18 Weeks Pregnant - plan for your birth!
Weekly pregnancy updates from a childbirth educator, doula and mum to 2 little girls. Come and join me on my journey as I share how I’m feeling, how baby is developing, what I’m doing to prepare, and some favourite resources!
I’m planning my third birth after two uncomplicated, and frankly, fantastic birth experiences. But let me tell you, you never get to the point where you don’t need to plan for birth! And you can’t just “copy and paste” your birth plan either, since no two pregnancies and births are the same. Not to mention the fact that we never finish learning. You may have made an informed decision on something for your first birth that you now have more information on or think differently about, and so you make a different decision for a subsequent birth or postpartum. I know I certainly have! And this doesn't mean either you or I made a bad decision the first time. We have to do our best with the information, experience and wisdom available to us, and it’s perfectly normal that this can change with time. Not only are all births different, but there can be changes that come up for mum between one pregnancy and another, or different pregnancy complications.
A diagnosis of genital herpes
A case in point for me is that I developed symptoms of the herpes HSV-1 virus since my last pregnancy. There are two types of the herpes virus, HSV-1 and HSV-2. They are very common, and many people will carry them without having symptoms. HSV-1 is typically associated with cold sores, and HSV-2 with genital herpes, but they can both present in either area. My husband gets cold sores from time to time, and I have no idea whether I picked up the virus from him or if I had already been carrying it, but earlier this year I ended up at the doctor with really itchy lesions in the genital area and...lo and behold I tested positive for HSV-1. The virus that typically presents as cold sores, but for me for some unknown reason has presented down there...! Once you have it, it stays in your body. It’s really not a big deal: you can get outbreaks now and then but mostly you forget about it. However, it can have an impact on pregnancy and birth.
Neonatal herpes - the risks of genital herpes at birth
While herpes isn’t a big issue for adults, however annoying it might be, herpes in a newborn baby is a very serious condition, and can be lethal. The risk of transmission is highest if the mother has her first outbreak of genital herpes in the third trimester of pregnancy. In that case, the risk of passing it onto the baby is around 30-60%, and a Caesarean birth is advised for the safety of the baby. On the other hand, if the mother acquires the virus before pregnancy or in early pregnancy, she has time to build antibodies against the virus which protect her and baby. This lowers the risk of transmission to 1-3%, and in this case the general advice is that the mother takes antiviral medication for the last few weeks of pregnancy to suppress the virus, and can then proceed with a vaginal birth. (Provided there are no other complications requiring a surgical birth.) Thankfully I fall into this latter category. With my first outbreak before pregnancy, statistically the risk of transmission is quite low. While I tend to avoid medication as much as possible, especially during pregnancy, this is a situation where my husband and I have decided that I will take the antivirals in late pregnancy to lower the risk for our baby even further.
What symptoms am I feeling?
I’m feeling good actually! My back is starting to notice the changes in weight and weight distribution, and I can’t wait to get back into regular exercise in the next couple of weeks when our crazy schedule settles back to something more like normal! I used the Spinning Babies daily activities regularly in my previous two pregnancies — especially in the second half of pregnancy — and found that those movements and stretches really helped me keep on top of the pregnancy aches and pains.
How has baby been developing this week?
Definitely growing bigger and stronger! Around 22 cm and 220g now. Mostly the movements are still quite light, but I had one day in the past week where baby gave me a really good dig in my belly, and my husband was with me and was able to put his hand on my belly and feel it too! I love being able to “share” the baby movements with him! It was so special to hear baby’s heartbeat when the midwife came too!
What am I doing to prepare?
I’ve been having lots of conversations with my husband and midwife comparing my previous birth experiences. Despite the fact that they were both positive experiences, it’s worth comparing, analysing and figuring out what I prefer for next time. They were both homebirths, but some of the biggest differences included the number of people present; the approach to the third stage of labour (birth of the placenta); and also how much time I had or hadn’t spent preparing and relaxing mentally in the lead-up to birth. There were also other differences out of my control, such as the time of day I went into labour, but where there are things we CAN control, we want to set ourselves up for success in the best way possible! This is where it’s really useful having given birth twice now, since there are things that different people respond to differently, and sometimes you don’t know how you’ll respond until you try them!
And that’s it for this week! 🌿💛
[Image credit: photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash]