#TTC1 - Second Wave grads thread the Second!

[kavanaughkj]

Hello all! Welcome to the second thread for the 'new wave' of grads from #TTC1 - the first wave ladies seem to have decamped en masse to Facebook now (I heard weaning mentioned last time I ventured onto it) so this is now officially the place to be!

We're pretty spread out over the pregnancy journey so far with some newbies and some about to pop I'll try to maintain a list so if anybody wants to leave details of due dates and whether you're Team Blue, Pink or Vanilla (I think we're pretty heavily skewed towards Pink at the moment) then leave your details and I'll amalgamate them!

As Moose mentioned in our last thread, please do feel free to join in if this is your first time walking this weird and wonderful path - there is no such thing as TMI and we're all learning off each other!

Good luck music - you'll meet your baby soon! Induction wasn't the best for me but it was all worth it. If you do end up with a c section don't see it as a problem, your baby will be safe and out quickly and honestly I found the whole thing and the recovery fine x

Awwww - congrats MrsG, Thea is utterly beautiful! Seems so weird to think we were due on the same day and she's only just arrived ... I'm frantically trying to breastfeed Coraline this morning so I can get out of the house in time to make a midwife appointment in 40 mins time ... I can't drive yet as the GP won't clear me so I'm hoping she feeds fast or I'll be pushing a screaming baby across town in the pram and I'll be unwashed!!

Thanks for the tip on the supplements Billy - I'm on a pregnacare one for breastfeeding at the moment and was thinking of buying fenugreek capsules, so the ones you linked to look interesting. :)

Think I'm going to have to accept that C will howl a bit while I get ready this morning :( I wish she knew I'm only doing all this for her!

Missy, I was 22 weeks before I felt anything. You'll be fine.

Thinking of you Music!

Sorry music had to post and run! DH was off to work and had to take H's 6 week old photo first! I was also going to say that I was a bit sad that I didn't get to cuddle H straight away but I really don't think it affected bonding or feeding. Hope the induction goes well and that you don't have to hang around too long. I found that the worst. Also if they do start the drip do think about an epidural- I did a lot of research and spoke to a lot of people who wished they'd had one with the drip! I never had the drip as my contractions came so fast after breaking my waters but I had an epidural as soon as I could

Congrats MrsG!

Massive congratulations mrsg She's BEAUTIFUL! and what a lovely name! Welcome to the world Thea Alexandra! 💜🍰🍦👑🍹🎂🎉🎊

They're brill kav I bought 'liquid gold-and I'm going to try 'pump princess' next as they came together. I really want the 'lactivist' drops but they sell out sooo quickly (I'm talking hours! ) I didn't want to use fenugreek as I've read that it can have the opposite effect on some women's milk supply and I didn't want to take the risk. Hope you get to the midwife ok, they won't clear you until you x an do an emergency stop, how they test that I've no idea but I'd be stressing to the MW that not being able to drive is actually more personally debilitating and causing a slower overall recovery.

Agree with sea hope for the best, do a small amount of research on the worst case scenario had no idea what was going on, Dh thought I was dying lol. Overall it was fine, my recovery was fine, baby is out quickly and is well.

kav ask the midwife what they say about driving, if they say when you're ready then call your insurance co and ask their policy, mine said as long as I'd not been told not to drive. I felt ready but was under the impression you had to be "signed off" I went to the drs and she googled driving after caesarean(spelt wrong) and started reading a mumsnet thread - I wish I was joking! She obv didn't have a clue and said best wait for 6 week check, which is next Tuesday! She then backtracked a bit when I pushed her and said 5 weeks should be ok so as my insurance co had the above policy I've been driving but if I hadn't bothered with the drs and been worried about 5 weeks being on notes if ins company checked if I had an accident I would have driven earlier. Hope that helps!

Congrats mrsG so happy for your new arrival 😁😁😁 So good you got discharged after a day, I've heard such awful stories about manual placenta removal that I was more concerned about that than anything else! Glad to hear your experience was worth it and wishing you a speedy recovery & enjoy this precious time with your newborn! X

Bit of a shitty day with C today - I made that appointment but she screamed all the way across town and I couldn't do a thing to placate her. The rest of the day went more or less the same - my parents came over and looked after her for a couple of hours so I could grab some sleep (bless them!) but after they left and into the evening she's howled continuously until we gave her some Infacol. This has to be colic - she's obviously in pain from trapped wind. We gave her a bath which seemed to help and the Infacol meant she could drop off for a couple of hours, but she's back to her usual trick of only sleeping on me and only giving me 15 mins rest when I put her down into her cot. She's back on the boob now as I try to get her off to sleep again; the only positive I can really draw from today is that I haven't had to load her up with supplements/formula to get her to sleep this evening after the Infacol went down.

Sooooo tired. :( Re the GP clearing me - I expect her to next week as I'd be able to simulate an emergency stop right now with no pain. I just hope I don't have to endure another walk across town like the one this morning - I had her in a sling thinking it would calm her but instead she just screamed in the sling and I had to push the buggy one handed all the way to the hospital. raaaaagh. Thank god it's the weekend and DH is home to help!!

