Motherhood is not a science, it's an art. You get better with years of practice but no one can really say they have it down. None of us really know going in what to expect or do but with mother instincts, google university, books and advise from your mother and the mothers in your life....you learn the ropes. I think as new mothers we don't really get enough information going in so sometimes we don't know what's normal or what's not. So i'm here to share some of my experiences and maybe they will shed a light for you....this is sort of my motherhood journal.So when you're pregnant, you experience a lot of things, like those first kicks....before you're sure it's even a kick because you have no idea what it is supposed to feel like. Some people have good pregnancies, where you have no symptoms whatsoever, the only thing that proves you are pregnant is your baby bump and those little kicks and movements from your little one. My pregnancy on the other hand was unforgiving, i had every symptom and anything that could happen...happened. I had terrible morning sickness, i got acne, my skin discolored and i was swollen like a balloon! Towards the end of my pregnancy, i got gestational high blood pressure which is high blood pressure caused by the pregnancy....my feet, face and hands would swell up a lot and the doctors said it was a dangerous condition for the well being of both me and the child. They said it could be fatal for the baby and that is not something you want to hear when you're pregnant at any stage but especially not at nine months when you're at the finish line. I got admitted in hospital so that the doctors could monitor both my health and the baby's during that time. It was a scary time for me as you can imagine! When i got to 38 weeks, i was induced because i couldn't carry that pregnancy to term with that condition.
Labor! You know how you're expected to know when contractions start and you have no idea what they are supposed to feel like? I was admitted to be induced on a Monday but because of the high blood pressure, they had to get me off the hypertension meds before inducing so i was induced on Tuesday at around 12 pm and it took about 6 hrs for the meds to start kicking in. At around 10pm i had started getting some backaches but no contractions. The contractions started at 4am on Wednesday morning and i was nervous cause it finally hit that this is it! I'm going into labor. The contractions felt like cramps at the start so i managed to drift in and out of sleep through some of them in the first 2 hrs. At 6 am they got a bit more intense and the nurses encouraged me to walk around in order to ease into it faster. Walking around helped for a while but by 8am i could barely get out of bed because of how painful they were. At 9 am it was unbearable but the nurses consoled me by telling me i'm close. Without going into graphic details, at 9.48 am i delivered my handsome little baby boy normally without any complications. I remember the first time they put him in my arms, i was so overwhelmed with emotions.....i felt so much love and joy that the last couple of hours of labor completely got pushed to the back of my mind and it was so worth it!
So labor and pushing is hard but in comparison to the challenges ahead, it's a walk in the park.....take it from me. So before i went to the hospital, i imagined that the nurses teach you everything you need to know in those 2 days you are in the hospital after delivery but how wrong i was! So you're given this little delicate human being and he doesn't come with a manual....all they tell you is to put him on his side when he sleeps so that he doesn't choke on his burp and to burp him after feeding him (which also in those first days isn't easy because he is like an egg and you're terrified of breaking him). The good news though is that with time you get a handle on most of those things but don't be afraid to ask the nurses anything you're not sure about. So in summary let me catch you up on what i learnt in those first months;
- Feeding doesn't come naturally to you and your child, it's a learning process.
- Your baby's tummy will probably ache the first few days as his tummy gets used to digesting
- Your baby will have no defined sleep pattern in the first one or two months and you will have long exhausting nights....so when he sleeps, sleep with him
- If your baby is anything like mine, he will outgrow his clothes in the first three months and wont even fit in some at birth. My little man came out tall so all his rompers didn't fit him at birth. My advice; buy a lot of 6-12 months outfits...you will need them
- Don't be shy about googling anything and getting advise when you feel stuck
- Always follow your instinct, you might not be experienced but your instinct is your manual....you will get tonnes of unsolicited advise and a lot of information in books, google and other mothers but at the end of the day, you know what's best for your child. You are already wired for this...if it feels right, do it if not leave it be.
I can't share everything all at once in this moment but keep checking the blog. My little man is hitting six months this week and i'll share anything that comes to me from the first months and the new adventures we are experiencing right now. Also, don't be shy about asking questions, i might not be a guru but if my experience helps you...then i'm more than happy to share. You can always drop me an email to share your experience or ask a question and i will respond as soon as i can. Welcome to my blog, motherhood-the-first-time-around.
