Hi all!
Long time no post! Sorry.
@Twomommies I think if I were in your position I would do the same. After a while it's like man, I can't do this forever. It takes such a toll in your body and mind. I'm glad you have your little girl, shes a very lucky girl to have such caring mamas. IDK how it will work out after DD. We want another one but idk if it will happen or not. Time will tell I suppose.
@uncliche first off thanks for starting this thread! I am so excited for you in December! That's going to be so so amazing. Things that helped me when my DD came were (mine was a C-section) ice packs, adult diapers instead of only messing with the mesh panties and pads (good at the hospital but at some point I was over them), a good water bottle (for real), really taking the whole first week and not moving as much as possible and just spending time bonding with little missy. If you are going to breastfeed I had the help from a lactation specialist and that made the journey a thousand times easier, because the hospitals lactation people gave me pumps and a flange that were too big for my nipple (most carry m or l, I needed s) and it created blisters and I'll tell you what, that shit hurts. But the lactation specialist helped fix all that!
So my update, DD did not make it to 37 she came early and dramatically. I packed my hospital bags to be there for 3 weeks, we checked in at 34 weeks. 3 days later I had contractions and on 34+4 I had way more of them, that caused a placental tear, and we went into emergency c section. She was born tiny, 2.4 kg 45 cm, and was rushed away I saw her for 30 seconds & cried my eyes out! Then I didn't get to see or hold her for 6 hours (still processing that trauma a bit, but it's ok). The hospital was overflowing so they discharged me after a hard C-section on the second day!!! Very atypical. I was in a ton of pain but I got through it. I was supposed to move into the neonatal to be with DD that day, but nope, after moving my bags there 2 hours later the doctor came in and said my 34+6 day old baby is ready to go home. So I went home with my tiny preemie not having a single night with her, and have held and interacted with her 3 hours total since birth (they kept calling me upstairs for pain management, food, breastfeeding, PT, etc).
Anyways all the trauma and complaining away we were blessed with our little girl and she's doing great now. After about 5-6 weeks of insane pumping (8x a day), DD learned how to latch on a nipple not just a bottle, and she has been breastfeeding well. It took 11 days for milk to come in after her coming early, my huge blood loss due to the placenta tear and the c section. But she switched happily to breast milk from formula in the bottle until she could suckle enough. Now she is 5 kg and 10 weeks old (adjusted age 4 weeks) she's starting to act like a new born so that's been fun. When she was a preemie she mostly only slept. It made adjusting to having a baby probably a bit easier although I was scared out of my mind. I found a mommy and me group and that's helped my mental state and basically I'm just trying to get into the groove of it all.
Can't wait to hear how your birth goes and how it is with the twins @uncliche