Confinement

Posted on April 16, 2010 · 58 Comments

The word confinement on its own sounds way too creepy. It’s as if one is subject to being stuck in a room, held against her will, and not allowed to step out under any circumstances. I can imagine some new moms who had to endure this treatment, listening to horror stories from friends (and friends of friends!).

My confinement has been 70% enjoyable. My confinement nanny is a great cook, very friendly, takes very good care of Zack, and is very dedicated to her job. She’s not kolot like a lot of the older confinement nannies (i.e. I’ve heard about how you’re not supposed to say nice things to your baby instead, say the opposite — like you’re so ugly or you’re so naughty–don’t know the logic behind that). She’s also very particular about hygiene and cleanliness, does all of baby’s laundry (including mine!) and a very patient teacher too! She has been showing me the ropes on burping baby, bathing him, and making him feel comfortable. The way she handles my lil’ boy, you can really see that she loves him like her own. I’m really blessed to have her around. If anyone is looking for a confinement nanny in the future, I’ll be happy to give you her number!

The other 30% I’m not very happy about are some silly rules I’ve to put up with. I’m allowed one shower a day (between 12 noon to 2pm). I really can’t understand this rule. If I sweat or feel sticky any time of the day, I wanna be able to take a shower. I’ve not followed this rule at all and have been bathing at anytime of the day that I want to. In fact, more than one time! Secondly, the rule about washing hair. I think I’m not supposed to even wash my hair but I have. I’ve been quite accommodating on this restriction, limiting myself to a hair wash every 3 days. If there’s one smell that drives me crazy, it’s greasy hair smell. Gives me a bad headache! Thirdly, this drinking red dates water only. Don’t get me wrong, the drink tastes great but I need my plain water. I’ve smuggled plain water into my room on a number of occasions to satisfy my thirst. Fourthly, bedroom slippers and sarong all day? Gawd, the weather is so hot, I ditched the sarong 2nd week into my confinement. Got nagging for wearing shorts, and forgetting to wear my bedroom slippers. Gimme a break, I’m sweating buckets k!

All in all, 3 weeks have zoomed by so quickly and my confinement nanny will be leaving on Sunday next week. I will surely miss her when she leaves but it’s time for me to take over and face reality. Next week we’re moving his cot back into our room so we can practice taking care of him at night. We will survive!

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My son, Zachary

Posted on April 1, 2010 · 13 Comments

IMG_0270

Last Saturday (27 March) was my scheduled check up with my obgyn; he did a 2nd internal examination to see how close I was to delivering my baby. To our disappointment, the doctor confirmed that my cervix was still closed, and has yet to even ripen. There was something else to worry about too; I lost 2kgs the week before and as a precaution I was sent to the labour ward to get a CTG scan–merely to check for baby’s heart rate activity. Everything turned out OK and the doctor sent me home with a 1 week MC so I could wait it out at home (I was really in lots of pain at the hip/thigh area and it was getting too uncomfortable to be at work).

We left the hospital to grab lunch at Pyramid, did some shopping and then headed home. David had a wedding dinner to attend that night, so before reaching home we detoured to a baking supply shop near our place to get some ingredients (I had wanted to bake that night, to kill time, you see). Picking out a packet of flour and some cream cheese and a can of peaches, as I was paying for the items at the cashier, I suddenly felt a “pop” around my vajayjay area and next thing I knew water was flowing down my thighs!

I thought I had accidentally pee-ed, but upon touching it, it felt slimey and I knew it wasn’t pee! I quickly scrambled out of the shop without waiting for my change, got into the car and said to David, “Honey, I think my water just broke”. It was 4.30pm.

The 2 minutes drive home was excrutiatingly long. The water kept trickling for a bit and then stopped. I got home, rang Grace (who had her water break before baby came) to confirm if it was really my water bag breaking. She suggested I wait for a while to see if more were to leak out. I was so anxious my mind was all over the place. I kept pacing in and out of the bedroom into the living room and into the bedroom again, hoping to confirm that it was indeed my water bag breaking. 30 mins later, and further experiencing 2 more trickles, I took a bath, got dressed, and we headed to SDMC (barely after 4 hours of leaving the hospital we were back there again!)

