About Pregnancy & Childbirth: A Twin Birth Story at 40+ Weeks

About Pregnancy & Childbirth Pregnancy & Childbirth

A Twin Birth Story at 40+ Weeks Dec 21st 2012, 10:10 Almost eleven years ago I got the news - we were expecting twins. When I was pregnant with my twins, I thought for sure there ought to be some way to tell I was pregnant with two rather than one - without the use of medical technology. With multiple birth rates on the rise, you may wonder if maybe your bundle of joy isn't really bundles (plural). This quick and easy quiz can help you sort out fact from fiction in the great scheme of things and help you determine if you're possibly having twins! Our identical twin girls turned ten today! Take a trip down memory lane with me and read about their birth, it was a wild ride! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Join the conversation! NEWSLETTER | PINTEREST | TWITTER FACEBOOK | GOOGLE+ | CONNECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Related: Owen & Clara's Birth Story How Twins are Made Twins and Triplets Ultrasound Photos Share Your Birth Story Interested in having twins? Twin Belly Gallery Twin Birth Photo © Robin Elise Weiss A Twin Birth Story at 40+ Weeks originally appeared on About.com Pregnancy & Childbirth on Friday, December 21st, 2012 at 10:10:33. Permalink | Comment | Email this

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About Pregnancy & Childbirth: What's up with celebrities not naming their babies?

About Pregnancy & Childbirth Pregnancy & Childbirth

What's up with celebrities not naming their babies? Dec 19th 2012, 10:16 Fred Savage and his wife, Jennifer, welcomed a son on November 26th - and didn't name him right away. The same week, Guy Ritchie and girlfriend, Jacqui Ainsley, welcomed a daughter and also didn't name her at birth. And singer Adele has yet to file for a name for her baby boy born in October with boyfriend, Simon Konecki. While this may all seem unusual, it's not. In fact, in some traditions, babies aren't named until after birth, sometimes weeks later. For example, babies born into Jewish families traditionally aren't named until the 8th day for boys or about two weeks for girls. There are other traditions that have families waiting to get to know the baby before choosing a name. We actually waited to name our children until after birth. Technically it was because my husband and I were having trouble agreeing on names, but we also wanted to get to know the baby a bit.  The longest we went was about four weeks with our seventh baby, fifth daughter.  She just went by Lucky Seven until we named her. Now her name is Ada.  Though she is certainly not the Norah we had considered. And I can't count the number of people who still causally refer to my four year old as Ocho, and not her name, Noa. The truth is we didn't have names, sometimes up until moments before the naming ceremonies began. So it doesn't surprise me to hear that others have similar issues, even if I don't know the details.  I'll also say that I'm sure some people who don't announce baby names, do know the name and the simply aren't sharing. What are you doing? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Join the conversation! NEWSLETTER | PINTEREST | TWITTER FACEBOOK | GOOGLE+ | CONNECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Photo © Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images What's up with celebrities not naming their babies? originally appeared on About.com Pregnancy & Childbirth on Wednesday, December 19th, 2012 at 10:16:37. Permalink | Comment | Email this

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About Pregnancy & Childbirth: Traumatic Birth

About Pregnancy & Childbirth Pregnancy & Childbirth

Traumatic Birth Dec 18th 2012, 11:15 Something very few people talk about or acknowledge is traumatic birth.  "A birth is defined as traumatic if the woman was or believed she or her baby was in danger of injury or death, and she felt helpless, out of control, or alone, and can occur at any point in labor and birth," says Cheryl Beck, researcher.   According to a variety of studies, the rate of women experiencing a traumatic birth is between 25-34%. When someone experiences a traumatic birth, the negative experience can lead to further complications, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other unwanted symptoms. Treatment can help. This treatment may include therapy, medications or a combination. In some cases, hospitalization may be needed. What causes a traumatic birth?  Beck cites the following as potential reasons a person may experience a traumatic birth: Perceived lack of communication from the medical staff Fear of unsafe care Lack of choice regarding routine medical procedures Lack of continuity of people caring for the mother/baby Care being based solely on the delivery outcome When I was talking about this in my childbirth class, so may of the moms and their partners were shocked to hear some of these reasons, particularly the lack of continuity of care and lack of choice. Many of the practices in my area have obstetricians that are on call only certain hours, and then you're handed off to the next person, no matter where you are in labor. So they have little control, other than to change doctors. Though one mom said that her birth plan became even more important to her as she learned this information and had decided to share it with her practitioner. Other than awareness and education, what are you doing to try to avoid falling into this category? Resources: Prevention and Treatment of Traumatic Childbirth (PATTCh) PATTCh on Facebook   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Join the conversation! NEWSLETTER | PINTEREST | TWITTER FACEBOOK | GOOGLE+ | CONNECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Photo © Dreamstime Traumatic Birth originally appeared on About.com Pregnancy & Childbirth on Tuesday, December 18th, 2012 at 11:15:57. Permalink | Comment | Email this

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About Pregnancy & Childbirth: Miscarriage: It Just Sucks

