1. Know my birth choices. I am one of those people who sort of accepts that every birth is different, so I'm not going to go into this one thinking that I know exactly what it's going to be like. But what I do want is to ensure that I am clued up about things that may be offered to me. For example with Ethan I had a ventouse delivery (a natural delivery but with help using a suction cup). I was happy with this and on reflection I'm so pleased this was offered to me rather than forceps, as I don't really know how I feel about the idea of forceps being used. Because of this, I'm going to be having an appointment with a consultant midwife to go through potential things that may come up during the birth, just so that this time I go in with a bit more of a clearer insight and idea of things, which'll hopefully help me to relax a little more.
2. Accept that I may struggle after the birth again. I felt rather unwell after having Ethan and quite honestly I wasn't prepared to feel like I did. I hadn't even thought about being unwell afterwards, as I had heard that they sort of like you to be up and about the next day. Most of the women on the ward I was on were up, showered and going home, but I could barely stand. I didn't want to stay in the hospital so I went home, but I ended up going back in after fainting in the shower. My oxygen levels would drop every time I stood up, and though they were never quite sure why, it was put down to perhaps being because of the amount of blood I'd lost during labor. So this time around I want to prepare myself for that, I want to accept that I may have to stay in bed for a few days and that I won't be able to be up and about. I'm one of those people who hates sitting still and being unwell in bed, so this will be a challenge but after last time, I know how important it is to focus on getting myself back to full health after giving birth.
3. Think about paying for a private room to stay in after the birth. I know it might seem trivial but I really disliked being on the postnatal ward, I felt so claustrophobic on the ward and I only started to feel a little better after they moved me to a bed where I could see out of the window. I discharged myself twice from hospital because I hated being there and it's made me consider this time around whether or not it'd be worth me paying for my own room. I spoke to my community midwife about this and she said that if I had an epidural (which I did last time), I'd have to stay on the ward rather than in a side room but she also said that the hospital had made big improvements and had reduced the amount of beds per ward which is quite reassuring.
4. Be prepared for a big baby! Ethan was 9lbs 9oz and so I'm preparing myself for the possibility that this baby may be just as big or perhaps even bigger! (Though, in reality he could end up being smaller of course). I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he's a little less heavier than his big bro' was! ;)
5. Pack less in my hospital bag. I completely overpacked when I went in to have Ethan. This time around I'm a little more clued up about what sort of things I'll actually need for myself and baby. Though I do still have a bit of a tendency to overpack for things, so I'll need to try and be disciplined with what gets put in the bag.
Was there anything you did differently the second time around?
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