What is Natural Parenting: Preparing for Pregnancy

Finally getting into my Natural Parenting series. The first practice of Natural Parenting is "Prepare for pregnancy, birth, and parenting." I have a lot of thoughts on these (so much so that I am splitting this into 3 parts, rather than one mega-post), but I'm not sure how much of it is "natural". This is partially because I didn't really know what Attachment or Natural Parenting were before Gus was born, so I didn't prepare with this concept specifically in mind, although I did instinctively lean that way. Also, I feel like we did the same thing that most families preparing for a new baby do (or at least most families with a similar cultural, academic, and socioeconomic background to me), so it feels strange to write some of it down as something noteworthy. Nonetheless, this is my story, and here is a part of it. 

Preparing for pregnancy

Our pregnancy with Gus was very much a “planned” pregnancy in as much as one can plan these things. That being said, I didn't actually do much to prepare myself for it. I started taking folic acid supplements months in advance, because I had read reports of a study showing benefit from taking folic acid up to a year before conception, and that’s about it.

I didn't do any preparation with regards to diet or exercise before my pregnancy. I was already eating a fairly healthy, mostly whole foods diet. And to be honest, I don't know if I even thought about physical fitness. Since moving to the UK, I have always walked a lot (funny how not having a car will do that to you!), so I have a pretty good level of fitness anyway. But I certainly didn't think to do any more than that. And emotional preparation was not even on my radar. I just knew I had been wanting a baby for some time, so I figured I was mentally ready!

One thing that we did do to prepare for pregnancy, in a way, was to use Natural Family Planning (NFP) to first avoid and then achieve pregnancy. It was important to me to use NFP, not only for religious reasons, but because I don't like the idea of putting artificial or unnecessary chemicals or hormones into my body. I am quite hesitant to take medications casually anyway (for instance, I would much rather just wait for a headache to go away on its own, if it doesn’t prevent me from going about my day, than take a tablet for it), so I would not like to take a daily medication unless really necessary. Plus, when we were ready to become pregnant, using NFP meant that my body didn't have to “detox” and we understood my fertility cycle. So it was really a win-win choice for us.

My current status is again one of preparing for pregnancy, although we don't have any immediate plans. Not that it would matter if we did—I am still breastfeeding Gus enough that my cycle has yet to return since his birth. So at the moment we are on God's time, neither trying to conceive nor trying to avoid pregnancy. And I kind of like it. If I had the choice right now—pregnant or not?—I don't really know what I would choose. Three of my friends who have toddlers Gus's age are pregnant, and there is a significant part of me that is quite envious. On the other hand, we are so happy as a family of three, and I love being able to focus on Gus, that I wouldn't want to rock the boat with changes. 

One thing I am keen to do before becoming pregnant again is to learn to squat.  That sounds a bit silly, but there is a rationale behind it. Squatting has numerous benefits, including being a great position for birth (it can give you vital extra millimetres in the size of the pelvic opening compared to some other positions!) and strengthening your pelvic floor muscles. Much better than doing Kegels, according to the squatting expert Katy Bowman. So at the moment I am stretching and strengthening the necessary muscles in my legs and glutes to be able to hold a proper squatting position. I just have to remember to do the exercises every day!

While I had a blessedly easy pregnancy with Gus, one issue I did run into was low iron. (Melissa at Vibrant Wanderings has a great summary about iron deficiency anemia in pregnancy, if that sort of thing piques your interest.) This led to real lack of energy (more than just normal pregnancy-related lack of energy) in the first half of my pregnancy until I started on iron supplements. I'd therefore like to increase my current intake of dietary iron, with the hope that having high iron stores at the start of a pregnancy will mean that any natural decrease during pregnancy won't lead to deficiency and the related exhaustion--something I certainly won't need when chasing after an active toddler! My only problem with this is, like doing the exercises above, I am great at making plans and less good at remembering to put them into action. It's worth a go, though!

