A Little Follow Up

Sometimes I forget to update after discussing something I'm thinking about doing or trying. Sorry!

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Yoga: I never did the videos more than once, but did like them and thought they were useful when I did them. The reason I didn't continue it was because my pilates DVD came in the mail and I've been doing that.

Pilates: I bought the 10 Minute Solution: Prenatal Pilates DVD thanks to a recommendation and am very happy with it! It has different options for core, upper body, lower body, and flexibility so I can choose what I feel I need at the moment. It also has a postnatal bonus workout to help get your tummy back in shape (as if it ever was...) and I'm excited to try that when I get to that point. 

Seriously though, It's amazing to me what a difference doing just 10-20 minutes of pilates a day is doing. My underbelly muscles were so tight and sore when I was pregnant with Josie, I remember I could hardly put my pants on without struggling or almost falling over. My movement was so limited and I was uncomfortable for months. These workouts have stretches that immediately help with that muscle and other muscles that are getting worked way more than usual. I have so much  more flexibility and am way more comfortable. Except that pesty lower back pain...

After trying Tylenol, walking, stretching, pilates, resting more, etc I have had no relief. I can tell that exercising helps keep it from getting worse, but definitely does not make it feel better. My doctor was so understanding (I had an appointment yesterday) and immediately said I had two options now. I could either go to therapy or go to a chiropractor.

Therapy would be deep rubs, stretches, and ultrasounds, all of which I have done before for my arms when I had hurt my tendons. The chiropractor would do all of that plus a little more so I opted to try that. It surprised me that my doctor recommended a chiropractor. Love this lady. I have an appointment next Wednesday and I am so excited for it. I really hope it helps out and I feel better. If I didn't have the back pain, this pregnancy would be pretty much perfect. I can't complain too much, because it has gone so well, but if I can eliminate this I will do what I can!

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The other thing that we talked about at my appointment was what our plan was for delivery. I feel like it is so early to talk about this, but then again it is only 11 weeks away or less. She told me that I could do one of three options since she won't be the one delivering our baby (which we knew about from the beginning): family practice doctor, OBGYN, or midwife. 

Family Practice Doctor: It would be one of her colleagues and would be with us most of the day but would leave at the end of their shift. At that point, the OBGYN on call would take over (if it is evening/night).

OBGYN: Obviously is whoever is on call, would only be in the room if there is a problem or right before delivery, maybe busy with another patient when we need him/her (this happened with Josie and was very frustrating. Don't tell a pregnant lady to not push when her body is telling her to push push push just because we need to wait for the doctor)

Midwife: a more natural approach, the midwife would be with us most of the time and would focus on different positions, stretches, labor techniques. The midwife wouldn't be there for evenings/nights either, but would be there all day long in the room with me. They don't encourage medical help like epidurals or c-sections, but since I would still be in the hospital, those would still be options if needed.

As long as insurance is good and covers all three, I'm leaning more towards midwife. I know it sounds crazy, but it also seems like a relief to me. I was so frustrated with the limitations we had when I was delivering Josie. Part of that was not the hospital's fault. I had to be induced because of how late I was, so the entire thing was forced and unnatural causing my body to fight it the whole time. If this time around I go into labor on my own, I love the idea of trying different positions, more natural methods, having a "coach" there with me instead of a nurse that is in and out the whole time. 

I guess it really depends on how labor starts. Does anyone know if using a midwife causes issues with insurance? I'll call them either way to be sure, but I've never heard of anyone using one around here. Since it is still in the hospital and there is still an OBGYN on call that can step in at any time, I'm guessing that it doesn't make any difference. I've heard also that the hospitals like when their patients use midwives since they can attend to the patients when everything is normal and the OBGYN can focus on the emergencies and complications. Thoughts?

I have hit the third trimester state of mind and am now spending a lot more time thinking about what is to come. Get ready for more posts on this and more questions and discussions. I'd love your views and opinions... being a second time mom helps but there is still a lot of unknown out there.


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