Tag: Pregnancy
I Was The First To Get Pregnant
Be wary of a friend who uses your pregnancy as a soapbox for self-righteousness.
When I became pregnant in my mid-20s, it became the source of invasive gossip amongst my group of childless friends.
Many of my friends didn’t get it.
“A pregnancy? That you don’t want to end? But what about alcohol? You can’t drink alcohol when you’re pregnant, did you know that? And isn’t there a baby at the end of a pregnancy? Who will change the diapers?”
My pregnancy was unplanned, but still welcome. I was on birth control and my partner was just beginning graduate school. But the stars (or sperm and egg) still aligned. I immediately knew the pregnancy felt right, even though most people were telling me it was wrong.
My partner needed time to reconcile with the fact that he was going to be a dad and when many of our acquaintances heard this, they latched on.
Pregnancy Bagua Map
Toying around with a “pregnancy version” of a feng shui bagua map for the Feng Shui Mommy book 🙂 A work in progress, but having fun mixing the harmony of this ancient Chinese art into the magic of pregnancy and childbirth.
Oh, are you wondering what the heck a bagua map is? The bagua map (BAH-gwa) is a tool used in feng shui to learn which parts of a space correlate with particular areas of life.
My version helps you learn what areas of your life to nurture during different stages of your journey into motherhood.
You begin your journey in the watery North (1st trimester), explore the woods of the East (2nd trimester), absorb the warmth of the South (3rd trimester), then slide into the cool landscape of the West (4th trimester.)
At the center of it all is the grounding presence of the Earth, which holds the power to harmonize the light and dark moments of your journey (yin and yang.)
9 Ways to Bond With Your Unborn Baby
Are you nervous at the prospect of birthing a stranger? Sure, you love the little nugget floating in your uterus, but do you feel like you know them?
When I was pregnant, I had serious doubts about my ability to “do parenting well.” I felt wholly unprepared and feared the big P-D: postpartum depression.
Because I have control freak tendencies, I became consumed with putting in bonding work before my son was born — I had a deep need to get to know him before he was put in my arms.
Many of the following prenatal bonding activities are practiced in the HypnoBirthing (Mongan Method) childbirth preparation classes I teach, and some are pulled from my personal tinkering.
Directions to Motherhood
The journey to motherhood is flush with quicksand, stool softeners, thorns in the sciatic nerve, secret all-you-can-eat-buffets, justified temper-tantrums, loose gravel, flash in the pan “Must Have!” child-soothing gizmos and ill-timed gas.
This road is worth traveling. When we first become parents, we pick up a chubby ball of yummy-smelling deliciousness, but somehow, many of us get lost along the way.
We need directions, and not to prevent stumbles, potholes and occasional avalanches of ice cream; we need them to remind us the bizarre paths we wander down are well-trodden and flanked with supportive been-there, tripped-over-that mommas.
Bailey Gaddis Blog 