Postnatal Ward Hell

[MoneyM]

AIBU in suggesting that postnatal wards are literally hell on earth? Baby born today - stuck in a room with snorers, loud texters, newborn babies being left to cry it out...not to mention the incessant succession of beeps and buzzers. And the intense heat!!

Congratulations on your baby!

And yes, they're absolutely miserable. I was in one for two days after my son was born. It was nothing but listening to other people snore and babies cry while sweating horribly because of the heat. I have no idea why they need to have those wards hotter than the sun.

I didn't manage to sleep at all while I was in there, so I was completely frazzled when I went home.

I hear you... gave birth 2 months ago. After 4 days on the antenatal ward for a failed induction and then 3 days on postnatal after an EMCS I felt like I was going mad, kept crying and was really struggling to feed. The staff were really caring but so busy, obviously rushed off their feet so felt bad when I had to press the buzzer for pain relief or breastfeeding help. Breastfeeding was really difficult and I gave it up sooner than I wanted because there just wasn't enough time for them to help me.

The other people on the ward never seemed to shut up, the couple in the bay next to me watched Brooklyn 99 all day and night for 2 days on loud I'll never watch that show again.

All these experiences sound awful 😭I had my second baby two weeks ago and I'm so grateful that our hospital doesn't have wards in the birth centre any more, it's all private rooms and was amazing to be in your own room. Partners have a pull down bed in your room. They do kick you out pretty quickly though, I was home just over 24 hours after having a c section and I wish I'd asked to stay one more night.

My first was emergency section and a midwife took my baby off me to let me sleep and I hated every second. Now no way would I allow it but I felt I had no say . As if I was going to sleep away from him and I had no idea where he was.

I hear you! I had DS one is a big horrible city hospital. We moved and I had DS2 in a lovely cottage hospital at my local maternity unit and I had my own lovely room and nice food. So much better.

They have since shut down my local maternity unit.

They are horrible! I was put in one waiting to be induced for my first and was there for days with all the noise of babies, visitors, inconsiderate families, beeps, disruptions etc. The day after giving birth and having emergency surgery, I demanded that I be released with baby. Second baby I begged them not to put me there again and they were lovely and put me in the birthing centre after and it was like a night in a hotel in comparison. The hospital offered private rooms for £170 a night and I would have paid that to avoid that ward for just one night! I hope you get out soon!

I hated it. Was induced at 12am, had baby at 17.30 so had had no sleep for 48hours. It was ridiculously hot. I got on the the ward at 9pm and proceeded to ask time and time again for help to breastfeed. At one point I was in tears asking for help to feed and the midwife said she'd come back in a minute, never saw her again! By the time I was discharged at 5.30pm (24 hours after birth) I still had not had support to breastfeed. I got no sleep. The woman in the bed next to me was a heavy sleeper and her baby screamed for so long, no one did anything. The woman on the other side had young kids who when they visited played baby shark on her phone at full blast over and over again. Other patients husbands using the patient only toilet so it was constantly occupied and I had to hobble to the visitors toilet. Being made to leave my newborn while I went to get food. I basically told them at 5pm I was leaving in 30 mins discharge paperwork or no discharge paperwork. I hope you get out soon!

I’m beginning to realise how lucky I was to be in a room with only 3 others!

I honestly think these wards are why breastfeeding rates are so low. Also because they don't tell people it is not all or nothing. If you formula feed in there a few times, you can still go on to successfully breastfeed. With my first she chewed big blisters on my nipples that were agony, was offered no help, so after 24 hours I told them I was just going to bottle feed her to get out of there. Got discharged quickly, then asked for help from friends as I was flowing liquid. A friend who had fed 5 children who were all older came right away after telling me over the phone how to use my hands to pump and siphon off the liquid into a sterile bottle and then she brought over some syringes to get us started and stayed there all night with her helping me with the baby, all night, at every feed. I wasn't getting her to open her mouth wide enough to latch well on the breast, that was all that was wrong, quite an easy fix, and she would fuss because she wasn't being satisfied so she taught me to take her off and calm her a bit with the syringes and try again and again until we got it straight. I persevered and with her continued help and that of friends went on to never give her another bottle, she went onto a sippy cup when I went back to work when she was 1. That's all we needed, someone experienced to sit there and help and help and teach us.

