Is there a September 2013 group yet?

[Gingerandlemon]

Just that really! I gave birth two weeks ago on 1st September and am so ready to start asking everyone if they're going through the same stuff as me!!

Juniper Halifax have a great couple of doubts at the moment. 1yr at 6% with no access and you can put up to s hundred in each month. Also a 6% kids saver whichyou can't touch til they are 18. Moneysaving expert recommends it and we already bank with halifaxso was easy :)

Hi ladies.... I wonder if I could join your group? Another sleep deprived September mum here! DD born 14 Sept, by EMCS after failed induction at 38 weeks (I'm T1 diabetic). And like some of you have been saying, I've got issues with BF too, after all the stress of being in hospital, DD in SCBU overnight and formula fed for a few days, so am expressing and bottle feeding, and only really have any luck BF with nipple shields. That's the brief highlights, sitting here expressing while DD finally sleeps after about 5 hours of fussing! So I hear you all on so many counts... Hoping I'm the only one awake now, but guess not?! X

Nope, I'm up SomethingLovely! Just expressed and little fella's now stiring for his food. Dontcha just love those 4am alarms?!

Congrats btw, hope your DD is ok after being in SCBU.

Joskar, I'm so glad you had a better day - hope it continues.

We managed two sessions feeding with nipple shields yesterday, so progress here too. I still haven't managed to whip it away without him noticing though. Too observant for his own good he is

Now that all our (September antenatal group) babies have arrived I came looking for a postnatal group and here it is! So nice to you all on the other side!

I'll go and have a lovely catch up on all the mn news now (I've been neglecting mn for our Facebook group since lo arrived).

Hello all, another ante natal thread person here. Ds was due on 19th Sept but eventually arrived on 1st Oct at 40+12, But i don't want to join a thread full of new people so just marking my place here Congrats to all on your safe arrivals

Morning all - hope everyone had a reasonable night. Mine was ok after an evening of crying and feeding (DS2 not me)!

He was really unsettled until about 10 - when I finally got him to sleep. I wonder if we've got a little growth spurt coming.. He's nearly over his cold too so able to feed more easily.

Hope you have something nice planned for the weekend (even if it is just a rest with another pair of hands)

Morning all! batbear I have no idea the real signs of a growth spurt, but have a feeling we might be going through one! If lots of fussing and crying (or screaming uncontrollably), extra feeding and reluctance to sleep are symptoms then it could be?! Did get some infacol just in case it was tummy pain... Just fumbling our way along with this new baby business...(FTM, obviously!)

I'll have to get to grips with exactly how old all your little ones are, DD is exactly four weeks today... Can't believe how time's starting to fly by now.

How's everyone's feeding / expressing going? I have a feeling I might end up exclusively expressing, but for some reason feel guilty about it! There's so much negative opinion online it's hard to stay positive & sure of your decisions... Downside is how often you have to pump, but feeding is a bit quicker so I guess it balances out - and I find being able to see exactly how much she's drinking reassuring.

Anyhow, sorry, long post - wishing you all well for the weekend! X

Morning all!

My LO is 2.5 weeks (but 17 days overdue) and I think she must be going through a growth spurt! She fussed and fed all evening / night. Was feeling desperate for sleep and for first time fed her in bed this am and managed to doze at the same time for nearly three hours, so at least feel a bit more rested.

I feel bad for co-sleeping like this. Having read up on it I had decided not to do it because we have a large high bed and I am technically obese, though not vast. It was nice to rest though. Anyone else do this?

SomethingLovely I don't think you should feel guilty about expressing. BF is so hard and everyone does what they can to feed their baby. I've been lucky and BF is going ok but I agree there is so much stuff out there to guilt trip mums if they can't BF or stop 'early' or pump etc. I have LLL's The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding which has been v helpful, but it has quite a heavy feed until 2, avoid being apart from baby and pro-co-sleeping approach which feels a bit stifling though I agree in principle.

My sister is visiting with her 3 DCs today - the most visitors I've had so far! Eek!

somethinglovely sounds like a growth spurt to me! We have done two cycles of that at weeks three and four. Painful. Lovely baby is bf well but refusing a bottle from daddy :(which is making daddy stressed:( so we are Working on that.