6pm – David and I got to the labour and delivery ward, I stepped in and casually told the midwife–”I think my water just broke”. We were brought into the labour suite, I changed into the hospital gown, and got an internal examination by the midwife. “1.5cm dilated“, she says. She hooked me up onto the CTG machine to monitor my contractions and also the fetal heartbeat. She also wanted to make sure that I was indeed leaking amniotic fluid, so I had a pad sandwiched down-there. It was only after confirming this that she would call my obgyn to examine me, and to confirm that indeed we’ll be having our baby, very soon.

7.30pm – I had another trickle of water, but still not sufficient enough for the midwife to judge if indeed I was in labour. She calls in my obgyn to perform an ultrasound, and check if the amniotic fluids were at a safe level. It could also mean I may be sent home to wait it out. The midwife had me walk around the room to see if more water would leak out. Nothing much really did. I was unconsciously telling my body to make more leak out so we can have our baby already!

8.30pm – My obgyn shows up, with a surprised look on his face. I joked and said “this little boy is playing a trick on us“. He agreed seeing that he only checked my cervix 8 hours earlier confirming that it’s still a waiting game. Ultrasound showed that the amniotic fluids were sufficient, but he did an internal exam to re-confirm the midwife’s dilation estimate. My oh my, it hurt like hell!! He stretched my cervix and estimated it to be approximately 3cm dilated. As soon as his hands came out, a HUGE gush of water followed. “OK, you can’t go home and you’ll have to stay the night. Baby will probably arrive late morning“, he said.

9pm – I’m officially in labour. David starts to set up camp in the labour suite (judging from all the Facebook and Twitter updates, you guys would know what I mean). I can’t believe the last meal I had was pizza at lunch. I am only allowed Milo and something light–2 slices of raisin bread to be precise. We called our parents to confirm that it’s finally happening, and that it was going to be a long night. We watched a bit of TV (I wasn’t really paying attention) and I was given an enema to clear my bowels. Nothing much happened from 9pm to 12 midnite (except for the continuous gush of amniotic fluids), so I was trying to make myself sleep since I wasn’t feeling any contraction pain yet.

Sunday (28 March) 12am to 2am – Contractions are spaced out every 10 minutes, lasting a good 10-15 seconds. The pain is bearable, really like mild period cramps. It was bothering me though, cos I couldn’t really sleep through them. I started to practice my breathing techniques to help numb the cramps.

2am – Contractions become stronger, although still spacing out every 10 minutes, but this time the pain stretches all the way to my lower back! The breathing and relaxation techniques weren’t helping me much and I tried to “tahan” as much as I could but by 2.30am I gave up and asked for my epidural. Yes, I’m weak like that. I have low pain tolerance ok!! Don’t judge me

3am – The doctor on call for anesthetics put me on an IV, and then administered the epidural. Although I couldn’t see the procedure, but it was a little traumatising. David told me later that he inserted a really big needle, almost 3 inch long into a gap between my spine. Thinking about it gives me the shivers now! All in all, the whole process took 30 minutes and by 4am, my contraction pain was gone and I’m officially confined to the bed until the baby is to be delivered. Having the epidural was a blessing–I could sleep through my contractions, and David could sleep in peace without feeling much guilt (being the coach he had to be by my side if I were to be groaning and complaining every 10 minutes or so right?) The downside of the epidural meant that my body was numb from chest down to my thighs, and my bladder had to be emptied by a nurse every hour. Not to forget the excessive shivering as one of its most common side effects.

5am - The nurse came in to administer Pitocin because the contractions weren’t strong enough. I continued to sleep through my contractions, updating Facebook and Twitter in between. Yea, we’re geeks like that.

8am – The nurse came to check on the CTG readings and the contractions are now fairly regular, at 2 minute intervals. Thanks to the epidural, I felt nothing. She continues to up the Pitocin dosage to make the contractions stronger.

8.30am – My obgyn shows up and performs another internal examination. His face suddenly had this surprised look, and he said “Wah, 9cm already!” He then orders the midwife and the nurses to prep for delivery. This is the part where they remove the bottom half of the bed, adjusts the leg rests and put the hand bars up for me to hold on to when I push. I was thinking to myself, “wow, this is it. I’m going to see my baby boy!“. The nurses also gathered all the surgical tools and laid them out on a steel trolley. We’re almost there!

