Weighing in on mid-wives: A Thanksgiving Miracle

    I can't believe Thanksgiving is over already! I am really relieved. You see, most people look forward to Thanksgiving, but when you are pregnant, Thanksgiving, and the Holiday Season in general can be incredibly intimidating. Not only are you trying hard to fight off the urge to overeat, but now you're doing it while being surrounded by 20 other people who have no desire to hold back! I found out I was pregnant with this little looker two weeks before thanksgiving in 2011:

    So, naturally, I took this approach to Thanksgiving Dinner that year:

   And I was terrified of having the same experience again, only 25 lbs heavier this time. NOT GOOD! Luckily, I had an awesome appointment with my mid-wife at the very beginning of this pregnancy that has shaped my view of weight gain to what it is now. Lemme tell ya 'bout it.
   About a week after finding out I was pregnant, I was having really bad cramping. Like, hold-your-sides-and-stop-breathing type of cramps. I have miscarried before so I was absolutely terrified and set up an appointment at the closest ob/gyn's office that took my insurance. Jess and I are new in this town and didn't have a baby doctor picked out, so I decided to try this one out.
   I had heard people talk a lot about mid-wives and how wonderful they are, but every time I thought about them, this is what I pictured:

   Everything I heard about them sounded a little hokey and I wasn't sure if I felt comfortable going that route for my first. So, instead, I went to a clinic that had several different doctors(I saw 6 total during that pregnancy) and here's what that felt like:

   If you don't get my humor on this one, its ok. I'll elaborate. I think if you have ever been pregnant you can easily relate to the cow metaphor, for more than one reason...especially if you have ever used a breast pump. Just sayin'. But the reason I think of this picture when I describe what its like being seen by so many doctors in one clinic is because you feel like a bunch of cattle being rounded up! Or at least I did. But let me explain it more simply. Here's the cons to rotating doctors in a clinic:

1. It can take forever to get in.
      My husband and I waited sometimes 45 min after our set appointment time.
2. They have already seen (depending on the time of day) lots and lots of whiny pregnant women before you and start to lose their sensitivity.
      Especially the nurses in those places! "You've put on 5 lbs. What are you eating??"
3. You get lost in a sea of files.
    My doctor-of-the-day would glance over my file for about 30 seconds. Thats it.
4. They are either too harsh or too lenient on your weight gain, depending on the day.
    Lets hope the lady before you didn't put on too much weight and whine a lot, or you're in trouble! :)
5. You get different personalities/experience with each doctor.
     Some of them would sit and talk sports with my husband after I had just asked them how to deal with my sinus infection. Awesome?

   That being said, or complained, there were lots of great men and women there who were kind, and good at what they did. And yes, you can choose to have just one doctor that sees you every time if you don't want to be switched around for each appointment. Here's my advice for those of you that are overweight/obese and trying to decide on a doctor: GO WITH A MID-WIFE!
   I'm finally getting to my story about why I think mid-wives are the best choice for someone like me. I waited in the room until my mid-wife opened the door, really nervous because I felt like I already looked 5 months pregnant from my previous weight gain. I was hoping maybe we would skip that subject all together. But, in my usual fashion, my nerves took over and half-way through our "family history of diseases chat" I blurted out, "So I am already overweight and I don't want to put on much and actually I would really like to LOSE weight during this pregnancy.....(pause for breathing)...is that ok??"
   I kind of winced after realizing that I just told my mid-wife I wanted to lose weight while pregnant when I heard her softly say, "Sure. I think thats a great idea."
Say WHAT?
Did she actually just agree with me? Yup. With only two stipulations. That I was losing weight because I was eating healthier and that the baby was measuring where it should be measuring.
Can I get a HALLELUJAH? Or maybe an AZOOGA?

  Telling your baby doctor that you want to lose weight is like telling your high-school guidance counselor that you want to go to beauty school. They immediately panic and devise a plan to change your evil ways. Now granted, dieting during pregnancy is a no-no. I mean like starve yourself, then run five miles kind-of-dieting, and for obvious reasons.
   But watching your eating and trying to let your body use pregnancy to reset itself into a pattern of health and happiness is great. So, she went on to use some words that have been like swear-words to me since I had my first son.....Food Diary, Cardio, and Vegetables. Oh, vegetables..we meet again! And I have to admit, I already started regretting telling her that I wanted to lose weight or gain a minimal amount because when I saw her drawing out a weight-gain "map" I was like, "Oh no you di'nt!" But in my mind, I said it like this:

  Can I just say that I typed in the words, "Sassy woman" into Google Images and got this? Perfect. She is my hero. And if you wonder why I post so many random pics, its to help you visualize where I'm coming from. See? Didn't this pic totally explain how a chubby prego lady would react to words like "vegetables" and "weight gain map"? Uh huh!
  So, ahem, I was already starting to regret this new philosophy of not giving in to weight gain during pregnancy and setting myself up to be accountable. Then I realized that not taking this approach the first time gave me the extra 25 lbs I am lugging around now(on top of my 25 lb son, that is). In fact, I can vividly remember weighing in during my first pregnancy and calculating in my head that I had put on 45 lbs and was still a month away from my due date. The doctor and nurse said NOTHING! And, in fact, at my half way point(20 week check up) I had already put on 25 lbs, which is considered the normal overall weight gain for a healthy women. I was there at 20 weeks!! Maybe the lady in this pic was in there right before me and the doctor was too exhausted to deal with that again...at both check ups?? Sure.
   What is the moral of this story? I can say with pride that I have not gained a single pound so far. I am ten weeks pregnant. I know that doesn't sound really miraculous and I know that won't be the case the whole time, but at this point last time, I had already gained 10 lbs. YUP. So, bring it on, Christmas! Thanks to an amazing mid-wife who really cares, I think I can do this. I think I can, I think I can...:)


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