Due Oct 2007 ~Little Piggies turning into Porkers!

[FloriaTosca]

Thought I'd get the new thread started as no one objected to my title suggestion

My goodness but we can talk!!!
Glad yu have someone to help over the weekend inzi
Hayfever; I dont kbnow of any over the counter medecines you can get, but using "sterimar" a saline nasal spray you can get at Boots rinses out the sinuses and lets them recover from the pollen onslaught and drinking lots of water apparently keeps the sinuses moist and help the repel the invaders....I cant say if it works because I've not had a bad bout since they stopped growing rapeseed in my area but that is what my ent specialist suggested at the time. Hope it helps.

Sorry to hear about the sciatica I can sympathise as I have been through it during this preg and the last. The doctor gave me morphine and paracetamol, codine and something else (I can't remember) as I was on my own all day with a 9 month old and a 2 yr old and had to beable to lift the youngest as he wasn't walking. It has one of the worst weeks as the painkillers didn't get rid of the pain and I spent the week in tears as couldn't cope with a hyperactive 2 yr old whilst in such pain.

If at all possible get help if you have kids to look after and the doctors can give you something to help with the pain which is safe for the baby. The only thing to consider is that morphine is only safe for the baby upto 24 weeks as after it affects the babies breathing if born early.

Good luck.

As a doc we prescribe morphine to ladies that come in with abdominal pain (like gallstones - sure some of you reading this will sympathise that this is necessary!) at all atages in pregnancy. You are right jersey that it can affect their breathing if born early which is why they won't give you diamorphine / pethidine (very similar drugs)in labour if they think you're close to delivering. but unless you had the baby very very rapidly after taking it this wouldn't be a problem for them. There are some tablet morphine preparations however that are slow release (they give you a small amount of drug constantly throughout the day) and I'm sure this wouldn't be sensible for the reasons jersey explained but there is a liquid form that is metabolised much more quickly that I'm sure would be safe for you to take. Its called oromorph.

Can't comment on milder painkillers except paracetamol - I usually check with the antenatal wards to make sure things are safe before i prescribe them. Cautious but necessary since we don't see that many pregnant women and i always forget which drugs are safe.

Inzi really glad you have help over the weekend! Just hope now that you manage to get down the stairs for your physio appt!!!!

Alicet, how lucky are we to have you

I remember one of the nurses telling me that paracetamol+codeine was as effective as morphine when taken regularly!!!!! This was when I had pancreatitis which I can assure you is worse pain than any labour. Still can't quite believe she said that! Mind you it was a surgical ward so not sure she'd ever seen anyone with pancreatitis and she didn't really appreciate the amount of pain i was in.

Anyway, definitely worth exploring with your doc inzi. you might need to balance the stress of being in pain with any potential risk of getting yourself some pain relief.

I've had really bad hayfever the last few days too. nasal sprays helped and vasaline round the nostrils is sposed to catch the pollen before it gets in (also helps stop the soreness from nose blowing). I also found if I stayed indoors til mide afternoon it wasn't so bad.

On another note, is anyone else starting to worry about the birth? I burst into tears last night as it suddenly hit me I've got to go through it all again DH didn't know what to do with himself bless him, he said he'd make sure I was Ok and he'd be with me all the time just like last time. But basically I'm just kaking myself now.

How pathetic am I???

hi all

nellie, i've got hayfever and have been prescribed some antihistamines by the docor, the only thing is you have to have the old type version, you know the ones that can make you drowsy, so i daren't take them, its hard enough staying awake as it is! i'm just trying to ignore my symptoms.

can't remember who asked, yes its me with a sore tongue, its horrible cos i'm always hungry and it takes all the pleasure of eating away i think it is a syptom of anemia, and tbh i think i'm still anemic, but the specialist didn't take any more blood to check so i guess i'll just wait till my antenatal appointment next week and see what they say.

inzi, if your not using your mum, can i have her?

