What you need to know about Cord Blood Banking.

Choosing the best diapers for your baby.

Get the scoop on baby-poop.

Pacifier do’s and don’ts.

Info about home pregnancy tests.

Relaxation for childbirth.

Helping a dog prepare for the arrival of your new baby:

Tips on picking out a stroller.	Baby books, memory keepsakes and sibling gifts.
Weight gain during pregnancy.	Traveling during pregnancy.
Create a personalized photo album of your baby’s special day.	Is intercourse okay during pregnancy?
How much protein do I need when pregnant?	How to store and freeze breastmilk.

Medela Freestyle Breast Pump:

Labor Bag

Pregnancy can increase the chances of developing gingivitis.	Cute and comfortable shoes for pregnant women.
Weight gain during pregnancy.	Advice on baby monitors.
Not a pleasant topic, but information about hemorrhoids during pregnancy.	Your baby’s development after birth.
How much protein do I need when pregnant?	Is intercourse okay during pregnancy?

BabyFit's Pregnancy Stretching Workout 

Labor Bag

Interesting information about stretch marks.	Do you feel like you need some extra support for the weight of your baby?
Do you need a flu shot when pregnant?	Want a custom designed Boppy?   Build your own!
Think you might be pregnant? Here are some common symptoms.	Car Seats for your baby.
Looking for a perfect diaper bag?	Having trouble getting comfortable? Try a Bump Bag.
Not a pleasant topic, information about hemorrhoids during pregnancy.	Traveling during pregnancy.
How much protein do I need when pregnant?	Is intercourse okay during pregnancy?

Helping a baby latch-on for Breastfeeding:

Think you might be pregnant? Here are some common symptoms.	Need to know when you are due?  Here’s a due date calculator.
Why Do People Ask Pregnant Women Stupid Questions?	Want a custom designed Boppy? Build your own!
Need information on Breastfeeding?	Wondering what labor will be like?
Having trouble getting comfortable? Try a Bump Bag.	Looking for a perfect diaper bag?
Read real birth stories from real moms.	What about epidurals?
Stages of Labor, from the March of Dimes.	Car Seats for your baby.

 
How to install a baby car seat

The Labor Bag is named after the bag of supplies pregnant women often bring to the hospital with them to help throughout labor and delivery. These are sites that have information for pregnancy, labor, delivery and lactation – all in one place – so you don’t have to click around to find what you need.

Please feel free to suggest any sites you find interesting and would like to share.

Our New Site, The Labor Bag!

If you have enjoyed The Labor Room, please visit our new site, The Labor Bag!

Do you want to find out where to order a custom made Boppy?  How about how to pick out or install a car seat?  Do you need the symptoms of pregnancy?  Would you like to see different breastfeeding positions and tips for getting the baby to latch on?

Why go from site to site, when the Labor Bag has all the sites for you in one place?

The Labor Bag has links for informative sites relative to pregnancy, labor and lactation.  You can find a bag full of information there, all in one place.  

Drop by and see what is in our bag today!

True Verses False Labor

Image via WikipediaAm I in labor? This is a question that haunts many pregnant women. The answer isn't easy either because labor can be different from one woman to the next and even from one pregnancy to the next. Let's take a look at true versus false labor.

CONTRACTIONS

The most common sign of labor is contractions (the tightening of the muscles in the uterus). Many woman want to know how contractions will feel. There is no way to tell you exactly how labor will feel to you since each woman is unique and each labor is different. Some women describe contractions as feeling like bad menstrual cramps, or pain in the lower back and lower abdomen. Some women feel pressure and pain in the groin and thighs.

How do you tell if the contractions are really labor contractions, or Braxton-Hicks contractions? You should look for contractions which are progressive. This means over time the contractions last longer, come closer and become more intense. This is the hallmark of true labor contractions.

Characteristics	False Labor	True Labor
Timing of the contractions	Contractions are often irregular and do not get closer together	Contractions come at regular intervals and over time come closer and closer. Over time the also last longer.
Do they change?	Contractions may become less intense or even stop when you walk, rest, or change positions	Contractions do not change with a change in activity or position.
How strong are they?	Contractions are mild and do not get much stronger. You can easily move and talk during them.	Contractions steadily increase in strength, they become more and more intense until you cannot walk or talk through a contraction.
Water Breaks	Water doesn't break	If your water breaks, you are in labor regardless of your contractions.

If you think you are in labor, or if your water breaks, contact you health care provider immediately. If you are unsure, your health care provider will be glad to talk you about your symptoms and help you decide if you need to be evaluated or not. There is no need for you to try to diagnosis labor all by yourself.

Flu Shot Time!

