Giving Birth Soon? - An Embarassment Saving Device, edited and updated

Close to giving birth, I found my pelvic floor muscles starting to weaken, and with the baby moving around, everytime she stretched and put pressure on my bladder I would find myself bolting for the toilet!  It really hit home that this was a problem when I was walking home from the shop and stopped to talk to a friend, to have bubby press on my bladder and I lost it. It was quite embarassing to have wet myself in the street like that! My friend gave me a ride home and a towel to sit on. The next day she payed me a visit and gave me a wonderous gift I'd never have thought of - a packet of incontinence pads. At first I was almost offended, but knowing she meant well I considered the benefits - if I wore one it would save me the embarassment of having that experience happen again. I soon found they were a blessing in a few different ways:

• Losing control of my bladder by baby applying excessive pressure happened once more before I gave birth.
• When my water broke, the pad caught it all so I wasn't embarassed by that either.
• After birth, I slept for a couple of hours and when I awoke the first thing I needed to do was go to the toilet. I had put on one of these "adult nappies" before going to sleep, and thank God I did! As I stood up, every bodily fluid made a quick exit - and none of it was noticed by anyone but me.
• For a couple of days after the birth my pelvic floor muscles were still rather weak and if I coughed or sneezed, I didn't have to be embarassed by my lack of ability to retain bladder control.
• I was a heavy bleeder for a few days after the birth, and I never once had a problem with staining bedsheets or clothing.

Incontinence pads are large, bulky, and uncomfortable, but then so was I in the last month of pregnancy, so we kind of suited each other. The little bit of physical discomfort in wearing them was more than a fair price to pay for being saved from these embarassing moments. After my experience with this childbirth, with my next two children, as soon as I reached 8 months pregnant I went and bought myself a packet of incontinence pads - and I never looked back. They came in useful with every birth and I'd recommend them to every mother-to-be.

I'm now pregnant again, and once again, a packet of incontinence pads is on my shopping list!