My Pregnancy Story: Postpartum
Articles about what happened after Amelia was born in late July 2018.
-
02 August 2018
Delivery
Monday: The Induction Today was the day where we get this delivery ball rolling! I reported to the hospital that afternoon (after working my last day at work… from home, of course, but it was a great distraction). After a whole lot of paperwork, I was admitted to Labor and Delivery. I got hooked up to all the monitors. Tests happened. My OB came. Everyone confirmed that my cervix was still very much closed. And then the induction started with a small thing that was shoved all the way up my cervix and left there for 12 hours. I started cramping. I felt some contractions but, for the most part, the cramps just felt like one large period. A couple of friends came to visit. I slept. I was told nothing would really happen until the next day anyway. So far, so good? Tuesday morning: Wha [...]
Read more... -
04 August 2018
Nicknames
My daughter is only a few days old, but over the course of the past few days, I have been calling her by all sorts of nicknames. On top of that, my friends have also been donning her with even more nicknames. This girl has so many nicknames flying around, that I decided I needed to record all of these names somewhere. Little Miss My Little String Bean Girly Girly Girl Cutie Burrito Pumpkin Honey Little Miss Squirmy Baby Doll My Little Ninja My Little Yogi Sweet Pea Baby Doll has been my recent favorite. I’m not sure why.
Read more... -
06 August 2018
Oh hello, hormones
Yesterday was an incredibly bad day. I have read about postpartum depression. It is something I had been worried about for the majority of my pregnancy because of my history of anxiety. A friend of mine even talked to me about it way before I delivered. Last week - the week I delivered - was complete insanity between the surprise c-section, meeting and getting to know my new daughter, and the subsequent hospital stay. However, yesterday everything hit me hard. Like, ton of bricks times twelve, hard. I can list off so many quantifiable reasons for this: I have a new baby! Not to mention this is my first baby. Plus I have not had a whole lot of exposure to babies. My mom is here helping me out with things, but that has turned into her taking over my house. Considering I hav [...]
Read more... -
07 August 2018
Pregnancy vs. Postpartum
Over the course of the last week, since my daughter’s birth, I have discovered that I have become very used to being pregnant. This realization is becoming more and more apparent as I heal from my c-section and I regain more general mobility. For example, I can bend over and touch my toes. (Thank goodness, because my toenails are so long, they could be weapons. But I digress.) Whenever I do bend over, I keep thinking, Oh no! Am I going to squish the baby?!? This is a thought I had frequently during my pregnancy, as though I could squish the baby’s head by moving in the wrong way. Of course, then I realize that the baby is no longer actually in my body. I know. Duh, mom. You gave birth. Of course the baby isn’t in your body. But the feeling is still reflexive. Give me a break. It’s [...]
Read more... -
12 August 2018
Final Public Postpartum Thoughts
I wanted to update this category in my blog one more time before “signing off”. I could blog all day and night about Amelia, but I also want to keep most aspects of her life private. That means, off Facebook, off Instagram, off whatever other social media platforms exist that I’m “too old” to use, and off this blog. Sorry folks. 12 Days Amelia is 12 days old now. She changes literally every day. I’m excited to see how she will grow and change in the days/weeks/months/years to come, but I am also sad because I miss how she was just a week ago. I have learned some very important things about myself over the last 12 days. The first is that, before Amelia arrived, I was super OCD about how I kept my house. Now… not so much. I mean, not at all. I’m not saying my house is a train wreck. [...]
Read more...