i feel so tired and ratty today, feel like bursting into tears, i've got so much to do and just can't be bothered, i've got to go for a filling tomorrow, so that might be why i'm grumpy.

i went to the market today, and managed to get this chest of drawers and this wardrobe for £60. i've already got a set of for my dd's room, and thought if i get these and a cot bed, it'll work out cheaper than the other set i wanted from argos. i'll be devestated if she comes out a he, the amount of pink that i've bought!

i'm just going to have a browse on verbaudet for a maternity skirt, as at the moment i'm living in the only 2 pairs of maternity jeans i've got and i'm fed up of them.

have a nice evening

aw phebee, yes i most certainly am, my last birth was a bit horrendous, so i think i'm in a bit of denial about it at the moment, maybe we should get ourselves some hypnosis

Pheebe I am a surgical doc and we see people with pancreatitis all the time - but the nurse clearly knew nothing!!! Pancreatitis is very very painful (as I'm sure I don't need to tell you!) and codeine and paracetaol is not the same as morphine!!! Sack her!

I am not unduly anxious abpout the birth - more about deciding what I am going to do!! I had an emergency section last time for foetal distress after getting to 9cm so have been given the choice of elective section or vbac. Feels like such a responsibilty to have to decide - I wish someone woul just tell me what to do!!! Going to a vbac session tomorrow so maybe that will help....

Evening ladies, hope everyone is ok and Inzi is as ok as she can be! Hopefully the physio will work well for you tomorrow chick.
Alicet - thankyou for the birth plan,I'm sharing it with Dh as I type iyswim! I know what you mean about the option of c section or vbac being a difficult choice. I really don't know what to do. What is a vbac session and where can I get on one?
I'm not too worried about the birth yet (apart from the above obviously!) but then again, that is probably because I still haven't made a decision about it. It'll hit me like a sledgehammer soon.
Don;t remember who was mentioning childcare and their Dc's but I'm planning on keeping Dd at her childminders for 1.5 days but taking her out of her other nursery type group, where she currently goes for 2 days.Not sure how I'll cope with lack of sleep and toddler....probably badly!

Alicet, if I could've I would've believe me!!

My SIL had an emergency cs with her dd1 due to placenta previa, she went into labour at 29 weeks. She was determined to try for a vbac with dd2 and did it successfully. She said it was the most wonderful experience of her life, the second d2 was born it was like dd1 was coming out with her and she said she honestly felt like she could hear angels or something. It purged all the guilt and bad feelings from her cs and she said it was the best decision she ever made. Also she managed on gas and air so had a minimally medical birth even though she was in hospital and being closely monitored.

Might be worth speaking to the surgeon who performed your cs as SIL went back to see hers and he reassured her that even though it was an emergency and he'd had to do an 'atypical incision' (sure you'll know what that means) he'd taken alot of time to sew her back together to minimise the risk for future pregnancies. He had every confidence she could do it which gave her the confidence to try.

HMP my vbac session is something arranged by my local hospital by their parent education unit in the antenatal department. Think it happens about once a month. Just to go over the options really - not sure what it will involve but will feed back any interesting info if you like. May be worth checking with your local hospital if they do anything similar?

Pheebe thanks for your reassuring words and I'm really pleased for your sil that she had such a positive experience. I don't actually have any negative associations with my section and had a very straightforward recovery compared with some of my mates who had horrendous vaginal ones. Which makes it kind of hard!!! I'm not more pro interventions being a doc myself - although I operate on people for a living I would strongly dissuade anyone from having an operation they didn't need and my initial birth plan was minimal intervention water birth! And although it couldn't have been fiurther from that dh and I were kept really well informed of everything that was happening and both felt very involved. However its tempting to go for another section when it was so straightforward in the end last time. Main neg is having to look after a toddler which will undoubtedly make it harder this time although I will have nots of help if i need it. And because I got to 9cm quicker than average for a first timer that part at least should be quick and straightforward - big dilemmas!!!! Have seen consultant already and have another appt at 36 weeks to decide - he was great - went through everything from last time talked through the pros and cons and risks associated with each option but basically said as there was nothing in my history to make a vbac inadvisable I could choose. Hence dilemma!!!

