Baby Blues

No, I'm not sad and I don't have the blues... what I do have is a birthing play list.

If you are making a funny face at my blog right now, I don't blame you. It may sound a little strange to make a soundtrack to one of the most painful experiences of your life, but here's the kicker: it's supposed to help you relax.

For the past 12 weeks, Bobby and I have been attending classes for The Bradley Method of child birth. They advocate for a completely natural, unmedicated childbirth experience, along with healthy nutrition during pregnancy, and breastfeeding after pregnancy. All good things, right? We chose this method for several reasons (I mainly chose it since I'm the one who has to actually give birth!), but the main reason was because they also advocate their methods to be "husband-coached," meaning Bobby has to attend classes, help me with the exercises, and be my support during labor. We got into this pregnancy together, and I'll be darned if we're going to get out of this pregnancy together!

I could sing songs about these classes... even if you are not planning on an unmedicated childbirth, the information alone has been SO helpful. A lot of my fear of childbirth was a result of not knowing what my body was doing and how labor would go. I'm so thankful for these classes, which have calmed my nerves about a non-medicated birth. It has also made me realize more and more that women's bodies were MADE for childbirth. We don't have big hips for nothing!!! In the bible, Jesus also promises us that he won't give us anything more than we can handle. Equipped with this promise and the techniques we've learned in class, I feel hopeful and confident.

Back to the point: the play list. The crux of the Bradley Method is relaxation. Sounds good, right? I don't know about you, but music is a big contributor to my relaxation in general. When I've had a bad day at work, I listen to some calming music. When I'm running or walking, I listen to more upbeat music. When I'm trying to go to sleep or on an airplane, I listen to classical music. So my goal for creating a play list to help me relax during labor was to come up with (several hours worth of) calming music. Emphasis on "several hours worth."

Just for kicks and giggles, I thought I'd share my top song selections with you to give you an idea. Perhaps if you're looking for some calming music yourself, you can plug into iTunes and get them for yourself. Some of the couples in the class chose only classical music, but that's not something I normally listen to, so I chose songs of different genres to settle my nerves.

Enjoy!

"Your Love is Extravagant" - The Almost
"Clair de Lune" - From the Twilight Soundtrack
"You and Me" - Dave Matthews Band
"How He Loves" - Jared Anderson
"Penelope's Theme" - The Brothers Bloom Soundtrack
"For the Summer" - Ray LaMontagne
"Here Comes the Sun" - Beatles
"The Wind Cries Mary" - Jimi Hendrix
"Raining in Baltimore" - Counting Crows
"Disco" - Howie Day
"If I Fell in Love With You" - Beatles
"Bruised" - The Bens
"She's got a Way" - Billy Joel
"Desperado" - The Eagles
"Lay Baby Lay" - Bob Dylan
"Tupelo Honey" - Van Morrison
"One for my Baby" - Frank Sinatra
"Landslide" - Stevie Nicks
"She's Only Happy in the Sun" - Ben Harper
"Breathe" - Taylor Swift
"Carolina on my Mind" - James Taylor
"Stir it Up" - Bob Marley
"Sherpa" - Bela Fleck & The Flecktones
"Pitseleh" - Elliott Smith
"Sweet Afton" - Nickel Creek
"Kingdom Come" - Coldplay
"Sail Away" - David Gray
"Please, Please, Please" - The Smiths

That's a pretty good summary. I have about 5 hours worth of music on my play list, but I'm still adding to it. We've been going to sleep to the list every night so I can get used to the songs being soothing. So far, so good! Now if only I didn't have to get up every other hour to use the bathroom, I'd be all set :)

Any suggestions for more soothing songs? I'm all ears and have a few more iTunes gift cards to burn through!