Thank you for the pillow recommendations

Massive congratulations MrsG! She is beautiful! Sorry you had such a rough ride though, hope you are all recovering well at home.

Sorry about your day too kav, hope she managed to settle & you've managed to get a bit of rest

Hope all is going well for you music!

Infacol Is a blessing kav 5-6 weeks is when they find their voice. L was the same in the evenings. It's their system getting used to being a system I think. We used to do warm bath and lots of leg cycling/massage/bending up and down while lay flat to try and get him to trump. Does she have a dummy? We called ours the mute button. Look after yourself, it's baffling, it gets easier.

She's only two and a half weeks at the moment and currently screaming on DH! We've tried a dummy but she won't keep it in :( she was better earlier for a bit after doing a big poo but she's as bad as I've ever heard her now and it's shredding both mine and DH's nerves. It's hard to know what to do. :(

,We used MAM dummies as they're supposedly similar to nipples. It's awful, I sympathise, they're just crying and it's awful. I used to say to myself "he can't cry forever, he will stop". They're only just getting used to being in the world. Dark warm room, lay on dh or you (put one of your nighties over dh so he smells of you. (I used to squirt some milk onto a breast pad and put it near L's nose) White noise/womb sounds on next to her head so she can hear it. (I'll link a good one) Swaddling ( if she'll accept it, L wasn't keen on being swaddled). Infacol and stick her on the boob if it's your turn.

It's awful, but sometimes they just cry, and there's nothing wrong with them, it's just horrendous for you. It will end , I promise! You are doing an excellent job! 🍦🍰🌷🌸🌹

Bless you Billy - the boob calmed her down and she's been sleeping on me for the last two hours :) we've tried swaddling and she hates having her arms restricted - and the dummy I have is a Mam one :) we also have a Ewan the dream sheep gifted by my aunt which I'm not sure helps but I'm willing to try anything!!

Roll on the next month is all I can say! Hopefully the colic will go by then. It's horrible seeing her cry without being able to help.

Thanks for the support. It really does help. Xxx

Ewan got on my tits as he only lasts for twenty minutes. And L would stir every time he stopped, I was like "fucking, fuck you, Ewan!" And that's when I found the YouTube ones. I would still do put it on quite loudly to begin with and then gradually turn it down. It would get his attention and then he'd chilland drop off into a deeper sleep.

It's horrible, I remember it so well, they're little faces are all scrunched up and red and your hormones are going "Well do something about it, you useless bugger!" And you've tried everything and you're at a loss. And then when they stop you just breathe the biggest sigh of relief.

It does end, I promise. One phase is replaced by another. (We are currently in top teeth cutting/trying to crawl and being frustrated/banging of chin on things). Chocolate, cake, in huge supply (keeps your milk up!) And deep breathing.

And focusing on one hour at a time, whole days are far too long. I used to break the day up into segments. If you'd have told me last January that I'd be able to get both of us up, washed, dressed, fed and ready to go out within an hour I'd have called you a liar. It would take me HOURS! But, and this is my top tip. Bollocks to getting up. While they're tiny, if they wake up at 7/8am and feed and nod off, just go back to/stay in bed. I would lie in till he next woke up, usually 11am/dinnertime when he was newborn. I would honestly kill for a lie in now lol don't feel like you have to be up and dressed for visitors.

Well C is sleeping on me again after I crawled back into bed again this morning after reading your post and smiling - you've definitely been here! It's funny how much of a difference it makes knowing other people have been where you are and felt equally ineffective! And yes, I've cursed at Ewan more than once already ...

to you Billy. As I recall you're based further north in the UK or I'd totally suggest a meetup - I'm Southern UK (about 20 miles from the coast, south west of London) - if I'm wrong and you're in the vicinity ping me and I'd love to give you a proper hug one of these days!

Paging Music - hope everything is going well for you? I know if you've had your little one time is at a premium - it took me a couple of days before I could confirm the birth once C actually arrived and I'll never question a new mum taking a while to answer me again! Hope you and baby are happy and well. :)

Wow kav that sounds exhausting !!! Sounds like something all babies go through but teamed up with your trek across town one handed pushing pram style I can just picture your frustration!!

I have a question so is it normal to feel hot or much warmer than you would do usually during 2nd trimester? I realise it's quite a muggy day today but I've got proper sweaty palms going on here!

Rubbish nights sleep last night, trying to sleep on side but keep waking on back and then hip getting totally uncomfortable when on left side grrr I'm wondering whether to get a sleep pillow already or not even though not got much of a bump yet...

Sounds like you're having a hard time but doing really well kav . I def second what billy said about going back to bed. Or I used to take H into the living room at about 5-6 to feed and watch crap to so DH could sleep and then I'd put him in the Moses basket and doze. Whatever works for you! Now I tend to just feed in bed and go back to sleep for a bit if he'll let me. We've started to get proper smiles now and it's amazing, makes it all worth it 😊

Argh I'm so sorry for being rubbish! Have kept meaning to update the thread but then have wanted to write lots of stuff and have never found the time. I'll keep this shortish though and then update in bits as it's easier!