A hot, crowded ward full of people all day and night is not conducive to sitting up with your top uncovered most of the time and doing the skin to skin and practice that a lot of new mums need to successfully breastfeed. With my second I got lucky and discharged right off the delivery unit as there was no way I wanted to go back to that awful ward.

I self discharged at 2am they weren't happy with me as DD wasn't feeding well but by the time they came to help me she had always screamed herself back to sleep and I had 2 hours sleep in 30 at this point!

I had my own room as I was section, but my last night was spent on the ward. The couple next to me arrived back at midnight and proceeded to whisper loudly to each other and it went on for ages! Drove me up the wall. I hope you get home soon OP and congrats

I agree that the wards are not conducive to breastfeeding and I'm sure that it doesn't help the low rates we have. To breastfeed you need to be comfortable and not constantly worrying that someone might wander in.

May I recommend throwing up on a bounty photographer? They’ll move you to a side room sharpish, and you can have some peace and quiet

I spent 10 days on a post natal ward. They’ve yet to make a horror film that matches the nightmare that it was. Once baby was home, he even cried differently, I think because the ward was so overheated. Tell them you’ve plenty of support at home and get out of there. Congrats!

Congratulations! Absolutely horrible places. I completely understand that the staff are overworked etc but with all 4 babies I was made to feel awful by staff, ignored, shamed, humiliated.

I felt so sorry for the first timers around me who didn’t stand up for themselves or their rights. My first born post natal care was my worst mostly due to the staff who were supposed to be “caring” for us.

As long as you and baby are happy and healthy get home! Community midwives will look after you.

I had to go back for surgery with no4 due to retained placenta. I refused to go back on postnatal Ward after and stayed in labour ward in own room for 3 nights! Given they’d messed up as you shouldn’t have retained placenta in a c-section they were happy to oblige. And they Docs couldn’t be sure of care and if staff would notice if I bled out

Yes definitely!! Congratulations on your little one. Ask for a side room!

My husband broke me out after the staff left me to crawl on my hands and knees back from the toilet after an epidural and no food for 48 hours. Neither baby nor I were safe there.

Congratulations on the birth of your baby!

Yes it’s hell, I was 16 when had my first child, was treated like absolute shit by every staff member, this was late 90’s, my DD was born early May, it was freezing cold & I was put on a ward on my own, 7 other empty beds, I didn’t dare leave her to go for my meals so I relied on my parents & BF now DH at the time for food, student nurse wrote I refused to feed my DD (I didn’t) I wanted to breastfeed but was just dumped & the buzzer never answered!

I stayed in 3 days, it got that cold sheets were put along the windowsils, the toilets were flooded with about an inch of water too!

I had an awful midwife speak to me telling me I wouldn’t be able to look after my own baby & I had terrible PND because of it but I hid from my HV because I was scared my DD would be taken off me given my age!

I was stuck in there for 5days and nights. It only added to my post natal ptsd

My oldest baby is 28, seems nothing has changed in all those years!

I was very lucky to be in a side room just after I gave birth. That evening when I was dozing, the doors burst open like a police raid and someone shouted that they would have to move me to the ward because they didn't have enough staff to look after me in the side room. I was bundled out , wheeled into the ward and left. A woman in the next bed had just shelled her 5th and was snoring like a pig. I asked for a sleeping pill and for my baby to go into the night nursery. I slept like a baby and discharged myself the next day. The awful thing was, the staff made a makeshift dummy from a bottle teat and shoved it in my baby's mouth to keep him quiet overnight.

I do agree but still dreaded going home each time to the madness and mess of my house!! I liked being in hospital spending time with just the baby and being looked after (depending on which midwife I got!) and getting OH to go to Costa every hour. I hate the way they make you keep the curtains open, as if I want the nurses let alone every Tom, Dick and Harry staring at me feeding, crying, airing my bits etc. Congratulations!!

YANBU awful, I have four children and checked myself out of two early just because I couldn't bear it. If I could have had a home birth I would have just to avoid that dreadfullness.

Our local maternity is all single rooms. But gets very busy from out of area mums