How much did you know?

[xmashampermunker]

Not sure where to put this, so have plumped (no pun intended!) for this topic.

How much did you know about the whole 'pregnancy, labour, birth' thing when you got to antenatal classes (assuming you went to them!)?

Only I remember feeling quite embarrassed at mine because I knew everything they were telling us (lovely feeling that, don't expect to feel it again where babies or children are concerned!!!) - it's fair enough not knowing anything about the process before you're pregnant, but surely when the birth is imminent, you'd want to have some idea what's going to happen?

We were asked things like what is amniotic fluid, how many stages of labour there are, what methods of pain relief were open to us (everyone knew epidural, but that was about it!) - all kinds of things. It was done in small groups and everyone was really friendly, so it wasn't embarrassment about having to answer in front of people - and some of the answers were hardly ones you'd give if you were trying not to draw attention to yourself anyway!

I have always been the kind of person who wants to know everything and then some and I know that's not necessarily how everyone feels, but I was really surprised that people in this class knew literally nothing about what was just round the corner!

My antenatal classes were quite late on - about 4 weeks before I had DD. I ruminated, cogitated and digested every weighty tome about the whole process from 3 months before she was conceived - that was how I found mumsnet.

So I knew quite a lot of stuff that was discussed, but the practical things were helpful - hospital procedure (classes were at the maternity hospital), relaxation, breathing, options for birth, info about breast pumps,tens machine hire etc.

I knew everything they said, but my dh didn't, so it was useful for me to know what he was expected to know IYSWIM.

i knew a lot of what was discussed, but the mws had some useful tips - my favourite one was about using gas and air not just for contractions but with internals and any other painful procedures.

same as you hunker- read widely before and only attended first class as dh couldn't come with me to anymore. Quite glad i didn't visit the delivery room beforehand though-

I recently attended a 'refresher' NHS one, so all the women already had at least one child, and I couldn't believe some of their questions

-what's a caeserian section?
-will you make me breastfeed if I don't want to?
-what are contractions?

I kid you not.
Such a waste of my time!!

Blimey! I'd have made them have lobotomies if they didn't want them (but I'm wicked)

Hey Hana, my mother told me that when she gave birth to my sister (Liverpool,early 60's) there was a woman on the ward who, when asked if she wanted to breastfeed replied 'I can't sister, me nipples aren't pierced.'
Another, when urged to get out of bed and walk around, yelled at the offending midwife 'Listen, I've got 4 more of the buggers at home and this is the only bloody rest I'll get for the next 15 years, so if it's all the same with you I'll stay in bed!!' Sorry, I digress!)

Know what you mean about wanting to know everything. My bookshelves groan with weighty tomes on every conceivable (haha!!) aspect and angle of childbirth and pregnancy,and magazine racks bulge with periodicals from the v. posh junior to those ones that treat you like an imbecile 'Formula is powder that you mix with.... '
My friend and I joke that we have PhDs in Antenatal Issues. We are secretly very jealous when one knows something the other doesn't. I am still smarting because of her recent disclosure that in utero boys' hearts beat slower than girls' Is this true? Does any one have a real gem that I can wow her with?

I visited the delivery suite before having my first (you know the one Pixiefish!) As we all shuffled around like heavily drugged patients on a psychiatric ward, I looked at one of the big overhead lights and it was smeared with a worrying amount of blood!! That freaked me no end (not as much as actually having the baby though..)

it doesn't matter what you THINK you know.

You know nowt till the pain starts - and then knowledge explodes before you!

I disagree JT - I chatted coherently through most of my labour - was trying to think up cunning new ways to get the midwife to tell me how long before DB was born (sneaky). I am very used to pain, so maybe that's why (sound like a right weirdo now!).

Is that you hunkermunker?
I've missed your bon mots!!

Yes, tis me indeed! Feel all wanted now

Tell me, it was the sneaky wot did for me wasn't it guv?

Is it just me or have you been lying low?

It's just you - I'm prolific with my Xmas name

That's worrying. Getting very unobservant. Thought that at the moment I must surely be spending far more time on MN than anyone else
(the pages of novels gather dust,hungry children wail, nappies go unchanged, pile of festering laundry gets bigger and bigger..) It's got to stop, I now find myself actually mildly surprised when I hear an adult's voice in RL. Dh will ask me something and I lift my head, eyes glazed, drool pooling on the laptop and go 'Huuuugh????'

i know exactly what you mean moondog

Oh God! You've described my life! Thank goodness for having to go to work and leaving DH in charge today - I have a tidy house and laundry done.

well, I didn't go to antenatal classes thinking I knew it all. However, found it quite difficult to know why mw/doctors were doing certain things and also found it difficult to "go against them". That despite dh's support (supposedly knowing that kind of stuff as a GP and havingworked there as well).(If not would have ended up with another cs whichI wanted to avoid).

sorry, bit late with this answer and not really following on the last bits of the thread. Have my mind on other "related" things......

I always was a know it all so have gone to my NCT classes knowing it all! I feel that the teacher has taught me little and I just get very frustrated when I hear her talk shite (which she occasionally does). Everyone in the class seems well-read. The far more interesting stuff is the tips you don't get from books, discussion regardign different viewpoints, and most of all is talking to the other mums2B re their experiences plans, hopes etc. I get very frustrated when the teacher cuts off these discussions in order to patronise us some more on 'Mums milk good' - has anyone else seen the dreadful NCT handouts on the subject? A thirteen year old half wit would find it patronising.

There - rant over!!!

The classes I went to were a complete waste of time-I must have read every pregnancy book I could get my hands on by then.I was astounded that some of the people there had no idea of what to expect regarding going into labour ect.Although one lady said that the thought of it scared her so much that she couldn't read or watch anything on the subject.

DH came with me to the classes,which with hindsight was a mistake.He firmly believed that 1st labours are slow & can take a minimum of 12 hours,as he'd been told at the classes-so when my contractions started & were 3 mins apart from the beginning,he still thought there was no rush & we'd just get sent home again.I made him take me to the hospital-where I was found to be 10cm dilated.Dh looked at me accusingly & said that he couldn't believe that I must have slept through the 1st stage of labour!

I had the last laugh (although that was the last thing on my mind at the time) dd arrived 4 hours & 6minutes from my going into labour.I didn't even get a chance to open my labour bag,never mind get into all the positions that had been mentioned in class.

I knew it all through reading really.

However, i have booked in for them again in January, (I'm due in February and have dd who will be 4 in February), as i think it all changes so fast there might just be one tip i pick up that i didn't know before.
Plus i get to see where dd was born and get ready for dd2! HOW wierd does that sound, never typed that before-dd2!!!

Aw! DD2! Congrats SnowmAngeliz! And typed first on my thread too, I feel so proud