i need a babysitter!

i have definitely used up all my favours with family and friends now, while i attend births. the last 3 have all been 24 hour plus births which means that my husband or mother or sister has to take time off to watch the kids.

clearly this is not an ideal situation.

but i'm SO paranoid and i simply can't imagine leaving my kids with a stranger. and to complicate matters, i need to leave the kids somewhere close by. i can't be driving in one direction to leave the kids and then drive downtown to the hospital.

so i've posted an ad in our laundry room bulletin board and i hopefully will find someone that i will feel comfortable with.

wish me luck!

abandoning a birth

well it happened.

i had to literally RUN out of a birth. in retrospect my mother had been sick two days earlier with a stomach bug but on the day i was called to meet my client at the hospital that was the furthest thing from my mind.

my client had PROM (premature rupture of membranes) which means that her water broke before contractions started. she was admitted to hospital for a cold induction, meaning that her cervix was not showing any signs of being ready. After nearly 24 hours on pitocin, my client was still laughing through her contractions. the pit was as high as it could go for more than a few hours and she was still at barely 2 cm.

going backwards a little, i arrived at 6:30am. at around lunch i went to get some food and i didnt feel entirely right. for comfort food i sought out the dreaded mcdonalds (my comfort food even though i know its going to kill me).

back to 24 hours on pitocin....

the OB tells my client that its looking like caesarean. i had given my client a heads up about this prospect so she wouldnt be shocked but still it was upsetting to her. my client started to mention that i should leave because she didnt want me hanging around just for a c-section. i had every intention of staying to see the baby born (thats the best part dammit!) shortly after this discussion however, i started to feel unwell.

at first i didnt even understand what i was feeling. i thought maybe i needed to eat more or drink more and i called my husband to cry into the phone because i just felt so sick. i didnt know what to do. then i realized that i needed to throw up and thankfully ive spent enough hours in this particular hospital to know where all the nice, private bathrooms are.

i threw up my life and went back to my clients and let them know that i was under the weather. i thought i was fine and while they insisted that i go home, i really thought that i could stay with them. and then i realized that i was going to be sick again and i also realized that something was wrong with me.

i apologized profusely, wished them luck (i think) and RAN out the door.

again, i was violently ill. i ran to the subway, caught the train and made it home just in time to throw up again. and then again and again and again.

seriously, every hour. i have never in my life been that sick.

the good news is that my clients baby was delivered via c-section a few hours after i left and both mom and baby are doing well. the bad news is that while i have recovered, my son has now caught the bug. :(

what's in a diaper wipe anyways?

i used diaper wipes with india. then when kalden came along my awareness about chemicals and toxins was heightened and i took a look at what i was using to clean my kids butt. needless to say, after reading this i switched to a plain old cloth with warm water. kalden's bum has never looked better. :)

from http://www.answers.com/topic/baby-wipes

Cleansing ingredients

Water is the main ingredient and serves as a carrier and diluent for the other ingredients. Baby wipes also contain mild detergents mixed with moisturizing agents, fragrance, and preservatives. The detergents most commonly used are known as amphoteric surfactants, similar to those found in baby shampoos. Sodium diamphoacetate and coco phosphatidyl PG-dimonium chloride are primary
surfactants used in wipes. These chemicals don't strip the skin of natural oils and also decrease skin irritation potential. Mildness is a prime consideration given that the wipe solution may be in contact with delicate skin around the anus and genitals.
Humectants such as propylene glycol and glycerine are added to prevent premature drying of the solution and contribute to skin moisturization. In addition, some formulas incorporate oils such as mineral oil, lanolin, or silicones that help to soften skin. Thickeners, such as cellulose derivatives like hydroxymethyl cellulose, control the viscosity of the finished product and keep it the right consistency.
Other ingredients include preservatives, such as methyl and propyl paraben, to ensure the solution does not support microbial growth. Fragrance is usually added to increase consumer appeal and to help over-come body odors, but fragrance-free products are also offered. Featured ingredients may also be added to increase consumer appeal. These include natural ingredients that are known to be kind to the skin such as aloe vera or oatmeal extract.

do anti-depressants work as well as we think?

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/health/article3466137.ece

this article touches on something that i feel pretty strongly about. researchers found that most people do as well on sugar pills as they do on actual depression med's. therefore the placebo effect is largely responsible for mood improvement among anti-depressant users.

it is downright frightening how many people have taken, or currently take mood altering medications (myself included!). are we, as a society, not concerned about this? do we really think the "happy pills" are the answer?

on a discussion board that i'm part of, this topic became quite heated as people became defensive and somewhat aggressive. scientists (and eastern philosophers) know that the mind/body connection is much more powerful than we give it credit. we CAN control our moods without drugs, we just don't know how.

of course, it also has to be pointed out that there is little money to be made is just living healthier, doing yoga and eating your veggies. but there is a hell of a lot of money to be made selling little pink pills to everyone who feels down.

and why do we all feel so down anyways? is it because we're all self absorbed, caught up in our consumer culture, sitting in our SUV's going to the drive thru window at mcdonald's and then home to watch american idol and big brother 79? we are isolated in our society. we don't support one another. hell we don't even give up our seat on the bus for a pregnant lady. we don't talk. we IM, PM, text, email and maybe call. but do we take the time to sit with our friends and talk? more importantly do we take the time to listen?