9.25am – The midwife adjusts my epidural effectiveness to 80% so that I could feel the contractions and then start pushing. I try with some practice pushes, attempting to re-call what I learned at ante-natal class. There were 3 nurses and a midwife cheering me on, and of course my head cheerleader, David was by my side counting down as I hold my breath at every single push. After 30 minutes of active pushing, there was no progress. Baby’s head was descending and then yo-yo-ing back up the birth canal.

10am – My obgyn finally takes over and encourages me to keep pushing, hoping to use the vacuum extractor to help pull baby’s head down the birth canal. I was really exhausted, and close to giving up. He ordered the Pitocin dosage up, and got my epidural switched off completely! I looked at him in fear, and I remember saying something like “turn it off completely??!!” He assured me that I’ll still feel no pain at “down there” but the purpose is to help me feel stronger contractions and hopefully be able to also know when to push harder. He said one thing which made me so worried–he said that if I don’t push harder we’ll have to do a c-sect! Immediately I was determined to not let that happen to me!!

10.10am – I was pushing better, stronger, longer, harder! There my doctor was, covered in a big blue plastic apron, wearing Phua Chu Kang inspired yellow rubber boots, holding up a tube with a cup like mechanism at the end, and 3 nurses + 1 midwife + lead coach (aka David) yelling “push push push!“. This time I could not only feel the stronger contractions, but I could also feel myself pushing and bearing down, like trying to expel a really big piece of shit. Yes, it was really like poop-ing out a big piece of poop.

10.21am – After a few more pushes, I hear my obgyn say “oh, no wonder, his head was facing the wrong direction“. I thought I had to give another push but a second later, he plops this lil’ baby on my chest, all still bloody and gooey–and he had a suction cup mark on his head! Poor boy! My son, Zachary Wang is finally here! He’s immediately put under the heater to warm up, and cleaned up. I am relieved it’s over, and also the fact that I didn’t need a c-sect!

IMG_0266

Minutes after delivery

My obgyn delivered my placenta, and then stitched me up as I had a episiotomy. By 11 am I could breastfeed Zack for the 1st time. The skin-to-skin contact was so special, immediately I felt so much love and affection for this little child. He was then moved to the nursery to be checked by the paed, and I was monitored for another hour in the labour suite before being moved to the post-natal ward. I had to stay 1 night in the hospital for observation and we were discharged on Monday (29 March).

Now two becomes three, with Zachary in our family.

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Muffin Update #9

Posted on March 22, 2010 · 4 Comments

My hospital appointment card

*WAVES* I’m still here!! Muffin is still “baking” and too comfy inside my belly. After 9 visits to my OB-GYN, our baby is happy sticking around for a while more. Guess I’ll have to see my Doctor for our 10th appointment this Saturday the 27th. I’m really hoping that we’ll get some signs of me going into labour this week, as I’d really like to have baby arrive before March comes to an end. This is a very special month for us and with Zachary joining us it’ll be a double celebration, together with our wedding anniversary.

Let’s start with some stats from my check up last weekend:

  • EDD is 8 April 2010
  • 38 weeks to date
  • No updated weight stats, but he’s still heads-down and two-fifths engaged
  • Cervix is still snug and closed
  • 11 ultrasound scans to date (with 2 printouts + 1 DVD)
  • Urine and blood pressure tests & results are normal

So, last week was my 1st internal examination to check if my cervix has started to soften or even see if any dilation was in progress. And the result was – Zilch. Cervix was snug and closed up. We’re still playing the waiting game, I guess. I won’t go into the details of the internal … let’s just say there was a certain degree of pain and discomfort.

I’ve been having Braxton Hicks contractions on and off, which are practice contractions for the uterus to prepare for the real deal. The BH contractions don’t really hurt, parts of my belly just “balls” up and hardens for a good 10 – 15 seconds. Although, I’ve had some sharp shooting pain to my groin area since last Saturday –possibly due to the BH contractions pushing baby’s head into my pelvic area. The aching is horrible, whether it’s getting up from the seat to walking to switching lying positions in bed. I’ve asked my Doctor if there’s anything I can do about this aching problem. His answer was, “all this will go away after delivery”. Gee, thanks Doc.

