It was a tough road for us to have Kairi. 3 years and 2 miscarrages to be exact. I had the 1st miscarrage when our son was 6 months old, which was over Christmas of 2007. Needless to say that Christmas sucked. So after that miscarrage I got but on birth control to help with getting my cycles regular again and to help me get over the miscarrage. That miscarrage was rough. I went into a semi depression after. Thank God for my husband. He was very supportive and didn’t let me sink to far just far enough to wollow in it then made me snap out. And I had our son Aiden to take care of so I had to stay strong for him. I had my birth control taken out in November of 2008 and we started trying again. I got pregnant again July of 2009 and miscarried it in August of 2009 over my birthday. Yeah my 22nd birthday sucked just like that Christmas did. Unlike the last time I got a lot more depressed. And it ended up in very drunken night that only made me feel way worse which pulled me out of it. It has taken me a while to realize that the miscarriages were not my fault but it is still hard to talk about. And this is the first time I have spoken openly about them to anyone outside of our family.
On November 11th 2009 (Veteran’s Day) we found out that we were expecting our little girl. We didn’t tell anyone we were pregnant right away. It took us till our 1st ultrasound before we told anyone. Seeing her little heartbeat was the most amazing thing! I was sick a great deal the first half of my pregnancy. I could not stand the smell of food or the taste of food. I lost like 7 pounds in the first 4 months. I had a tough time putting the weight on. I started out at 153 and ended up at 170. It took constantly making myself eat the last 4-5 months to put on the weight. The last half of my pregnancy besides making myself eat was a breeze. I started going in to premature labor at 34 weeks they gave me a shot to stop the contractions and medicine to keep the contractions stopped. It sucked! The shot hurt like hell and the medicine tasted like crap. At 36 weeks they took me of the medicine. They said I would probably go into labor quickly after I got it all out of my system. Boy they were wrong. The last 2 weeks of my pregnancy were heck. I was having contractions out the butt but no progress. My due date I wound up walking around Hollywood Blvd., trying to get the contractions going, with my in-laws and my hubby. But no baby. On the 23rd of July the midwife stripped my membranes at 4:30ish. The pain was horrible when she stripped them. And it was pretty much instantaneous to get the contractions started for me. By 7:00 I was in the hospital hoping to be admitted. But alas no luck. I was 3 cm and 50% effaced. They told me to go walk around for 2 hours and they would check me again. I walked and walked in pain the entire time. When I went back I was 3 ½ cm and still 50% effaced. So I went home and labored in bed till 11:30 that night. I had my in-laws there to help with our son which was great J. So we went to the hospital and the checked me and I was between 3-4 cm and 75% effaced. They admitted me thankfully. They asked me if I wanted an epidural and I said yes I had had enough pain. Yes I am a weenie I admit it. They had to do blood work to see if I could get it and that took like 45 minutes. So they gave me a shot of something I can’t remember the name of lol. It made the world go loopy but it was a good kind . I knew what was going on but the world was a little spiny and fuzzy. I still felt the contractions So I finally got my epidural and I was in heaven. I went to sleep and they work me up at like 1:30 am on the 24th to break my water and I was 5-6 cm. So I went back to sleep at 3 am they gave me poticin cause my contractions weren’t progressing. I have no relocation of them giving me poticin I was that fast asleep. So at 7:00 I got woke up to be checked and I was ready to go J. They had me to practice pushes to see if I was too numb. I wasn’t thankfully. So I did a few pushes and I had to stop. I didn’t know it at the time but she was already coming out. That was after 3 pushes. So the doctor came in and with another 2 pushes Kairi was born at 7:37am. About 37 minutes of actively pushing and we had are beautiful baby girl.
I was up and walking around by that night. Just around my room to the bathroom and to the window. But I was up. The next day I wanted to walk around to a vending machine. The nurse said I was the first mom since he started there over a year ago to want to walk the day after. I told him I’d done it before. He said I was still the first. That made me feel good. I did attempt to breastfeed. But I know that breast feeding is not always best for some people. I did do it for almost 2 weeks, mixing breast feeding, pumping and formula. But I finally settled on formula and we are doing great on it. I feel no guilt at giving up on breast feeding but if I have another I will attempt it again. Now it is 8 weeks later and we are doing good.
Sarah's Story
I remember when I first found out that I was pregnant; talk about shock! Since my husband and I weren't exactly doing anything to prevent pregnancy, but not actively trying either, I would take a pregnancy test about once a month or just if I thought my period was late. A part of me actually thought that I couldn't get pregnant because we have had accidents before and no baby yet. Not to mention the "oops" I have had with previous boyfriends. So I guess deep down inside a part of me would actually get a little sad every time a test would turn up negative. But I told myself that whatever happens happens, and to stop worrying about whether or not I could have a baby and just be happy that I have an amazing husband. November of 2009 was when I found out. I had no idea I was pregnant. I didn't have one single sign or symptom, unless you count be a little extra gassy lol. I honestly didn't think I was pregnant and for the first time, it didn't bother me. I didn't even want to take a pregnancy test because I just knew that it would be negative. I was a little crampy so I was positive that my period was just a few days away. But my husband wanted me to check anyways, just in case. So I just bought a cheap Wal-Mart brand test and took it. My husband actually watched this time and when the little test line came up and no other line I said, "See, I told you I'm not pregnant." So he left the bathroom and I cleaned up, got up to wash my hands, picked up the test to throw it away and I'll be damned if it didn't have another little pink line there. If I wasn't so shocked, I may have cried. So I yelled out and in came my husband, wondering what was wrong. He just laughed when I showed him the test and then took me to get two more.
