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| 27 weeks! |
Sunday marked the start of my third trimester! I feel like the energy I had during the second has totally disappeared, while Baby has just gotten wilder. People comment on how tiny I am, and for the most part I don't feel too big (I definitely have my days, haha). Though there was a woman in town who asked me when I was due, and her eyes about fell out of her head when I said August. I couldn't tell if that was because Tony isn't two yet, or because she thought I looked big. Maybe I did that day.
We saw the midwife on Friday and she said everything looks good! (I measured small two months in a row, and finally measured on track. Not a big deal, I think I measured behind a little bit with Tony.) Even though it could easily change, she checked the position and Baby was head down. Where I feel movement corresponds with that, which is kind of nice to know. Now I have just one more 4 week visit - before I know it she will be here for the home visit. The last of my birth supplies came on Monday, to my great delight. I still need a new hose to fill the pool up, but that doesn't require ordering.
A couple of months ago I bit the bullet and ordered a copy of Sara Wickham's Anti-D in Midwifery: Panacea or Paradox?. I've read Sara Wickham's articles on anti-D online, and was incredibly curious to read the book. It's the only book out there on anti-D that I have come across, and until recently (when it went on Amazon Prime) hard to buy.
At this point, I'm a little under halfway through it, though I have jumped forward to read some chapters. It's incredibly thought-provoking, and I wish that it was readily available to every Rh negative mother. It wasn't until I was pregnant with Tony that I found out I was Rh- and what that could mean.
Zach and I did as much research as we could, but other than the basic facts, and testimony from women who have received it (or not), there isn't much available. After a lot of praying, and overcoming fear and doubt, I finally decided against getting the RhoGAM shot after Tony was born. I had an uncomplicated delivery, and was permitted to spontaneously deliver the placenta with no tugging or "assistance" from Peggy. As of the end of the first trimester with this pregnancy, I had no antibodies. (I haven't had any blood work done since then, so I don't know for sure, but unless I've had a silent sensitizing event, there shouldn't be any antibodies now.) I am incredibly grateful for the response from my care providers so far. They were both surprised, and probably think I'm crazy, but they are supportive because they know it is my decision. They understand that I didn't make it easily, and they aren't going to bully me, or treat me like I don't know what I'm doing. I think that refusing the shot is harder than getting it, honestly.
What blows my mind, is that there has been no research into the safety of the antenatal RhoGAM shot to the baby (especially Rh- babies), or what some of the factors causing sensitization are.
Regardless of what women decide to do, they need more information. It isn't as cut and dry as it's portrayed to be. You can become sensitized even if you get the shot. You can be antibody free without it. In some ways it feels like Russian Roulette. I'm not saying that RhoGAM doesn't have a place, because there are cases where you know there is fetomaternal hemorrhage, such as during a c-section. For an intervention-free delivery, though? That I'm not so sure of.
We saw the midwife on Friday and she said everything looks good! (I measured small two months in a row, and finally measured on track. Not a big deal, I think I measured behind a little bit with Tony.) Even though it could easily change, she checked the position and Baby was head down. Where I feel movement corresponds with that, which is kind of nice to know. Now I have just one more 4 week visit - before I know it she will be here for the home visit. The last of my birth supplies came on Monday, to my great delight. I still need a new hose to fill the pool up, but that doesn't require ordering.
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| I thought that we had pulled up everything along the back fence last fall, but apparently not. Aren't they lovely? |
A couple of months ago I bit the bullet and ordered a copy of Sara Wickham's Anti-D in Midwifery: Panacea or Paradox?. I've read Sara Wickham's articles on anti-D online, and was incredibly curious to read the book. It's the only book out there on anti-D that I have come across, and until recently (when it went on Amazon Prime) hard to buy.
At this point, I'm a little under halfway through it, though I have jumped forward to read some chapters. It's incredibly thought-provoking, and I wish that it was readily available to every Rh negative mother. It wasn't until I was pregnant with Tony that I found out I was Rh- and what that could mean.
