Due April 2007 - "it's going to be babies flying out left right and centre when we all start"

[EllieK]

thanks for the title Katy

off to tescos now!!! endless 'walking round ilses with dd being a PITA and dp getting irritated' here I come.....

If i dont get back online, good luck all those whos time seems close and take care all..... speak soon

Is anyone considering taking raspberry leaf tablets. Have just ordered some from ebay but don't know if I dare to take them, they are supposed to be pretty good though???

I took them religiously from 36 weeks last time. Have no idea if they helped but dd was back to back and despite this had a straightforward 8 hour labour and only went a week overdue (which is a minor miracle in my family - everyone seems to get induced).

Not sure whether to bother this time as second labour should be efficient anyway. I think there was quite a good study done in Australia which found they made you less likely to need forceps.

opinions - you read my mind, was just googling it!
I bought the tea, but am thinking I should have bought the tablets now, for two reasons - I hate tea and think the tablets would be more effective.
I thought they brought on labour, but from what I've been reading they are also linked to a shorter 2nd stage and reduced likelihood of interventions (all non-scientific research tho).
Might go and start a thread in the childbirth section. I bought tea as I thought it would be more 'natural', but the thought of having to force down 4 cups a day - bleurgh!

liath - I was in Holland and Barrett yesterday and they seemed to come in 2 strengths, I had no idea which to get - would you just say the stronger the better?

thread about raspberry leaf tea and tablets

Mammyjo,

you mustn't worry about your new one having strep - until you actually know - cos it will just be too much stress. I know as my DS suffers from febrile convulsions, as did my DP as a child - until he grew out of them.... I am quite worried that my new little one will suffer as well, as he is a blue bump (its more common in boys) and if a sibling or parent suffers it substantially increases the risk of your next one also being a sufferer having it. I am trying hard to let it worry me - you must just look after yourself and not stress.

Sending you lots of positive vibes....
xxx

Not sure, I got mine at a herbalist and they only did one strength. You could buy the weaker ones & take 2 a day then cut back if you get loads of braxton hicks?

what are supposedly the benefits of rasberry tea? I heard it was to bring on labour - but if it makes any stages quicker... especially the painful ones then i'll definitely go and get some and put it in a hip flash as well and carry it around with me religiously!!!

Hi all

Thank you so much for your support for my little sis
Mammyjo - She's had to go to Swansea (Morriston Hospital)

Dh is home from work early, so am going to take full advantage and have lie down - been up since 6am

Raspberry leaf tea - the mw actually encouraged me to take it from 37wks. Says that if nothing else, it will help to tone the uterus, therefore making contractions more effective when labour kicks off. Only thing is, dh is away for most of next week, so not sure if its a good idea

LLL - you will look very dodgy swigging out of a hip flask in labour! Raspberry leaf tea my a%$£!

I reckon the raspberry leaf tea can´t hurt, right? Am sitting here impatiently waiting for big sis to arrive from the UK, poor woman has been loaded down yet again with baby supplies (anyone would think I lived in outer mongolia with the way I go asking for/ordering things from dear old blighty) and last word she couldn´t find the tablets but hopefully she did in the end.

Am pretty sure you must be able to get them here but, then again, there´s only so many times I can go into shops asking for things they´ve patently never heard of and looking like the wack-o hippy foreigner.

Last scan tomorrow! Not seen lo since 20 weeks so really really looking forward to getting a peek at him. My sis is here till sunday so if I´m not on much don´t go getting all excited, I´ll be doing nothing more exciting than stuffing myself with chocolate and watching girly dvds while locking dh out of the house

well worth a try! Not that I can face alcohol.. haven't been able to face it since the day I realised I was pregnant!... it was what gave it away!

W(ell except for recently when I'm really partial to the odd beer (and curry!) Definitely carrying a boy!.

Think I might start taking them tomorrow but I don't want labour to start too soon.

You can get so called normal ones and then mega mega strength ones which are about 900mg or sth, not brave enough for those. It would be interesting to see what happened there lol. Baby shooting out.

I'm not sure whether its cos they're raspberry leaf or its the fact that they are from ebay (and am "giving" them to the baby iyswim) but they are all fully sealed etc etc etc. Have read some stories, when you do a search on MN and some of the stories sound just fantastic, labour in 8 hrs etc. After a 48 hour labour with the first surely anything will be an improvement anyway. Am happily being blissfully ignorant at the moment about the fact that the birth is now only really 14-21 days away and I haven't even packed a bag much to oh so beloved dp's annoyance.

