June 2019 - Part 7!

[Kescilly]

Hi ladies! Picking names, packing hospital bags - third trimester here we come!

I thought I'd start out with the stats this time and I'll post the updated name list in a bit. I've just included the data that I have, since a lot of people are missing bits (or quite possibly I've missed their posts). We come from all over, so I'll put that bit in another post later as well.

Our average age at estimated due date is 33! That should help some of us who are feeling older.

And that's not just because we're all second-timers! In fact, most of us are having our first baby this year.

Baby #1 - 31
Baby #2 - 26
Baby #3 - 9
Baby #4 - 1
Babies 1&2 together! - 1

Fifteen of us are expecting lovely little boys, nineteen of us are expecting darling little girls, and at least sixteen of us are waiting to be surprised!

The average due date is June 13th, and the most popular due date is June 24th. We don't have anyone expecting on the 15th, 23rd, 27th, or 30th as far as I can tell.

And if you happen to have a baby on my birthday (June 16th), your baby will be born on Father's Day this year!

Remegel are SO under rated! But I need the capping thing that gaviscon does now so have to suffer the chalky toothfill feeling 🤢

@Torsz so pleased everything was ok!

Does anyone else not feel like they've had any Braxton Hicks yet? Unless I've just not recognised them somehow, I honestly don't think I have, which is making me concerned that I'm going to go overdue and have to be induced (I'm currently 36+1). Also my mum was induced with my sister at 40+10 so there's a chance that going overdue runs in the family...

@2countries1bump No advice, but it's 4:38 am where I am and I'm wide awake  this pregnancy insomnia is horrible.

@imtakingabath no Braxton Hicks here either. Does everyone get them? I was quite relieved TBH, any more uncomfortable/unpleasant things happening to me might send me completely off the deep end...

@allfurcoatnoknickers I think I have read that not everyone gets them (or feels them anyway!) so maybe I'm being overly anxious!

Just had a growth scan and diabetes clinic. New consultants were actually friendly and happy to answer questions properly. I've come away feeling positive despite my fasting levels and night time insulin soaring.

Now sat in the car park waiting for my glucose levels to go high enough to drive and decided may as well do today's kegals while I wait. Does anyone else find that your baby goes crazy when you do them and makes it really difficult to hold?

@imtakingabath I never got Braxton Hicks at all with my first and he arrived bang on his due date. And nothing with this one yet either (am 34w). Some people don't feel them/get them, so don't worry

@KoalasAteMyHomework that's good to hear! :)

@imtakingabath @KoalasAteMyHomework That's good to know. My boss has them and said it was miserable and she hated it. Major contributing factor to her deciding not to have another child

@allfurcoatnoknickers wow she must have had really severe ones! I thought they were meant to be painless!

Aw you're all so lovely - thank you!
I asked my midwife about braxton hicks on Tuesday as I haven't had any - she said it's totally normal to not have them ☺️

I had no braxton hicks last time and have been having them for ages this time. It took me a while to recognise what they were! Very odd feeling.

I think some people can have really painful Braxton Hicks! Mine just felt like a tightening across the bump, with a bit of cramping at the bottom and top. To be honest, I might have dismissed it as indigestion if my midwife hadn't noticed!

I've just reached a new low at work - I've had to undo my bra because it was killing me. Hoping no one walks into my office for the rest of the day. Thirteen working days left.

@swiftfox I swear my boobs are expanding faster than my bump at this point, and they weren't small to start with!

Yaaaaaay! Got my induction date - it's June 6th. I can't wait to not be pregnant any more. So over this whole horror show.

@allfurcoatnoknickers exciting!!

@Torsz glad it all worked out okay.

Tomorrow is my last day at work, can't believe how quickly it's come around. Today, however, I'm on my way to the doctors for him to remove two massive skin tags that have appeared in the crease of my groin 🙄 kind of looking forward to not being pregnant anymore and having to deal with all the random symptoms nobody tells you about..

Congrats on the induction date @allfurcoatnoknickers!

@Daffydillo yes, this is my first baby. I’ve been doing more research this week, and have now got an appointment with a consultant tomorrow morning to discuss a c-section. My anxiety has gone through the roof!

I originally wanted to go into labor naturally and have a non-instrumental vaginal birth. But looking at the risk factors and talking to the consultant, it seemed that an induction at 39 weeks made sense. Now after looking at inductions, I feel like the odds of having a “bad” outcome are quite high for me.

To me, a bad outcome would be birth injuries to me or the baby, instruments like forceps, shoulder dystopia, an emergency c-section, etc.

So now I find myself planning to ask about a c-section while not entirely convinced that it’s what I really want.

A lot of my anxiety comes from being intimidated by health professionals here. I feel like they sort of rush you through and minimize your concerns.

