January 2015 Thread #9 - Crossing legs and fingers for the final stretch!

[KateTheHuman]

Welcome to the third trimester ladies!

Stats here

sallygib sorry to hear you've had a bad week. I know what you mean about trying not to worry unnecessarily, at least you know everything gets checked pretty quickly.

I had my first braxton hicks the other day. Had to google it to check! I was sat on my own at work and it really freaked me out, I wanted to ask someone 'is this normal!?' I've been getting very brief, mild period type pains too. I'm a ridiculously laid back person but when all this is completly new, its hard not to worry a little about things that are unknow.

31 weeks

Sally Sorry you've had a tough week! You've done well to get this far without a public pregnancy breakdown, though. How much longer do you have at work? I hope you get the reassurance you need on measurements etc soon, so that's one less overwhelming thing to worry about x

Sally, sorry you have gad a rubbish week . Not long to go now though and it will all be worth it!

I've not had a great week either. The iron tablets I've been prescribed are making me sick - Friday was an exorcist-level of vomiting and generally lying with my head on my desk at work wanting someone to take the nausea away and, apart from a few ginger biscuits, I couldn't eat anything
So I've stopped taking them - have the midwife in Monday so will chat to her about it then - I know I need the iron but there must be some other way - I'd be happy to go straight to the iron infusion if I have to.

Henrietta - when I went for my consultant appointment he said my hb level was 91 but the midwife referred to it as 9.1 - looks like two different ways of reading the results. From doing a bit of reading I know the acceptable range is 11-14 so your deaf near the bottom - get that steak and spinach down you - anything to avoid the horrible iron tablets!!!!!!

30+6

Oh, and I have my first antenatal class today - eeeek!
3 hours long though?!?!!

ness I read somewhere that the sachets of liquid iron are a lot kinder to you. They are not on prescription but it might be worth looking into it and forking out for them for a few weeks to get your iron levels back up.

Must book some antenatal classes...

Oh sally I'm so sorry you had such a rubbish week Tomorrow is a new one though, and think of mat leave! That's what I do when the pressure at work is getting too much I even have a countdown calendar where I cross out each day I do get annoyed at work though when people send me to the other side of the school campus for cover. I mean, it's part of the job (I'm a teacher) but it'd be nice to be asked to cover a lesson where the classroom is closer to mine. Ah well.

madrigals Are you around? How is baby positioned now? I got good news: baby is head down and on the left. Apparently perfect position!

And BP has gone down too at 100/60 something.

Hope you have a better week this week Sally & Ness!
My work colleagues are annoying me... Nothing specific, just in general!
Having a lazy Sunday today with my cats while DH is out. Just bought some cat nets for cots and Moses basket... We will see if they work!
Can't believe I'm 33+3... Really want to meet my baby now!

Bought some today jo! I'll do anything not to have to take those sodding iron tablets again!

Hope the liquid stuff works for you!

Woken up by a throbbing/ pulsing feeling down below... Not painful but strange!

Desperate to meet baby but needs to grow a little more please... Just read BBC article about premature births/ not helping to calm my mind!

33+2

I've just read that article pesto Only 3 comments and my blood is boiling already

Another almost sleepless night here! I bet having a newborn won't be as hard hehe.

Reading about the problems some of you have with iron levels made me realise I've never heard from any of my tests! Well apart from the fact that they contacted me (the hospital) to tell me I'm rhesus negative. Is it normal?

I hope you all have a good week ladies. 2 more weeks for me and I'm free

Bilbo I think they only contact you if there's a problem or something to discuss. I don't know any of mine other than gtt.

I'm still sleeping reasonably Ok... have the odd sleepless night but in general I fall asleep Ok and then wake a few times for a wee or top turn over when my hips/back ache.
woke up this morning on my right side (despite having a dream genie) & a pain on my right side and felt sick. Got up and had a walk around the house and I feel better now. presume it was baby squashing something?

