Nausea insights

I have pretty much accepted, the less I eat, the better I feel. I need to trust nature, trust my body. I can't let fears creep into my mind about forcing food down. I have been munching on fruits throughout the day, and after several hours I find the nausea is gone, and my body indicates that now is the time to eat. Then I can have a big meal and feel super the rest of the day. I also discovered that physical activity will help to bring this on quicker, and helps to balance me, and regulate hormones. I am reading Hygeia Halfmoon's "Primal Mothering," which is awesome by the way, and she inspired me to dance more. So I am collecting great 90's dance tunes, and last night I put some on and just had my own little dance party upstairs. It felt so great! I had so much energy and didn't feel sick at all. I am going to get a good collection of hip-swinging latin dance music to help my contractions in labor! Then for active labor I think I will put on my harp CD and begin my meditation and get into my primal state.

 

It seems during the first trimester, our bodies are detoxing, with or without us. We might as well jump on the boat, and stop intoxicating ourselves. Simplify your diet to fruits and juices, take hot baths, get rest, dance and take walks, and read uplifting, encouraging materials that help you to trust nature.

 

My theory is that is I embrace this detox and adopt these guidelines, it will be very short and I will feel as though I've entered my second trimester before I actually do. If my body has a certain amount of detoxing to do, I might as well encourage it along and let it be done with quicker instead of dragging it out!

Readiness & Change

A friend from Corvallis e-mailed me out of the blue wanting to know about raw foods. It is so wonderful to witness people have a change of heart and get ready to change their life around! I have had this privilege a few times so far and I love being able to share the wonderful things I know with others. She said, "Why didn't I ever think to ask you about how you eat when you lived here? Oh I wasn't ready for it before."  How true! We cannot impose this on anybody, just live it publicly and when they are ready, they will ask. This goes for sharing any light or knowledge you have. People are sick of preaching, just live it, so they know what you do, and when they are ready they will ask for details.

 

Even with birthing, we can say "I homebirth," and "I had such a great experience!" and in other ways demonstrate that we do not fear birth, that we trust it as something normal and natural. Then moms will be curious about our confidence and what we know, and then we can share it with them. Even putting information on websites is a great tool, for when curious minds begin to search the web, they will find our testimonies and experiences, and be touched by them. They might not be ready to change, but when they are, they will know where the information is.

 

Remember that when you raise your consciousness, everyone around you gets a lift. Be happy, let your light shine, and always pray for others! They will come around.

Car sickness - Bleeh!!

Yesterday we drove out to the coast (an hour drive) for a night at my husband's family's beach house. I was 100% raw yesterday and felt generally pretty well, although I keep getting an uneasy feeling before bed. The same feeling I've had when I didn't eat enough that day, and then they next morning I wake up in detox. So I hate going to bed with this uneasy feeling, but I couldn't eat more at that point, I would just be sick anyway.

 

The drive out there was mostly fine, I just kept my eyes on my book. That was in the afternoon though. Well this morning, (after staying up late also! Which always means more nausea the next morning) I felt somewhat sick but just drank a lot of water and did some light stretching. Then I felt awesome! But once we got in the car, the nausea rolled back in. I was probably playing mind tricks with myself - because I hated the thought of another hour feeling sick - but I just felt so miserable. (I had not eaten any breakfast, and I think I drank TOO much water) And at that point, I almost felt like I had diarrhea but there would be no bathroom to stop at for a long way!! So...........I figured, why fight it for an hour? I just pulled out my bag of dates, poured the dates out, and barfed straight into the bag! We pulled over, I cleaned myself up, and was so humbled that I started crying!! Ohh pregnancy just brings you so low!

 

 

Nausea & What to eat?

Seriously, let's not pretend we are perfect. We are improving our health and have better health than we did before, but still. So let's talk about NAUSEA.

