Pregnancy and birth feel like a one-shot deal, especially to the first-time expectant parents. You want to do everything for your future child so that it will have everything going for it. It's easy to lose perspective.
So-called experts and charlatans of all stripes are very much aware of this and capitalize on the desire of the parents to make the best baby possible by selling them every conceivable device. (Of course, there are some excellent products out there as well). The book I'm reading is one such example. It is written superficially and produced to sell (I'll try to come up with a review sometime soon). Another interesting example is this strange device. Of course you'd spend a hundred bucks to make your baby smarter! It would be silly not to!
One thing that you can't contract out (unless you've gone so far as to get a surrogate mother!) is the pregnant lady's diet. Everyone's got an opinion about what a pregnant woman should, and should not, be eating. Rose and I decided, for the most part, to rely on the authorities in this case. (At the same time, we are not going overboard -- no severe restrictions on sugar and red dye number 3). She is staying away from sushi and raw fish, cold cuts, smoked anything (salmon, etc.), soft and semi-soft cheeses. Well, we (Rose, but I feel culpable) have been kind of cheating on the feta and we cheated once on smoked salmon.
Poke around the internet a bit and you'll see that health agencies in different countries have slightly different guidelines. But we're going with the standard, conservative advice (Health Canada and pregnancy books have been our guide) and it would take too much of our energy to thoroughly research and question ALL conventional advice about pregnancy!
We are also doing the right thing when it comes to smoking and alcohol. No smoking (an easy one) and no alcohol (a tougher one) at all. The latest studies will all tell you something or other, but we're going old school here. So old school that I'm going new school in supporting Rose and abstaining from drinking. Sort of. It's tough.
One controversy is fish. You have to be careful to avoid potential exposure to mercury and other toxins. From what we've read, as long as you choose certain kinds of cooked fish, the benefits of OMEGA 3 to the fetus outweigh the risks. We dropped the questionable fish from the local asian market and we've been trying to go, instead, to this great local lunch joint where we trust the quality of the fish, once a week, to get the recommended dose.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Easy choices
We are lucky to have our choice of pregnancy and delivery caregivers in Ottawa, all covered by our provincial plan (i.e., available to everyone at no cost). Rose and I never thought much about it: we both knew that we want to have a midwife as our pregnancy and delivery caregiver. Midwifery is accredited and recognized in Ontario (I think that this has been the case for about a decade). Unless specific medical interventions are required, a midwife can provide care to a pregnant woman in Ontario from the start of the pregnancy to post-natal care.
Our impression was that midwives are a popular option. As we did not want to be left without one, I called two midwifery care providers in the next day or two, the Midwifery Group, and the Midwifery Collective (Rose, as it happened, went on a planned vacation to B.C. the day after we got the positive pregnancy test!). About two weeks after I contacted the two groups, we were offered midwives through both -- good thing we were on the ball! In the meanwhile, in case the midwivery option would fall through, Rose was able to make an appointment with and see her doctor.
We ended up going with the Midwivery Collective of Ottawa because the office location is walking distance to Rose's work and the hospital at which the midwives have privileges--the Civic--is (almost) walking distance from our home (the two locations just happen to be on the opposite ends of town!).
We were assigned Agnes, a very experienced midwife. We didn't get to see her for the first appointment in November (she was on vacation) and the midwife that we were scheduled to see was running out of the office for a birthing call while we were in the waiting room! Midwives are used to this sort of thing and there was a back-up midwife to see us.
The first visit involves an explanation of the services provided. We were already sold on midwives, and what we heard at the first session only made us more interested in their services. Three of the great features of the service: the midwife that you see in the office (or her backup, of course) will be the same one who will be there for the labour; for the actual birth, there will be two midwives: one to catch the baby, and one to guide Rose; and midwives also come by for postnatal visits!
We left the midwifery office with a long stack of requisitions for blood tests -- both standard tests and optional screening. At that point we have not made up our mind yet on whether to pursue the screening options, so we took the forms in case we decided to do so. Rose's doctor also already arranged for us to visit the local children's hospital for genetic counselling. All the services--a midwife, the appointment with the doctor, the blood tests, and genetic screenings--were important to set up and pursue. We are extremely lucky to have access to all these services as part of our basic healthcare in this city; it was equally important to have some idea of what was available and to act fast!