Had two welcome nights of 3 Ish hour gaps between start of feeds so got five hours sleep total each night :)

Even went out kind of last night! ! Baby cried so dh walked up to the bar I was at with baby to so him cryingand walked back together.i got 90 mins alone out with friends and got to walk home safely but dh was almost in tears with stress :(

Fl0 - my DP gets very stressed when the baby's crying as well. I've told him that probably makes it worse but he can't stop himself. Well done for getting out though! DP and I had a sneaky coffee after registering him this week as mum was babysitting. Felt v odd to be out together and babyless.

Wincher - good idea about sleeping in the pram, why didn't I think of that?! I find it incredible how much stuff such a tiny person needs, not helping that I'm expressing as he won't often take milk from me so we have bottles and steriliser to consider as well. Don't even want to think about more stuff when he's older.

SomethingLovely - not sure I should ask this but why is expressing frowned upon? It is more faffy, especially the sterilising, but I'm in the swing of it now and plan to do it for as long as possible. It has its advantages as well as DP can do half the night shift meaning I get some sleep!

Hi waggy it's more that I've seen quite a few sites and threads that are a bit doom & gloom about expressing! How hard it is to keep up, how your supply will dry up, how nursing is so much more efficient etc etc... Makes me feel a bit disheartened, so have stopped googling too much and am just going with my instinct (which says it's right for us) - and like you plan to keep it up for as long as poss... Nice to have someone else in the same boat to talk to! And totally agree about split night shift - think I'd have lost my marbles otherwise.

fl0, oh my god! you went out - at night! 6pm feels late to me now, oh how times have changed... A friend also told me this morning that it could be a growth spurt, or just what babies do from now until about 8-10 weeks old, am preparing for the long haul, let's see what happens!

rollermum we did co-sleep once but I was so paranoid I didn't sleep and just watched DP and DD sleep to make sure she didn't get squished or fall somewhere, wasn't very relaxing! We got one of those co-sleeping cribs but she doesn't really like it and prefers it with the sides up ( Sod's law, could have bought a far cheaper one with normal sides!) so it's more enclosed... The only place she really likes, goes against all the recommendations, is on my half of the sofa, on a mothy Primark microfiber throw, wedged in with a half bolster thingy... All warm and snug! DP and I sit squashed on the other half while madam snoozes...

I think my ds has wind?! He's just 11 days and after feeding (exclusively BF) he screws his face up and knees and grizzles. I've tried leaning him over my shoulder and tapping and rubbing his back. Sometimes I get little burps. He's getting hiccups a lot. Anyone got any tips for de-winding the poor little one? I'm new to this.

SomethingLovely I hear you on the paranoia. I think it might work for us for naps, but deeper sleep withDHfeels too scary.

PinkApple I am completely new too but I find my DD burps for me if I sit her upright on one of my knees and rub her back quite vigorously / pat her back. She leans forward slightly and I have to support her head because her neck is sometimes still floppy. I find that works for me but DH finds over the shoulder like you said better.

LO met three of her seven cousins today. They kept saying how tiny she is - so cute.

Co sleeping wood be much less scary if nhs didn't make it so scary :(

pinkapple could be colic? Do some Googling :) hv Told us our little one had colic at 2 weeks old with similar symptoms . Infacol seems to work quite well!

Having a stressy evening as Robin had been feeding on and off since about 7pm and screaming Inbetween. I'm tired!

somethinglovely people talk such crap on the net! my friends little boy couldn't latch so she expressed for a year. She expressed so much that she got an award for how much she donated to the scbu at John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford :) keep it up!

Oh ladies, I am at the end of my tether. I know I only ever moan on here at present - will try to be upbeat again once I've got this off my chest...

DD (6weeks) will still only sleep on me the majority of the time. She hates being on her back -screams in agony. It used to be only every few nights, but now I end up holding her most nights so am getting hardly any sleep. I don't know if it's reflux or just a general sleeping problem, but I am getting desperate. I've spoken to the health visitor but they didn't have any advice apart from raising the head of her Moses basket, which I've done. She's on infant gaviscon, but not for every feed.

