the time I get to that point I will be ready for him to get out and be done with pregnancy. My classes have been pretty good too, but I can't imagine going for so long like you guys! Our classes are broken down into two hour periods on different topics on different days. Good luck!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh wait I read that part wrong. I'm glad your not sitting there for hours on end in one day, that can get overwhelming ;)

    ReplyDelete