When I thought pelvic area aches was the only thing I’ve to deal with, last night David and I had a scare. I was switching from lying on my left to lying on my right – when suddenly I had a bad stomach cramp attack. It was like a serious period pain, and I woke up groaning in pain. I was breathing heavily thinking it was probably an intense BH contraction. I felt my belly and it was kinda hard, and bunched up. David reminded me about the right breathing methods and I didn’t think it worked because I was just so focused on the pain! I then tried to get up into a sitting position and in an instant, the cramps went away! If that’s how a real labour contraction is going to feel like (multiplied by 100x), I don’t know how long I can go without any form of pain management.

It’s now a matter of waiting.

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Muffin Update #8

Posted on March 15, 2010 · 4 Comments

This *could* be the last update before Muffin’s out! Last Saturday was our scheduled check up with my Doc at SDMC.

Let’s start with some stats from my check up last weekend:

  • EDD is 8 April 2010
  • 37 weeks to date
  • Muffin’s estimated weight is 3.2kgs and is still currently head-down, but not engaged yet.
  • 10 ultrasound scans to date (with 2 printouts + 1 DVD)
  • Urine and blood pressure tests & results are normal

During scan, the Doc calculated the estimated size of the baby, and BOY, he’s BIG. Because he’s on the big side, my doctor has suggested that he attempt to “encourage” him out by Week 39. So the plan is, at my next visit this Saturday, he’ll perform an internal examination where he’ll check the cervix to see the “status” of where I am, in terms of how close labour could be. I’ve been doing some reading up on what happens during an internal examination. Let’s just say, I’m not looking forward to it, but, it has to happen somehow. After all, when labour begins, poking around down there would be as common as picking one’s nose.

To be honest, I’m quite nervous about this weekend’s appointment. Depending on the results of my internal examination, it may mean that I could be admitted on Saturday itself! We’ve done our paperwork for pre-admission, so that’ll be a breeze; I’ve packed my hospital bag; but mentally, I feel anxious and uncertain of what to expect. If you know me, I’m the type of person that needs to know what’s happening, what’s coming my way, and how to handle it. But giving birth to a baby? Nope, I’ve never done it before, I don’t know what’s to come, and frankly, it’s very scary.

Physically, I’m missing my undisturbed sleep. Not only the toilet trips are interrupting my slumber, but getting a good position to relax is a real challenge. My hips are aching and feeling very heavy (is this how “lightening” feels like?) and changing positions from lying on my left to lying on my right has been a real chore. Muffin’s movements sometimes wake me up and I find it hard to fall back asleep at times. Maybe this is in preparation for all the sleepless nights in the next couple of months? Climbing up the 2 flights of stairs to my office is like hiking up Broga hill. I’m also dealing with a swollen feet problem, and heat rash breakout around my inner thigh area. Not surprising with the heat I’m building up inside me, and with the heat around us! With all these discomfort, I do wish he’d decide to come now!

So if he does decide to come, I’m ready. I’ve also decided on my pain management option—I’m going for the epidural. I’ve also memorized the breathing techniques when it comes to pushing (or holding in the push). I’m ready for all the needles and tubes that need to be put into me. I’m ready for all the pain that’s to come after the anesthetic fades off. I’m ready for my 1 month confinement, and most importantly I’m prepared for this rollercoaster ride called parenthood. Bring it on!

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Muffin update #7

Posted on February 22, 2010 · 10 Comments

Last Saturday was our scheduled check up with my usual gynae at SDMC.

Let’s start with some stats from my check up last weekend:

  • EDD is 8 April 2010
  • 34 weeks to date
  • Muffin’s estimated weight is 2.2kgs and is still currently head-down
  • 9 ultrasound scans to date (with 2 printouts + 1 DVD)
  • Urine and blood pressure tests & results are normal

Two weeks ago I started charting Muffin’s kicks and boy, what a varied result I’ve been getting. I can count 10 kicks from as little as 3 hours or as long as 7 hours. I notice when I’m busy doing physical chores I’m not aware of the movements as much as if I were stationary. I keep a chart of his kicks and make sure that he’s achieved the 10 kicks within 12 hours rule advised by the midwife from our ante-natal class. Funny thing is, my doctor is like “no need to count lah!”. Bah, I’m counting anyway! I find him kinda selamba sometimes, but he’s very reassuring and I feel at ease everytime we see him. I really trust him with our Muffin. He also did mention that my pregnancy has been very stable throughout and that if *touch wood* Muffin decides to arrive from Week 34 onwards, he’ll be ok. Muffin, don’t come too early k? Mommy needs to wrap up work and then have you. Thanks.

