What I Learned from Childbirth Class, Part 2

I'm not against epidurals, but I would like to avoid one if I can.

Once you're medicated from an epidural, you'll be immobilized and stuck in bed. If you read the first blog on class, you'll know why that's not my favorite option. Not that pain is a favorite of mine either, but I'm a bit of a control freak.

I can have two external fetal monitors if all goes well.

I may not have to have an internal monitor!! Unless, for some reason, they can't find one of the heartbeats, I'll have both on the outside. This week's instructor said that they would just be doing more chasing to find the heartbeats. Woo!

There's more than one kind of breech baby.

There are different kinds of breech babies: butt first Indian-style which is traditional; feet first which is called feetling or something like that; or butt first pike position. The pike position is a Frank Breech. None of these babies are normally delivered vaginally because a baby's foot or behind is not weighty enough to get through the cervix properly. The Frank Breech baby is the funniest looking after birth. (Funny in a very, very adorable way of course!) When they are delivered, they cannot put their little legs down, so they have their legs basically straight up in the air. It's cute and silly looking, but could you imagine dressing and diapering one of those little ones?!

You can save a baby's life with a couple of fingers in the right place.

On of our instructors told us a story about a baby who was umbilical cord first. This is bad since the cord supplies necessary life support. The baby's head was crushing the cord, so the doctor just stuck his hand up there as if doing an exam and held the baby's head off the cord. Imagine, a woman being rushed to the OR as her doctor sits on the gurney with his hand holding up a baby! When they get to the OR, a nurse takes over, and holds the little head until the doctor has a grasp on the body.

I will probably have two cheesy, hairy babies.

When babies are born, they are covered in vernix. Vernix is a cheesy-like substance that protects them in utero. The earlier they arrive, the more vernix they will have. At a point in gestation, babies are also covered in a fine hair called lanugo. They lose this hair around 33 weeks or so and replace it with a much lighter finer hair that's far less noticeable. Hence, if my girls arrive early, they will be both hairy and cheesy.

Swaddling isn't so hard.

It's definitely not rocket science, and I'm very good at wrapping presents. It's like wrapping a wiggling burrito very tightly. I think I can do that!

Don't shake your newborn, your growing infant...or your toddler.

Shaken Baby Syndrome is possible up until age four! People are usually very aware of not shaking a baby, but people play rougher with older children. It's not going to stop me from having fun with my kids, but I will be very aware of the possibility.

The stinkiest part of a baby is her neck.

Babies have squishy little necks and breast milk, formula, spit up and whatever else likes to settle in the creases. Be sure to clean there. If you don't,  you'll nuzzle your baby and she'll smell like sour milk instead of baby goodness.