Sorry to drivel on so early in the am - sure I will decide eventually!!!!!

This is so reassuring cause I have been really going through the mill with the old section/vbac question. Alice, my birth sounds not dissimilar to yours in that despite all the complications,I was fully dilated when they did the emergency section and had a really good recovery afterwards; they've said that a vbac would only be a trial labour for me as it would more than liely end in a section, but that it would be calmer than an emergency one - if that is the case, I'd rather plan an elective. But Alice you may know about this - does the recovery time for a second one not take longer than a first one? Like everyone else, the thought of that and an excitable 2 yr old with no help is more than daunting!! I'm meeting the consultant next week to discuss it so will hopefully be clearer then. At the moment, I think my ideal would be to have an elective but for it to be done in a less 'surgical' manner if at all possible, ie the baby passed to me, people explaining what is going on (last time DS had problems and they took him away to work on him for the longest 2 mins of my life without even telling us what we'd had!!)I'm hping that is possible. we'll see. Hope everyone has a good day today though and good luck with the physio and getting down the stairs inzi.

Funny, but i've been so concerned with just getting to the "viable" stage that thoughts of the actual birth havent even entered my head . As a singer the idea of cs is a bit scary for me...all those layers of muscle to repair, it would be months before I could support the voice properly again I certainly wouldn't actually elect to have one but with my blood clotting problem I suppose it might become an issue ...thanks for bringing up the subject it will give me something to think about.

Odd too that so many of us are feeling down today...I woke up this morning crying from a dream about my Dad laying in his sick bed holding out his hand to me and saying he wanted to talk to me...which is something he didnt do in reality because by that point he was in a coma...I woke before he could say anything more ...and (wierdly) wished I could go back to sleep to find out what he had to say but LO is wide awake and bouncing around this morning so there was no chance of that! ...I'm not spiritual at all and know it is probably part of the grieving process but I'm feeling really down this morning..I think a bit of retail therapy is in order.

Hi All

Well I had an early night last night, I was so utterly exhausted all day yesterday it was untrue had a good 9 hours last night but am still feeling very lethar.gic and tired still this morning. I hope it lifts soon, I need to shop for ds's party which is on saturday, I'm out all day tomorrow visiting a friend and have to prepare everything sat morn for a noon start. Luckily DH is taking ds out for a haircut and costco trip sat morn so at least have some space to get it all ready. Also need to sort out all his toys to make space for the new stuff. Anyone else feeling this tired, I thought this trimester was supposed to be full of energy?

Hope you are feeling a little better this morning Inzi

Hi all, I havent been on for a while so just had a quick catch up.

Im feeling a bit down tbh as a very good friend of mine who was 33 weeks pg found out over the weekend that her baby had died and she delivered him Tuesday. I feel a mixture of grief for her, guilt for still being pg, and fear for my own baby. I just didnt really feel like posting much after her news, and apologies if I upset anyone, just need to day it out loud as it were really. Its made me vow not moan about my pregnancy, any aches and pains see to be welcome at the moment.

Anyway, Im off to Centreparcs tomrorow so hope to come back feeling better.

Just to add to the vbac.section debate, I know 3 poeple who had a 2nd section wither elective or emergency and all of them recovered better than 1st time round. The MW's wont let labour continue too long and first sign of distress or non dialiation and you can bail out so there isnt hours and hours of labour first. I am starting my hypnobirthing course on 5th July in preperation for a VBAC so will pass on any tips I pick up.

Have a good week all.

Morning all!

Kezza - so sorry to hear about your friend. How awful for her to get so far and have to deliver. Hope she finds a way of dealing with the situation.

