9 Quick Ones with Louise Nordahl

Short interview with lovely Louise Nordahl @louisenordals @livetenligtlojsan about life, pregnancy, and impending parenthood

Background: Comedian, actress

First and foremost - congratulations on your pregnancy! How are you feeling?

Thank you so much! I am incredibly happy about this long-awaited little one! There's only a week left until my due date, so my body is starting to feel quite heavy and cumbersome, but I've been lucky enough to feel good even during the later part of the pregnancy, so I'm making the most of being active and doing things.

Let's start from the beginning: who is Louise Nordahl?

I work as an actress and comedian and had my "breakthrough" in media with a homemade Paradise Hotel parody on Facebook in 2014. Since then, I have worked in TV and on stage, participating in productions such as Mumbo Jumbo, Scalarevyn, Solsidan, Laxbralla, and Herr talman. But beyond that, I'm really just a happy girl from Skåne who loves country life, DIY projects, and flea markets!

Tell us about your pregnancy journey!

Our pregnancy journey turned out to be much tougher than my husband and I had anticipated. I had never really thought much about difficulties in having children, so when we started trying to start a family and it didn't happen immediately, I became quite downhearted. Months passed, and many people around us had children, which fueled the anxiety that it wasn't happening for us. After trying for a year, we finally got pregnant and were overjoyed, but at an ultrasound in week 9, we found out that the fetus had stopped growing several weeks earlier. That was the worst day of my life, and after that, the anxiety, worry, and fear continued to grow. I became depressed and often broke down emotionally. But after just three months, we received new joyful news: a small egg had implanted again, and already in week 6, we saw the little heart beating. I think I've cried tears of joy and relief at every successful ultrasound since then, and the next time I get to see my little boy will probably be when he's placed on my chest after delivery. After this journey, there's nothing I'm looking forward to more!

What has been the most fun and unexpected thing that has happened to you during pregnancy?

A fun and unexpected event was when we were traveling to Switzerland last summer, and I was so incredibly doted on by the flight crew because of my belly. First, I was offered a large bottle of water as soon as I boarded the plane, which no one else was, and when I was about to disembark, one of the flight attendants stopped me and said, "wait, I have something for you!" Then she took out a large gift bag with Swiss chocolate, handed it to me, and said, "enjoy this adventure, it will be the most amazing thing in your life." I felt so incredibly VIP-treated and realized that I would definitely miss things like this when I'm no longer pregnant.

How have you prepared for childbirth, and how does it feel?

I have tried to prepare as well as I can. Childbirth is something I have mixed feelings about; I am both extremely excited and a little nervous about how everything will feel. My husband and I have taken two courses: a private antenatal class with doula Malin Lemchen and an online childbirth preparation course through Preglife. This has given us both an enormous amount of knowledge and mental preparation. Additionally, we have read the book "Föda utan rädsla" (Giving Birth Without Fear) and I have practiced using the four tools recommended for managing fear and pain. So, in terms of knowledge, it feels like we are well-prepared now. We have also tried to create the best conditions to be ready when it starts. We have frozen lasagna portions to eat when the latent phase kicks in, so that we both get early nutrition and energy for the long, tough session ahead. I have also packed goodies, cozy clothes, my own bathrobe, electric candles, massage oil, an electric massage pillow, a head massager, etc., plus nutritious smoothies to bring for delivery so I can create as calm and relaxed an atmosphere as possible there, while continuing to get good energy during the active phase when it's usually difficult to eat proper food. Right now, it feels very good, and I feel very ready to face childbirth when it starts, and I hope I will have a positive birthing experience.

Moving on to the role of mother - what are you most/least looking forward to?

I'm so looking forward to becoming a mother; it's my biggest dream in life. I've always loved children and I'm probably still quite a child myself. I love to play and have fun, come up with exciting antics, teach children things, and spend time with children in general. So, I'm looking forward to all the baby cuddles now in the beginning when our son is small, but then I'm also really looking forward to when he gets older and we can talk to each other and do lots of activities and fun things together. What I dread, however, is the lack of sleep that many parents suffer from. I am extremely sensitive to sleep deprivation and become a completely different person when I don't get enough sleep, and I worry that it will affect what kind of parent I actually become. I'm a little afraid that my energy will be so drained that I won't be able to be the fun, happy mother I dream of being. But I will try to take advantage of every chance to sleep I get when I need it!

What do you wish you knew before pregnancy?

I knew it already, but I perhaps still wish I had been even more prepared for the fact that it can actually take time to get pregnant. Throughout life, you're taught how important it is to protect yourself from unwanted pregnancies, thus getting the impression that pregnancy happens so incredibly easily. But the fact is that many of us have to struggle and painfully long for our little children to come into the world, and it probably would have been good for me personally to have been more prepared for that from the beginning.

What do you plan to do to take care of yourself during pregnancy and the early years of parenthood?

Well, my pregnancy is almost over, but as for the time ahead, we've naturally talked a lot about how we're going to organize daily life so that everyone in the family feels as good as possible. We currently have a very fortunate work situation where I'm on full-time parental leave and my husband works part-time, which means we'll be able to share a lot of the childcare responsibilities right from the start. We are both keen to carve out a few hours a week where we can leave home and do things on our own, e.g., exercise, meet friends, and pursue hobbies. Since we are both off at the same time for several days a week, I believe and hope that we will be able to give each other that opportunity without it becoming too much of a strain for the one at home. When we have the space to not only be parents but also individuals, we will hopefully appreciate the time we spend with our son even more.

Last but not least, how do you view the future now as an expectant parent - what are your dreams and expectations?

I hope we have a son who is healthy and happy, and hopefully eats and sleeps well so that we have a calm start to life with a small child. But of course, that's nothing one can control, so we'll take it as it comes. I also hope that my husband and I will be able to handle the sleep situation well, so that we can keep our spirits up with each other and our child even when it feels physically and mentally challenging. Then I dream that we will soon find a house in Skåne and be able to start life as a family with a small child there, and in the long run be able to get pregnant again without having to go through the same struggle as the first time. But - to conclude with some positive words about this entire journey, I am so incredibly happy that it was this little guy who chose to come to us in the end, and when there was no baby the first time, we instead got another addition to the family in the form of the world's most beautiful little cat, Doris. So this particular family would not have existed if things hadn't happened exactly the way they did, and despite all the sorrow, I am grateful for that in many ways.