Week 31: That time I brought my husband to a breastfeeding class.

Breastfeeding class with my husband, Matt.

So I originally did not plan on bringing Matt to this class, but then I thought:  OH HE'S COMING. 

Why? 

Because when it's 4am and Allie is crying, he needs to realize all that goes into feeding a baby with a boob. I think all Dads should at least attend one class in their parenthood so they can understand the process and it is quite the process. 

So breastfeeding is a huge deal. I never realized what all went into breastfeeding and how important a Latch is, and how breastfeeding should not hurt. ***That's the number one complaint of all new moms*** I have to say it was a tiny concern of mine when making the choice to breastfeed, but when I see all the benefits, how can I really say no?

Throughout this 3 hour class, Matt went through many stages: 

• The shock stage of seeing other boobs on the screen (still sometimes has the maturity of a small child) 

• To the "ok, this looks kind of hard" 

• To telling me my technique was all wrong when we were role playing. Yes, he was critiquing me and explaining that I kept forgetting about containing all arms and to not touch the head while supporting the neck flexion for better latch.

He better be able to coach me when the real thing happens at 4am. 

All while this is happening, the lady teaching the class is a hardcore breastfeeding nazi, which I will say scared me a little, but I could tell this is something she is super passionate about, so I was willing to deal with it. 

I, do, however feel really motivated to keep this going as long as I can. 

Week 31 Pic!! 

Almost a Rant, well just kidding, it's completely a rant. 

Let me first say: I'm extremely grateful to be pregnant and having a safe pregnancy. I feel like I have griped a whole lot lately and I just needed to get that out there first and foremost.

Next let me also follow up by saying: If you are newly pregnant lady, please note that if you have any symptoms of feeling like something isn't right, or something feels a bit off, you need to be seen by your doctor. Don't shrug anything off.

Last week, I had gone to the L and D floor to get monitor for severe lower back pain, the hospital of course sent me home and said everything was fine, did urine test and everything checked out great.

Turns out this week when I went to follow up with my OB, I had a massive UTI or bladder infection. Back pain is a major symptom in pregnant women with a UTI. The problem is pregnant women don't have the same burning/stinging sensation of a regular UTI, which can often turn into a kidney infection and can present like symptoms of preterm labor. The only thing I can deduce from this situation, which happens in real life all the time, is that I had the beginning of an infection when I went to the hospital and the infection didn't actually grow until now or had substantial enough white blood cells in my urine to note.

Always go with your intuition, never let someone make you feel like your symptoms aren't real, and this really goes if you're pregnant or not.

Two Things you can do to avoid an unsightly UTI:

• Hydrate yourself all day long. 
• Empty your bladder often and remember to double pee. (once you think you're done, you probably should try to sit a few seconds longer to see if any more comes out.) 

Guess what floor nurses have the most trouble with? You guessed it. The above two items. What a conundrum! I've gathered that being pregnant and a nurse are not compatible.

Cravings: centered around citrus fruit this week!

Aversion: fish. I don't want anything to do with it.

Sleep: I have been experiencing carpel tunnel when sleeping. This actually happens to a lot of pregnant women at the end of the pregnancy due to fluid retention pressing on the medial nerve, so often at night my hand falls asleep on which ever side I'm sleeping on, so pillows are super important right now. Annoying.

Until next week!!