The cut and cravings

It must be a strange thing for those women who know before time they are going to need a C-section for medical reasons. The pregnancy must have a different, more relaxed feel to it without the need to mentally prepare for birth. I realise that C-sections are not as easy as many people may think, but from the outside, it seems like it would be kind of a relief knowing you don't have a choice in the matter. At least the pain doesn't require the kind of mind-over-matter endurance feat that I gather childbirth necessitates.

As a woman in my preggo yoga class said last week (her C-section was booked for yesterday as she has a misshapen uterus): "I didn't choose this form of birth but I'm glad it choose me!"

Others may not agree. My cousin just went through a hellish-sounding Caesarean whereby the morphine didn't take hold properly. She hasn't yet been able to hold her baby due to the pain. Caesareans take about six weeks to recover from - they are major surgery.

At the moment, I am feeling pretty confident about childbirth. I have two older sisters who have each had two children without complications. Both birthed their second-borns without pain relief. I feel lucky to be getting a lot of rest and not working up until the birth, as I think all this time to myself is helping me to gain the mental strength I will need. Relaxation is good for us, I think.

The baby is definitely starting to feel cramped in there. His movements are like squirms now rather than kicks, and he seems to move around a lot after I eat, as if complaining that the food is taking up his space. As my husband put it after dinner last night, it must be a double edged sword - the baby wants the food (these are the weeks when they are concentrating on putting on that cute baby fat) but he also wants to be able to stretch his legs.

I feel my appetite increasing this week, to the point where I may have to retract my statement about not having any cravings. Yesterday I felt like pizza real bad - and not the healthy, wholemeal crust, spinach and tomato variety we usually make at home, but the really greasy, fatty, cheesy type you buy at somewhere like Dominos.

Today it's cookies. I think this afternoon may involve some baking...