This week MJ and I attended our second of three childbirth classes offered at the hospital where I will deliver. The first one (read here) taught us the stages of labor and a bit of what to expect when it comes time to have this baby. The second class focused on pain management and potential medical interventions. I plan to have an epidural, so this class had a lot of good information for me.
I would really like to avoid a c-section, so my doctor has recommended that I labor at home as long as possible. Apparently the longer you wait to get to the hospital and get an epidural, the better your chances of having a successful delivery. He recommends that I not go to the hospital until I'm having contractions every 5 minutes for at least an hour. Then my body will be well on its way into active labor, and the epidural will have less chance of slowing down or stalling my contractions.
Although I don't plan to have any major medical interventions, I know that births don't always go according to plan. We learned all about inductions, vacuum- and forceps-assisted births, and c-sections. Some of this stuff was pretty intimidating, but I try to stay positive. Assuming Otto is not breach (he isn't), and my blood pressure stays normal (so far, so good), and Otto doesn't get too big (he isn't), my doctor says I will already significantly reduce my chances of having a c-section.
But no matter how Otto arrives, as long as he is healthy, I remind myself that how he got here won't matter anymore!
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