Today is the start of my last 2 weeks in work! I cannot wait to finish! I'm selfishly annoyed at one of my colleagues though who has booked the end of next week (my last days) off as annual leave. Thought my last day would be relaxing, lunch out and then presents? my boss is off next week as well but that's because her son is having an operation so completely understandable. Ah well, we'll see!

hope everyone has a good Monday!

Good morning all. Sorry to hear so many of you are having problems with different things. I have low iron levels too but my midwife doesn't want me on iron tablets unless absolutely essential as last time I was hospitalised as they made me so ill, so very counterproductive really!
Ds has had a horrible cough for 3 weeks now and although better than it was it's still bothering him a little. He doesn't sleep through anyway so this isn't really helping, and definitely isn't helping my exhaustion levels.
Poor Dh is having a terrible day at work, makes me feel so guilty and I just want to give him a big hug. I feel so teary today.
On an excited note, only 7 weeks till due date, so a max 9 weeks left!! Arghhhh!! I'm so scared and excited, I just want it to happen now ( well obviously I don't want baby to come early) but I just want to meet the little one and get into my swing as I know it's going to be so tough!

I had my 31 week midwife appt today and apparently my tiny frame and bump is hiding the fact that the baby is in the 90th centile. It must be pretty squished in there!

I have been getting some God-awful indegestion though. Lots of heartburn and acidy reflux but then some days its so bad I feel actually sick. The midwife said stick with gaviscon but I read on the nhs website that tablets to reduce the amount of acid being produced can be prescribed and I'm wondering whether to book a doctors appt to ask about that.

I didn't hear anything from either blood test, my midwife got the results over the phone and noted them down. If there was any issues I'm sure they'd contact you.

Pleased to report the Spatone is much kinder on my system, the vomiting has stopped and the midwife says to keep on taking as my iron is so low. I can't get it on prescription and it's about £7 a box but thats a small price to pay to avoid having to go in for an iron infusion!

Bump measuring a bit wee though so have growth scan booked for tomorrow. Fingers crossed all is ok and at least I'll get to see him again!

Very jealous of all you ladies finishing up soon - my last day is Xmas eve which seems like ages away still!

Thanks ladies for reassuring me regarding the blood test: something I don't have to worry about then

I don't know for you but this 3rd trimester thing is really not as pleasant as the 2nd trimester one! What I love though, and I mean really love, is that I can feel baby so much. Yes, it makes me jump sometimes, and I hate it when she presses on my cervix/bladder. But I feel like we are having a special connection: when she pushes, I gently push back and we keep going back and forth! For all I know I may be really annoying her

How are your nurseries going by the way? I don't mean so much decorating as tidying/organising. Everything is stored in big suitcases here (lots of hand me downs, some being my own clothes when I was a baby!). It's all washed and kept away from dust etc. But I'm starting to stress because nothing is tidy!! Please tell me I'm not the only one.

We have everything sorted (except the wardrobe that is being ordered this week) & all clothes are washed and put in drawers.

However... bedding is everywhere! I'm looking for a drawer to go under the cotbed for that!Also baby bath is on the nursery floor, snuzpod is in there and everything for baby (including moses basket & stand) so it's very full and cluttered. I'm trying to keep everything in there until Christmas so downstairs will be tidy for one last time with the tree etc. Can't wait to start putting everything around the house in it's proper place though.

Have just ordered an under cot storage box for the bedding which will tidy things up a little... I hope!

Thanks for the maternity leave advice Cheshire, Henrietta and SK28. I emailed our HR director last week about it but i've not had a response from him yet.

I'm struggling with loads of foot pain at the moment. It's just in one foot but at times it's horrible! I've started wearing shoes in the house as the extra support seems to help a bit.

I'm looking forward to our 2nd antenatal class tomorrow, even though it's on the topic of intervention in labour! We've got a really nice group which is a bonus.

Hope everyone is well

29+6

Has everyone decided whether they're going to breast or bottle feed? I definitely want to give breastfeeding a good go (and this is my preferred choice) but i'm also open to doing what's best at the time. Having never done either before I dont really know what to expect.

