36 Weeks & Antenatal Class

Yesterday marked me reaching the 36 week landmark... only 1 week away from what they call 'Full-Term' (meaning that realistically our baby could be born at any time now as he's as cooked as he's going to get). It also marks 28 days away from my actual due date. 28 days... that's a scary thought. In a short month, we 2 shall be 3. I can't imagine it somehow and think it will take him being actually born for it to sink in. I mean, how could us 2 halfwits be parents right?

My symptoms haven't changed much, just got more pronounced. My hyperemesis does seem to have come back properly though complete with vomitting which is upsetting as it means I'll probably spend my labour throwing up all the way through, as women with the condition tend to. Don't get me wrong the condition has never gone away as such, its always been there. I've never lost that 'sick feeling' since I was 5 weeks pregnant, but I have been feeling capable of eating (and even enjoying) a few choice foods for this past 2 months or so. That reprieve though has now left me again, so its a final 4 weeks of forcing down anything I can stomach.

The SPD is still with me and the physio I was shown doesn't seem to be making any difference truth be told. That I can deal with though.

My stomach feels like its ready to burst and my belly button has almost popped completely out now (Ive always been squeamish about belly buttons, so i'm not enjoying that bit) . The stretch marks are intensifying and I have the most horrendous itching from stretching skin. Its not an easy job, this baby making malarky... or should I say baby incubating as the making bit was certainly not an arduous task.

This week we went along to an antenatal class. It was one of those 'Introduce Yourself' and wear a name badge affairs, which I've always found cringe-worthy. Then they separate you into 'teams' so you're not with your partner, which I didn't really see the point of as you're going to be mixing with others in your group anyway. I didn't particularly learn anything and I felt it was a poor choice of a person who runs the class as she is an advocate of home births, a fact she made clear right from the start of the class. Fair enough, that's what she does, but for a group of women all of which are having hospital births as its their first one, it doesn't really help to constantly have it pointed out how 'wrong' or 'backward' the hospital way of doing it is....

One fact I did come away with which was useful was the fact Airedale Hospital where I'm having the baby allows you to give birth in a birthing pool. The helpful website says that you can labour in the pool, but must get out to actually give birth, which sort of defeated the point for me. A water birth would have been my first choice before the restrictions at Airedale were pointed out. Seems now though that they do offer birthing in the pool and they just haven't changed the website yet!

So goodbye to epidural and hello to the birthing pool for me.