so here it is, a new home for us newly updiffed ladies or still seeking that golden egg after a mc part 3

Hello again
I just thought I would share this link that the midwife gave me about breastfeeding.
It is a series of videos that follow 4 ladies as they prepare for and then breastfeed. Really good! The videos are listed down the left hand side.

Morning!!

A chilly one here! Dd was most impressed to see snowflakes on the cars computer-y thing until I pointed out it only meant it was cold and that 3ft of snow was imminent thank goodness.

worm I measured 3 wks ahead at a similar stage. Had consultant a week later and his junior (not sure what her title was!) who did all the standard checks measured me 5 weeks ahead!!! Then the mw did it and got 3wks again. Was measured a couple of weeks ago when I had a really bad headache and was spot on. So obviously just a growth spurt. It's sooo inaccurate, as are growth scans. Good luck with the floor, sounds a nightmare!!

yellow mmm cake! I'm obsessed with custard - custard tarts and custard danishes..... Glad mw went well. I had my flu jab on Wednesday. Personally, I had to. I still blame the flu and not being able to control my temp with just paracetamol for my mmc last January. They said the baby died at 7wks which is exactly when I had the flu. I've been a bit paranoid about germs tbh, but feel a tad better having had the jab.

wellie yes wombat is right, you're have to start the next thread .

I had chiro last night. Well not really chiro as she doesn't manipulate me, but two weird treatments!! Firstly with tuning forks, which makes bug wriggle like mad, but they change tone significantly when they get to my sore pelvis and then Cranial Laser Therapy. Had the crappiest nights sleep, I literally saw every hour but wouldn't get out of my cosy bed, and it's agony but hoping it'll settle down and I'll get a good improvement. I'd better do at £25 for 15mins.....

Morning all

I've bought a selection of pastries to keep us going....I'm really liking those with white icing on at the moment...not sure what they are called but there is a lemony one that has a sort of swirly pattern with raisins and icing....yum yum...dreamy.....right where was I?

harassed thanks for all the info......really useful. My advice (for what it's worth) is that your health is more important than any sort of loyalty to a job where the boss seems to be a bit of an arse unsympathetic

worm I'm not sure how accurate all this measuring business is....try not to worry and let's just hope it'll all be fine. I've heard lots of stories of the measurements being totally off even by as much as 2llbs! Hope the hall situation works out...don't have any advice, I'm lost with that kind of thing but I'm hoping for the best for you!

i had my midwife appt yesterday, the third midwife I've seen so far but she seems v nice. Apparently it'll be her to the end.......I measured 24cm which as I'm 25 weeks is fine....heartbeat all good etc. I'm still undecided on the flu jab but I think I'm more against than for....it's so difficult to know. Midwife said I should but I knew she'd say that. i also asked about the birthing centre ie if it was likely to be full on the day and she said most people opt for an epidural so the centre and esp the birthing pool are very under used. It is more likely that the labour ward will be full. so that reassured me a bit.

I've found a lovely new tea, lemon and ginger. It's lovely and warming and feels to me like something that will ward off colds [deluded emotions]

happy friday everyone!

Well hello there my lovely Ladies, how the devil are we today?

Working until 37 weeks harassed !! blimey! I am off next week for half term, then only back for 3 weeks pricisely 12 shifts left! I will be 33 weeks ish. I wanted 6 weeks off before the CS date. So if you were me you would only have a fortnight left!! I love how you have found a healing chocolate!
My pelvis has thankfully fixed itself for the time being.

You guys are all so well informed! it is seriously impressive. When I had my first aged 24 I didn't research a thing! just bumbled along blindly!! I honestly didn't have a clue what I was doing. You ladies already know far more than me and you havn't even given birth yet. So no I am not keeping anything from you sparkly

Glad to hear from you wellie, wombat is right it's almost time for you to name the new thread, so get your thinking cap on

So I had my 28 week appointment yesterday and bump is measuring 2 weeks bigger than it should it is just on the 90th centile line and apparently if it goes over that I will be refered for a consultant appointment and scan. Next time they check though I will be 34 weeks, and due to see the consultant 2 weeks later for booking the section.
I am praying she has just measured wrong! as 2 weeks earlier than DD is boxing day!!! or does it just mean it will be a bigger baby?? sounds like even more of an excuse to get that 4d scan to me.

