Midwife Visit yesterday

The midwife came again yesterday - she'll come once more in 2 weeks, then every week after that until the baby is born. Marilee is her name, and her assistant is Wendy. I like both of them a lot - their personalities mesh well with mine, which is wonderful! And I just love that she comes to my house. She does that b/c she likes to get to know her clients in their own environment, so that they feel really comfortable with her being there for the delivery. After yesterdays visit, I am genuinely excited about a home birth again - I have days that I'm worried about it being like last time, and I have better days - it was an encouraging visit, which I needed! :-)

Here's what we covered yesterday:

• I'm going to start taking Evening Primrose Oil (500 mg/3x daily) - it works to soften the cervix, and adds stretchiness to all the tissues of the uterus, which is esp. important for VBAC mommas, to aid in stretching out the scar tissue areas and keep them pliable for the labor.
• Asked her about uterine rupture - a very, very slim risk for VBACs, but a serious one. I obviously feel comfortable enough with the risk to have a home birth, but sometimes it has bothered me - just having that possibility, though extremely slim, is in the back of my mind. Her response helped a lot - she explained there are warning signs they are diligently watching for during a VBAC labor: the baby's heart rate being a key one, as well as whether the uterus is soft between contractions. If there is *any* indication that there even might be a rupture, they will rush me to the nearest emergency room, no questions asked, and call ahead for them to be ready to do an emergency c-section. They also carry all the equipment for stopping severe bleeding that they would have in a labor/delivery room - I don't know what it's called...that was good to know. VBACs can sometimes bleed more post-delivery, so she has VBAC mommas start a regimine of extra iron supplements at about 36 weeks, to boost the hemoglobin levels to decrease any need to go to the hospital post-partum for loss of blood. What comforted me the most was how thoroughly she answered my questions, and how calm and yet confident she was about how to handle it all, were anything to happen.
• I need to get a belly band to support my belly. I carry low and all up-front, which some mommas just do, and it can actually contribute to the baby having difficulty descending through the pelvis - since the baby's head ends up sitting forward of the pelvic bone, instead of above it. Why didn't anyone say something about that LAST time???!! Duh!

• Everything looks good! Baby is ROA right now (right occiput anterior - that's pretty good :) Graeme was OP (posterior) and that's what we want to avoid.
• Marilee *does* want me to get an ultrasound - I asked her if, at this point, she still wants me to pursue getting one - b/c she likes VBAC mommas to get one to confirm that the placenta is not located over the c-section scar. So, we should find out what this baby is, if I can get one scheduled in time LOL! (On the other hand, no complaints if baby gets here early ;)