a la natural

Last night, in our Bradley Birth class, we discussed transition and second stage labor, and we watched a video of a twin birth. Wow. It was very uh, colorful. But I felt very encouraged, and even energized after watching a mom give birth to her twins as home... and the midwife didn't even make it in time! Any birth is amazing and miraculous.

During Kynzie's birth, if someone had told me that I was most likely in transition, I think I would have held off on the epidural. She was born within an hour of receiving the epidural. Then, with Max, there was a little complication, but I didn't have any pain medication. It was amazing to be able to feel the difference in their births. When I found out I was pregnant this time I wanted to be more prepared to handle the pain and even some smaller complications naturally. Of course, at that time, I didn't know I was going to have twins, but I think that only made me more determined.

I also knew there had to be more I could control during pregnancy to effect the outcome than what the doctor seemed to be telling me. So began my mission to research and learn all I could about the whole process of being fruitful and multiplying.

I learned of the Brewer Diet (not a weight loss diet), which has been a great help. We decided to take Bradley Birth classes this time. My favorite books this time have been Naturally Healthy Pregnancy by Shonda Parker and Having Twins by Elizabeth Noble. And, I threw out my copy of What to Expect When You're Expecting.

My journey to all things new and natural has taken me to meet new people and to learn new things about people I've already known. One new aquaintance is the OB/GYN I met with today. She was a Bradley instructor/doula before she became a doctor! Today's appointment went really well, and I am very encouraged.