I also feel like this is all my fault because I was overweight to begin with, or have put on too much weight during pregnancy despite my best efforts. I thought I was doing well, avoided GD, but have still ended up with a large baby. Feeling quite anxious, low, and guilty at the moment.

Thanks all! Also great advice from my consultant today I thought I'd share: "If anyone tried to tell you birth horror stories, they can shut the fuck up".

Gotta love New York .

@Kescilly I could literally have written your post word for word myself!! Although I have ended up with GD. Those are my main reasons for wanting a section, the relief I felt when I was told it was my choice yesterday was unbelievable! I hope your appointment tomorrow goes well and eases your anxiety a bit.

@allfurcoatnoknickers love that!!!

@Kescilly don’t feel bad! Lots of factors feed into how big a baby grows, your height and partners height are relevant. My first was a whopping 10lb 2 but I didn’t have GD, was really active did yoga right up to the birth, worked full time, walked every day, swam regularly. Ate normally but healthily. When he was delivered they told me I had a really good placenta! Probably the weirdest compliment i’ve received! But they just felt he’d grown so well because of that. My son didn’t even look that chubby he was just big and long all over. I’ve seen babies who weighed a lot less that him look chubbier. He was gorgeous and big and strong and I was super proud of him. He could get his hospital crib rocking all by himself on the day he was born! Lots of people do eating for two during pregnancy and they don’t all have big babies.

This time around i’ve had more checks because he was big but again no GD, keeping active etc. I think I just make big babies! Birth injuries and tears can happen to anyone - head size more that weight and maternal factors (just how your body is) are more of an issue that weight.

Are you in the UK? Sorry I forget. If you are then I would suggest asking for a consultant midwife appointment to discuss birth options. Even though it’s the doctors that have to sign off on a CS/induction plan I found the midwives much more forthcoming on advice and more helpful.

I think you just need to think through the different options make some notes of the pros and cons with each and see if that helps work out which makes you less anxious.

Sorry you're feeling low @Kescilly but I don't think there's anything you have done to cause your baby being big, there's a scale for a reason!

I had my 2nd consultant appointment today and it went much better than the first. We were due to plan my induction (apparently) but I asked him more questions and said that I didn't want to induce pre 40 weeks of no medical need and just because I'm 40yrs old. He agreed that going to 40 weeks shouldn't be any issue for me, but also talked about NICE guidelines showing better outcomes for babies as well as lower rates of c section if induction is between 39 and 40 weeks for older mothers, so I need to look this up. Anyway I'm happy because I wasn't asking to go beyond 40 week, just not to be induced at 39 weeks if there's no obvious reason to!
Otherwise it's been a full on day, estate agent photographer came after spending all morning stashing everything out of sight in preparation for that. Trying to coordinate various workmen plus plans for the weekend and DD's upcoming birthday plus now having a temp shadowing me at work (who won't be doing my mat cover, so seems bloody pointless) is all exhausting and stressful and am feeling the effect of it all now 😳

I’m so glad you are going to have the birth that you want, @WeeBean. GD just adds another layer of unnecessary guilt, since that’s not your fault either! You’d think I’d feel less guilty since I was never diagnosed, but I somehow still feel like I’ve done something wrong.

@DinoMamasaurus that’s the thing, I’m only 5’1” and come from a family of shorties. My husband’s family isn’t particularly tall, he’s maybe slightly below average.

I’m in the UK, yes. I’ve got an appointment tomorrow morning with a consultant. It’s not someone I’ve seen before. I’ve seen an endocrinologist regularly but no other consultants. On Monday I had a growth scan and saw a doctor who booked me in for an induction. Since I’m already 36 weeks and have the induction booked, I didn’t want to wait to talk to someone. They even booked a sweep for me without asking if I wanted one!

@toomanyflatwhites that might have been a reference to the ARRIVE study, you might want to look it up. I can totally understand why you don’t want an induction ourself because of age.

We had a painter come around for a quote and he said he could do the work on the 23rd if that works for us. I said no, because I’m scheduled to be induced on the 22nd!

@Kescilly don’t let them make you feel bullied. You have every right to request a c section and if it satisfies your anxiety then that is equally important to your physical health. I am not a big person at all, and yes I have also beat myself up with growing large babies but I don’t have GD either, clearly this is the way I grow them.

I am terrified of hospitals so completely understand the anxiety. Stick firm to what you want, and stand by it. It’s not their choice it is yours. I’ll be thinking of you tomorrow - please do ask any questions re birthing large babies if you feel the need to! All our experiences are different of course

Also @kescilly if you want to try for a vaginal delivery then so be it as well! Of course you’ll be advised of the risks of birthing larger babies etc etc, they wouldn’t be doing their job if they didn’t tell you BUT it doesn’t have to all be doom and gloom.