The Great Debate

To get checked or not to get checked, that is the question.

Today I have my 38 week appointment with Kaiser. Last week they said they were going to check my cervix this week. I haven't yet decided whether I want them to do it or not.

On one hand, it would be nice to know if these Braxton-Hicks that I am constantly getting are actually doing anything. It would also be nice to know if all the pineapple, which is supposed to have some chemical that helps to "ripen" the cervix, and the sex, which is supposed to have prostoglandins that ripens the cervix, have had any effect. I am definitely curious!

On the other hand, emotionally, I don't know if I can handle it. The last time I got checked was at 35w5d when they said I was 1cm dilated and 50% effaced, could go into labor at any time, and probably wouldn't make it to 40 weeks. That got me pretty excited. Since it was so early though, I rested up and stopped running, etc so that I wouldn't have the baby prematurely. Once I got into the safe zone and resumed my normal activities, I thought for sure I would have the baby soon after that. Now I'm 38w2d and still no baby. It has been an emotional letdown, to say the least. I really don't want to hear that I'm 5cm dilated or something like that, and then still end up waiting until 40 weeks or after to actually have the baby.

The other reason that I have for not getting checked is that I don't want them to accidentally break my water, since I'm GBS positive. It's not a very likely scenario, but it could happen.

I also don't want them to find that I am 5+cm (which is typically "active labor") and then send me to the hospital to have the baby. They did mention that since I'm GBS+, I shouldn't wait at home as long as I would have wanted to so that they have time to do the antibiotics. They still don't know that I'm having a homebirth, and I'd like to keep it that way.

Dilation and effacement don't really mean anything as far as when you will actually have the baby. At our midwife appointment yesterday, Debi said that she had one mother whose cervix was thick and closed one day and then she had the baby the next day. There have also been people, like Sweta for example, who walked around dilated to 6cm for two weeks before having the baby.

I've been having periodic cramping all morning, but it hasn't been associated with any contractions, I've had no bleeding with it, and it doesn't last more than a few seconds. I'll mention it to the Kaiser midwife at the appointment, but I think it's probably nothing.

Looking back at the reasons for and against getting checked, I'll probably not get checked. There are more downsides to doing so than there are benefits. Especially since the only real "benefit" is purely selfish.