Our impression was that midwives are a popular option. As we did not want to be left without one, I called two midwifery care providers in the next day or two, the Midwifery Group, and the Midwifery Collective (Rose, as it happened, went on a planned vacation to B.C. the day after we got the positive pregnancy test!). About two weeks after I contacted the two groups, we were offered midwives through both -- good thing we were on the ball! In the meanwhile, in case the midwivery option would fall through, Rose was able to make an appointment with and see her doctor.
We ended up going with the Midwivery Collective of Ottawa because the office location is walking distance to Rose's work and the hospital at which the midwives have privileges--the Civic--is (almost) walking distance from our home (the two locations just happen to be on the opposite ends of town!).
We were assigned Agnes, a very experienced midwife. We didn't get to see her for the first appointment in November (she was on vacation) and the midwife that we were scheduled to see was running out of the office for a birthing call while we were in the waiting room! Midwives are used to this sort of thing and there was a back-up midwife to see us.
The first visit involves an explanation of the services provided. We were already sold on midwives, and what we heard at the first session only made us more interested in their services. Three of the great features of the service: the midwife that you see in the office (or her backup, of course) will be the same one who will be there for the labour; for the actual birth, there will be two midwives: one to catch the baby, and one to guide Rose; and midwives also come by for postnatal visits!
We left the midwifery office with a long stack of requisitions for blood tests -- both standard tests and optional screening. At that point we have not made up our mind yet on whether to pursue the screening options, so we took the forms in case we decided to do so. Rose's doctor also already arranged for us to visit the local children's hospital for genetic counselling. All the services--a midwife, the appointment with the doctor, the blood tests, and genetic screenings--were important to set up and pursue. We are extremely lucky to have access to all these services as part of our basic healthcare in this city; it was equally important to have some idea of what was available and to act fast!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Discovery
Rose and I discovered that she was pregnant on Thursday, October 14, 2010 at 8:47 pm. A few weeks prior, we bought a package of two pregnancy tests. On that night, we were using the second test, and two lines appeared. Neither of us was expecting Rose to be pregnant that night and I responded with yelling 'Ah!' several times. This was an expression of facing the unexpected.
Today, in late December, we are continuing to learn about pregnancy and birth every day. We have selected a midwife and are considering a home birth. We have immersed ourselves in reading material and movies on various aspects of the process. As some of the material will doubtless be worth remembering for me, and learning of for others (and most of the items are borrowed from the local library), I will be posting the titles and my reflections. I hope also to discuss some of the features specific to us in the city of Ottawa in Ontario, Canada.
Much of the material that we have been consulting (including a book on my imminent fatherhood as well as movie productions, such as The Business of Being Born and the Sage Femme's Home Birth series) focus on the process and birthing options in the United States. There are important differences between the medical care options in the two countries and, in Canada, in the various Canadian provinces (services may also differ in centres within the same province). There are also differences between the American and Canadian post-pregnancy options and, in particular, maternity and parental leave. It will soon be time for us to learn about these options as well. Reflections, discoveries, and surprises are all to come.
Your comments, ideas, and advice are welcomed.
Today, in late December, we are continuing to learn about pregnancy and birth every day. We have selected a midwife and are considering a home birth. We have immersed ourselves in reading material and movies on various aspects of the process. As some of the material will doubtless be worth remembering for me, and learning of for others (and most of the items are borrowed from the local library), I will be posting the titles and my reflections. I hope also to discuss some of the features specific to us in the city of Ottawa in Ontario, Canada.
Much of the material that we have been consulting (including a book on my imminent fatherhood as well as movie productions, such as The Business of Being Born and the Sage Femme's Home Birth series) focus on the process and birthing options in the United States. There are important differences between the medical care options in the two countries and, in Canada, in the various Canadian provinces (services may also differ in centres within the same province). There are also differences between the American and Canadian post-pregnancy options and, in particular, maternity and parental leave. It will soon be time for us to learn about these options as well. Reflections, discoveries, and surprises are all to come.
Your comments, ideas, and advice are welcomed.
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