About Pregnancy & Childbirth Pregnancy & Childbirth

Miscarriage: It Just Sucks Dec 17th 2012, 14:52 Having a miscarriage or other pregnancy loss is hard on anyone.  I know that when we had our pregnancy losses, my husband was just as devastated as I was, only he lacked the support that I had. Ryan tells of his experience as a father after a miscarriage: "My wife and I had two miscarriages.  I don't deal with the hormonal and physical issues, but the baby was real in my heart and dreams.  My wife heard all of the terrible things that people say.  The most helpful comment came from my friend who had also dealt with a miscarriage.  I told him about it, and he said , 'There's nothing to say except it sucks.'  My wife and I have used the 'it sucks' comment a lot since then.  There's really no explanation--it just sucks." What was your experience as a father after miscarriage?  Or how did your partner respond after you had a miscarriage? Related: One Man, One Miscarriage: A Man's Story of Miscarriage Gifts for Pregnancy Loss, Miscarriage and Stillbirth Remembering Baby Pregnancy Loss "We're Pregnant!": Can we share the title? Follow me on: Facebook, Twitter, Google+ & Pinterest! Photo © Barbara Penoyar/Getty Images Miscarriage: It Just Sucks originally appeared on About.com Pregnancy & Childbirth on Monday, December 17th, 2012 at 14:52:55. Permalink | Comment | Email this

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About Pregnancy & Childbirth: One Mom Shares How Her Ultrasound Was Wrong

About Pregnancy & Childbirth Pregnancy & Childbirth

One Mom Shares How Her Ultrasound Was Wrong Dec 14th 2012, 08:47 The ultrasound is considered fool proof when it comes to the answer of girl or boy?  The fact is, it's not.  Here's Mary Beth's story: "We had a 16 week 'gender' reveal ultrasound and followed with a 'gender' reveal party with friends and family... at that time we were having a girl (Ellie). At my 20 week ultrasound we discovered that she was a 'he'.... I'm certainly not 'disappointed' - I want a happy healthy baby regardless. But, I'm struggling b/c I feel like I've lost my baby girl. It's especially hard when friends and family say things like 'aww so sad I really wanted you to have a girl.' I'm thinking therapy is in my future." This is a different take on gender disappointment. Have you had something like this happen to you? Photo © Fotolia One Mom Shares How Her Ultrasound Was Wrong originally appeared on About.com Pregnancy & Childbirth on Friday, December 14th, 2012 at 08:47:26. Permalink | Comment | Email this

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About Pregnancy & Childbirth: Special Pregnancy Stocking Stuffer: It's a...

About Pregnancy & Childbirth Pregnancy & Childbirth

Special Pregnancy Stocking Stuffer: It's a... Dec 13th 2012, 09:05 My friend is finding out today if her new baby is going to be a girl or a boy.  She's very excited about it.  Talking to her this weekend about finding out made me think about the story of a friend of mine who found if her baby was a boy or a girl during the Christmas Season. She wanted to share the news in a special way, which is something I think is very important.  So she started talking to other people and the vast majority just blurted the results of the ultrasound out to everyone.  She wanted to do something different.  In searching she found a couple of ideas related to Christmas, this excited her.  So she decided that she would write a letter from Santa to her son, he was about 5.  In the letter, Santa revealed that the son would be getting a little brother around Easter.  The little boy was so excited and surprised, and of course, after pulling the letter out of his Christmas stocking, read it to the whole room. Anyone planning anything fun for when they find out? Related: Finding Out the Sex in a Special Way Readers Share: Stories of Finding Out Girl or Boy How to Find Out if Baby is a Boy or Girl How soon can you find out the sex of baby? Could the ultrasound be wrong? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Join the conversation! NEWSLETTER | PINTEREST | TWITTER FACEBOOK | GOOGLE+ | CONNECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Photo © iStockPhoto Special Pregnancy Stocking Stuffer: It's a... originally appeared on About.com Pregnancy & Childbirth on Thursday, December 13th, 2012 at 09:05:35. Permalink | Comment | Email this

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About Pregnancy & Childbirth: How to Make Your Boss Laugh While Announcing a Pregnancy

About Pregnancy & Childbirth Pregnancy & Childbirth

How to Make Your Boss Laugh While Announcing a Pregnancy Dec 12th 2012, 17:05 I am luck enough to hear a lot of stories about pregnancy announcements. There is not a harder person to tell than your boss. I spend a lot of time trying to help people break the news gently and professionally.  So I had to laugh when Theresa shared this story of telling her boss about her good news: "To make my boss laugh I yelled 'Hey! I've got a baby in my uterus!' loud enough for everyone in the office to hear. The roar of laughter was priceless." Do you think you could get away with that, or are you going for something more low key and traditional?  What's your story? Photo © iStockPhoto How to Make Your Boss Laugh While Announcing a Pregnancy originally appeared on About.com Pregnancy & Childbirth on Wednesday, December 12th, 2012 at 17:05:06. Permalink | Comment | Email this

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