Picking up poo and other confessions
You know that game you play as a kid where you go around the circle saying, "Never have I ever..." and you complete the sentence with something outrageous you've never done. For example, someone might say, "Never have I ever cheated on a test." People who have, will lose a point and this usually brings about the candid sharing of the event. You usually start off with 5 points and you lose points as the game continues. You're out once you're out of points.
As a parent, I realize there a few things I can now say I have done that I never thought I would do before I had Josh. Below is a just a few of those things. I wonder if any other Mums relate.
Things I'd never done till I became a parent.
1. Picked up poo with my bare hands
This was pretty gross. I was preparing Josh for his bath and as I was taking Joshua's diaper off, a solid chunk of poo up and fell on to the bathroom floor. With one arm handling an overexcited 10 month old who has super fast hands, I had no choice but to pick up the poo with my other free and bare hand and chuck it in the toilet bowl. It was a short moment, but a gross one.
It's one thing cleaning wet poo, it's another thing picking up solid poo with your fingers. I remember the feel of its semi-hard texture, the bumpy bits on its surface and dark patches of what I assumed was the spinach he ate the day before.
Needless to say, I went a little overboard with the antibacterial hand soap after.
2. Felt like a cow (graphic content ahead)
Breastfeeding. Some people love it, some people hate it. I think I've always had mixed feelings. I like it cause it's convenient and yes, it feels nice to have a snuggle but it wasn't all fun and games.
I remember the day that I pushed Josh out. I had spent the past 8 hours in labour and after successfully delivering Josh, was wheeled to my ward (that was shared with 3 other women and their 3 other newborns). I was exhausted from well, giving birth but a lactation nurse said that we needed to express milk for Josh as his blood sugars were low.
She got Sam around and the both of them literally went for my boobs. There I lay, bare-chested as they expressed milk from me. I listened as she explained the technique and I kid you not, I truly felt like a cow. A tired, tired cow with very little milk. I was so tired I fell asleep while they extracted whatever colostrum they could. I woke up the next day, and the 'milking' continued.
Thankfully in the third or fourth day my milk came in and then the opposite was the problem. I was leaking (oh hello wet patches). And I still felt like a cow.
3. Woken up at ungodly hours
In the second month, I remember praying every night that Josh would sleep through. It was a selfish prayer, but an extremely desperate one too. I'd try bargaining with God about how I'd let him be a missionary to India when he grew up, if he just slept through the night. Didn't happen.
I was up every 2 hours. I know people have had it worse, but I think struggling with postpartum depression made everything a monstrous task. Especially at 3 am.
4. Have irrational worries
This one is something Sam and I found we have in common. It started when I was pregnant, I'd be walking up the stairs in school and imagine myself buckling over and tumbling down. Now that Josh is born, we have these scary thoughts that some freak accident would happen to Josh. For example, I'd be walking across a monsoon drain and worry that I'd fall while carrying Josh and the concrete would crack his head right open. Yes, they were extremely detailed and scary in a way that thinking about it, made my hair stand and my heart stop.
Sam and I would share our horror stories and suddenly be extra careful for the moments that followed. I wonder if there's a science behind this phenomenon.
5. Laugh so hard at someone so little
Amidst the low moments of living with PND/A, there were some pretty hilarious ones. Joshua provided Sam and I with a new kind of entertainment. His clueless expressions, his funny habits, his little mannerisms made us laugh till our bellies hurt. Of course, there were times where we were the culprits. Like the time we mimed him singing while he was asleep, or the time we forced a pomelo hat on him or made animal noises in the dark just to see how he would react. Nevertheless, he was a true sport, most of the time.
So there, a quick list of some new experiences since becoming a mum. Some are great, some take getting used to but in the end, all are worth it. Especially number 5.
As a parent, I realize there a few things I can now say I have done that I never thought I would do before I had Josh. Below is a just a few of those things. I wonder if any other Mums relate.
Things I'd never done till I became a parent.
1. Picked up poo with my bare hands
This was pretty gross. I was preparing Josh for his bath and as I was taking Joshua's diaper off, a solid chunk of poo up and fell on to the bathroom floor. With one arm handling an overexcited 10 month old who has super fast hands, I had no choice but to pick up the poo with my other free and bare hand and chuck it in the toilet bowl. It was a short moment, but a gross one.
It's one thing cleaning wet poo, it's another thing picking up solid poo with your fingers. I remember the feel of its semi-hard texture, the bumpy bits on its surface and dark patches of what I assumed was the spinach he ate the day before.
Needless to say, I went a little overboard with the antibacterial hand soap after.
2. Felt like a cow (graphic content ahead)
Breastfeeding. Some people love it, some people hate it. I think I've always had mixed feelings. I like it cause it's convenient and yes, it feels nice to have a snuggle but it wasn't all fun and games.
I remember the day that I pushed Josh out. I had spent the past 8 hours in labour and after successfully delivering Josh, was wheeled to my ward (that was shared with 3 other women and their 3 other newborns). I was exhausted from well, giving birth but a lactation nurse said that we needed to express milk for Josh as his blood sugars were low.
She got Sam around and the both of them literally went for my boobs. There I lay, bare-chested as they expressed milk from me. I listened as she explained the technique and I kid you not, I truly felt like a cow. A tired, tired cow with very little milk. I was so tired I fell asleep while they extracted whatever colostrum they could. I woke up the next day, and the 'milking' continued.
Thankfully in the third or fourth day my milk came in and then the opposite was the problem. I was leaking (oh hello wet patches). And I still felt like a cow.
 |
| The fabulous look of a two week old Mum assuming whatever posture it takes to get her baby to sleep. |
In the second month, I remember praying every night that Josh would sleep through. It was a selfish prayer, but an extremely desperate one too. I'd try bargaining with God about how I'd let him be a missionary to India when he grew up, if he just slept through the night. Didn't happen.
I was up every 2 hours. I know people have had it worse, but I think struggling with postpartum depression made everything a monstrous task. Especially at 3 am.
4. Have irrational worries
This one is something Sam and I found we have in common. It started when I was pregnant, I'd be walking up the stairs in school and imagine myself buckling over and tumbling down. Now that Josh is born, we have these scary thoughts that some freak accident would happen to Josh. For example, I'd be walking across a monsoon drain and worry that I'd fall while carrying Josh and the concrete would crack his head right open. Yes, they were extremely detailed and scary in a way that thinking about it, made my hair stand and my heart stop.
Sam and I would share our horror stories and suddenly be extra careful for the moments that followed. I wonder if there's a science behind this phenomenon.
5. Laugh so hard at someone so little
Amidst the low moments of living with PND/A, there were some pretty hilarious ones. Joshua provided Sam and I with a new kind of entertainment. His clueless expressions, his funny habits, his little mannerisms made us laugh till our bellies hurt. Of course, there were times where we were the culprits. Like the time we mimed him singing while he was asleep, or the time we forced a pomelo hat on him or made animal noises in the dark just to see how he would react. Nevertheless, he was a true sport, most of the time.
So there, a quick list of some new experiences since becoming a mum. Some are great, some take getting used to but in the end, all are worth it. Especially number 5.
Comments
Post a Comment