I'm also not sure what to buy in advance and what can wait until i've either a) established that breast feeding is definitely for me, or b) decided to bottle feed.

For example I dont want to spend loads on 3 nursing bras and one of those bfeeding cover/shawl thingies if it's not needed.

Any suggestions on what I should buy (as a minimum) for the first few weeks to cover both options???

Thank you!

Thanks mad. Ds was seeming a little better, although one if his molars is coming through so he is suffering a little with that, but then I made a big mistake. Ds has different allergies, the main being cows milk and I accidentally gave him something that has traces in. I am normally so careful and give him finger foods to alleviate the risk, but I was in a rush. The poor thing has been projectile vomiting through the night then this morning. I feel so horribly guilty. He is such a munchkin though and is so good bless him.
Emma even though I already have Ds I would love to know the answer to that too as I am really deliberating what I want to do this time. Ds was so sick and is on specialist formula now, but he has a bottle addiction due to having severe reflux and so it's what settled him when he was in pain!! So I'm worried about the little one having bottles and him getting upset. Also if he grabs one of babies bottles it will make him really ill, so despite not ever thinking I would consider it, I am now wondering about breastfeeding and whether in this situation it would be easier!! It's so hard to decide when there are so many unknowns!

Ness I'm working till 23rd December - it feels sooo far off and my brain hasn't been in the game for weeks now.

Bilbo My nursery is not remotely organised. It has the wardrobe and drawers in as they are old ones from our last flat but currently filled with junk. It has a sofa in that needs to be taken to the dump. And it has the entire contents of the study which is not yet a study so that stuff can't be moved just yet. There's one corner that has a wicker hamper of baby and mum things I've bought and a laundry basket full of washed/ironed baby clothes, but that's it. This is starting to stress me out now I'm in single figure week countdown to EDD!

We have a decorator and handyman coming all next week and so in prep for him and after he is done we should get the bulk of the furniture stuff sorted and then it'll be painted and ready to make into a nursery. We don't have a cot yet but I think I've chosen one so my parents might buy that for us, but no rush as baby will be with us for six months. I'll feel sooo much better once the rest of the nursery is sorted.

Emma I want to bf baby but accept it isn't always possible. I've got a basic bottle set and steriliser as if I can bf I do want to express some so DH can feed baby as well. Will start with bf and see how it goes.
Just having my raspberry leaf tea in the office before I go to get my lunch.

I'm getting to the stage now where I am getting fed up with being pg. I've had an easy ride with it but I'm getting so big that I'm always tired, can't see my feet, GD means I cannot eat what I want when I want it and generally just feeling a bit fed up! I cannot wait for baby to arrive - only 6 weeks until EDD so not long to go! Sorry for the moan!

Thanks everyone

The midwife covered it in our antenatal class this morning too actually so I feel like I have a plan now! Everything is so busy at the moment (work, plus we set up our own company last year which we do on top of day jobs, impending birth of baby, general life, house renovations, preparing for Christmas/buying presents etc) that it felt a bit too much and like I was having to make waaaay too many decisions. I cope very well with pressure normally but I could have quite happily hid for a few weeks recently! I use an app as a diary which basically contains my whole life and I lost some of the content/lists etc at the beginning of the week...I could have cried!

Anyhoo, i've already got breast pads and a small tube of nipple cream. I'll invest in one bravado nursing bra and one nursing vest top as I know the bra will be comfy for a few weeks post birth anyway, and I could wear the vest top even if not breast feeding going forward. I wont bother with a modesty scarf thing and will use a regular scarf or muslin to begin with. Bottle-wise I'll go with a basic set and formula just in case.

Aaaand breathe! Gosh, time for a jaffa cake or 3 I think

Look after yourself Cheshire, put your feet up. Could you book something totally selfish to do over the next week or so? A hair appointment, antenatal massage or afternoon tea with a friend or something?