Graduated Elderberries (numero 3)

[BraveLilBear]

Welcome back oh graduated elderberries. Let us discuss the delights of being over-30 first-timers with google obsessions

Lol - mine too Purple

Ahh that gave me an idea Bear. According to all the shite that Bounty try to break my inbox with every week that I never read its 31 weeks tomorrow...must have been wishful thinking on 32

I'm 32+3 and I think you're a bit behind, so yes probably 31 rather than 32.

Good afternoon ladies! I'm just back from MW appointment and..... .... guess who's got a baby who is head down and ready to go? [half proud, half worried emoticon] I suppose this means I'm probably going to have to bloody well give birth to her now, goddammit?!!

Apologies if TMI, but I also spoke to her about worsening constipation. First of all she said make sure I am drinking lots and eating plenty of fibre, which I am already doing, and then she said to really go for it on the natural cures, like liquorice (yuk), fig rolls (double yuk), prune juice (OMFG there's no way I can drink that), etc. Then if none of those work she'll prescribe me Lactulose. I said I was concerned about getting piles if it carries on and she just replied flippantly that I would probably get them anyway during birth through pushing as most women do YOU WHAT??? This is news to me!!! Most women get piles through pushing during birth??

Purple I have also gone from measuring on the small side of normal (c. 20th centile) to above average (c. 75th centile) in the space of 3 weeks. The ice-cream is obviously working! My bump is still quite small to look at though, it just doesn't flatten when I lie down.

On the clothes front, I figured I will deserve need some new wardrobe essentials after baby so I am currently stretching many of my non-maternity clothes to within an inch of their lives, which can then be binned ready for my new post-baby wardrobe. I bought some non-maternity Summer clothes from Primark before going to Spain, just got stretchy stuff in a bigger size which I think will see me through to the end with the crap weather we are likely to get. I am going to a posh Hen Do afternoon tea in Chester on Saturday and have just ordered this plain midi dress to wear with a scarf and some nice jewelry. I can't bring myself to spend any more on something which will only fit for a few weeks. It might also do for the wedding itself (at 39+3 ) with bright accessories and a jacket.

Pram-wise, we have bought the Uppababy Vista in Carlin Green. I know the colour shouldn't matter but I just loved that colour and it does top the Which? pushchairs Best Buys table, but, hey, who cares so long as the colour is nice.

I have the free 'What to expect' app, tells me how far exactly, what fruit size and what my body/baby is up to that week. Also has a tip of the day but these are usually a bit useless! We should do a roll call anyway as I lose track of everyone else sometimes. Shall I start?

alex 9 weeks, 4 days (prune!!), due 28th Nov

Big cross post! I don't even know what these centiles are all about! But exciting that yours has got into position cavort!

I don't really know either Alex! You will get a customised chart in your Mat notes with the centile lines on which your MW will plot against to measure your bump size against expected averages for your height and weight.

Cavort 31+5, due 26th June which, quite scarily, is only 58 days away!

Good news Cavort, yay for upside down baby!
I can't help but wonder why nobody has ever mentioned/checked what way up my little Monster is though. Seems odd that everyone else knows and mine could be doing bloody downward dog in there and I'd be none the wiser (although if it is pulling weird yoga moves in there it would explain the abundance of random limbs bulging out from under my ribs)
Nice dress too!

You know, I'm just starting to think these growth charts are a load of baloney. They just seem to be so wildly inaccurate!

Ooh forgot to say, I'm getting a CONSULTANT apparently have no idea what the reality of this will be except at some point I will have to see some doctor I've never met before who will decide when I'm allowed to give birth I suppose...random eh!

I officially love New Look - the last bastion of high street wear (with H&M)! That dress is vair nice and may well work for a number of outings for myself.

Great news that MiniCavort is behaving! Could you feel the difference, out of interest? And double thumbs up to everything else being rosey

I actually knew about the whole pushing-out-the-piles thing... my work colleague was telling another work colleague about this in a 'no-one tells you about the piles...' kinda way just before she went on mat leave. Was a bit shocked tbh.

Can recommend lactulose though as a maintenance thing... had some earlier on (post-op), and you only need a really tiny amount (like less than half a spoonful a day) to keep things ahem soft, and then only for 3-4 days at a time. Is very clever stuff.

Fill in the blanks people...:

HazleNutt 32+3
Janey 31+6?
Cavort 31+5, due 26th June
Purple 30+6?
BraveLilBear, 28+0 due July 22
alex 9 weeks, 4 days (prune!!), due 28th Nov

Purple have you got a green 'NHS Pregnancy Notes' booklet in your Maternity notes? If you have, on page 17/18 there should be notes on each antenatal visit so far and the position should be in the 'pres' or 'lie' box. Mine from today says 'long ceph,' last time it was 'transverse' and before that it was 'ext breech.' Even if your notes are different it should be noted somewhere.

