I was inspired by a pregnant friend of mine to write down some things that I wish I knew at least while pregnant that I didn't, if not before I got pregnant.
- If you have been laboring for a while and you all of a sudden feel like you are going to poop, your baby is coming like right now.
- After you give birth, you will loose a lot of hair. Like it'll seem like it's coming out in clumps some days.
- If you say yes to having student in with you; you're also saying that you're ok with them potentially performing some of the procedures. (For example: I had a student administer my epidural.) (Also worth noting: They inserted in the wrong spot and it never took.)
- Pain in your tailbone very early on is a sign of an ectopic pregnancy.
- The mucus plug can grow back. It doesn't necessarily "come out" indicating labor.
- I did actually know this, but I know a lot of people don't; until you get an epidural, you can snack. So pack some in your hospital bag.
- Not every pregnancy results in swelling of the hands and feet, but it can actually also occur up to 10 days after giving birth.
- The inducing process is not always fast.
- If while you're laboring, the doctor decides to break your water; you'll only have 24 hours afterwards to deliver naturally. After that, you'll require a c-section.
- There is no guarantee that the obgyn that you see for your annual visit will deliver your baby.
- There is an intravenous drug that you can request for pain management that allows you to sleep through some pain. It isn't like an epidural. You're allowed to eat and get up after.
- Pushing out the placenta feels very weird.
- If you don't get an epidural or it has worn off by the time that you give birth, if you require stitches; They are going to hurt.
- Back labor is a thing. If your baby is face up, your contractions will be in your back instead of your stomach. It is VERY unpleasant.
- If you get induced, they will most likely insert a type of catheter that when it falls out, you'll be dilated to 3cm. It can however un-dilate again, but the odds a small.
- If you write on your birthing questionnaire at the hospital that you plan to exclusively breastfeed, they will give you a hard time in the hospital about needed any assistance. I had planned to breastfeed my son. My breastmilk never came in and they didn't want to give me any formula in the hospital because it went against what my plan indicated. I had to basically beg. When I had my daughter, I wrote that I planned to both breastfeed and formula feed and they were basically throwing formula at me. We went home with so much free formula.
- Newborn clothes are worth being bought. A lot of people will tell you that sometimes kids are born too big for newborn clothes, but both of my kids ended up in newborn sized clothes for about a month. Even if you never end up using them, you can swap them for clothes that fit.
This is it for now. I am sure that I am going to be adding things as I remember them!
