1. Natural childbirth.
I said from the beginning of my pregnancy that I wanted to have a natural childbirth, and by natural I mean vaginally and NO DRUGS. Generally people would laugh and say “We will see how that goes”….even my Family Doctor! Needless to say, I decided to have a Midwife for my prenatal/postpartum care, simply because I knew they would be more supportive than an OB-GYN. I did manage to do it all natural, which I’m sure surprised everyone (even myself in a way because I do have a tendancy to point out to everyone every second I am in pain. Probably more because if I drop dead, I want people to know that there were symptoms which were ignored. Lol). It was a truly amazing experience and I realllllllly wish that more women would opt to experience this as well. Afterwards, you feel so empowered, looking at your beautiful baby thinking “Wow, that just came out of me/grew inside me” amongst so many other emotions which are undescribable to those who do not have children. I don’t think I will ever have an epidural in the future either. Not only is it extremely frightening to me to have numb legs and a giant needle/cathader in my spine….but I really enjoy being able to show people what a strong person I am, because I don’t think anything in the world can compare to the wonder of childbirth. And to be able to say that you did it, just you and your body. That’s better than winning a floppin’ Nobel Peace prize to me.
2. Motherhood.
I wasn’t as pro-choice about motherhood as I was about my childbirth experience. I guess I just had in my head all of the things I had heard over the years from family members, movies, t.v..and etc. And to be completely honest, I feel like now-a-days people make kids/babys seem like such a burden or even a job, by having these “rules” or whatnot about how everyone should raise their babies. I even remember once being in a store and seeing a co-sleeping crib and laughing and saying “What crazy people would want their baby to sleep IN BETWEEN them?!”. Little did I know I would be one of those crazy people….because everything I read was about making nurseries with cribs, letting your baby “cry it out”…..basically to give your baby a “sense of independence” , or abandon it, as I feel…, right from birth. So I had my baby and I actually went against everything I just said. She slept in between me and my partner the day we brought her home (the same day she was born) and has slept in our room, mostly in our bed or in her own crib, since. I just don’t see how anyone could want their baby so far away after being inside them for 9 months! Or how you could let a little one cry themselves to sleep when they don’t even have an understanding of the world? So, I am totally pro co-sleeping now. Would recommend it to anyone who breastfeeds especially. It makes it so much easier when you are getting up in the middle of the night. Don’t have to walk far, and if you bfeed in side-laying position, you can catch some ZZZZ’s! (Trust me you won’t roll on your babe unless your a drunk or high or don’t have a good motherly instinct…) That’s another part of (I guess early) motherhood that I didn’t understand until experiencing; Breastfeeding. When I was pregnant I was kinda 50/50 on the whole bfeed vs formula thing. I always said I would “try” to do it…because of all the stuff people tell you, I actually had it in my crazy little head that its actually possible for a woman to grow a human inside her, but not be able to produce milk. Which is ridiculous. And I also worried about “being strapped down” and always having to “deal” with the baby. But, I also knew bfeeding was best and also FREE. Much to my surprise, bfeeding came so naturally (as it should if you are comfortable with your body and the idea) and I don’t mind being “strapped down” with the baby, I enjoy our cuddle time together (even still 5 months later) and sometimes it can be frustrating being the only one who can feed her, but really, if I didn’t actually want to… I could pump, let’s be realistic this isn’t 1860.. But again I choose not to pump because; a. I feel like a cow getting milked b. As much as I love bfeeding it grosses me out a bit? Just awkward..
Since writing this I also realized I didn’t understand how much a persons wrists and thumbs could hurt from typing on a blackberry….until I spent 20 minutes lying in bed blogging this answer…
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