Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Is it wrong...?

That I miss wine?

That I want wine?

That I am counting the months until I can have wine again?

And Mojitos?

I think this is a craving, in fact. One which I will not indulge.


When I was pregnant with Chuckles, I did all the right things, avoided all the wrong things, thought happy thoughts, and everything. And he still didn't sleep through the night until (uhhh, still waiting on that). And was intolerant of cows' milk (almost better). And gets recurrent ear infections and refuses to take off his own shoes. So this time around I am doing the bare minimum in terms of health and safety of fetus. Here in order, are the things I am doing in rank of how much they will help.
  1. Wearing a seat belt while riding in the car
  2. Avoiding alcohol and drugs
  3. Taking prenatal vitamins (prior to conception and while pregnant)
  4. Getting prenatal care
  5. Eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
  6. Not cleaning the litter box
  7. Not getting x-rays or handling chemicals
  8. Not eating forbidden foods like lunch meat, tile fish, and feta cheese even when I want to do those things

THings I am doing this time, that I avoided last time: eating sushi, tasting (one half-sip) wines and spirits, eating peanuts, Benzoyl Peroxide to cure the "glow" of pregnancy, exercising as much as feels comfortable, and so on.

I have put risk into perspective and am living by the statistics of what is really important, what is actually likely, how hard it is to do/avoid, and what the effects will be. For example, contracting a parasite from sushi is very rare and the consequences are not dire. Uncomfortable, yes, but not life threatening. Drinking while pregnant may not be life-threatening, but the outcome for the child is not good. Not good. Dying in a car accident is statistically more likely than a lot of things, so a seat belt I wear (all the time, regardless of the state of my uterus). It is easy to avoid tile fish and king mackeral, so it's not onerous to do that. Problems traced to that are pretty remote, but the ease of avoiding it means it's no big deal. I like lake perch and have had it one time while pregnant. Moderation on that.

So, that's where I am. HOpe you are well.

2 comments:

  1. I totally agree. This time around for me (almost 9 weeks) I am feeling much more relaxed about things so far. I got a mani/pedi the other day, had some sushi, I am actually eating lunch meats every now and then, and am indulging in ONE cup of coffee in the morning.

    Let's keep our fingers crossed, huh?

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  2. Oh my god, I love you. I'm just remembering the early fetal days of Chuckles and his mother being the number one example of why people shouldn't know too much about one thing. I think you could quote page and paragraph of any baby statistic. I guess I'll give you credit. It helped you feel more comfortable; gave the idea that you have more control over pregnancy. And it certainly helps this time that you've gone through this all before.
    I love you, babe...Carla

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