Oh, btw, he “flashed” his kukubird at us during the scan. So definitely no surprises when he comes out cos Muffin’s for sure a boy.

Following up from my blog entry two weeks ago I mentioned that constipation has not been a problem … I was wrong. Coupled with dehydration from the cold I caught just before CNY + the extremely hot weather, I had a bad hemorrhoid problem last week. After 2 days of bed rest, the pain has come to a manageable level and hopefully I’ll be back to a 100% at the end of the week. Right now it’s just a high-fibre diet with lots of fluids (not forgetting prune juice) to help me reduce the possibility of the problem flaring up. My MIL was kind enough to pass me her inflatable donut-shaped pillow so I could be more comfortable at the office (having to sit 8 hours with soreness down there isn’t the best feeling in the world you know?)

We also attended part 2 of 4 of our ante-natal class after our checkup. Breastfeeding and signs of labour were the topics discussed. Quite intense session I must say! I’m determined to breastfeed a hundred percent and have decided not to even buy a can of milk powder to “standby”. Even my Doc was like “don’t buy any milk bottles, and don’t buy any milk powder!”. SDMC is really pro-breastfeeding, and after delivery, we have access to Lactation Specialists who can help us first time mommy’s with breastfeeding support and FAQs. Now, all the momma’s out there please cheer me on ‘cos I know the 1st week will be the toughest challenge!

In other news, the wish list on our baby registry has been fulfilled! We’re thankful to everyone who has blessed our lil’ Muffin with your thoughtful gifts. We love y’all!

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Unwell

Posted on February 19, 2010 · 4 Comments

I’m finally back to the daily grind after getting 3 extra days off (with sick leave mind you) for the Chinese New Year holidays. Pre-CNY I caught the cold bug from David and it was my first time feeling under the weather during the course of the pregnancy. So joyful joyful my CNY holidays started early on Thursday last week (I had also taken Friday off so it was like an added bonus).

Then CNY came and my most dreaded and common pregnancy problem that I have been reading about extensively in books hit me. I think it kinda snowballed from being dehydrated (with the cold bug, and the extremely hot weather), plus this last couple of weeks I had been rather constipated and the result was a very bad case of hemorrhoids. On Tuesday night it got so bad I could barely walk, stand or sit without feeling extreme pain down south.

Honestly, I thought I was heading straight to surgery! Wednesday morning I went to the doctor’s and got some cream, and medication to help with the pain and swelling. That’s how I got 2 extra days of sick leave so I could get some bed rest. Oh yeah, and doctor assured me I didn’t need surgery. Boy, yeah I got a pretty long break for CNY, but it wasn’t like fun or rewarding. Lying on my side, in bed…checking workmail? Not my kinda holiday if you ask me.

It’s been 3 days since I saw the doctor and the swelling has reduced, pain still there but I’ve been able to sleep more comfortably. I’m now dreading that this will happen again come delivery time. All the tips I’ve been getting is to prevent constipation in the first place—but hey, it has never been this bad…so how to prevent when it’s like the very first time I’m hit by it?

So I went on and read more about it and really…how could I have prevented it? It’s like Mother Nature intended for it to happen to 50% of all pregnant women! It’s like you have a 50-50 chance to kena ok!! 4D also you won’t be so lucky I tell you!!

Babycentre states:

“Hemorrhoids are relatively common during pregnancy. Some women get them for the first time while they’re pregnant — and if you’ve had them before pregnancy, you’re quite likely to have them again now. They may also develop during the second stage of labor, while you’re pushing. Either way, they often go away on their own — or with the help of some simple measures mentioned below — soon after you give birth.

Why are they more common during pregnancy?

Pregnancy makes you more prone to hemorrhoids, as well as to varicose veins in the legs and sometimes even in the vulva, for a variety of reasons. Your growing uterus puts pressure on the pelvic veins and the inferior vena cava, a large vein on the right side of the body that receives blood from the lower limbs. This can slow the return of blood from the lower half of your body, which increases the pressure on the veins below your uterus and causes them to become more dilated or swollen.

Constipation, another common problem during pregnancy, can also cause or aggravate hemorrhoids. That’s because straining leads to hemorrhoids, and you tend to strain when having a hard bowel movement.

In addition, an increase in the hormone progesterone during pregnancy causes the walls of your veins to relax, allowing them to swell more easily. Progesterone also contributes to constipation by slowing down your intestinal tract.”