As winter grows closer, flu season grows near. It's time for your flu shot.

You may wonder if you should have a flu shot while you are pregnant, even if it is good for you and your baby. The truth is getting a flu shot is a great thing to do for your baby.

According to research published by the US Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, studies done on the Navajo and White Mountain Apache Indian reservations, where children are more prone to respiratory infections than other babies, show that babies whose mothers had been vaccinated were 41% less likely to contract a flu infection --and 39% less likely to wind up in a hospital with severe flu-like symptoms--than mothers who were not vaccinated.

This is because babies of mothers who are vaccinated have higher levels of flu antibodies for up to their first six months than those whose mothers were not vaccinated. The vaccinated mothers passed their immune status onto their babies for a short period. In severe flu seasons, babies who are too young to be vaccinated are the most vulnerable, the most likely to become severely ill.

Your health care provider will most likely recommend you have a flu shot and they will be backed up by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), the American College of Nurse-Midwives, the American Academy of Pediatrics and many others.

Developing the flu during pregnancy can lead to serious complications, such as pneumonia or preterm labor. This would put you and your baby at risk.

WHEN SHOULD I GET A FLU SHOT?

Since pregnant women are considered part of a high risk group, you should get your flu shot during this month or next -- or before the greater part of the flu season hits.
It used to be believed that you could not receive the flu shot until after the first trimester of pregnancy, but now, according to ACOG, the flu shot can be given at any gestation:

Vaccination early in the flu season is optimal, but can be given at any time during this period, regardless of the stage of pregnancy. The College advises that all women who are or become pregnant during the annual flu season (October through May) get the inactivated flu vaccine. Women can also receive the flu vaccine postpartum and while they are breastfeeding if they missed it during pregnancy.

DOES IT HAVE TO BE A SHOT?

If you hate needles, unfortunately, yes, it has to be a shot. The flu shot is made of inactivated flu virus. The nasal spray is made from a live virus, which makes it less appropriate during pregnancy or when trying to conceive. The nasal mist should not be given to pregnant women.

WHAT SIDE EFFECTS COULD OCCUR?

The great majority of people never have any side effects from a flu shot. It is a myth that you can get the flu from a flu shot. Since the flu shot is made from an inactivated virus, there is no way to contract the flu from the shot itself.

Usually any side effects to occur are mild and resolve quickly. These may be:

• Soreness, redness or slight swelling at the sight of the injection
• Low grade fever
• Muscle aches

The symptoms may begins soon after the shot and last for one or two days. Most people don't even have these symptoms.

Life threatening and serious side effects are very rare. Signs of serious allergic reaction can include hives, breathing problems; rapid heartbeat. These are most likely to occur in persons with severe allergies to eggs, because the viruses used int eh flu vaccine are grown in hens' eggs.

WHAT ABOUT MERCURY?

Thimerosal is a very effective preservative that has been used since th 1930s to prevent the contamination in some multi-dose vials of vaccines. (Single dose vials do not need preservatives.) Thimerosal contains approximately 49% ethylmercury.

There is no convincing evidence of harm caused by low doses of thimerosal in vaccines. Still, you may wonder if it is worth the risk for your baby.

A study examining over 2.000 pregnant women demonstrated no adverse fetal effects associated with influenza vaccine. Also, influenza related deaths among pregnant women have been documented during flu pandemics. According to the CDC, "Because pregnant women are at increased risk of influenza related complications and because a substantial safety margin has been incorporated into the health guidance values for organic mercury exposure, the benefits of influenza vaccine with reduced or standard thimerosal content outweighs the theoretical risk, if any, of thimerosal."


So, roll up your sleeve, get your flu shot and help protect Image by Tristen.Pelton via Flickryourself and your baby from the possibility of severe illness this winter!

Will You Marry Me?

From Chapter 7 of the book, "Memories of Miracles":

Lila was pregnant with her first baby, who was in a breech, or buttocks first, position. When her water broke, the cord washed out with the amniotic fluid and there we were, she and I in the bed together, my hand in her vagina holding the baby off the cord, our faces only a couple of feet apart.

I spoke quietly to her, to calm her fears and explained to her everything happening to her. She kept her eyes riveted on mine as if eye contact with me was the only thing keeping her from sheer panic.

On the way to the C-Section room, I had been able to tell her she was going to have a boy, even before it was born, which was unusual in the days before routine ultrasounds. After she had awakened from the haze common after general anesthesia, I went to see her in the recovery room.

We chatted for a few minutes about the baby and the rush of the delivery, and then she smiled at me and said, "I have only been intimate like that with one other person." She paused and asked, "Will you marry me?"