Childbirth Classes

Jimmy and I have a very unpredictable work schedule. Because we never know Jimmy's filming schedule or if I will have to cover an evening event, we opted to take all of our childbirth classes in one weekend; as in, we opted to sit in a room from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. on a Saturday and from noon until 5 p.m. on Sunday. I get tired all over again just thinking about it.

I must admit, I was pretty excited about the classes. Seeing as this is my first time to have a baby, I'm going in with the mindset that the more knowledge I have on labor and delivery, the easier it will all be. Granted, this is coming from the same girl who had actually never seen the delivery of a baby until I was home alone one night. I decided to watch a few informational videos on different delivery options: C-sections, natural with no medications, and epidurals. The videos freaked me out and I was in a fit of tears watching them, gasping desperately for air and some sort of reassurance that my 5'1" frame would even be capable of pushing a baby out. After that night, I knew I needed to take a class with Jimmy to learn a little more about what labor and delivery are like, as well as learn some useful tips to help with the process.

Jimmy, on the other hand, was not as excited. If I'm being serious, I really can't blame him for not jumping with joy at the idea of sitting in a room with other couples and learning about things like mucus plugs and contractions. The poor guy sat there through the entire thing though and even asked questions. Seriously, where did I find such an amazing guy?

Now, for a brief overview of the class:

The chairs were terrible. I have never been so uncomfortable sitting for long periods of time as I was this weekend. You would really think the hospital would get smart and get some comfy chairs for majorly pregnant, totally hormonal women to sit in while they are being briefed about how painful the entire process of delivering a child is.

I kept thinking there would be some light at the end of the tunnel and the incredibly kind nurse teaching our class would interject in with, "but it's really not that bad" or "it doesn't hurt as much as it looks." But no. For every painful part of the process she explained, it was followed by another painful process. For instance, if you think contractions are bad, there's a good chance you'll have some pretty significant pain in the weeks following as your uterus contracts back into its normal size. And although you may have an epidural to take away the pain, you have to endure a foley catheter, which if you have never had one, is a terrible experience. There's really no part of this process that makes a mom squeal with excitement, besides the fact that all this pain, emotional stress and physical labor ends with the arrival of God's greatest gift. So, I guess it's worth it. :)

I wish I could tell you Jimmy and I were mature enough to sit through all 13 hours without laughing. Nope. If you know us, you know we did. But in our defense, we laughed way less than some couples and even held it together much better during the really gross stuff. But through all the videos, diagrams, demonstrations and lecturing, we survived. And, in addition to our beautiful diploma we have to someday show our son when he's doubting our parenting abilities, we even got free snacks and drinks. Success.