The final December 2016 thread?

[StubbleTurnips]

Old thread was full, so I'm setting up grumpy corner over here

I think the 6-8 weeks check depends on your GP surgery. Ours automatically booked us an appointment, and for her vaccinations, but others I think expect you to self-arrange. I'd probably phone your GP surgery on Monday if baby is already 6 weeks and you haven't heard anything.

All going well developmentally here too. Baby Tiny will be 4 weeks old on Tuesday, and has gone from 6lb 6oz birth weight to 8lb 1oz on Friday!

Really struggling with the lack of sleep though - is anyone else just not really enjoying these first few weeks?

Tinytickler I definitely haven't enjoyed the 1st few weeks..I'm counting down the weeks until it gets a bit easier! I feel bad but baby Henry has taken over my life and I spend all my time trying to get him to sleep! It's exhausting.

I'm a bit worried about his development...he's 6.5 weeks now and refuses to look at mine or anyone else's face! It's like he looks beyond me and actively tries to avoid eye contact. He doesn't follow objects either...just stares at blank walls! He hasn't smiled yet either. I bought it up with my health visitor and she wasn't bothered at all. She said that some babies get overstimulated too easily and avoid eye contact as it's too much stimulation...I've never heard this and not sure I believe it! Has anyone else experienced similar?

How much do your babies sleep? I think Henry manages about 6hours total in day and maybe 8h at night on a good day. I've read they need more than this but getting him to sleep is always a battle! I have to rock and feed him to sleep which I know I shouldn't do but I can't break it and otherwise he gets overtired and upset!

tiny I feel the same. DS will be 4 weeks old on Tuesday too and the lack of sleep is making these first weeks so miserable. I keep trying to appreciate the time with DS as they 'grow up so fast' as everyone keeps telling us, but boy it isn't easy.

It's quite hard to admit to not enjoying it either, so many mothers with babies around the same age seem to be loving it and taking their baby out and about and I can barely get dressed and keep my eyes open let alone go for a coffee or pub lunch! And everyone keeps asking about how its going and how lovely it must be... things are meant to get better after 6 weeks when sleep patterns start to establish and things calm down or so I'm told so atleast we're not far from that. and in the meantime...

Re 6 week check, I've had a letter from surgery to attend baby clinic at 6 weeks, but HV said to ignore it as we'll have another letter for the 8 week appointment for jabs and they can do it all then Why have 2 appointments if they're going to just tell you to ignore one?!

I recollect saying on previous threads that the newborn days truly suck!! I meant it

If you enjoy them I think you're very lucky. Plus in hindsight I think a lot of new mums lie to themselves about enjoying it, I've found friends lied went with fake it til you make it attitude. I'm a bit more honest, and moan a lot! I found with DD that it got easier about 12w Ish.

My 6w appt was arranged for me by the GP practice.

Can't remember who posted but overstimulation is a thing! DD was a bugger for it.

It's been a bad day here, DD has been bored being in all day - baby had colic and has screamed a lot. I fell over a drawer in the kitchen and cried for hours (with the baby), and DH is frazzled from being up at 4am.

Early night all round here. Tomorrow is another day - thank god.

Glad it isn't just me struggling with this newborn business.. I'm shattered, utterly exhausted and have been pretty tearful today. Looked at myself in the mirror today and I look awful, so drained and no colour! DP is really supportive and helps when he can with everything but can't quite understand that I am so upset at times, to be honest I don't know why I get as upset as I do sometimes but I think lack of sleep is massively impacting me. Hugs to you all!

See I'm the opposite, I love the newborn phase, even when she's awake 2 or 3 times during the night. But I can openly admit I don't do well between the ages of 3 & 5, then as they start school I tend to enjoy them more as well... That might just be because ds & dd2 were complete nightmares at that age, but ds was a really unhappy baby, just cried all the time, but it can't have been that bad because he would have only been 2 when dd2 was born! At one stage I had 4 3 & 1 year olds and I'm still standing

Trying to safely cut a newborns nails, on the other hand, is a task I hate!!! I've just been sat with a glass nail file for a good 15 minutes slowly trying to make them less sharp so she doesn't claw her face off.

I've struggled with the newborn thing. His saving grace has been reasonable sleep overnight. But these last few days have been awful again. And last night he was awake and crying for over two hours.

A dummy stops him for a short while but he spits it out/drops it so it doesn't really give me much respite.

I like the newborn phase, but have been lucky to not have bad sleepers. 4-6 months is the best baby age for me, they're interactive but not moving. I found the toddler years really hard, DS was just into everything and from about 18 months talked all day, every day. I was way more tired than when he was a baby.

See, I love the toddler phase! But I never had terrible twos here, DD was a real joy from the minute she could move- and when she could communicate loved it.

