April 08- just the stragglers left LOL [wink]

[Peachy]

update from scampmum

19 hrs to 3cm

poor mite

all send labour vibes please....

but having a problem with bf or even switching to bottles is not wrong

ikwym about the love thing

Babybratt, stuff the midwife, call the BF helplines, if you cant bloody feed you cant bloody feed!
Get yourself some nipple cream and have a babymoon, just you and the weewun in bed, with some nice snakcs and drinks, a DVD box set or good book and just skin-to-skin constantly, let her latch everytime you can, the mroe she latches the mroe it encourages your milk to come in, and if she gets stressed cos she is hungry and you want to top her up, then do it.
The letting her latch and skin-toskin is the most important to establish the Bfing, as is you being relaxed so farm out the jobs to DH and go back to bed

Also take a look at Mollys story, she topped up and Ailish is now feeding really well.

Good Luck.

Hi everyone! Am still here! No sign of LO yet and I am so fed up!

BabyBratt- just wanted to say Congratulations and to reassure you. It is perfectly normal for your milk to ave not come in yet and BF is much harder until that happens. Especially if you have a hungry LO. Try feeding 5-10mins of each side every 2-3 hours but not more often than that- otherwise she will not be hungry enough to try to take a good feed. Don't worry about the MW- they are far too harsh about bottles and nipple confusion! My ds took a bottle every day from week 1 and in 6mths of BF NEVER had nipple confusion. DH had to go to tesco at 4am to buy formula the first night dd was home cos she was crying and I had no milk left to give her. She took the bottle fine and after my milk came in she refused to take another bottle for almost 6 months- NOTE she did not refuse the breast!!
It can take up to 5 days for your milk to come in properly but once it does you should find it much easier to satisfy your dd. Try to relax and not dread it too much atm. The odd bottle shouldn't do any harm, however the best way to encourage your milk supply is of course feeding, so if you do give her a bottle you should try and express (you may not get anything but just doing it will stimulate your supply).

Hope that helps a wee bit!

VS idea about staying in bed with lo sounds a good one too. The best thing you can be is happy and relaxed. Make sure you drink loads of water and, as VS says, lots of nice snacks.

I like the idea of that myself, tho I'm not sure if that will ever happen with 2 toddlers around!

morning

just a quick question, im 5 days overdue now and just trying the whole nipple stimulation thing again (only tried it the once before) but this time its almost like water thats coming out, is this normal? before it was more yellowy and i only did it for 5 mins on the one side andthen gave up (thinking that i was only 2 days over and should give it a bit more time!)

any thoughts?

Cxx

oh, when i say water i mean its the same texture and colour and ive just managed to spurt some 5 ft across the room just missing the cat

Baby Bratt - I had a similar experience with my DD who is now 20 months. She just wouldn't put on 'enough' weight - but in hindsight she took under three weeks to regain her birth weight, which was high anyway at 8 lbs 10 oz - which is just not a massive deal I don't think. Judging by the concern showed by the HV and midwife though anyone would have thought it was a catastrophe.
I just wanted to say that I am angry now that I even listened to their standard diatribe on latching on, nipple confusion etc. I hope that you don't make the same mistake! Some midwives and HV's are great but a lot of them just churn out the same rubbish and I wish I'd been braver and trusted my own intelligence rather than feeling like an abject failure everytime they visited.
Also I wanted to congratulate you on your decision to supplement. In the end it was what worked for me and practically saved my sanity and marriage! I breastfed for a whole year in the end - just to ensure that my baby got lots of breastmilk as well as formula. But I must stress that I absolutely HATED it at first and was constantly in tears over the pain and inadequacy of it to feed her up constantly.
I wish I'd just supplemented from birth and not beaten myself up about it.My DD was just a very hungry baby and is a huge 20 month old now who eats enormous amounts but is not fat. I still don't believe that my diet or stress were to blame for my low milk supply - I just think I was one of the unlucky ones and that I also had a particularly tricky feeder. Formula was a godsend for us and it took the pressure off me so, typically, my milk supply and relationship with breastfeeding went from one of horror to geniune love of doing it more or less as soon as I started to supplement. If anyone had told me I would have done a year when my DD was under 8 weeks I would have balked. Also I wanted to say that my DD is absolutely thriving at 20 months and was an early walker, is a great chatterer with a vocabulary that is way beyond most other toddlers her age and has barely been on any anitbiotics - so don't let those breastfeeding dictators get to you. Just do whatever works for you. Totally understand the dreading the baby waking up thing as well by the way...I know everyone says this but it DOES get easier (the breastfeeding) - it takes a while for the chafing to heal up so even if your DD is already latching on properly then it may be that she is still irritating previous rawness on your nipples. You are doing an amazing job and I can't believe you are also updating all those boards whilst having such a horrible time with b-feeding.
Also wanted to add that I am still waiting for my baby (a 2nd baby, and I'm 29 - just for the notes!) - and no signs of imminenet labour despite a three mile walk yesterday!
Good luck with everything x
PS My daughter never once suffered from 'nipple confusion' - ever.