 

So with my last pregnancy I was 100% SICK. I lost 10 lbs. I stayed home from work for 2 months, I just laid on the couch watching TV and feeling sorry for myself!! So so far (I'm 6 weeks) I feel WAY WAY WAY better than that. I have lots of energy, I'm totallly functioning, and I don't really feel like throwing up, I just have this funny feeling in my stomach ALL THE TIME, especially AFTER eating. It's only been a few days, so I am working with it, trying to figure out what I need.

 

If I eat fruit, it tastes too sweet and like I need some protein or something more stable. So nuts and dates have been wonderful. The best thing is avocado, I don't feel any reaction at all. But I can't sit around eating avocados all day, can I........ I experimented with cooked food, but anything heavy just makes me feel SICK. Although baked potato can calm my stomach.

 

So, question. Is it better to eat  high-fat raw (avocados) - or - low-fat, mostly raw? I believe in the 80-10-10 diet, and of course I know I need some good fats for pregnancy. But I don't think I need an avocado for every meal.

 

Another thought: in Baby Greens, the author says some greens make you nausea in pregnancy, and that a fruit diet is ideal for first trimester. I wonder how much evidence there is to support this? It would be so good to hear some experiences from other raw mamas, but it is just so rare to read about a raw pregnancy. (I wish Jinjee were more vocal or involved in this particular sphere!)

 

I was thinking, let's treat the nausea like any other time. Basically I feel nausea when I am detoxing (either when I ate something toxic or when I have undereaten and am cleaning out). In either case, it's a good idea to drink lots of water, do an enema, take a bath, get lots of rest, etc. and NOT to eat very much food, mainly just juices and fruit. (and I DO feel much better when I am drinking lots of water.)

 

Then there is the camp where nausea means you are detoxing TOO FAST, and you need to slow it down. So in that case, it would be appropriate to eat more fat, some salt (which halts colon cleansing) or a baked potato.

 

But I don't want to take the latter approach and stave off the detoxing, if all I needed is say 2 days to get it all completely out, and then enjoy a wonderful raw fruitarian pregnancy afterward.

 

So what do I do?

Re-inspired!

Re-inspired today after listening to the raw/homebirth teleconference again.  One of the stories really fascinates me. Gina, a woman whose first birth was longer than a day, painful, hospital with epidural, and very low recovery time (3-4 weeks!) went raw with her second pregnancy and had a spectacular, dramatically different birth. To use another word, it was uneventful. Gina didn't even know she was in labor until she was dilated to 9.5 cms! And then a few quick pushes and the baby slid out effortlessly. She had tons of energy and was ready to get back to her life immediately, NO recovery time! This is a storybook birth but it actually happened. And nobody can say "Well, she must have good genes," or "Some women are just built to have babies." Because compare it to her first labor!! The fact of the matter is, All women are built to have babies! How silly we are to think otherwise. Any gene contrary to effective vaginal birthing simply would not exist after thousands of years of successful unassisted births.

 

Uneventful is exactly how I want this birth described! Nothing to dramatisize, nothing to call experts on, just a special, sacred, even secret experience between my husband and myself. So what am I doing to get it?  Gotta simplify my life, simplify my subconscious, and eat as much raw as possible!!

 

So today I am starting again at 100% raw. I will only eat cooked if I feel nauseas and just can't stomach raw at that particular meal. So today I started with a huge green smoothie: 1/2 lb. organic spinach, 3 kiwis, several mandarin oranges, and 2 bananas. That took a few  hours to get down, so it was a good thing to sip throughout the morning. For lunch I had 1/2 avocado with another banana, and afternoon snack was a banana dipped in ground flax. I think for dinner I will have dates and pecans.

 

This afternoon I took a long walk through the hills in my neighborhood. The cold didn't bother me, and I had plenty of energy! The only complaint is my right hip (not really hip, more the groin area, on the right side) which is bothering me when I go on long walks.

 

By the way, I wanted to mention that I bite my nails, and I believe this has roots in buried emotions, so I hope I can work through that with the therapies I am using. I have chewed at my nails my whole life and have never succeeded at quitting, although twice I have stopped for 2 weeks only to forget again... I do it when I am under pressure, usually while playing a computer game or reading a suspenseful book, or just feeling generally stressed or insecure. So I am grateful that it's a reminder to me to calm myself, take some deep breaths, and eliminate the source of tension.