I'd take a toddler over a newborn any day - swap does anyone??

stripey I cried my eyes out on Wednesday after 12 hours straight of crying, fussing, feeding and nappy changing with DS and zero sleep. Was worried I was starting with PND my mood was so low but after getting some sleep that night I've not cried half as much since. Sleep deprivation can make you so teary and upset. DH stayed up all night that night to take the pressure off me and finally realised how hard it is (especially when I pointed out I'd done 20 days straight of it as I'm bf) and he'd struggled after one long night! He hadn't fully appreciated how it felt until that point

I hope it gets better before 12 weeks stubble as that feels like a very long way away! It does help knowing there are others out there feeling the same, and its normal.

Give me a newborn over a toddler any day. My 3year old is driving me insane!! Apart from still living out of boxes and having no cooker she talks non stop throws tantrums that a teenager would be impressed with and has an attitude to go with it.
Least with newborns they might cry and throw up but at least they don't argue back and can have lovely cuddles with it plus they do sleep! Still waiting for my 3year old to sleep through the night.

Dd3 is 2 next week and she is an amazing little person, she's got such a huge personality and is hilarious, she's been really miserable lately and we think she has a urine infection so will take her to gp's tomorrow... But yeah, dd2 was a nightmare from 3 & still is now at 5!

Oh I hate the newborn days. I just find newborns exhausting and frustrating. Plus frankly newborns don't give a lot back in terms of affection. I much prefer toddlers!

Oh and Bella I'd ignore you HV and go to both appointments as your 6 week check needs to be with a GP but usually your vaccination appointment is only with a practice nurse, so he / she won't be able to complete the 6 week check.

babydreaming DS2 is not a fan of daytime sleep. I force him into it and I think he gets 4 hours max. On average 3. At night approx 10 hours between c.7pm and 7am, deducting the time he is awake feeding. I also feel this is less than he should be getting but he's surviving even if we are not!

Bella sorry to hear you're having a rough time, glad your DH now appreciates a teeny bit how tough it is!! Low mood in the early days must be ridiculously common. Lots of people speaking about about PND and sharing their experiences which is brilliant. But it would be good if there was even more out there to say that, even if you do not suffer from diagnosed PND, the newborn days are not the greatest and most people will feel down sometimes. I swing from feeling vaguely on top of things to barely keeping it together and wanting to scream.

Remember a cousin telling me that life with a newborn was shit and that her husband was lucky she gave him a second child, and I thought she sounded so ungrateful - surely life with a newborn would be glorious! Har. Har. Very. Har. But - DS2 is cute and DS1 is very cute with him. And there is light and love in amongst the grimness of the night feeds and DS1 coughing himself awake and shouting "mummy" literally seconds after I've finished feeding DS2 and was going to snatch some lovely sleep...

Pop sounds like your nights are the same as mine, feed DS and settled him down. Then I hear DD shout 'mummy' and start crying cos of her blocked nose / cough. Settle her down, get approx 7mins sleep and one of them starts again 😴

I'm looking forward to summer!

Much to those of you with children as well as a newborn! Sounds like I'll be a toddler phase loving mum based on the replies above! Newborn is certainly not suiting me!

Thanks kitkat I've decided to book to attend both clinics and ignore HV.

Ladies not that I would wish you to be miserable but it's good to hear it's not just me. Why don't people talk about it?!

Ds is almost 3 weeks now and I go back and forth between wishing he will stay this little forever and wanting the newborn stage to be over.

Here is a picture of him wide awake at 6am after DH left for work. He was like this about 2 hours before he went back to sleep.

The little guy gets his first cast tomorrow, I hope it doesn't make him too uncomfortable. He screams enough when I change his nappy I can only imagine how angry he will get when they are putting the cast on. He will get a new cast every week for the next 5 weeks.

I'm finding that the lack of sleep is really effecting my patience with DSS. At the weekend I had to go hide in the bedroom a few times. It's not that he is misbehaving, he is just constantly right in my face and talking at me non stop. Even when he sat down to play a video game he was talking me through everything he was doing. I know it's probably to do with him feeling a bit insecure, so I feel guilty for feeling this way, but I really need a break.

Mejse hes gorgeous!

I know just what you mean re not wanting them to grow up but wanting the hideous non sleeping crying stage to be over! Here's my little lady earlier today.

Tiny I did, and often do - it's part of nature that new mums think you're exaggerating / over egging / they can cope. I did the same, if people really understood the endlessness of it the human race would never progress

Better day today here with the children, although we think the dog is on her last legs so I'm not sure if she's far from rainbow road. I'll be heartbroken if it's the case.

Lovely pics mejse and tiny!

First cast went on today. DS was soo good, he was really relaxed most of the time. They gave us sugar water to give to him if he got upset but we only needed it twice and he calmed down right away. We saw another baby and a boy about 3 who were further on in the treatment and it really reassured me that it's going to be alright. Only 4 more casts and his little foot will be straight
Hope you and your babies are all doing well