So now I have to try my best to keep constipation at bay, and hopefully the hemorrhoids will go away and that I won’t get them again when it’s time to push baby out.

—

Photo courtesy of Hafiz @ WOWPhoto

On another note, we got this lovely photo taken by Hafiz of WOWPhoto. He was my classmate in school and he now runs a professional photography business. He was also a graduate of David’s inaugural Social Media Bootcamp. Big things he has done as he successfully achieved 3,000 fans on Facebook, just by utilizing the tips and tools that he picked up at the workshop! We were at his studio yesterday because David had a short interview with him to see how far they’ve come with their social media marketing efforts. Everything seems to be looking good for Hafiz and team! I wish him and his team a roaring Year of the Tiger with more big business coming their way! Find out more about Hafiz and his team on their Facebook page OR their website!

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Muffin Update #6

Posted on February 8, 2010 · 1 Comment

Last Saturday was my routine check up with my usual doctor at SDMC. As our appointment was at 10am, we figured the lakeside parking would be filled to the brim, so I suggested that we park at the shoplots opposite SDMC and walk across to the hospital. As we were crossing the busy street, David wasn’t too crazy about the idea of parking there again in the future, because crossing the road was actually quite dangerous and risky for me—being a little clumsy with the heavy load I have to carry. As we approached the hospital entrance, barely 1 minute from crossing the busy road, we both heard this loud screech and when we turned around and look, we saw a medium-sized box truck tilt over and falling on its side! Our jaws dropped and we were like a bit shaken up; imagine if we were crossing the street then!! Praise God for He had His angels watching over us. Never again are we parking there!

Photo taken by David after my check up. The cops showed up to control traffic flow.

Anyhoo, let’s start with some stats from my check up last weekend:

  • EDD is 8 April 2010
  • 32 weeks to date (baby will be ready to see the world in as early as week 37!)
  • Muffin’s estimated weight is 1.9kgs and is currently head-down (he still has space to move around so hopefully he will not decide to be cheeky and shift his position too much)
  • 8 ultrasound scans to date (with 2 printouts + 1 DVD)
  • Urine and blood pressure tests & results are normal (within satisfactory range)

As I enter the last trimester, the dreaded backaches have come to haunt me. I’ve been feeling extremely achey at the end of the day. We’re quite glad that all the shopping for baby has been done, so no more walking around malls and hunt for bargains. I’ve also been feeling tired easily, and getting into a comfortable sleeping position has been a real problem. I miss sleeping on my back (cos that’s like the awesomest sleeping position ever, hello!!) and loo visits have become so common, I sometimes can’t fall back asleep after taking a leak. It’s getting harder to get up from the couch and I need David to like help me up. Gosh, feels so heavy and big—dunno how those people on Biggest Loser actually live their lives wei!!

Food cravings aren’t so apparent anymore, and to come to think of it, I never had any particular food aversions during the course of the pregnancy. I do find the taste of coffee a bit peculiar, and perhaps its my body telling me I don’t need this for now. I’ve been eating a lot of high fibre foods to help with avoiding constipation, and thankfully it’s been rather smooth sailing, compared to the 2nd trimester.

We have also started attending ante-natal class and boy, as much as I thought I was prepared through reading books, I realized there’s so much that I don’t know! We discussed expectations of parenthood, and how to prepare ourselves mentally and physically as the final weeks before delivery is creeping up on us. Our first class also included exercises that will help us prepare for delivery and when caring for baby. We’ve also been taught to count baby kicks and keep track of them so that we can be prepared for any emergencies. I started charting it today, wheeee!

In other news, 2 weeks ago we set up our baby registry, which has been well received and well responded to! Of the 8 items we put up, 7 have been reserved to date! We’re so blessed and grateful to everyone who had picked up an item from the registry.

Now that we’re in the final stretch to Muffin’s arrival, the frequency of the check ups has been reduced to once every 2 weeks. So till my next update, I’d like to wish everyone a very Happy Chinese New Year, and may the year of the Tiger bring you joy and peace!

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Feeling the load

Posted on January 21, 2010 · 12 Comments

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-8

I’m now in my week 29 of the pregnancy (approx 7 months in) and I’m definitely feeling the load of carrying Muffin Zachary. The 2 flights of stairs to the office is like Mr Wolf huffin-a-puffin’, the 8 hours I sit at my desk at work is like resting on a sharp concrete slab, I wake up to pee in the middle of the night like as if my bladder has just reduced its size by 50% AND back aches are an everyday affair.

