38 weeks

Yesterday’s appointment went really well. My mom was able to come with me, this is will be her first grandchild—it’s pretty exciting :) I’m 50% effaced now so things are moving forward. I haven’t had a single contraction yet, not even a Braxton Hicks, I wish they would start. I’m very motivated to have our baby.

Specific to CP

There was an interesting suggestion at my appointment yesterday, to become induced for the sake of my legs and joints. As you know, if you’ve read my last few posts, I’ve been experiencing increased pain and mobility issues. My OB has been very respectful of my delivery choices so I know that she isn’t trying to pressure me into doing something that I would feel uncomfortable with. It was just a suggestion to get me on the road to recovery sooner. Matt and I have been very cautious not to seek unnecessary interventions, but I decided to talk to him about it and we decided it was something to consider. My next appointment will be in a week and a half due to the holidays, I’ll be 39.5 weeks. I’m really hoping our little Angel will come on his own before then, so we don't have to face the chioce.

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I’m so excited to become a mother! I don’t want anything more than this. After 10 years of fearing it would be denied me, 2 years of preparing and proving medically that I could do it, and 9 months of pregnancy, it’s about to happen. Finally.

37 weeks

Yesterday was a very gratifying appointment. My physical therapist called my OB with my adductor measurements and now she is very comfortable with me having a vaginal delivery :)  Also the baby is finally in position to be delivered, He has been transverse or sideways every other time he's been checked, I am relieved things are coming together!

As far as my legs go, pain continues to escalate and I am less able to do things independently. I did stand up for the first time today, about 50 minutes ago, after hours of attempts, and was able to make it to the toilet. My legs were incredibly tight though and moving was very painful. I’ve decided to stay down until my husband is home from work, he will be able to loosen my muscles through massage and help me to bathe. It is very difficult for me to lose my independence like this, but it should only be temporary and bringing new life into the world often requires sacrifice.   

36 weeks 4 days

Monday was my 36 week appointment, I’ll be going in weekly now. If things are interesting I will blog after each appointment. For this post there is good news, bad news and good news again. The first bit of good news is that as of my appointment I was dilated to a “one” ooowe :)

Specific to CP

The bad news is though that my adductors (thigh muscles) apparently were tight and my OB was concerned that they would be to tight to allow the baby though. It is true though my legs were tighter that day than usual due to needing to go up and down stairs. She then asked me if I thought an epidural would loosen my muscles—I had no idea. Then we started to discuss having a C-section, not my favorite idea because I would like to be pregnant again before the recommended recovery time of 18-23 months. She wanted my adductors evaluated, so the next day I went into the physical therapy clinic to get everything measured. I avoided stairs prior to the appointment but avoided any other special preparation so the measurement would be accurate. The final good news is that the physical therapist’s report stated that he didn’t think I would have a problem opening my legs. He didn’t have an answer about the epidural but that’s okay, no one seems too.

Those of you that read the post concerning my birth plan know that an epidural isn’t my favorite idea because I am fairly prideful about my pain tolerance. I think I’m tougher than most and could cite dozens of reasons why—it’s a bit of a problem. I think though that I will take the epidural on the off chance that it will loosen my muscles and make birthing easier. Even if it doesn’t loosen muscles it may well help avoid additional constriction of my muscles that might be brought on by the inevitable pain. Since I really want to avoid a C-section I don’t want to have any regrets about what I could have done to (potentially) prevent it.

I should mention before I close this post that I am experiencing considerable pain in my hip, knee, and ankle joints. I feel like I’m ripping them apart every time I need to stand or walk up stairs, and I feel that I am crushing them in unnatural directions when I put weight on them. I hope that these things do not cause permanent damage, but what will be, will be.  I’m not scared at this point of another pregnancy, I definitely want to have at least two children. Like I said before siblinghood is very important to me. I however feel that it is necessary to be as honest as possible in expressing my experience. These last few weeks have been very hard on my body.