Can you remember ages ago I asked for advise on what to do with my hall floor? Well I had a disaster! DH sanded it all down to remove all the old varnish and the plan was to use a lovely darker wood dye called jacobean oak and then a matt clear varnish on the top.
Well once it was all sanded and I put the dye on it didn't take all over and had orangey patches all over it where there must still be some old varnish. It looks truely awful! So now I have primed it and am going to paint it today.
it is too long to carpet at 5 and a half mtrs it would cost a bomb! Wish me luck!!

Despite working in engineering I'm actually a qualified massage therapist! I'm just re-doing my course at home to update my qualifications, just in case . I did the Aromatherapy course, but didn't take the final exam as I was preg with dd and they weren't happy for me to mix & massage with gloves on and I didn't want to be exposed to anything that could harm dd. I also do Reiki and am doing another at home course in Auricular therapy which is a bit like acupuncture but on the ear and without needles!

I'm 31 weeks today! Was planning to give up at 37 weeks, but am re-assessing that lol. I've still got a weeks holiday left too. Will see how it goes x

Wow - that's really helpful - thank you v much harassed - have you thought about making money out of all this wonderful knowledge you have? How many weeks are you now and when are you thinking of giving up work? Please do try and take it a wee bit easy when you can x

You'll all be fine! As if Worm and I would keep anything from you....[hhmm]. It can't be that bad or we wouldn't be doing it again!

I tried nipple tweaking with dd as she was over due, and I did get lots of braxton hicks but nothing else really. She's still always running behind 5yrs later and lucky to be alive after this morning.

Did any of you see the thread about dtd in labour?!! I'll see if I can find it....

sparkly sounds like dh should be massaging your back now!! If you have a bit of a feel yourself, that are two quite hollow spots either side of your spine and just above hip/pelvis area. A good wiggle with his fists in there will really help now, and get him to remember that for labour too!! I think I might have a massage "routine" at home, will have a look.

yellow sorry, totally forgot about the hypnobirthing links, these are the ones I've got.
I can normally eat chocolate (for England!), just it gives me really bad heartburn now! Unlike custard tarts which are current craving . Glad the pains have gone, I'm sure it's just stretching, but they freak me out too if that helps. We had mince pies at the weekend.... yum!

wellie lovely to hear you sounding so positive!! And sounds like a good plan. Not heard about the iodine before, sounds interesting though x

wombat jojoba is fine to use, but rose should only be used after 6mths preg as it is an emmenagogue (induces menstruation) and then diluted. Geranium is generally ok after 6mths, but not recommended if there's a history of mc! So you might want to stop using your oil...... This link gives a comprehensive list of oils to avoid, and this one some ideas. Maybe blend your own? It's really easy, I can help with that.

Not too bad here, just bloody sore. Not sure how long I'm going to be able to stay at work tbh, especially as it means I can't do anything in the evenings so far. Had yoga last night and the class teacher (one of our mw's) said I should just give up..... I've got too much to do though and still no replacement!!!

Just a quicky hello all wave .
When I was 5 days overdue with ds I went to bed after reading googles advice about nip tweaking so did it for about 5 mins them boom contractions !
Then when they stopped at the hosp I did it again and boom again!
In hindsight I wish I had done it in the morning as 17 hours later and fully dilated I still ended up with a cs.

P.S. Glad to hear the pains have stopped yellow.

Waves madly to wellie - great to hear from you and how fab that you have a plan that you're feeling so optimistic about - we will be sending many positive vibes across the oceans to assist in miniwelliemaking and we're getting closer to that magic 1000 post mark so you can start the next thread which, is scientifically proven to produce a bfp

I have hear that nipple tweaking can bring on labour yellow but according to some books, should be used with caution in the later weeks - I think you can still enjoy your nipple clamps for now - oh, sorry, I had you confused there with worm for a while.....! hee hee.

