What’s the problem with nine pound babies?

So what’s the problem with a large baby? Having come from a family of large children, I always thought that six pound babies must be especially weak (no offense). Growing up I didn’t know any better, since I was large, my brother was large, my father, and everyone else in my family. I thought it must mean that I was especially strong.

Well, apparently I was completely off. Apparently the truth of the matter is that if you don’t meet the weight requirements of a “normal” 6-7 pound baby it’s an emergency. At least, that’s how I feel right now. Having been seeing this new doctor, I can appreciate that he is a nice gentleman. He is not very imposing in personality and his staff has been very friendly. However, on a regular basis comments are being made about Cesar’s size. Upon my first appointment, it was that he was most definitely a large baby, and that might be difficult. Last week it was, “How large were you when you were born? And how large was Vincent?” and this week the inquiry was, “So how big do you think your baby is going to be?” Slightly annoyed, I replied, “Ummm.. 15 pounds.” This led us to the discussion of how that would make the doctor shriek, and that led to him telling me that I will be fine since I am getting the epidural, then stopping and saying, “You are getting it right? Yeah, you have that look in your eyes like the type that does.”

                While I understand he doesn’t know me, and that he is trying to form some kind of connection, I think sometimes if you say presumptuous things to the wrong person the effect can be somewhat counterproductive. I’m the wrong kind of person to say these things too. Especially when I have already tried to make it clear that I don’t like hospitals, doctors.. ect. In fact at the last appointment we had spoken about this, and I thought we had a good understanding of one another. Well, politely I reminded him that I am open to just about anything should the situation arise, but that we would have to see. I’m not so pompous as to assume that I don’t need one, but at the same time, I feel like this is a big challenge for me.

                In any case, I am appreciative of my mother, who gently reminds me that in the end, it’s up to me how calm I want to stay, and within reason it is up to me how I want to handle the situation and somewhat within my power  to have Cesar where I want to and how.

                So they say any day now. I’m pretty much full term at thirty seven weeks. He could come tomorrow, he could come a week late. I would prefer sooner rather than later, although it has become clear Vincent doesn’t feel the same way. I can’t blame him, since he’s not having quite the same experiences I am. He is still drinking, working, having fun, and I suspect part of him does have that worry that things are going to change so drastically once Cesar comes that he won’t be able to handle it if it’s too soon. I on the other hand, while I share this feeling to some extent, probably feel like most mothers do. I’m ready to be able to move around again without my ankles blowing up. I’m ready to start being flexible and active again the way I was. I’m ready to start losing weight, and to be honest, I’m tired of feeling like two people in one, sleepy all the time, and am becoming increasingly irritated with work. In fact, just today I wanted to walk out, so irritated was I with my manager. Now, in all fairness, that’s not really because of the pregnancy. It’s more because I am trying to get ready on my end for Cesar, yet the small hotel I work at is not doing so well management wise, and with the stress they give to me I end up sleeping on my days off instead of being productive as I would much prefer. Yet I remind myself, I do have an end in sight.. or rather, a new job just about to begin any day.

Ditched!

On March 18, 2011… I took my father to an appointment in which we told the doctor I did not care to be induced without medical reason, and that I was fairly confident that even if my baby was nine pounds, I wouldn’t opt for a c-section since big babies are considered the “norm” in my family. No one asked me about how I felt about the head nurse, and the meeting was, while awkward, non confrontational.

That was on a Friday.

The certified letter I received the following week was dated March 21, 2011.  This means that while the weekend gap exists, the office (like most businesses) was not open and therefore it’s safe to say nothing of great impact occurred between the day of my appointment and the day my letter was written.

The letter was one paragraph, and stated that as of April 5, 2011 the doctor will no longer see me and will not be responsible for the delivery of my child. This was stated as being due to, “circumstances involving the nursing staff…”

Talk about a load of capital BS. I called the office, asked to speak with someone regarding the manner, and was transferred to the office manager’s voicemail. I left a polite but firm message stating I needed clarification on what exactly this all meant, and why no mention of it was made during my last appointment.  I never received a call back.

I’m not really upset about losing my doctor in particular. It’s more that my pride was damaged. I feel like they handled this very childishly, and that they “got the last word” without even giving me the chance to finally chew someone out. I had one more appointment scheduled that I didn’t even show for (due to the fact that I scheduled another appointment with a new potential doctor same day and time), and rather than receive a call confirming I had missed my appointment I got nothing. The office totally shunned me.

Now, I believe it’s due to a combination of things. I’m certain the nurse did not think she could handle me anymore, and I also think the doctor felt that since I was taking more control with my birth that he didn’t need me either. Oh well…

A coworker of mine suggested I call her doctor, which I admitted I was hesitant to do since this last disaster was due thanks to a previous coworker.

However, despite what you may think that I am completely anti-hospital (which I am to an extent), I am not so naïve as to believe that I am beyond incident. I know something could go wrong, and I am well aware that a circumstance might arise in which I’d need medical intervention. For this reason, I decided I would get a move on and try this recommendation out.

What a difference. Perhaps also because I’ve changed and grown due to my last experience… still, while I remain hesitant I will admit that upon first impression I was impressed.  This new office is located in the medical center, which is farther away (about a ten minute drive). However, since it lies amongst other medical buildings it has a much more impressive and clean look to it. The staff was very pleasant to me! And everything was computerized.. not in a scary, overwhelming sort of way. Rather when I filled out my medical history I worked on a laptop and all of my info was easily retrieved by the nurse later when we met in the examination room. Via her computer, she was able to address a variety of things I had checked (here I thought they wouldn’t pay attention!). 

I also met with the doctor, and I discussed with them previous issues and how I had ultimately come to end up there. The doctor immediately told me that, “It sounds like you have an aversion to being induced… so we’ll avoid that. I induce medically, say if you go a week past your due date. But we will play it out and see how this goes when the time comes.”

The nurse went over my eating habits, told me she wasn’t too concerned with my weight as long as I am eating healthy. She encouraged more exercise and then, when I laid down to have my belly measured, she did something my old nurse never did. She actually dug her hand into my gut and wiggled it fearlessly! Then she told me, “The baby is head down.”

Wow… and I told her I was amazed that she could tell me his position just by the feel.

So.. all in all I do feel much better. I have another appointment in two weeks (as time gets closer to the big day the appointments get closer together) and by that time they said they should have all of my records and we can go over everything in further detail.

My project? My weight went up… due to swelling I’m almost certain… since the jump was another ten pounds in two weeks. It’s so frustrating. And my blood pressure was horribly high. The nurse suspected that it was because I was extremely nervous.. it was at 139/94. She said it’s probably much lower since I am young, but that I should avoid caffeine, lower my salt… these things make the blood pressure rise. She also said drink more water, drink cranberry juice.

Yeah, apparently swelling with water can put loads of pressure on your kidneys, and cause the blood pressure to go up. And I knew I’d been slacking off with my water intake and drinking more caffeine (which also causes anxiousness and high BP). So… decaf tea, water, and juice, here I come. This should help lower my weight and get me ready for my next appointment, in which I’ll really get to see how this new place is.

In any case, I give them major appreciation for allowing me to vent my feelings and responding so politely.