Zach and I did as much research as we could, but other than the basic facts, and testimony from women who have received it (or not), there isn't much available. After a lot of praying, and overcoming fear and doubt, I finally decided against getting the RhoGAM shot after Tony was born. I had an uncomplicated delivery, and was permitted to spontaneously deliver the placenta with no tugging or "assistance" from Peggy. As of the end of the first trimester with this pregnancy, I had no antibodies. (I haven't had any blood work done since then, so I don't know for sure, but unless I've had a silent sensitizing event, there shouldn't be any antibodies now.) I am incredibly grateful for the response from my care providers so far. They were both surprised, and probably think I'm crazy, but they are supportive because they know it is my decision. They understand that I didn't make it easily, and they aren't going to bully me, or treat me like I don't know what I'm doing. I think that refusing the shot is harder than getting it, honestly.
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| Red cabbage, MANGO, and cucumber. A drizzle of olive oil and some pepper. Wow. I ate almost all of it before Zach even got home for dinner. |
What blows my mind, is that there has been no research into the safety of the antenatal RhoGAM shot to the baby (especially Rh- babies), or what some of the factors causing sensitization are.
Regardless of what women decide to do, they need more information. It isn't as cut and dry as it's portrayed to be. You can become sensitized even if you get the shot. You can be antibody free without it. In some ways it feels like Russian Roulette. I'm not saying that RhoGAM doesn't have a place, because there are cases where you know there is fetomaternal hemorrhage, such as during a c-section. For an intervention-free delivery, though? That I'm not so sure of.
It must have been that pink dress or water weight, because you look like you shrunk from the photos you took on your trip. You look great!
ReplyDeleteI think I have that same shirt in a different print.
Wow! You look so great! So pretty! Time is flying by...soon there will be a tiny baby in your arms. I can't wait!!
ReplyDeleteI am proud of the thought and research that you put into your health and that of the baby. Keep it up.
Those flowers are beautiful!
The food looks so yum! I will definitely give it a try...
Give Tony a kiss for me.
You know what I think it is about that pink dress? There are pockets, and no matter how hard I try, it's impossible to iron them flat. So they pouf out really bad, but it looks like it's me, not the dress.
ReplyDeleteI found that shirt at a consignment shop over the break. I love it.
Hi Jess,
ReplyDeleteplease know that receiving the Rhogam shot is entirely your choice, and I do not mean my following words to be accusatory or harsh in anyway.
I would like to caution you in your decision to refuse the rhogam. It is likely that if your son is Rh+, that your blood and the placental blood mixed. The immune system contains memory T cells which specialize in storing information about foreign antigens, so that the next time the system is exposed to Rh+ blood, hemolysis will occur much more quickly and viciously. This is why receiving the rhogam shot in subsequent pregnancies is more crucial than the first.
Interaction between mother and infant blood can occur in deliveries without c-section. Hemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN)has occurred in cases without any intervention.
Know that the rhogam has done a lot of good, as you said in the end of your post, there is a place for it. Thousands of infant deaths from hemolytic disease have been prevented since it's development. There may be skepticism surrounding the rhogam and many other vaccines, but there is clear scientific evidence and statistics which supports their use. Personal testimonies from women who have received the rhogam could not be very reliable as they could attribute infant abnormalities to the rhogam, without proof that they were really connected.
Though you never hear of HDN occurring today, it was quiet common in the past before the rhogam use.
Despite the concerns, I totally agree and respect what you said that women really need to stay informed and do their own research before just following medical routines.
Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteThank you for the comment, though I have to say it really bothers me when people want to give advice but won't sign their name at the end of it.
I appreciate the concern, but I am totally at peace with the decision I have made. It isn't for everyone, but it's what I believe is right for me.
Fyi, you forgot to mention the balsamic vinegar in the slaw recipe. Thanks again for sharing. We enjoyed it. :)
ReplyDelete