Due Sept '08: Bring on the babies!

[LittleConnie]

Well that was cutting it a bit fine...

Wednesday is fine for me too so where do you all want to go?

??????
Dont know Nottingham that well, suggestions?...

Feeling very of the meetups - I'm miles from London and by the look of it from any of the rest of you!

I've ordered my Arnica tablets from the place Potxola recommended, now I know I'm having a CS. Can someone remind me when to start taking them and how often? Do you take them before the op and if so is it not a problem cos you're supposed to fast from midnight the night before?

And the other thing you were talking about was lactulose - where do I get that from? Last time I got very very badly constipated a few days after the op because I kept taking codeine for the pain. It was the worst I've ever had it - I kept wondering if that's what giving birth feels like!

Maybe the castle?

jearund you should get a prescription for lactulose from the hospital when you leave. I was given one automatically as they expected me to be bit bunged up after the cs.

I have such crappy heartburn. I am starving and I know I have to eat some dinner but I'm half expecting it to come back up as the baby has taken over my stomach space .

Well, I saw midwife yesterday and she thinks I may have the start of pre eclampsia so I'm now on weekly monitoring.

Can I just ask you knowledgable ladies what BH feel like and where abouts you feel them? I've been having strange pains today that do not involve the baby moving.

Have been talking to my mum today and when she had me her waters didn't break and she had no contractions!! While this sounds good to me, I'm worried as the hospital midwives said that unless you look in established labour, in pain, that they wouldn't even examine you and would send you home!! Think I may have to throw myself on the floor and have a tantrum if this happens.

Starlight thats exactly what I think too.

Mum was in hospital for an induction but woke in the night half way there! No pain relief as no pain. The midwives thought she was mad when she said she couldn't push with the pain as she didn't have any!

mel i think if your waters break they do examine you. AFAIK you can't go for long once that has happened.

My BH don't always hurt. Usually it feels like a tight tummy and makes me feel like I need a wee for a few moments.

Me too! Although like I said this might involve me throwing myself on the floor in the hospital and refusing to move. If I get on the floor they are unlikely to be able to pick me up actually

With pleasure!

MelT76.....I can tell you that this is exactly what happens!

I was sent home from hospital despite having (bearable) contractions/pains every 4/5 mins. They didnt do an internal, only monitored me for 20 mins.

Got home. Took 2 paracetamol, as advised.

Went to loo before bed....bleeding.

Rang hospital...told to go back in (dh NOT impressed!)

They looked at the blood, got a registrar to examine me and I was already 6cms.

Lesson: not everyone reacts to pain in the same way. Some women shout and scream, some dont. Just because you arent screaming the place down doesnt mean you arent in labour!

Don't see them picking up pregnant ladies and throwing them thru the doors to be honest. And if I get to the hospital (I really don't like them) Im not going home again, so this is what they will have to do!

Good for you!!!

MelT - I went into hospital to be induced with my first but while I was waiting to be examined I started to have what I though were braxton hicks. When the doctors got to me they found I was 6cm. Sorry to say it got more painful after that but I coped pretty well on gas and air until it got to the pushing bit (unfortunately too late for any other pain relief by then . Gas and air was very good though - it took the edge off the contractions and made them bearable (if I didn't time taking the breaths right I really noticed the difference).

My mothers 2nd labour was only 90 mins so at the first sign of anything happening I am going straight to hospital and refusing to move

90 mins? Wow. I have told the midwife Im only staying in for 2 hrs! She just laughed.

hopefully - you can look online for perineal massage technique but basically if you sit back with your legs apart, your partner puts two pairs of two fingers inside your vagina at 4 and 8 o'clock and pushes outwards + downwards to stretch a bit. Keep pressing on and off for a few minutes. Or I suppose you could do it yourself but reaching might be fiddly!

starlight - been resorting to the Gaviscon as I figured there should be a dose limit on using icecream to treat heartburn (say 1 or 1 1/2 tubs of Haaagen-Dazs a day...) It takes forever to come out of the bottle!

Just found out that BIL1 was an accidental homebirth - labour of under 2 hours! But MrNC is the eldest and took over 36 hours - he always did faff about, though!

Can anyone tell me if hospital gas and air is at all like taking nitrous oxide recreationally? Obviously you'll be just a tad more distracted...

We were told at the hospital not to ring an ambulance as they cost £500 and are for emergencies only, and labour is not an emergency