Here I am, 31 weeks and 3 days. This Cannoli is growing fervently, though I learned that she is now the right size, not too big. Depending on how she is sitting, I can sometimes feel body parts through my belly. I can't tell what body parts, but sometimes there's a spot that's firmer than the rest, and sometimes the belly is a bit misshapen. Occasionally she'll make such a big move that my whole abdomen shifts. Nothing painful, just a little startling.
Nick and I are halfway through our childbirth classes, being taught by Julia, our doula. We've watched 15 women give birth over three different natural childbirth videos. The first one was a total yikes for me, but I will say I'm feeling a bit more prepared. We've also worked on our birth plan using choice cards which help us understand the options we may face, and how they may impact other parts of labor as it progresses.
In our comfort measures session last week, Julia had us hold a bag of ice and timed us as if it were a contraction. We went through three rounds of this, testing in stages the various comfort measures she had taught us, like bouncing on the "birth ball", establishing a rhythm, having our partners massage, listening to music and vocalizing. I hadn't given much thought to the idea of having music in the room during labor, but the final ice-bag contraction seemed shorter, when in fact she had us going for almost two minutes. Turns out the combination of comfort measures is key to establishing that zone. Now, to find some music that won't drive me bonkers...
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