Weaned?

Don't ask me if my son is weaned. Honestly, I don't know. He went for almost 2 weeks, I think, then he had a nightmare of something, wanting to nurse in the middle of night so we did. Then yesterday he kept asking, I kept distracting, but he must have needed it because he didn't forget (after forgetting for more than a week). Actually, we were even at somebody's house when he suddenly leaned against my chest and announced, "I love my boobies!"

 

So it is just very erratic. Generally he doesn't nurse. There certainly isn't a habit for it, or a regular situation or time we do it. But every now and then, usually less frequently than weekly, he asks and has a valid reason, so we do it. (I never intended to withhold it from him against his wishes, anyway.) But at this point, he is sucking dry bones and honestly it isn't very comfortable for me!! So let's keep it minimally, yes.

 

I just hope he is weaned before my milk comes in, so he doesn't have a renewed desire to nurse constantly! And when it comes up, he still says "New baby have this one, and I have this one!" Unfortunately, he remembers that "sharing" deal from when we first talked about night-weaning to have another baby! 

 

Week 6: Prep work begins!

Before I found out I was pregnant, I was eating probably 75% raw and the rest was mostly whole-food vegan (with the exception of a couple Christmas dinner parties). I have found a good balance of eating as well as I can when I'm at home, and being a polite guest at public functions without having special needs. For example, yesterday someone from church had me over for lunch. We've never talked about my food preferences, but I think she's heard some gossip... so she did have several types of fruit and a large salad, but I also tried her vegan soup for the sake of being a polite guest. (I hate it when I make something and then people turn their noses up at it.) And I really appreciated it that she kept my vegan diet in mind (or whatever she heard about me).

My 2-y-o son is another story......I can't control him anymore. While we were visiting family for the past couple weeks, he's been so intrigued by "what they eating?" So to avoid a scene (and rebellion later in life) I decided to let him try bites, gently reminding him that we don't eat sugar (he's got that one down, and meat). So he's been eating bread, crackers, cherrios, etc. He has somewhat of an addiction to these foods so it makes me cringe, but I do think it's best to let him have some leeway at this point in his life.

By the way, I am noticing that some heavy foods and refined flour are making me nauseas. Grandparents took us out to a vegetarian restaurant so I wanted to try some of their cooked food. I ordered Eggplant Parmesan. Yuck. It wasn't even what I imagined, it was totally greasy, made me really nauseas....... *Tip to self: avoid greasy food permanently* I had taken HCl and enzymes, and also had some dandelion when I came home to help my liver out a bit.

So now my diet is mainly: dates, pecans, oranges, bananas, celery juice, carrots, avocados, and green smoothies. I really have a thing for dates and pecans right now, can't get enough of them! And I am glad to be drinking my greens again since before they were making me nauseas. I figure I better get a lot in, before they do so again.

I have been sleeping from 8:30 til 5-6 am every night. I have lots of energy and joy during the day, then around 8 I just feel that it is time for bed. Sometimes I wake up early morning wide awake, so I journal or meditate. (So you'd think I could stay up later at night, but nope! My body really needs to sleep before midnight, for some reason.) When I wake up, we make juice and do some exercises. I am doing my own combination of T-tapp, pilates, and yoga. Right now I am concentrating on ab exercises since I won't be able to do much in that area later on. I also feel great doing warrior pose variations, including a few I made up. T-tapp is something I am experimenting with, it's new to me, and I am not quite sure yet if I like it (or if it makes any sense). I am also taking daily walks as much as possible. I find the cold air exhilirating (vs. the stale indoor air which saps my energy). Another daily goal is to read scriptures, pray continually, and keep doing my emotional work regularly. These things will help me stay in a great mood, and close to the Holy Spirit, which in turn gives me physical energy and mental patience for parenting and all that I have to do. I have been consistent on these goals the past couple weeks and have felt awesome! No bad moods, no feeling overwhelmed, no fear at all. I have been 100% ecstatic for this pregnancy!