Had to at sparkly's comments on our naivety and the kindness being shown by worm and harassed.... we watched a discovery science programme last night on birth that made my rose tinted glasses a little clearer - all 3 women featured had epidurals and the look on one woman's face as she cleared the shoulders had me wincing like anything!

Re: the hormones- there are 3 main ones at play during labour - oxytocin, adrenaline and endorphins. The trick is to keep the levels of oxytocin up (as this is what makes the contractions) and also to keep the endorphins up (as these are natural pain relievers). Keep the adrenaline down as this will "take over" from the other two and therefore can slow down or even temporarily stop the labour and suppress your natural pain killers. Tricks to keeping adrenaline low are to normalise things as much as possible e.g. wear an old familiar nightie, take in your own pillow from home and what kept getting hammered home was to stay at home as long as possible (I think this is more relevant here as they like to medicalise things quickly here so you could end up with all sorts of interventions before you can say "but Ina May says....." Tensing up against the contractions will also raise adrenaline levels so we should "welcome" them as much as possible. My midwife friend said that pound for pound, the uterus at full term is the most powerful muscle in the body and to harness the power of that muscle and when pushing time comes, aim for 3 big pushes during one contraction and rest properly in between.

Hope this helps a little..... 5 weeks today for me and counting - gulp!

Ooh harassed - have been meaning to ask you as guru of all things alternative therapy related. I was getting really fed up of the smell of bio oil so used some yummy Burt's Bees mum to be oil instead that was grapefruit and something that was divine but ran out of that (it was a pressie from sis in law from UK) and so have gone onto using Boots organics range Jojoba oil - also nice smell - do you think jojoba is ok? I think it lists rose and geranium too. I hope so as apart from anything else, it's a third of the price of bio oil!

Waves to all! xx

Did someone say 'nipple tweaking' What does that do then?

Hello ladies :)

This is the new optimistic me checking in - back on my folate and iodine pill ( - they recommend iodine here, makes the baby brainy or something, I dunno), our couple of months off so that we know we can get back home in June for my grandma's 80th :o is coming to an end, and having spoken to the specialist the other week, we have decided to have lots of fun and plenty of SWI for the next 6 months, and not think about assisted options unless nothing happens after that time. We are feeling quite hopeful and like we have a plan :)

harassed and worm boo to the sore pelvis, hope you are bearing up ok xxx

sorry you've had worries yellow and wombat, hope you are calmer now, thinking of you xx

waves to everyone else - have great weeks :)

sparkles and don't mock the nipple tweaking, it really works!!

Forgot to say wombat please do share!

Evening all

Thanks for the reassurance/advice, all cramps have gone now and I have had normal movement today so that's a big phew.

wombat it's good you listened to your body and it could just be you are not 100% today and so the little one is a bit sleepy too. I agree though, wish there was a way to tell for sure.

sparkly have you considered one of those belt thing-ys that are meant to support back/bump or something. I've seen them highly recommended.

harassed can you never eat chocolate or just when pg? What a nightmare for you.

I got mince pies from the supermarket today, not too early to have them hot with double cream is it?

Share Wombat, share! I am keen to unlock my gates of life! Ina reckons you can think your cervix open, found myself asking it to stay shut for the meantime until I get the nursery decorated.
Was reflecting earlier that us first-timers on the thread are all excited about harnassing the power of our caves and getting by on air and aeros, and Worm and Harassed (welcome back, we missed you!) are maintaining a very polite silence, having done it all before. It's almost like they are keeping something from us! Thank you both for not removing our rose-tinted specs and stamping on them whilst cackling manically!
Yellow, any weird pain seems to be normal unless it truly worries you, search within and try to disgard all the reading we have now done which is half-reassuring and half inclined to indicate the onset of premature labour! My lower back aches quite a bit as it is supporting both Monts and a couple of 38GG's (dh will be massaging it when I am in labour, inbetween tweaking my nipples and snogging my face off, thanks to Ina) but not had any period-like cramping that I can recall, more occasional sharp....not pains, sensations. Do call the midwife or triage if you are concerned, beneath the sometimes cool and patronising exteriors lie words of experience and wisdom, and hearts of melty chocolate.

