Saying No to Drugs.

For those of you who don't know me...  I think organic foods are a marketing scam, I usually forget to recycle, and I fully support & believe in modern medicine.

But for some reason, I want to birth my child naturally. (Meaning no epidural or no pain medication)

To be honest, I'm not completely sure why. When I made the decision, it reminded me of the time I committed to run a marathon. I've always hated running long distances. When I sent in my registration for the 2010 San Francisco Marathon, the longest I'd ever run was a 5K (during which I almost threw-up and barely made it across the finish line.)

But regardless of these facts, I wanted to run a marathon because it felt impossible. And I wanted to prove myself wrong. That summer of training was the most physically and mentally challenging thing I've ever done. During the race, when I hit mile 18, I thought I was going to die. I was 100% sure that my legs would snap and there was no way I could keep going. But somehow, I did. Because I didn't train for 3 months to just give up. I never stopped to walk. (Although you might have thought my run was slower than a walk.) But I crossed that finish-line in under 5 hours and accomplished my life goal. I survived. And I felt invincible. 

Every time since then, when I have a challenging moment, I remind myself, "Hey, I ran a marathon. Of, course I can do this." And it works.

I've heard the metaphor that giving birth is like running two marathons, back-to-back.

Challenge accepted. 

(Not the running 2 marathons part... I promised my body I would never make it run more than 13.1 consecutive miles ever again. And I will not break that promise.)

But the birth part... that I will do.

I used to think moms who birthed their babies naturally were INSANE. Or hippies. Or some sort of anti-doctor/home birth/naturalists. I also used to think I could never be one of them. I thought giving birth without medication would be impossible for me.

Funny how 9 months can change you.

I know there are some positive benefits from birthing your child naturally. I'm not sure to what degree it really makes a difference, since I know plenty of healthy, happy, breast-feeding babies delivered with an epidural. But I guess it just comes down to the fact that I want the full experience. (I'm sure I'll regret saying this later) but I want the pain. I want to conquer it. I want to prove to myself that I can do something I once believed was impossible.

I'm planning to use The Bradley Method (husband-coached childbirth), in combination with a jet tub, a birthing ball & my Ultimate Birthing Playlist. (que: The World's Greatest by R. Kelly, Roar by Katy Perry, Stronger by Kelly Clarkson & Believe by Yellowcard.)

For all you experienced moms, I know what you're thinking. "You can't PLAN your birth. Sometimes things happen and plans often change." Yes, I understand this. But I wanted to write this post as an official declaration that if things DO go according to plan, and we can avoid medical interventions such as induction, C-section, etc... I will birth this baby boy naturally.

Women have been doing this for years. Our bodies know what to do. It will be painful... but it's just temporary. It wont last forever. Just like that marathon, I will keep going. I will survive. (Can you tell that I'm trying to sound brave right now? Believe me, I'm terrified.) But if everything works out and I do accomplish my new life goal of birthing a child naturally, I know one thing is for sure... I will feel invincible.