Full Term

Well, tomorrow is my official due date.

(Deep breath)

It's been a long and interesting road. It feels like I've been pregnant for a year... or forever. Tomorrow I'll get checked again and discuss induction possibilities. I want to avoid an epidural, and I think I also want to avoid Pitocin, if I can. I'd rather let my body do what it's supposed to. On the other hand, my body seems pretty content to stay pregnant until late August or so, so I'm considering undergoing an AROM (artificial rupture of membranes) to get things going. I had my membranes stripped last week, and that didn't do anything. I'm not afraid of the painful contractions that can come from an AROM, since they are the same contractions I would have had if my water had broken on its own. However, I'll be discussing all that with one of the best midwives around tomorrow, and hopefully I'll be able to make an informed and deliberate decision about it... or maybe I can just go into labor today.

Not likely.

It's slightly frustrating to me, hearing all the advice from people, telling me I should do this or that to make myself go into labor. Been there. Tried that. I'm not going to do castor oil-- that's pretty selfish, as it can put the baby at a huge risk. But I've tried everything safe and "natural" several times, and I've come to understand that, for me at least, they aren't going to do anything. Zoey is just going to come when the time is right (which might be if/when we induce labor).

I'm starting to believe that people simply try different techniques, and then give whatever they did last before going into labor credit for getting the job done. The human body is a smart thing, and I think mine has its reasons for waiting. I don't like them very much, but I trust that it's for the best. I will deliver a nice, healthy, ready baby when the time is right.

Either that or I'll explode.