Follow me through my pregnancy

Disclaimer: my choices are mine and are in no way medical advice. You should always speak to your trained and trusted maternity provider if you have questions or while developing your own plan. This series is for story telling purposes and reflects the decisions I’ve made considering my history, personal preferences, and philosophy.

This series is going to be extremely personal. I’m inviting you to walk along with me for this pregnancy. I’ll share portions of my journey, as a midwife and mother going through my fifth pregnancy. (I am already blessed to have three beautiful children earthside.) I feel called to manage my pregnancy myself, though I plan to use another sister midwife for birth care. Labor and birth is not a time I want to have my clinical hat on. It’s best for me to just be purely primal/ instinctual at that time. At times I’ll share with you my decision making process, my plans, and sometimes just share personal stories. So, here we go!

4 (ish) weeks: I’d been tracking my cycle with fluctuating amounts of detail for several cycles. I knew I wanted to have another baby within the next year, and observing your cycle can give you fascinating insights to your overall health. (I highly recommend the book The Fifth Vital Sign to learn about this.) Historically I don’t have many periods between pregnancies since my cycle is kept dormant for a while as I nurse into toddlerhood. (And I do still nurse my two year old! More on breastfeeding through pregnancy later.) I really wanted to use the opportunity to see what my cycle did while it fit my desires for our family. One trend I saw for a few cycles was an indication of low progesterone (spotting in luteal phase among others) which was supported by bloodwork.

Super brief review/intro to the phases of the menstrual cycle. The first day of the period is considered day one of the cycle, starting with the menstrual phase. This is followed by the follicular phase where the follicles in the ovaries are maturing and an egg is getting ready to be released while the uterine lining is building. In the couple days before ovulation, cervical mucus is produced which can help sperm stay alive and nourished in the body till the big moment when the egg is released. Next comes ovulation, usually midcycle, when an egg is released from a mature follicle. The egg is only around for 12-24 hours and therefore cervical mucus quality helps sustain a fertile window before ovulation and then for as long as the egg is around. When the egg is released, the follicle that released the egg also in effect makes the corpus luteum, the temporary structure created with ovulation that produces progesterone in the luteal phase and in early pregnancy. The corpus luteum helps preserve the endometrium lining for the luteal phase until either hormonal changes from the pregnancy sustain the endometrial lining for the first few weeks of pregnancy or, if pregnancy was not achieved, the endometrium sheds and we begin a new cycle with the return of the menstrual phase.

https://cdn.britannica.com/07/55707-050-5927EDFB/changes-woman-cycle.jpg

I started taking vitex/chasteberry in the luteal phase to help support the corpus luteum. Symptoms of low progesterone declined, yay! Since I suspected we were successful this cycle, I tested day 24 and 25 of my cycle. I wasn’t sure if the first test was faintly positive since the testing conditions were less than ideal- a mid day void in a freezing outhouse on our rustic vacation- but day 25 test was clearly positive! As I think back, I had noticed much more vivid dreams for about a week beforehand too. It was so fun that the clear positive was on my husband’s birthday!

I shared the news immediately with my husband, and 7 year old daughter. I decided years ago, with my first pregnancy, which was also my miscarriage, that I would share the news of my blessing as early as I wanted, even though I understand all too well there is the highest probability of loss in the first 8-12 weeks. I personally want to share my joy, even if I don’t get to meet the baby earthside. I love my baby from the absolute beginning, and for me, one of the ways I express that is by sharing the news. So, I chose to share early.

Other than vivid dreams, the only other symptoms I’ve noticed this week are bloating (glamorous) and occasionally having a hard time drinking my normal morning coffee. I am not a heavy coffee drinker and usually have a ½ caf coffee each morning with collagen, so not being able to finish my routine mug isn’t too great a loss.

This was a planned pregnancy, and I am feeling blessed and delighted… while also managing some normal concerns. Obviously I’m older than I have been, (that’s the thing, right, we keep getting older if we are doing it right) and this is my first pregnancy that is considered “advanced maternal age.” Advanced maternal age is defined as a pregnancy that the due date is after the 35th birthday. I will be 36 by then. I won’t speak about this too much (this time- just wait!) but Evidence Based Birth has a great article on this topic that I encourage all who are interested to read. https://evidencebasedbirth.com/advanced-maternal-age/ Abridged version is that I am not overly concerned at this point as the data is not as dramatic as it is often made out to be and I have several protective factors, like having already had babies before. I am due in July, within a week of my current youngest turning 3! I didn’t love being at the end of my pregnancy when it was hot and said I wouldn’t do it again. God laughed at that presumption of mine! Thankfully I have learned some adaptive strategies.

