April 2011 - we'll shop til we pop!

[GoldFrakkincenseAndMyrrh]

Continuation from our old thread here

So maybe this thread we'll see some babies?! And definitely lots more shopping

ecuse - i have loads this pg, sorry i've forgotten if you have other DC? i didn't have any at all for DS1, think i remember about 2 for DS2 later on, but loads this time from early on too, ouch.

thefurryone - calm down sure you're doing fine :)
sleepsuits - what size did you buy? and how many? you prob won't need many 'newborn' unless DC is early/v small. a bundle of 0-3 is good, though be prepared that LO will grow out of them quickly so get some 3-6 in ready too.
bibs - well they wouldn't be top of my shopping list but does depend, some babies are dribbly so use them more, and i think if you ff they are handy
Boots mat pads - i've used them twice and would say they are good, think i still have some left otherwise i'll get more from them.
hth :)

I've been feeling them since about week 18 mostly when I'm walking. Apaprently everyone gets them from 6 weeks onwards it's just that some people notice and some don't until much later in pregnancy if at all.

Thanks JKS

I bought M&S one month size there are five of them in the packet. I was slightly concerned that it might be too hot in april for long sleeve but then I remembered where I live and I don't think it would even be too hot for them in August! I figured the bibs would keep the sleepsuit clean if I get a dribbler. I suppose if I don't end up needing them I can use them as dusters and have a rye laugh at myself for being a bit naive whilst I'm cleaning

Was slightly torn between disposable breast pads and washable, was thinking disposable probably best for early days as I would think the last thing I'd want to be worrying about when trying to get the hang of BF is whether or not I've washed enough BPs. Then if I need them long term I could get some washable.

Hi all
Im 27wks and at midwife appt they said i have a trace of protein, am getting myself panicked about pre-eclampsia. Iv not got any of the other symptoms just wondered if anyone had any experience of this?

maxylou I had that once with my first baby and I was told that it could very well be that the sample was contaminated as it happens quite often. Trace protein without any other symptoms will not be a cause for concern I was told. I know what you mean though we all want everything to go well and any bit of information on our notes like that would worry anyone. Be reassured that they would take you in if they thought there was even a chance of pre-eclampsia.

Maxy - i had trace of protein in my urine a few appointments ago, but it was in a pot that they'd asked me to reuse (eeuw) and after that the MW said to always insist on a fresh on, so i'm sceptical.
Also i had a cold and wasn't eating that much so it is possible, have you been ill? off your food at all?
Otherwise just make sure you're eating enough.

Furry - well i've tried both and as i leaked a lot the washable were useless for me, went straight through to my t-shirt. The Johnsons ones (i think) were my favourite, a grey box from memory...

I've just watched OBEM and was very impressed with the husband of the lady who was labouring in the pool. He was a champ and worlds away from the infantile down the hall who was less than supportive of his partner who had already gone through so much medical intervention in her life. Poor woman on both counts.

yea PETALOUDA its my blood pressure dropping, i have lowish bp anyway around 100/60 so when it drops it goes to daft numbers like 84/30, but mw also thinks its my iron too as ive been getting palpatations. hope you get better soon :)

LIV77 my belly is alot tinier this time too barely look pregnant, my customized chart is from 6ib 7 to 9ibish, but my measurement today was quite abit higher than the top line lol even though i measured 29cm and im nearly 29 weeks so it cant be that much bigger really. i was always measuring near the top line with ds though and he was 6ib 7oz and 2 weeks late. so i guess it doesnt mean that much

Thanks for the reassurance everyone, iv got 28 wk appt next thu so fingers crossed! Iv had trouble sleeping lately and feel pretty run down, tiredness is making me feel like every little thing is a big drama lol