Yoohoo harassed - good to have you back. How is it being back at work - not toooooo awful I hope.... and I hope your boss sorts his stupid attitude out.

I've not had the cramping and period pains since early days yellow but everyone is different. How are the movements these days?

Only managed 3/4 of the aqua class this morning - just didn't feel 100%. Still did the pg yoga class this afternoon as it was 1:1 and she knows me well and I know when to stop / start certain poses although junior has been a wee bit quiet today - I wish there was an easy ways of knowing that everything is ok.....

Antenatal was good last night - the guys and gals divided into 2 separate rooms to draw up lists of what is expected of a birth partner. We managed to sneak "champagne and diamond provider" onto ours . There was useful stuff about the role of hormones in labour that I can share if anyone is interested.

yellow I'll post the hypnobirthing links when I get home, they're on my laptop. Boss and I had a bit of a conversation on the phone on Friday. He said something about getting tripwires out and I said I'd just bring HSE with me... No comments since!

Crampy period pains are normal, although feel worrying! I've had loads, and also have the lower niggly back ache since being back at work. I think it's all stretching stuff!! I have really painful ribs, which freaked me out as it's a sign of pre-eclampsia, but it's also something called rib flares apparently which is your ribs getting pushed out of the way.......

I can't eat chocolate although I'd love to. It gives me the worst heartburn ever, worse than a hot curry. Minty Aero is fine though... the mint must negate the chocolate .

Afternoon all

harassed welcome back......sorry to hear about all the pain and mentalness...how's it going today at work? How has your boss been behaving? if you do have links to free CD's I'd be interested. I only got one CD with the class and I've been listening to it every night but it might get a bit boring by the end of Jan so it could be good to have some variation!

sparkly you're right, the book is a bit hippy, I kind of liked the image of a cave with the sea rushing in.....I haven't made much progress with it yet though. Got my birthing ball blown up last night so I'll do some bouncing later. I generally prefer lying on the sofa but I think I need to do something with the ball rather than just sit on it.

kool I added you on facebook and you accepted. Hurrah we are friends...but my profile is v limited and I tend not to post as there are people on there that I wouldn't want to share stuff with IYSWIM. I really recommend yoga.....for me the class is 7 -9 pm which means I don't get home til late and am really tired the next day, however, I highly recommend it in terms of relaxing and stretching out my back. I want to start doing a little bit every day which I think will help me avoid getting too much back pain later on [optimistic emotion]

I'm having slight, crampy period like pains today and slight lower back ache. Should I panic or is this normal? I'm eating a kit kat to see if that helps. I've also got a selection of dark chocolate truffles and one of those krispy cornflake chocolate tubs from M and S if anyone wants some?

Nurse & Mana congratulations on your little girls!! You're now in for a life of pink glitteryness...... You too Yellow

Yellow it's good that dh is paying attention to pain relief, you won't be thinking straight eventually! Especially during transition. I was trying to go home with dd . Dh said the worst thing was seeing me in pain and not being able to do anything, so maybe your dh realises this and is trying to take some control iykwim.

Can't remember who was asking about eating during labour, but I've never wanted to! Your bowels are meant to have a bit of a clear out pre-labour, although expect poohing in labour , and I think you won't feel like eating so that your body can concentrate everything on pushing out baby and not digesting food. Take something for afterwards though, you'll be starving!!

Worm I love Violet! I have a friend with a dd called that, it's so pretty.

Sparkly I can't read Ina May seriously.......

emma I loved having my doppler!! My tip is that if you can't find the hb, then look lower down. I was quite surprised how low down tbh. Plus you may be awkward like me and have an anterior placenta.....

I'm a bit of all your antenatal/hypnobirthing classes. I don't get anything . NCT round here is not my bag at all, so we're going to pay someone. She's a mw and I've met her loads of times but she does private one to one lessons, where she comes to your house. I thought this would be really useful given the dodgy pelvis, and the consultant wants to induce on my edd (22 Dec) but I'm prob going to refuse that. I've downloaded some hypnobirthing stuff and will do it from home as there isn't a class round here that I can make. Found some free ones the other day if anyone's interested. A friend of a friend delivered her first at home and weighing 11lb 4oz with just hypnobirthing...... gotta be worth a try!

