A Dramatic Start to 2017 and the Final Countdown to Baby
The Expat Bump Diaries: Week 36
The drama we have faced in week 36 has taught me the unpredictability of your body when you’re building a baby. It all unfolded in the early hours of New Year’s Day. I’d spent New Year’s Eve with friends, and once we’d toasted the start of 2017 I headed home to bed. Unfortunately, I was hit by severe acid reflux and nausea that night that made me throw up in colourful style and meant that I had barely a wink of sleep. The next morning I got out of bed alone at 7:00, made a bit of plain toast and went and sat upright on the sofa to try to ease the reflux. As I sat there, I realised that a tightening I’d been periodically feeling in my stomach muscles and slight pains like you have during your period was getting stronger, and I started timing them. Oh, lord – this felt like contractions!
My husband and I monitored them for a few hours and then decided that, as the baby was 36 weeks and 3 days, and if it was born could be classed as premature, we’d better call the hospital. They told us to come in, so we dropped our toddler off with kind neighbours who had offered to help and made our way down. Luckily I’d packed my hospital bag the day before, feeling like I was being far too organised.
As it was New Year’s Day, my usual gynaecologist wasn’t working, but the midwives and doctor who saw us were as friendly and helpful as you could hope for and spoke excellent English. The midwife first examined me externally and commented on how very low the baby was in my pelvis. This was no surprise to me, as I had felt the baby drop around a week before and it had felt like I was carrying a football between my legs ever since, with sometimes unbearable downward pressure. It’s apparently so obvious when you look at me that almost every mum friend I have encountered has said, “The baby’s dropped, then!”
The midwife strapped a device around my stomach to monitor the baby’s heart rate and the contractions. The medical team thought the contractions may have been stimulated by the vomiting and that I could be dehydrated. They debated whether to try to stop the contractions with an IV drip and medication, as I was less than 37 weeks pregnant and the baby would be classed as premature. When the gynaecologist examined me internally, however, she decided that, as the cervix had started to move and the contractions were getting more intense, they would let nature take its course. We were given the option to stay in the labour room or to go home and wait for the contractions to get stronger. As we live two minutes’ drive from the hospital we decided to go home, and it’s a good job we did, because as the day went on the contractions weakened and eventually stopped. It seemed Baby wasn’t quite ready to come after all and decided to stay put for now.
(Above) Laura watching TV with her daughter while waiting to see what will happen with the contractions.
Two days later we happened to have our routine check-up booked in with our gynaecologist. She did the usual scan and examinations and said that the baby is doing fine; and because the cervix has started moving we’re in a good position for delivery, but the baby could still go to term.
What amazes me is how pregnancies and deliveries can be so different for the same mother. With my firstborn, my waters broke with no contractions or any other warning beforehand at 37 weeks and 6 days. The contractions started shortly after, strengthened quickly, and she was born just seven hours later. We never had the question of “Are we in labour or not?” This time around it seems it will be more of an uncertain waiting game, much to the frustration of my husband, who had prepared himself mentally to become a father for the second time during our two hours in the labour room on New Year’s Day and now is impatient for it to arrive. This could be a long wait, with him asking me every few minutes whether I have felt anything!
Before this drama, the third trimester had ticked along relatively peacefully. I have been getting increasingly uncomfortable with the extra weight of the baby, acid reflux, low energy, and a weak immune system that has me catching every winter illness under the sun – all the usual third-trimester woes. Particularly troublesome when you’re pregnant and looking after a toddler is how often you have to lean over to pick something up from the floor – from toys to clothes, or pots and pans she’s pulled out of the kitchen drawers. It’s so uncomfortable that I’m seriously considering using a litter picker around the house.
The preparations for the birth have also continued. I’ve booked a Nachsorgehebamme (postnatal midwife), who was recommended by a friend for home visits after the birth to check on the baby and me. I chose not to book a Beleghebamme, a private midwife who comes in to the hospital to be there at the delivery (please see my previous post on this), as I had heard from many expat mums that the midwives on call at the hospitals tend to speak very good English (as we indeed found when we went into hospital on 1st January). I can understand why some mothers would like to get to know their midwife before the delivery, particularly if they are using a very specific technique they need support with, but I felt that the staff at the hospital could give me what I need.
We also had a tour of the facilities at our local hospital, which are incredible compared to the NHS hospital where I delivered our daughter in the UK. The birthing rooms are enormous, with a birthing pool in two out of the three rooms, and the postnatal unit basically has hotel rooms with lake views. The shared postnatal rooms have just two mums and babies in each (compared to dozens in the UK postnatal wards), or you can book a private room if your insurance covers it.
The key difficulty we’ve found in planning for the arrival of a baby while living abroad is trying to arrange support from family. The baby could decide to make its appearance any time within about a month, so we cannot know when to book flights for our parents to visit, or when to tell them to book off work or block time in their diaries. We’re just going to have to hope that there will be flights available when the time comes and close our eyes when it comes to the price!
We’ve also had some big news recently that has my mind spinning alongside the baby preparations. My husband has accepted his next job, and it’s back in the UK. He’ll start the role at the beginning of March and, if we don’t want to spend too much time with him hopping back and forth between the countries (leaving me with a newborn and toddler), we’ll need to move as soon as we can after the baby is born – most likely end of March/early April.
A key factor in how fast we can move is getting the baby registered. Only once we have the baby’s Swiss birth certificate can we then apply for his or her British passport so that Baby can travel. Thankfully a friend warned me that the Swiss authorities would need certified copies of both my husband’s and my birth certificates issued within the last six months. We only had the originals given to us at birth so had to send off to the UK government for new ones. We can only hope we manage to get through the rest of the bureaucratic process smoothly so that our move can be as fast and stress-free as possible.
The news that we will be moving back to the UK has us both sad to be leaving the friends we’ve made here in Switzerland and excited to have the chance to live on the doorstep of both my husband’s and my parents (babysitters, yay!). In the run up to what is going to be an insanely frantic couple of months, I’m trying to focus on staying calm and preparing for the baby rather than feeling overwhelmed about moving country with a newborn and a toddler. The expat life throws us both challenges and opportunities, and after having the chance to spend two years living in a stunningly beautiful country and meeting fantastic people from all over the world, I have to say that dealing with the challenges is worth it. Soon we’ll have an everlasting reminder of our time here in the form of a baby made in Switzerland.
Finally, at week 36, here’s the usual update on the cost my medical care has reached during this pregnancy so far: 2,838 CHF (2,265 CHF without medications). This does not include the recent hospital visit, so I’m sure the total will jump up significantly once that bill comes in.
I look forward to letting you know how the delivery and immediate postnatal care go in my next post. Any good luck vibes sent my way are gratefully received!
If you’ve missed the previous Expat Bump Diaries, click here for week 28, here for week 21, here for week 16 and here for week 10. The sixth and final installment of Expat Bump (week 40) can be found here.
By Laura Hollis
Laura is a journalist from the UK who is now living in Richterswil on Lake Zurich. Her daughter was born in October 2014, and Baby Number Two is due in January 2017. Laura also helps run Wadi Angels Playgroup and leads Hummingbirds Toddler Music Group. Email: lauraesmehollis@gmail.com.
Photos by Samuel Hollis
The sixth and final installment of Expat Bump can be found here.