I have a pillow on my back to keep me on my side, one between my legs to reduce leg cramps (which btw isn’t 100% effective, had a cramp attack last nite!), one to hug and one for my head to rest on. I feel like I’ve built a bunker around me—poor David can’t even get close!

I have really fugly stretchmarks that I had tried to prevent with all these so called creams but failed miserably when they started appearing bit by bit by bit. My mom had them so I blame my mom it on genetics. And, my body temperature is probably up by 1°C cos I’m so warm all the time!

I can’t get close enough to the kitchen sink to do dishes without getting water everywhere (ok this one is like me making an excuse so David would do the dishes, even at my mom’s!) and I find it so hard to get up from the couch without him helping me up. I really do feel like a beached whale on shore! And I’ve stopped baking religiously cos I just can’t take the heat and the standing-up-for-long-periods-of-time. I really do miss baking and I’m pretty bummed that I won’t be baking any CNY goodies this time around.

But even with all the inconvenience and changes I have gone through (and more to come for sure), I am really anxious that baby will be arriving in less than 10 weeks! I can’t wait to see his face, hold his small fragile body, touch his wriggly fingers and tickle his little toes. That said, 10 weeks will zoom by before we know it and I still need to interview 2 babysitters, attend pre-natal classes, buy his cot and stock up on my TVB dramas to watch during my confinement period. So much to do so little time!

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And his name is

Posted on January 18, 2010 · 11 Comments

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-18

Yes, our soon to be born son will be named Zachary. The name is of Hebrew origin, and is a variant of Zechariah. His name means “Remembered by God”. We’re leaving his Chinese name to David’s parents cos we both don’t read and write Chinese. If it was in our hands we would have merely named him Ah Yat (number 1). That’s probably not the right thing to do.

We just got our maternity portraits back from our photog last nite, and I’ve just uploaded a selection of them on our Flickr album. The photos were taken on Boxing Day when I was almost 7 months into my pregnancy. Here are some of my favourites!

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-7

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-2

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-6

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-1

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-20

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-17

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-14

David, Pei Chyi & Zachary-22
I’m surprised I didn’t look like a bloated tangki minyak. Maybe this is what they call the pregnancy glow? Or perhaps it was the power of Photoshop? I hope it wasn’t the latter!

David and I would like extend our deepest gratitude and thanks to David Cheong of Raw Pixel Studios who sponsored the 2-hour photo session. We were totally relaxed being around you and we hope you had as much fun as we did! (Psst, follow him on Twitter— @royalshortness)

See the rest of our maternity portraits here.

Filed Under: Just Photos, Life Tagged With: , ,

Dizzy bee

Posted on January 7, 2010 · 1 Comment

The last 2 nights I woke up groaning in agony because of a serious dizzy spell attack and a feeling horribly nauseated. I thought of the worse. I thought my postural vertigo is back to haunt me from my 1st trimester days. Believe me, it is the worst feeling on earth. The room spins before you and you feel like vomiting everything you had consumed.

I knew that this could be another one of those common things that pregnant women have to go through. I looked it up on babycentre.com and sure enough, there’s an answer for every symptom, pain, ache and condition that I’ve experienced  in the last 6 months of carrying Muffin. Apparently, what I have is called supine hypotensive syndrome: When we lie on our back, our heart rate increases, our blood pressure drops, and we feel anxious, lightheaded, and nauseated until we shift our position.

In fact, about 8 percent of pregnant women in their second and third trimesters develop such a condition. Gawd, I’m in the 8%!!!

So what’s happening is that when lying on my back, my growing uterus can slow the circulation in my legs by compressing the inferior vena cava (the large vein that returns blood from the lower half of the body to the heart) and the pelvic veins.

Lying flat on my back can make this problem worse!!! GAH!

So tonight, and for the nights to come until Muffin joins us on Earth I have to lie on my side instead of flat on my back. Apparently either side is better than my back, although the left side is best. And that I should place a pillow behind me or under my hip to help me stay on my side — or at least tilted enough to keep my uterus from compressing the vena cava. Sigh, I’m just hoping it won’t happen again!

Filed Under: The in-betweens Tagged With: ,
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