I can honestly say I had a really good pregnancy. I was only sick for two weeks the entire pregnancy. For the first three months I just wanted to sleep, and boy did I. I think I got on average of 14-16 hours a day. The second trimester I got my energy back and was able to start working out again. A friend and I would go to the gym sometimes twice a day. I never overworked myself, just small workouts here and there, and plenty of yoga. Since my husband was gone from month 4 to 7 for a deployment, I had plenty of time to do whatever I wanted to take care of myself. By the time he got home in the 7th month, I didn't have as much time to work out because he would take the car to work. He and I would still go for walks and things to keep me active. Not once did I get heart burn or headaches, and my back hurt only two nights the whole time. I only gained 15 lbs and only got one stretch mark(this coming from a woman who is 5'5 130 lbs and has stretch marks all over hips, thighs, and butt. and my knee caps, but I'm not too sure how that happened lol). And when it came time for the delivery of my wonderful son, it couldn't have gone better. My water broke on its own at 6:30 a.m., and five hours later at 11:27 a.m. I had my 6 lb 2 oz baby boy after only 10 minutes of pushing. The first 4 hours of my labor were managed through different positioning, walking, a birthing ball, and a warm bath. I think I even bit the bed once, too lol. Those first hours were a piece of cake, but that last hour was determined to kick my butt! My body wanted the baby OUT, but the midwives were saying I wasn't fully dilated yet and to try not to push, and for anyone who has gone through labor, fighting against your body is the worst thing you can do because it only makes the pain worse. And I had no medications. I wanted an all natural, un-medicated birth. And thankfully, I was able to do exactly that. Once he was out he was immediately put onto my chest and we waited until the cord had stopped pulsing until we clamped and cut it. Waiting assures that your baby gets all the blood supply he was meant to get, boosting his iron, reducing the chances of anemia, and increases the baby's blood volume up to 30 %. The only drawback they found was that is caused some babies to get too much red blood cells and they developed jaundice, but my baby didn't. And I know a lot of babies that had their cord cut right away and they had jaundice, so for me that is a risk worth taking.
I can honestly say I had a really good pregnancy. I was only sick for two weeks the entire pregnancy. For the first three months I just wanted to sleep, and boy did I. I think I got on average of 14-16 hours a day. The second trimester I got my energy back and was able to start working out again. A friend and I would go to the gym sometimes twice a day. I never overworked myself, just small workouts here and there, and plenty of yoga. Since my husband was gone from month 4 to 7 for a deployment, I had plenty of time to do whatever I wanted to take care of myself. By the time he got home in the 7th month, I didn't have as much time to work out because he would take the car to work. He and I would still go for walks and things to keep me active. Not once did I get heart burn or headaches, and my back hurt only two nights the whole time. I only gained 15 lbs and only got one stretch mark(this coming from a woman who is 5'5 130 lbs and has stretch marks all over hips, thighs, and butt. and my knee caps, but I'm not too sure how that happened lol). And when it came time for the delivery of my wonderful son, it couldn't have gone better. My water broke on its own at 6:30 a.m., and five hours later at 11:27 a.m. I had my 6 lb 2 oz baby boy after only 10 minutes of pushing. The first 4 hours of my labor were managed through different positioning, walking, a birthing ball, and a warm bath. I think I even bit the bed once, too lol. Those first hours were a piece of cake, but that last hour was determined to kick my butt! My body wanted the baby OUT, but the midwives were saying I wasn't fully dilated yet and to try not to push, and for anyone who has gone through labor, fighting against your body is the worst thing you can do because it only makes the pain worse. And I had no medications. I wanted an all natural, un-medicated birth. And thankfully, I was able to do exactly that. Once he was out he was immediately put onto my chest and we waited until the cord had stopped pulsing until we clamped and cut it. Waiting assures that your baby gets all the blood supply he was meant to get, boosting his iron, reducing the chances of anemia, and increases the baby's blood volume up to 30 %. The only drawback they found was that is caused some babies to get too much red blood cells and they developed jaundice, but my baby didn't. And I know a lot of babies that had their cord cut right away and they had jaundice, so for me that is a risk worth taking.