I don't have much free time for reading right now, but I've done a little internet searching. I was wondering what most people do for their unassisted prenatals. Generally I think we dispense with the testing, although some women keep track of their weight, blood pressure, maybe even urine. My blood pressure has always been low. I will measure it when I pass that kiosk in pharmacies. My starting weight was 120 on some cooked food, so it might be a high estimate. We'll probably get our own fetoscope and start listening for FHTs around week 20. And start feeling the fundus at week 13. That is all I know so far--what other "milestone" weeks are there?

I am so ecstatic that my husband is up for UC. He thinks it wil be really special for the 2 of us. I agree. Last time, he was very supportive during labor, and then come delivery, it was all about the midwife and I myself had no idea what was going on. I don't like that...... I realize it's a lot of responsibility to handle it yourself, but it's a responsibility we need to take. You can't turn over your health and well-being so another person, yourself completely unaware! What a great opportunity to study midwifery, learn the textbook info but also be able to follow a mother's intuition. That is not something a midwife can do. When my first baby had fluid in his air way, nobody ever said, "What does Mom think?" or "Let's have mom hold him close and rub his skin." Nope, it was grab him, rub him, wrap him up, blow-by Oxygen, and basically create a panic situation for an ignorant mother that totally interfered with 3rd stage, and lo and behold I end up hemorhaging. My hope is to avoid all this drama, of course, but I will be prepared to deal with such complications. Imagine what a bond for the husband and wife, and falling in love as you see your husband study these things and prepare to shoulder the responsibility of delivering a new baby. What an accomplishment! And what a special thing for the baby too, to start his life off with just family, people who love him, the most gentle and loving entry into life.

Our library has "Unassisted Childbirth" by Laura Shanley. I'll read it and decide if I need to buy a copy for long-term reference. There are some other unassisted books I have my eye on at ebay, as well as some labor methods like Calm Birth, Hypnobirthing, and workouts like Zen Mama, etc. I need a budget for this! But hey, UCers save thousands of dollars :-) Speaking of which, my idea that my husband has yet to approve is that instead of paying $75 for each prenatal visit, I could do some cranio-saral or massage therapy in place of that. I think it would be much more worthwhile and beneficial, for the same price. My idea is once a month, I get one of those things, or a naturepath visit, etc.

Right now my reading is mostly emotional, not pregnancy related. I know emotions are the root cause of disease and labor complications, so I am addressing that first. Feelings Buried Alive Never Die, Love is Letting go of Fear, Learning to Love Yourself workbook, and Preparing for an Easier Childbirth. I am using visualizing, EFT, freewriting, and journaling to express and release all sorts of buried feelings. In the past few months I have seen such a drastic improvement in my state of mind and relating to others. I really feel that these therapies are the best thing I can do for my mental and physical health right now.

So only minor nausea so far, depending on what I eat. It's mainly Guidance nausea, in my food selection, so I think it's healthy thing. My body lets me know what to eat and what I need to keep out. Even at certain times of the day---I can feel when I've had too much fruit and it's time for something heavier, etc. Last pregnancy the throwing up started right after the 6th week point (and right after my midwife informed me that pregnant women often throw up--coincidence?), so it will be interesting to see what next week brings. ** My personality is such that I often play the drama queen or whine just for the sake of getting attention. I would totally play my pregnancy card just to get out of things or have people pity me. But not this time! I am staying happy, balanced, and energetic. Another plus to not telling people yet--no excuses! If I feel nauseas, I put on a happy face! And I prevent feeling sick or run-down, gotta take better care of myself. Not enjoy having them as excuses.

I taped my positive test on the bathroom mirror!! But we'll take it down when visitors come. We aren't telling people in person yet. It's special to share this between my husband and myself right now, and build up some strength and confidence without dealing with questions. (We are going to simply say "another homebirth" and imply that I am seeing a midwife, not tell people here about the UC. I am so vulnerable to criticism and it really affects me. That is the main reason I am doing emotional work, but in the meantime, let's just avoid the situation altogether!)