Yummy Boobies

I went to a breastfeeding class last night. I almost made Jake go with me, but he had a long day at work, so I was merciful.

I also set the oven on fire, so I wasn't able to make him the enchiladas I had promised him.

For the record, one should always put a pan filled with banana nut bread batter on top of a cookie sheet before placing it into the oven. If one does not do this, the banana bread might overflow out of its pan, fall on the heating coil at the bottom of the oven, and ignite while one is in the living room watching House and writing thank you notes.

So, anyway... breastfeeding class!

I already knew most of the information that was presented, but I'm still glad I went. The instructor was fun and a little crazy, but in a good way. She's VERY pro-breastfeeding (borderline Boob Nazi) but not militant about it. I think everyone should at least try to breastfeed, but if it's not what some mothers want to do, then whatever. That's their choice. Formula isn't the best, but it's kept plenty of babies alive, so it can't be that bad.

A few weeks ago, I posted about the doctor's appointment I went to where I talked to my doc about my birth plan. He was on board with mostly everything, but he did talk me into a saline lock (hospital policy in case of emergencies), and to get Pitocin after the birth in order to get the placenta out faster and stop severe bleeding.

The class last night convinced me that I don't need the Pitocin. The act of breastfeeding causes your brain to release oxytocin, which then causes your uterus to contract (among other things). The contracting uterus encourages the placenta to detach and make its exit, and then it continues to contract, which stops postpartum bleeding so you don't hemorrhage and die.

And not dying is a good thing, in my opinion.

I guess doctors like to give Pitocin after birth because it lowers their liability by basically making it even less likely that you'll hemorrhage. However, I've never had bleeding problems, so the odds of me bleeding out are low to begin with. If I am bleeding out, it's probably because of something that oxytocin (or Pitocin) can't fix. Plus, a pregnant lady has 25-40% more blood in her body than a non-pregnant lady, so I figure I have 25-40% more blood to lose.

So yeah, my next doctor's appointment is going to involve a Group B Strep nethers-swab, checking the Beast's position, probably a peek to see if I'm dilated or anything, and also me informing the doc that I've changed my mind about the Pitocin.