The elusive vitamin D

I've been thinking a lot about vitamin D lately. A couple of people I know, whom I assume spend tons of time frolicking outdoors, were tested and found to be deficient. How could this be?, I wondered. I started reading a bit about it here and there, and found it to be a really confusing topic. There seem to be two conflicting viewpoints going around: a) that it is easy to get enough vitamin D from the casual sun exposure in all climes, or b) that most people are deficient in vitamin D, and universal supplementation is recommended. Surely, only one of these can be right! But how to tell which one? Or is there a magic solution somewhere in between the extremes?

The UK Departments of Health recommend that all pregnant and breastfeeding women and all children, ages 6 months to 5 years (unless drinking 500mL of fortified formula a day--regular milk isn't fortified in the UK), take a daily vitamin D supplement. While they say that regular sun exposure is adequate for most people, there have also been studies that found that more than half the adult population of the UK is vitamin D deficient, especially in the winter and spring. So not only is this confusing, you also have to keep in mind what the aim of recommendations like those from the DH are when trying to apply it to your own situation. Oh, public health, how I both love you and get annoyed by you at the same time! These recommendations are for populations. The DH knows that it is both safer and cheaper to recommend that everyone, or at least all people in "at risk" groups, take supplementation than that a small minority of those people end up with diseases like rickets and poor bone health. What the DH does not know is whether I, personally, or my family are actually deficient in vitamin D and could benefit from supplementation. So while it is useful to consider the official advice, it doesn't tell me the whole story.

Gus soaking up some rays in the back garden

Today I read this post over on Best for Babes (and this follow-up on the author's own blog) and found it really useful. It is still obviously talking about populations, but at least it is providing me with context, not just a one-size-fits-all approach. There's a bit of a philosophical debate within breastfeeding circles regarding vitamin D. If breastmilk is complete nutrition for your baby, providing everything baby needs for at least the first 6 months of life (which I believe it is!), then why should we need to give vitamin D supplements? Is it somehow betraying breastfeeding to suggest that vitamin D supplementation can be useful, or even necessary? The author, Diana Cassar-Uhl, looks extensively at the research surrounding vitamin D deficiency, sufficiency, and supplementation. All extremely useful; just what I was looking for. In particular, she reports that studies show that it is very hard for our bodies to make enough vitamin D from the sun at higher latitudes (i.e. where the UK is), especially in the winter months. But the thing that really helped me wrap my head around the issue of giving vitamin supplements to babies was this: if older children and adults only get 10% of the necessary vitamin D from our diet, why should we expect infants to have 100% of the need met through diet alone (breastmilk)? It is probably possible for a baby to get it all through breastmilk, if the mother's stores are high enough, but is it necessary? I don't know the "right" answer to that question, but, to me and for my family, I would say it is not. There are other sources, i.e. sun exposure and vitamin supplementation, that can play their part.

Way back in the day, people would have gotten enough vitamin D through sun exposure, as they would spend hours outside everyday working in the fields, washing laundry at the creek, etc, etc. But for me, that is simply not possible. So I am going to try to get it in whatever way I can. I try to take Gus outside for an hour every day when the weather is nice. (Of course, this opens up the whole question of what is the optimal amount of time to go without sunscreen or other protection from the sun--most sources seem to say between 15 and 30 minutes. Especially since Gus is so fair compared to my own complexion! I have never had to worry about sunburn for myself, but I don't want risk him burning.) To make up the difference between what we can synthesize from the sun and what we need, especially in the winter--and, often, rainy summer!--months, I am going to give Gus vitamin D drops. (There is already vitamin D in the daily multivitamin I [try to] take since I am breastfeeding.) I don't have any problem giving these to Gus, since he is already eating solid foods--especially if I can get the kind with no sugars, flavourings, colors, etc, which don't appear to be available in the UK. But, no worries, I've got connections ;)  When we have another baby in the future (God willing!), I think I will try to get my own levels tested and then take enough supplements myself to provide a sufficient amount to the baby, so I wouldn't have to give drops before 6 months, if possible. Jon takes a multivitamin, but it doesn't seem to have vitamin D in it, so I should probably look into a separate supplement for him as well, especially since he sees the least amount of sun out of all of us!

I am really glad I have come to a conclusion regarding this issue. I was pretty sure I was going to give Gus the drops anyway, but now I feel I really understand why it is a good idea for us. What about you--do you supplement? Why or why not?