I was up walking around about an hour after giving birth (after skin to skin contact, pictures, and breastfeeding for the first time). After a few hours in the delivery room we were transferred to the mother and baby ward where were to stay for 48 hours (first time mother mandatory time frame). I didn't get any sleep for the first 38 hours after having the baby because nurses were coming in and out of the room and me having to feed the baby. And being a new mom, every little peep he made I was up checking him. But he didn't cry all night (and still doesn't cry to this day unless I just don't give him my breast fast enough...little piggy); all he wanted was to sleep. I wasn't in any pain after having him other than the uterine cramps from my uterus retracting to its normal size. All the nurses kept asking if I needed any pain meds to which my answer was always no. One of them actually told me that in all her years there, I am the only person to deny the pain meds after having a baby. I wasn't trying to prove a point or anything, I just didn't need them. After we left the hospital, my healing went great. My pelvic and lower back bones only hurt for about 4 days after I had the baby, and after that all the pain was gone. I felt good enough to start working out two weeks after coming home, but each time I would work out I would start to bleed a little, which they said was a sign I was pushing myself too hard. One week after delivery (maybe sooner, I don't own a scale so I had to weigh myself at my sister’s house) I had lost all my baby weight and was back to my normal size and back into all my old clothes. Of course my skin was just a tiny bit looser than before, but I didn't expect that to go away so soon. I didn't get any depression, and my "baby blues" were considerably less noticeable than a normal bout of PMS. I was happy, my husband was happy, and we were stress free. We had a happy, healthy baby boy who didn't keep us up all night and never cried. We didn't argue for at least 6 weeks after he was born. Everything went better than I could have imagined.
I contribute my good pregnancy and labor mostly to my diet. I eat a very natural, organic diet. Not to mention that I am a vegetarian, and about 75% vegan (I can't fully commit because I have a severe cheese addiction.) About 90% of the time I don't eat anything if its ingredients weren't what the product actually was. No artificial this, or natural flavor that. If I ate peanut butter, that's exactly what it was. Organic Peanuts with a little sea salt added. Spaghetti sauce is just fresh, organic herbs, spices and tomatoes. I'll admit, it is a very frustrating task trying to fulfill a pregnant woman’s cravings with a diet so strict (which led to me taking it out on my husband a lot of the time lol. Sorry dear =)) but to me, it was all for the baby. I wanted him to have the best start in life and for me that meant keeping my diet as natural as possible. (Note that I ate like this even before I got pregnant. It's the lifestyle that my husband and I live). Some people will say that eating organic isn't much healthier or different than eating non-organic, but I beg to differ. If I am thinking healthy food an ingredient that’s sole purpose is to kill doesn't come to mind. But that's not the only reason why. This may be a little lengthy, but here are the main reasons why I eat organic:
1) It tastes better. It just makes sense that something in its natural, fresh state would taste better than something altered. If you don't believe me, try it yourself with a blind taste test.
2) It is healthier. Organic food tends to contain higher levels of vitamin C, cancer fighting antioxidants, and essential minerals such as calcium, magnesium, iron and chromium. Scientists have proven in over 100 studies that organic food choices have far superior nutritional quality than conventional food choices.
3) No nasty additives. Organic food doesn't contain food additives that can cause health problems like heart disease, osteoporosis, headaches and/or migraines and hyperactivity.
4) No genetic modification. Organic standards do not allow crops and ingredients that have been genetically altered. For more info on GMO check here http://organic.lovetoknow.com/Why_GMOs_Are_Bad
5) New studies actually show that some pesticides actually inhibit weight loss and can cause weight gain. Organic foods avoid pesticides. There are more than 400 chemical pesticides routinely used in conventional farming of non-organic food. A lot of people choose to not buy or eat organic foods because of how much it cost. I admit it can be pricey. My husband and I spend about $800 a month in groceries for the two of us. But when you eat food that may contain poisons the cost is far higher than simply the price tag. When thinking of the cost, you shouldn't just be thinking about the money but also include the impact that this food choice has upon your body and the world. Studies have proven that pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, and other poisons accumulate in the body and lead to illness, disease, and death for humans and animals. With choosing organic you will dramatically reduce the amount of pesticide residue you ingest on a daily basis. Pesticides ingested by pregnant women may be linked to pregnancy issues, miscarriages, birth defects and health issues (this alone is enough for me to avoid non organic products). Pesticide is designed to kill and it's very good at it. Unfortunately, it does not know when to stop killing. This is all that it does. As Hippocrates said, "Let food be your medicine and your medicine be your food". Eat an apple, and you eat just that: vitamins, minerals, water, and more. But if you at pesticides you fill your body with poisons. The toxins in the pesticides build up in your fat tissues and muscles, and most of them are almost impossible to remove from your body even if you live to be 100 years old. Breast feeding mothers are a perfect example of potential dangers, because poisons are passed to the baby through the breast milk. (Yikes!)
7) It is much better for the environment. And if the environment is healthier that leads to plants being healthier, soil, water, birds, insects, animals, plants, air, and in the end, a healthier you.
Yes, you may get a little sticker shock when buying organic, but you just have to remember: You can either pay now for delicious, healing food or pay later for medical bills, sickness, and possible years of suffering to you and your body. You get what you pay for.
I am not saying that you are damning yourself and those around you if you do not eat organic, I am just simply stating the reasons why I choose to eat and live the way that I do. I know that each person is different and there are people who just get lucky, but I truly believe had my lifestyle been different, so would my experience.
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