Thanks, just chatted to DH he is off cleaning the house and told everyone not to visit.

LO and I are going to bed. I love skin to skin. That link was lovely. I have a new determination.

Thanks again it is nice to feel that this can be a normal thing.

I'll check in later.

For everyone waiting Im convince Evening primrose helped and sex if you can manage it.

Hope it works out for you BabyBratt.

I've been looking at contraception and just found something that says you cannot get pg for the first three weeks after birth, has anyone else heard that?

sorry to repost same thing but really need some advice re this coccyx pain - can hardly move. paracetemol has done nothing

is it just last minute SPD? will TENS help at all?

pleeeease help

Sorry MM, I don't know tbh.

ring hospital, they might sujjest that you go in just to be looked at, and make sure you mention the swelling x

moonminsmummy it sounds like what happened to me just over two weeks ago and I have been in pain ever since they said it is the pressure of the baby pushing down and to rest as much as possible lucky they are inducing me tomorrow because I have complained so much.

thanks folks - am going to have bath and if no improvement will ring hospital

feeling very pathetic.......

Moomin, I have had this for a few weeks, lying down makes it worse for me. I have found a hot water bottle really really helps.

I am due today and DH and I woke up at 5am all excited like it was christmas day, but so far no presents!! Have eaten a whole pineapple and am going to have curry again tonight if I can face it. Didnt think I would go past the due date! Think I was in denial....

Moominsmummy, I would check with hospital but if they think its baby position and nothing to do with labour laying or sitting could aggrevate. Have a go at lying on your side with one or 2 pillows between your knees. Heat or ice packs can be helpful, if v painful tomorrow still your GP may give you something a little stronger than paracetamol (tbh most dont like to issue much more during pregnany as a lot transfer over) if using paracetamol better to take reg rather than letting pain build up. If your over 37 weeks (sorry havnt checked dates but assume you must be) then tens machine is fine to use - position of the pads just where you get most relief, only contra-indication is placing over the uterus. Hope thats some help, fingers crossed its down to imminent labour and it will all be gone by tomorrow

VS - i have heard that, but i won't be playing russian roulette.....you ovulate 2 weeks before period due and i started my periods both times at 6 weeks, so maybe overlap? Though sure bf-ing would offer some protection. We are using condoms until 8 weeks when i will have a mirena (i think).

hi there - quick post from hospital on random keypad thingy. we have to stay in for a night or twoand wait for swab results because of my previous strep result. i was gutted at first but am just going to try and enjoy being waited on.

delighted that hope is here safeand sound and have had an unexpected resurge of love for dd1 if that makes sense?? birth was quick in the end but agony!!

hope you're all doing well

thanks everyone - have checked with hospital - they reckon it's cos baby is back to back- have advised me to get on all fours (not particularly practical when looking after DS and DH though but will do so later)

have TENS on and it's fab - is taking the edge off it. hope this doesn't go on for 2 weeks tho'- will cost us a fortune in batteries for the TENS

VS/Scorpio - what are you like???!!! can't believe you are already back at it - in my case the stitches worked as a fantastic contraceptive for several weeks....

mm, i had this too- and still have it! basw wasn't back to back in the end though. am seeing physio weds so will let you know what they say.

hi all,

started to get a really bad tummy ache, but its on top of my bump or towards the top, been toilet a few times but its not letting up, its a real bending over in agony type of pain, anyone had this before?

Cx

can you get contractions at top of bump or are they all lower down?

Babybratt - if it's any help, Sebastian fed for 40 mins every couple of hours the first few days and made my nipples really sore. I didn't know if it was normal or not cos I didn't manage to feed DD so it's all new to me.

I was in tears too and dreading each feed, reading all these things about 'keep going for six weeks and it'll get easier' - and wondering how on earth I could do six weeks when it hurt that much!

I found airing my nipples for a few mins after each feed and smothering them in Lansinoh really helped. Within a couple of days of my milk coming in my nips had stopped bleeding and were much less sore - now DS is two weeks and it still hurts a little but it's getting better all the time.

I bought some formula for him and felt better knowing I had it there if I needed it - took it one feed at a time and each time I was crying I consoled myself thinking I'd just give him a bottle the next time! He now has one bottle a day to give me a wee break but it takes him longer to drink it than it does for him to feed from me!

So you're not the only one. I didn't realise it would be so hard (not helped my Mum constantly saying how easy she found bf and didn't realise people had such trouble with it - she means well but it's not helpful!).

hi ladies , i had my baby on the 11th april he arrived quicker than expected he was 7 pound 13. we have named him kyran. this is the first time ive been able to come online due to a demanding baby ha ha. x

Hi Carey I always thought contracts start at the top my MW said your uterus squeezes from the top pushing baby out! so hopefully its a good sign is it coming in waves? if so I would say they are contractions