Update here is that I'm experiencing some difficulty with my midwife witholding forms, she spent the best part of an hour giving me worst case scenario on PPH none of which I had when i had a hospital birth with my first. I had been given the all clear for home birth by the OB but one midwife has decided to make it really hard for me and is trying everything. Luciloo I think this business of trying to put you off bullying seems to be part of the course. I coped fine at another meeting when she tried to scare the b-Jesus out of me with tales of shoulder dystoxia. This friday she came back with the supervisor of midwifery and spent pretty much an hour questioning if I could have it on my conscience if i bled to death. Given that the chances of that even happening are tiny and less than half than spontanteous miscarriage during the CVS test that a lot of women have routinely and is one of the least likely things to go wrong for a woman in labour made me cross when I looked at the research. There are a whole host of things more likely yet she choose to pick up and run with heamorge (sp? sorry). I suspect solely because it's on my notes that after a car crash my mother at 8.5mths and 32 years (I'm 31) had a spontaneous brain heamorage. I'm aware that there's no one to complain to as that was the supervisor. I've been really wound up and tense. I don't think I can trust that particular midwife. Some if TMI but i've been sleeping on the sofa since (ican't stop crying at night)haven't been able to go to the loo (so so sore, got lactulose from the dr), when I'm seeing my little boy play I'm aware that my brother was the same age when my mum died. I keep logically trying to tell myself that i'm at no extra risk than any women the midwife just wants me to do as I'm told but I can't seem to get any rest. I've written a note to my husband to open if the worst happens which along with other supportive stuff explains how to get to a spreadsheet on my laptop which he can rely on to get through the financial stuff for a year without having to think about it, and a letter to my son. I had to go to the 28 week appointment yesterday where they routinely take the blood and i was having trouble trusting the midwife with a needle. Luckily i got someone else, but even she had trouble finding a vein and took two attempts. I normally am fine and so I'm putting it down to being wound up. On the plus side the notes say "ceph" which I take to mean head down, I know they can move a lot just now and really isnt a definite they'll stay the right way up but I'm trying to find encouragement wherever I can.

Arch - firstly yes 'ceph' means head down so yey for that :)

Secondly, i firmly recommend you join the Yahoo group for home births, well actually the one i'm on is the VBAC/HBAC group but they are very used to coming up against similar MWs to yours (crazy scare-mongering lady that she is) and have loads of tips for how to deal with PCTs that are anti-HB and can give you words for a letter to send to the PCT, esp mentioning that the MWs have been so unsupportive (understatement!).

Or ask around on MN, read various HB threads on here.

I have no idea why she has decided to pick on hemorrage as the key worry, and as for it being your conscience when you're dead...err....geddit? she's daft and you must not let her spoil your pg & birth with her nonsense.

(i'm quite angry at your treatment but trying not to rant!)

Just don't seem to be able to hold it together, which is not me at all. Took me a week to type to our April group, couldn't get the words previously. I don't know how to fix this disappearance of confidence in my body to get me through. Not even got the energy to be angry.

Can you run through your first labour/birth for me? is there anything there that suggests PPH is likely at all?

She does seem somewhat unhinged & it is worrying that the SOM joined in with her :(
Can you change hosp?

I think you need a conifdence boost, maybe a thread jsut about this would help as i know there are loads of people on MN who would know what to say.

Oh arch, come here for a hug.

What a bloody awful woman that MW is. She is spouting crap and being very un-professional imo. If I were you I would write a letter to head of midwifery and state that you do not want to have to encounter her again due to her scaremongering and damn right incorrect and uneducated opinions on HB.

Rather than her saying to you 'what will you do if xyz happens?', she should be saying 'if xyz happens, then this is the procedure.' She is turning the tables unfairly. And just incase you are worried now about a pph, you should ask them about what their procedure is. As far as I know MW's carry a solution (or it's in the birth box they drop off) called Haartmans solution which will be pumped into you to keep your fluid levels up until blood is available. An ambulance would also have been called which would carry extra fluid.

She seems anti HB and to try and persuade you against a HB she has picked on the most devisive topic she can - your mum. That's despicable and totally not on.

I think pregnancy is a time for reflection for most woman. You have the worries of the pregnancy and birth, adding an addition to your family, and for many it also makes you think of lost loved ones. You are bringing a new person into the world, yet it doesn't make up for your lost loved one and you also wish they were here to experience all of this with you. There are so many conflicting emotions that can run through your head.

Please have faith in your body, do not let this woman knock yours or your baby's ability to come into this world safely and at home. I've had serious wobbles about a HB before and I found reading the birth stories at www.homebirth.org.uk were inspiring. The website is also great if you have aggro websites.

I hope some of what I have said helps xx

I meant aggro MW's, obviously

thefurryone I definitely can't trust my own judgement with shopping at the moment!I took my sister with me for advice on buying some babygros/vests etc and was pointing out some boys clothes that I like/don't like (as you do) Things I liked being nice smart knitwear etc and dislike being some horrible lycra affairs in very lurid colours. Sister pointed out the things I didn't like were actually for swimming (not for tea at grannys) and therefore totally justified in being lurid and lycra :) Thank gawd for big sisters eh!