Ooo Purple a consultant? How exciting!

Purple, a Consultant is great news! These are people who actually know their arse from their elbow unlike some of the MW's I have read about.

Brave I had noticed the movement had moved back to high/low again but I assumed she had gone back to breech. My fanjo did get hiccups last night though which was a bit of a clue in hindsight

New Look is so much more reasonably priced than most maternity clothes. I've seen people on here saying the quality is crap but who cares for that price, it's only got to last a few months. The jeans I bought at 12 weeks are still in good condition.

And I can't see me getting along with her natural suggestions so I would imagine I will be discovering the virtues of Lactulose soon.

I've trawled my notes Cavort, there's NOTHING about position been noted, maybe they don't do that yet where I live?

Bear I think Janey is a week behind me so she'd be 29+6. I'm definitely 30+6, saw the midwife today so it's written in my maternity notes

'Fanjo hiccups' just nearly made tea come out of my nose I laughed so hard!

Nope definitely not in my notes, I've checked again. There's a box called 'pres' for presentation and one called 'lie' so I imagine they are to do with what way up baby is? Only those boxes have had dashes put in them not anything written for every time I've been since 24 weeks and are blank before that. I'm bemused!

Purple maybe mine is only being noted because I obsessively ask about it due to my (apparently unnecessary) concerns about breech. There are specific columns for it though so I'm sure they are supposed to note it (or there are in mine at least).

Maybe your fat-handed MW just can't tell the position?

But if you don't know yourself, how are you supposed to do the exercises to encourage the baby to move into a better position?

There was a thread about breech recently in the main forum in case anyone is told they have that.

Fanjo hiccups and piles - I am in for a whole load of fun!

Oh something I wanted to mention regarding pain relief - have been talking to several people who have had babies in the past year or so and they all told me to get an epidural. Especially the one I talked to this morning, who had her first 2 kids with epidural and last one without. I'll think I'll put an order in for one when I get to the hospital, just in case. Can always change my mind later.

An awful question but a good friend of mine said she was cut rather than them just letting her rip (sorry) - I don't know what the technical terms are, but she said it's much better for long term recovery. I've been busy trying to block it out my mind since she told me but has anyone heard that too?

A different friend just had a planned c-section which sounds like it went amazingly well! I'm planning to go the fanjo route as have heard it's best unless you've had a previous bad experience or problems, wondered what everyone else thinks - are you all planning to have VB?

Alex I think you mean an episiotomy. Women I know who've had them have said they are fine at the time but the healing can be painful, but I guess a tear healing would also be painful. I think both cuts and tears are relatively common during VB's

I am planning a VB in a MLU, but i'm just going to see how it goes. I think having a rigid idea of how you want things to go can only lead to disappointment so i'm happy to go with the flow and do what's best for baby (and me at the time!) and if that results in a CS or an epidural then so be it, i'm not ruling anything out.

Today's word of the day.... fanjo hiccups

HazleNutt 32+3
Janey 29+6?
Cavort 31+5, due 26th June
Purple 30+6?
BraveLilBear, 28+0 due July 22
alex 9 weeks, 4 days (prune!!), due 28th Nov

Planning VB Alex but equally scared of either option at the mo!

Hazle You should watch the US version of OBEM - they nearly always have epidurals and it's like a party atmosphere - people just lying there, having a snooze, waiting to dilate, then three pushes later out they all pop with smiles all round...

Yeah there are proper columns on mine they're just not filled in, what do they do then have a poke/feel of your bump then to feel which way up it is? Perhaps they just wait until nearer the time here in case it moves again as I've not had any bump prodding they just listen to the heart and measure. I'm pretty sure mine is head down anyway as the curious lumps which keep poking out of my sides high up feel a lot like knees

I'm studiously ignoring the stuff about piles, rips, tears and cuts - la la la not listening.

Hello all. Blimey I've missed a lot this afternoon. Yep am indeed 29+6, can't add though as unsure how to do it on my phone

Alex - it's widely debated which is better, a tear or a cut. Lots of threads on here. Some people say tears as they heal better (rough edges rather than smooth) whereas others say at least you can control the damage with a cut - and which direction it goes in. I read of someone who tore upwards to her clitoris though which put the fear of god into me.

Hazle in terms of epidural - they do seem a godsend. Worth reading up of you're more likely to need an episiotomy or ventouse or forceps if you have one though - NCT classes drum that into you here.

Midwife appt this afternoon. BP up again. She was quite shocked at the state of my ankles on fri ( showed her a pic) and thankfully I didn't have protein in my urine again or I would have been admitted to hospital for the duration. She then was talking about trying to keep the baby in until 34 weeks without any damage to me... Anyway I think they're being overly cautious but am on weekly checks now and joint consultant/midwife led care. Harrumph.