Baby girl has arrived! She was born on Thursday morning at 4am weighing 7lb 3ozs. Her name is Amity and we are totally in love with her!! 💗 When people say that having a baby is life changing I have always just thought, well yes, obviously! I just didn't realise all the reasons why until now! The overwhelming love, intense hormones, body changes, sleep deprivation and feeling like a human milk machine! It's very intense but also amazing! Sorry, forgive the soppy rant!

So, induction started on Tuesday morning. The 24hr pessary ended up not doing anything to get contractions going and didn't dilate me either so I then had an 8hr gel put in on Wednesday morning. That started contractions off pretty much straight away and by the afternoon I was starting to progress. Around 7pm I was 3cm dilated so it was too soon to transfer me to the labour ward and so I had some paracetamol and codeine for the pain. A couple of hours after that I accepted their offer of pethidine as it hurt like hell and I was starting to freak out that I would be in too much pain before I could get the epidural! I had been dead set against pethidine but although it did make me quite out of it I'm glad I had it as it helped my body to relax and I had it early enough that it had worn off by the time I was in proper established labour.

My waters broke at 11pm and an examination showed that I was 5cm so I got to move through to labour ward and fixed up with a mobile epidural. After that it took just under 4 more hours until I was ready to push her out, which I did with help from the midwife. It was a great end to labour as it was very controlled and I got to see her coming out with a mirror and touch her head as she crowned! I did have a second degree tear which needed stitches but it's healing well.

Anyway, that was a bit longer than I expected but I wanted to share my birth story as I was someone that was hoping for a natural birth but ended up with an induction with lots of drugs and I still think it was a great labour!

Hope all you lovely ladies are doing well. I'll post more over the next few days!

Congrats Music - glad it went so well! 💖

Missy I had a similar nights sleep but my bump is quite prominent now and I have a U pillow. Even with the pillow I wake on my back, my hip hurts lying on either side. Can't win either side. Just want baby to be ok so I'll take less sleep if that's how it is! Hard though.

Amazing news music. So pleased for you and another beautiful name. Congratulations!! Glad to hear you had a great labour and delivery even if it wasn't what you expected. Enjoy these precious moments.

Thank you everyone, I'm recovering nicely now and almost feel back to normal. Had a little walk out with Thea in the pram yesterday to pick up some smaller clothes for her, it seems that her recorded birth weight of 8lbs may have been wrong as we had our 5 day check today and her weight has dropped substantially but she shows absolutely no signs of weight loss at all. Today she was weighed at 6lbs 15oz, I just can't for one second believe she's lost that much and the midwife luckily agrees so we're just being weighed again in 2 days time.

I also wrote up my birth story on my blog for anyone who fancies a read:
lifewiththeglens.com/

Congratulations on the new arrivals Music & MrsG! Glad to hear all is going well & thanks for sharing your birth stories.

Kav it sounds such hard work. I feel nervous as hell about labour but I think it's also the thought of how tough it will be with a newborn, particularly in those first few weeks. It sounds like you're doing really well though.

Billy thanks for sharing your advice, it's very useful to hear in preparation!

Missy I got a sleep pillow before having a noticeable bump, it really helped me to sleep & stay on my side from early on. You may as well get your money's worth out of one.

I'm 38+6 now. Where has the time gone?! Can't believe it. Had a couple of signs that I thought baby might be on the way but it's not come to anything. Had started to feel a bit frustrated but I'm trying to remind myself to enjoy this time & not wish it away!

Hope everyone is well.

Congratulations on the new arrivals MrsG and Music! Away for a nosy at your blog now MrsG :)

Missy I definitely feel warmer than usual (although it's quite welcome as I'm always cold normally!). I felt it more a few weeks ago (I'm 22+5 now) but that could just be down to the weather.

Finally felt baby kicks this weekend - DH even felt one! Thought I'd been feeling it over the last week or so but only knew for definite this weekend. I'm taking it as baby saying she enjoyed Saturdays chippy tea and that she would like another

Congratulations music, so glad to hear all is well

Congrats music and I'm so glad to hear you so positive about the birth!

Congratulations music and mrsg - two baby girls!! So good to hear positive birth stories and happy new mothers, hope you guys are settling into this new life and new families!

I am so fed up, I'm 38+6 today and sodding ovia keeps asking me if I've given birth, like no love, if I had I wouldn't be checking my goddam pregnancy app. Honestly it's just like being ttc again but the TWW here is just endless. And it's 4am and I am so wide awake I could go to work right now, but can't, and by the time I actually have to go to work I'll be ready for a nap 😂😣☹️ I think I'll start mat leave this week though, I'm pretty done with it. Sorry for the rant, I wish I had some useful advice for the less further along folk. Someone said they were hot? I have been, all the time, but I found I just had to move or it would be worse. If you can get out for a walk and/or swim just accept that you're going to be a sweaty mess, but it did seem to help me as long as I could have a cold shower after. Hope everyone feeling well! X