JKS 9cm arrival at hospital, 1.5hrs later after being rushed by mdwife nobody caught my son 9lb posterior baby with his hand up by his face that I pushed three times in one contraction and he was out. Tore. Didn't have injection for placenta but midwife pulled on the cord since found out was very very dangerous given that it was less than 30 minutes and wasn't having injection. Dispite her putting me at risk I didn't have PPH.
Thank you ladies for giving me some support. I really do appreciate it. I'm hoping to snap out of this crying shaking nonsense soon.

ILTMIMI thank you, I'm trying to read through the HB website you suggested.

Just read the rest of the posts, architien your mw sounds awful .

I think JKS and ILTMIMI have some good advice there. Why on earth are they so against it when it's been approved by the OB. It seems very cruel to try and put you off giving birth the way you want to when there doesn't seem to be a good medical reason to do so. Will this particular mw be involved in the birth?

I am so sorry they have made you feel so low architien, it must be an awful lot to deal with when pregnancy makes you feel vulnerable enough. Sorry I don't have any practical advice it's my first pg so I don't understand how the system works myself but when or if you feel like it JKS's idea of a thread on its own is a good one as there is so much good advice to be found on MN.

architien, did you see the homebirth thread in the pregnancy section? There were some lovely homebirth stories there too?

Oh Arch, that mw sounds like a total cow! Of course you're emotional, she's been mean, you're pg, you're near the age your mum was when she haemorrhaged, you just have a lot on and that mw so didn't help.

Every birth has risks but that doesn't mean a home birth is some death defying feat attempted by daredevils and nutters. I know at least one person who had a crap hospital experience followed by a fabulous home birth in a water pool. She knew it was what was right for her and so do you x x

Anyhoo, OBEM was really good. One of the husbands was a superstar, the other was just overwhelmed I think.

She pulled on the cord??! My jaw dropped to the bloody floor when I read that. I'm not a MW and I know it is a very dangerous thing to do when having a natural 3rd stage.

You're being too hard on yourself. When faced with something like that you can't just snap out of it. Have a bloody good cry and let everything out, no matter how many hours, days or weeks it takes. Then you can concentrate on getting stronger and getting your confidence back.

Arch Have another hug
I agree that midwife sounds like a complete bitch. Definately go further up the chain of command to complain and if they try and fob you off name and shame them on here and then give your local paper a call. I'm sure the hospital would love the publicity [evil face]

Arch - do not tell yourself to 'snap out of it' (others will probably do that enough for you and it's not helpful). Yo have to allow yourself to have the feelings you have, i know it sounds hippy and i'm not really hippy, honest! but you feel them, therefore they are real feelings.
The pulling on the cord is truly terrible :(

(DS1's placenta, even with the injection took 2 hours and by the end my cervix was trying to close up, i was pushing, one MW was pushing from the outside and one was gently 'tugging' on the cord (was at home) and eventually it came out. In fact the only unnatural thing i had in that birth was the injection so i won't be having it again, i believe it made the placenta drop down to quickly for the cord which kind of got stuck behind it. Anyway even in that situation the cord was not 'pulled' as if it snapped it would have been very bad.)

From your story i would say definitely go for HB, you can get to 9cms on your own (well done you!! i think i've made it to 5 and 6 by the time MWs have arrived) and even with the transfer and things not being great at hosp, it only took another 1.5hrs, that is a good quick birth :)

Even with crappy treatment you didn't bleed excessively (i apparently did with DS2 in his c-s, have mild PPH written on my notes, no-one told me at the time, only found out when i ordered my notes recently ) so there is nothing to hint at PPH.

Plus, MWs attending HBs will be a) on the lookout for PPH & b) ready to deal with it, whether with treatment or calling an ambulance.

Can you afford either a doula or an IM?
Can you change hosp? (can't remember where you are)

Given my history, your MWs would have kittens at my plans for a HB, lol. Placenta almost stuck in one birth, breech birth & milk PPH in the other.
But I've been reading up and planning it for 3 years now, and have built up my belligerence

Of course this darn baby is still transverse so trying its best to throw my plans out the window....!