Pheebe - I have been bricking myself intermittenly about having to go through childbirth again and mine really wasn't that bad at all! But I had a dream where the baby was still breach and so I had to have a cesarean - which I am really, really anti, unless critical, because it's such a big operation and not good for the baby either - and I was upset about that, but thinking at the same time that at least I didn't have to go through the pain of childbirth. Personally, I am taking reassurance from the fact that for most people, the first time is the hardest and the second is quicker and easier... Fingers crossed, I'm not the exception.

Hello to everyone else!

kezza - really sorry to hear about your friend. you kind of assume you are safe once past the first trimester dont you. do they know why her baby died? must be so tough for her. have fun at centerparcs, is it the one in thetford? we are off there in a few weeks too!

inzi - i am sure you have done your research as i know you have been on your laptop a lot recently, but 'sciatica' just means pain down the sciatic nerve. it can be caused by lots of things and not just a prolapsed disc. sometimes a really deep muscle within the pevis called the 'piriformis muscle' can go into spasm and impinge the nerve. this is called piriformis syndrome. i see quite a few patients with this who have been misdiagnosed as having a disc prolapse when in fact they dont. hopefully, this might be the case with you. piriformis syndrome is a lot easier to manage than a prolapsed disc.
i really hope your physio helps today

oh yes, and whoever said about worrying about giving birth, i am too!
first time i wasn't at all worried, i knew it was going to hurt so i just accepted it. second time, i REALLY KNEW from experience how much it was going to hurt so i was shitting myself about it!..................this time i am just mildly terrified at the moment!

Buffy just wanted to wish you luck at the scan today, let me know how it goes, boy/girl? etc.

Hope the buffy household are all well. Will try to email later tonight if Alana lets me lol, I had forgotten how little free time you get with a 2wk old 4mnths and it will be your turn!!!

Kezza, your friend's story is very sad. It must have been terrible.

Also, sorry to hear many of you are feeling down. I was feeling like that last week. Mainly, I was feeling depressed because of the fact that I've got a lot of unconfortable, relatively small pregnancy-related problems.

None of them serious or threatening for the baby or me, but they all add up to a pretty unpleasant situation, where I am definitely not "blooming" as they say many do in the second trimester, but rather always moaning about various aches and panes or strange symptoms, and always worrying and having to go to the GP a million times, etc. That makes me upset.

I won't get into detail of what's bothering me, as at the end of the day it's mostly a combination of the various things everybody else is having and that have already been mentioned in the past few weeks - just that I now seem to have several problems and all at once... I am so busy with these things that I find myself being surprised you are talking about birth plans. Birth? What birth? Still seems far away...although I know I will have to start thinking about it soon.

But this week I am feeling better. I am telling myself that it doesn't really matter I am not blooming, as long as none of the problems are really serious. I shouldn't have such high expectations about being well and happy during pregnancy, but just "go with the flow"...and accept whatever comes. May sound a bit new-age, but I find this kind of attitude helps me stay more serene.

Anyway, I think buffy has a scan today? Good luck! Mine is tomorrow, plus I have to take bloods again, and see the GP about one of my minor problems....so I'll spend the day at the surgery than the hospital. But I am really looking forward to the scan, and not so nervous, fortunately.

Sorry for the long post, and take care everyone.

Ahh thanks you lot, I knew you would understand. I just need to give myself a but of a slap. Inzidoodle sorry if I was a bit insensitive posting something the same as your experience, but thank you for sharing it, your advice was good and I am really pleased your relationship with your friend is stronger, one of my real worries is that it will affect us.

right, enough, I havent even congrautlated those with god scan results. Well done everyone, and good luck to those coming up.

Greedy, yes going to thethford, I love it there and we are going for a week. Cant wait.

gemma, pregnancy can be very draining cant it, with all its aches and pains. Hope you start to feel better soon. At least you are going to get something good at the end of it I used to lay on the sofa moaning to my dh that this miracle of creation lark was really hard work and he had to cook tea as I was busy growing fingernails or the like Doesnt seem to work with ds though!!