Thanks Wombat glad to know I'm not loopy!
Worm love Violet, such a pretty name.

Good luck to all with the hypno birthing, friends did it and said it really helped although there is a certain stage where you just say "let me stop now, i promise I will come back and finish it off tomorrow"!

Love the "Gates of Life" have never heard it called that before!

I can imagine getting really stressed with the doppler too, what if I can't find a HB, I will be te first to A&E!! oh well it's ordered now so will let you know how I get on...

I have brought some scones with jam & cream for a late night snack :)

Hi ladies......

Huuuugest apologies for going AWOL, took a big step back from MN and have been only occasionally posting in Preg board.

I'm back to work today after being signed off by doc for 4 weeks. It's rested my pelvis, but not made much of an improvement, but it's done my head no favours at all!!! I've been sooo hormonal and moody. I can't do anything!! At least here I can sit at my pc and work, then get up when I need to. So I'm giving it a go, and just seeing how it goes. GP will sign me off again if need be.

Ha ha - just spat my tea out at the "gates of life" massage quip sparkly! Having said that, I'm quite tempted to part with some money for that book - soooo many people have recommended it and let's face it, if MI5 agents are reading it, it must be good!

So glad you've checked in emma - I was wondering how you were getting on. I was a nightmare between 12 and 20 weeks and even a 16 week scan didn't do much to reassure me so if a doppler helps with that difficult period, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it. Hope work is not tooooo stressful - can you get some help somewhere along the line?

kool - you are so there with the yoga already - perhaps wear the bottoms to bed though as then you'll be deep breathing too! I have a 1:1 yoga session tomorrow which I'm def looking forward to - have been waking up feeling like an old Granny. Did some light swimming this morning which has helped a lot. Have added you as a friend on fb by the way.

I'm wondering how star and marathon are doing - give us a wave if you're still around ladies!

Leaves out double chocolate cup cakes with hundreds and thousands - will that suffice sparkly?!

Aw, busy weekend ladies and lots of good news, though a bit short on the snacking front!
Worm, so chuffed for you and ds, little genius. Nice for you to have affirmed that he is naturally bright too, and not coached to extremes, so he should do really well and not find it too daunting.
Yellow, glad all is well with you. I'm reading Ina May too and finding it inspirational, if a little hippy; the woman massaging her 'gates of life' I could have done without It has made me really look forward to the experience, I just hope I find it life-affirming and profound, and not painful, exhausting and bewildering. I shall channel positive thoughts and start listening to my hypno-cd asap. Not sure about all the walking that is recommended once contractions start, I'd pictured myself on the sofa with a tin of Quality Street I bet your dh is just relieved that there are pain relief options out there and he knows a bit more about them, most men feel like spare parts I think and grasp at anything scientific, plus he'll be stressing about the thought of you in pain. You just focus on your gates of life!
Wombat, sorry you had the wobble, sounds like me a couple of weeks ago and you do feel a bit foolish when all turns out well, but imagine the alternative. Not worth the risk. it's nice hearing little'uns heartbeat for longer too isn't it, like they are there in the room with you. Monts still very active and dancing around to Girls Aloud earlier which has worried dh slightly
No other news but thought I'd drop off some pain au raisins and cappucinos for those who dare! Oodles of positive vibes to you Wellie, and hugs to you and everyone else, feeling soppy x

Hello, so sporadic at the moment as work has been really stressful :(
Hope you are all enjoying the antenatel experiences! I remember with DD it being very surreal.

Still feeling pretty tense as sickness has gone and although I still look big(ger) I just don't feel pregnant - I know I am over the biggest hurdle but I can't wait to get to the next scan!

Think we will get a doppler as I am now 14.5 weeks...

Kool I think if you are wearing the yoga bottoms you are 1/2 way there - deep breathing next!