Saturday, April 23, 2011

Feeling the first movements

All the books and all the websites give a specific "window" of exactly when a woman will feel her baby's first kicks. Straight from the BabyCenter website: "You'll probably feel your baby move sometime between 16 and 22 weeks." Why is there this specific window? Why is a woman who thinks she felt her baby at 15 weeks told, "Oh sweetie, that was probably just gas" Well, just so you know... I've had gas since week 1 and THIS was different.


Why do other pregnant women and people in general make sharing such exciting first experiences feel like something you can't do anymore? Why, when I share a story, does EVERYONE feel like they need to put their fifty million cents in. Not two cents, if I had two cents every time someone tried to give me "advice" I'd be effing rich. Then, when I convey that to people they give me even more bull about how everyone's just trying to help and they're excited. And people wonder why I answer their questions without explanation or substance. The answer to such questions like, "How are you feeling?" Has become "fine." To which they respond, "Yeah, you are in the second trimester now you should start feeling better." Oh. Thank you. Thank you for your evaluation of the contents of my uterus. How is your uterus? Oh you don't want to talk about your uterus? Then why is it alright to talk about mine? Do NOT treat me any different and DO NOT analyze the contents of my uterus for me. That is what I have prenatal care for. And if you think I'm talking about you, don't ask me; I think you've just answered your own question. 


Yes, I felt the baby move. At 15 weeks and 5 days. So sue me.


On to a more positive subject: We had an appointment on Thursday with the midwife. I was lucky enough to be able to have the midwifery student sit in on the appointment and it was fun to see someone so fresh and new to the profession. When I asked her "How many babies have you caught?" Without hesitation she answered, "Thirteen this semester!" You could tell how excited and passionate she was about this and it really made me remember exactly why I made this decision. 


It was time to get up on the exam table to measure my fundal height and listen to the heart rate. Apparently, my fundal height is right back on the normal track; measuring 15 weeks at 15 weeks gestation. When the student pulled out the dopplar and began searching for a heart rate, she wasn't really able to find it. I started getting worried because every other time they were able to find the heart rate fairly quickly. After about 90 seconds the mid-wife looked at me (I guess she could tell I was getting worried) and told me, "you hear those loud static noises?" "Yeah..." I answered, fully expecting her to tell me that that was the sound a uterus made when a fetus had died or something, (I told you I had crazy hormones!) "That's your baby kicking the machine!" No way. NO. WAY. NO FU%$#NG WAY. She informed me that every time they found the heart beat, the fetus would kick the machine and move. After about 5 minutes of trying to count and having to find the fetus again, the midwife turned to me and said, "Well. A baby THAT active, has to have a heart beat."  Positive end to a frustrating day. 

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