Katy I was thinking aswell about getting the tea but I am an all or nothing kind of girl so went for the all out super strength tablets instead, plus the thought of about 4 cups of raspberry tea a day ermmmm?? Let me know if start a thread.

Sorry if I cross post.

Maveta - why not order them from ebay????

ok maveta, explaination please, what was dosgy about going to a hacienda? what does it mean?

and raspberry lef tea tastes disgusting, the tablets are much better!

Hey - like the sound if it ladies!.

......those women who had taken raspberry leaf tablets were found to have a shorter second stage of labour and a lower rate of forceps delivery (19.3% versus 30.4%). However, far more research is needed to confirm these results.

It is very important not to use raspberry leaves until the last two months of pregnancy because of their stimulating effect on the uterus. Start with one cup of tea a day or one tablet and build up gradually to a maximum of four cups of tea or tablets daily. The tea can be sipped freely during labour_too.

No mention of using a hip flash though Katy44 - you may be right! And I thought o was going to be setting a trend!!!

is anyone watching the weakest link?

I bought some raspberry leaf tea last week (I'm 37 weeks)after one cup I decided it was yucky. Half a teaspoon of honey has made it more palatable but I never remember to drink 4 cups a day. I reckon anything that potentially makes labour easier is worth a go. You guys have been so positive about it so I think I'll persevere.
Just discovered mumsnet - it's helping my maternity leave pass whilst I await "the arrival".

Goodness me its like newbies anonymous lol!!

LesleyR welcome too...anyone else out there?

Mammyjo - sorry if someone's said this; I haven't read the whole thread but wanted to write while I'm thinking of you. Do you know whether what you were told about the IV abs for your baby is a hospital wide policy or just that doctor's / MW's opinion?

With DD2 I was told it varied from paediatrician to paediatrician. I only got about 6 minutes of IV abs myself before DD2 was born (rather than the 4 hours you're supposed to get). But with DD2, they just monitored her. They did a blood test and her count was very slightly elevated, showing she could be fighting an infection, so they kept us in for a couple of days but just did a couple more blood tests. When the count went down, we were allowed to go. She was fine.

Apparently some paeds like to give abs straight away but others prefer to wait and see. Either way you are much better off that they know your baby could be at risk than someone who has Strep B but doesn't know.

Sorry for ramble. HTH a bit and good luck for starting soon.

Oh Ellie you are showing your youth there love!

The Hacienda was a very well known nightclub in Manchester.... Part of the "madchester" scene of the late 80's and early 90's (many bands played there...think The Charlatans, Happy Mondays, New Order etc)it is now sadly a posh development of urban flats...sniff

Did laugh Maveta when you said you had to go there....now that would have been interesting a load of pregnant or newly delivered ladies letting their hair down at the Hacienda!!
x

Blimey ladies, how many posts!!

Welcome to Bumble and Lesley R.

Mammyjo, am so sorry to hear you are still pregnant - in the nicest possible way. Must be a nightmare all this am I aren't I. Hang on in there.

Maveta, cannot believe what a complicated system they operate there - ridiculous. Makes the UK look fabulous!

GMM, hope you are feeling better soon. Horrible having sickness and the runs at the best of times.

Ellie, hope you can get something sorted re the phone bill. We need you to start up the new threads for us!!

Cannot remember a blimming thing now. Took me such an age to read all the posts as B was demanding tea, play dough etc etc. whilst I was trying to catch up! Feel like I am running a hotel sometimes!

Saw my mw today and all is fine. Head down, but not engaged which I wasn't surprised about. Spent the afternoon at soft play with a friend which was lovely, but I find them such noisy and stressful places - can never tell whose child is crying and can never really have a proper conversation! So, pretty knackered now, but B enjoyed herself.

On the subject of raspberry leaf, I took the tablets last time, and had a forceps delivery, so not sure how accurate the research is. But, worth a shot.
I think what set me off was getting down on my hands and knees and cleaning the kitchen floor - that coupled with a large G&T and a thai takeaway!

Anyway, better head. Hope all is well and apologies for not mentioning everyone. xx

Welcome LesleyR!

Well I have not lifted my fat backside out of the armchair from 3 - 5pm this afternoon and I feel like a right lazy cow!
Guilt is now taking over - best unload tumble dryer, make tea and sort James - catch you later!
x