Story time: I was about 37 weeks pregnant and in the third trimester for the first time in the summer heat, since my other two were winter babies. I was grumpy, felt large, hot, sweaty, and uncomfortable. We do not have air conditioners at home but fans. Friends, fans did not cut it that week. I went to lay as naked as possible alone in my room in the late afternoon. My blessed husband took a pair of my fuzzy socks, got them squeezed out wet and put them in the freezer for a few minutes. Then, without saying a word to me, gently placed them on my feet. Ladies and gentlemen, this is real romance. This is why I keep having babies with this man. Core. Memory. Bless him. Husbands, take note.

The heat of the summer isn’t the only thing on my mind that requires some processing on my end. I’m finally in a somewhat regular workout routine and hoping to continue throughout the pregnancy, though realizing my jujitsu likely needs to be adapted significantly if I’m to continue for a while. Thankfully it is both recommended and encouraged to stay active in pregnancy. As always, listen to your body and talk to your trusted provider (see disclaimer.) In general, staying physically active in pregnancy helps SO much, with just about every aspect. Currently, I am weight lifting, running, and doing jujitsu. Likely all will need modification as the pregnancy progresses but I can take that as it comes. Since I’m so early in the pregnancy, and still feeling good, the general plan is to continue as normal for now. I also am going to dedicate more time specifically on core and pelvic floor support. This is not my first time, and the body remembers what it is like to be pregnant. It is almost like the more experience you have, the more readily the body shifts into pregnant mode. One of the reasons I, and many other experienced mothers, look more pregnant sooner.

I’m also wrapping my brain around preparing my practice for maternity leave, now that I’m a solo practitioner. Not-so-fun fact, the USA is one of TWO countries in the entire world that does not have guaranteed paid maternity leave. Everywhere else does. Let that sink in for a hot minute. Gross. No wonder our national statistics are horrendous comparatively to similarly industrialized nations. (I’ll probably rant more about that later…) In 2022 Connecticut, where I live, finally passed the CT Paid Family Leave, which gives most people the ability to be on parental leave from work at about 60% pay for 12 weeks. With the structure of my practice I do not have access to that this time. I have no desire to be competing with my clients about who is going to go into labor first. With other pregnancies I have worked until close to birth, and really didn’t love it. I like being able to have a few weeks to mentally and physically prepare. I’ve decided I’m going to stop taking clients who are due June and beyond till I’m ready to ease back in in the Fall of 2026. This also means I need to be careful about specific financial planning.

So this time, one of the things I’m trying to focus on is nutrition. Especially since food still feels reasonably normal at this point. Enough protein (140+ grams daily) veggies and fruit, minimal processed foods, fish, eggs, dairy, and hydration. NORA (nettles, oat straw, raspberry leaf, alfalfa) tea, liver capsules, probiotics, cod liver oil, magnesium, and maintenance dose of Vitex are all things I’m incorporating at this point. I know some feel raspberry leaf tea is not appropriate for the first trimester, and I don’t think there's anything wrong with avoiding it during this time. However there seems to be a misunderstanding about what red raspberry leaf tea (RRLT) does. It has traditionally been used as a uterine tonic, not specifically to cause contractions. Will a toned uterus at term contract-yes, ideally! That does not mean, though, that it will cause premature contractions. To the best of my knowledge the scientific research that does exist on RRLT shows no indication it causes uterine contractions. Its main job here is to strengthen and tone the uterus. NORA tea is full of minerals, helps prevent and reverse anemia, source of vitamins, chlorophyll, can help prevent and treat varicosities (like hemorrhoids and varicose veins.)

The kids (7yo and 4yo) are very excited and we are using this opportunity to learn about the stages of development of babies in utero in some of our homeschool lessons. They think it’s adorable that the baby is about the size of a chia seed at this point. My 7 year old was around for, and clearly remembers the birth of the third, who was our first born at home. Some of my favorite pictures of that labor were of my then 5yo daughter and 7yo niece being part of my support team. It was so beautiful to share it with them. Yes, there were plenty of adults too. It was a real birthday party! I am a social birther, I guess. More on support team, including kids in later posts.

https://thehonestmidwife.co.uk/4-weeks-pregnant/?srsltid=AfmBOorY_N5rdBXZZ7sczSJNhGeM7jHIOl7MduGaWVfa4PfEjXOocxdx

1 Samuel 1:27 For this child I prayed; and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of him:

Thanks for joining me!

Let me know if you have questions for me, or have topics you’d like me to discuss send me a message and I’ll do my best to address them!