Every time I try to put her down she'll stay asleep for about 10 mins and then start screaming. During the day she'll sleep in her buggy, and sometimes in the Moses basket - it seems to be much worse at night.

I'm thinking of blowing my minuscule savings on a night nanny or a maternity nurse or something, but don't know where to find a good one/where to get recommendations, or even if this is what I need. Does anyone have any ideas?

When I've had some sleep I really enjoy DD but at present I can't, and this really upsets me. Especially when all my NCT friends go on about how in love with their babies they are and how everything is wonderful, even at 2am.

Sorry for the essay...

Hey Mooster,

That sounds incredibly tough and trying. You arenot alone in not finding new motherhood all enchanting loveliness. I have found adjusting to the constant demands of LO hard and at times resented the lack if control and above all the lack of sleep - and my DD does actually sleep for done small chunks of time. I have also wondered about getting in some help, if that is what you need and you can find someone that seems right for you, do it. I have no advice on how best to do this though. Worth a separate MN post?

Really hope it gets better soon and it is just a phase as people say.

Mooster you're not alone at all in feeling like this... Sleep deprivation will radically change your emotional perspective about motherhood and your baby while it's happening, and then with a decent night's sleep you feel like a new person! A friend who had her baby at the start of the year had a maternity nurse spend a few nights with her daughter so she could get some sleep and her sanity back - she said it was definitely worth the money, I'll see how she found her lady, was in London.

Also re the sleep positions, I'm not saying this is ideal or recommended, but my DD sleeps a lot on her side, with her arms out in front of her which stops her rolling over onto her front... She prefers that to lying on her back, I read somewhere that babies don't much like lying on their back, makes them feel like they're falling? Anything's worth a shot I guess...

fl0 thank you - that's really encouraging! Nice to hear a success story!

My DD sleeps on her side every night. She will not go down on her back, and after a few nights of having to hold her I was at the end of my tether. I tried raising her Moses basket but that didn't work, so I asked the mw and she said to pull a rolled up blanket in front of her so she can't roll forwards. She's slept much better since.

Another who puts DS on his side, but due to permanent stuffiness. We have him right next to my head in the bednest so I feel quite safe doing this.

Interesting comments about sleeping positions... my DS is four weeks old and gets very congested, particularly in the early hours of the morning. Come 5am there is no chance of getting him to sleep flat on his back - I have to hold him or put him in jis swong chair which ia slightly more upright. Thought anything but on their back was a no-no but might chat to health visitor... he loves being on his tummy

Pink - my dd hardly ever burped until we started infacol yesterday, but one of my books does say that babies who don't burp get the hiccups instead as they also help bring air back up, so I've stopped worrying

I have a hiccupping, burping baby on me right now...!

I was hanging off the end of my tether last night with the bloody cluster feeding. Roughly 6pm it started, I had ten/twenty mins to wolf down my dinner, I even attempted a lovely long soak in the bath, only to have to have a 'half time interval' and get out to feed the baby (DH got in the bath) then once reasonably satisfied I got back in. Fifteen mins of being tickled and played with by daddy while I had Bath Part Two, then the wailing started again. It's not colic or reflux, just neediness. Tiredness makes it more difficult for her to latch on properly so she gets frustrated I think. Must have been midnight by the time she was full enough and happy enough. Then she wanted to sleep being cuddled which was quite sweet but doesn't make for a solid night's comfortable sleep for me at all.

Long day visiting people today. I may be back with some rants this evening.

I bet lexi! we had the same from about seven til half eleven last night and I was getting very frustrated and tired. He then slept beautifully so all is forgiven. .. how you had s good night!

Today I've got a visitor. An old, good friend who lives up north but is Down for the weekend. I tested her yesterday to check she was still ok to visit and she didn't reply. Sent her a jaunty text this morning enquiring abut hangovers as she was at a hen do last night, and she replied saying 'no hangover but a horrible cold' . I then and if she was still on to visit or whether she was to ill and contagious, but no reply! Wehave a lot we want to do today so I kindof need to know. And lively as she is, we don't want her germs.....

As someone asked about how old our babies are, I thought I'd cut and paste bits of the spreadsheet in here. I've only done it as birth day, MN name and gender.

Hope that's ok with everyone...

Born on:
16th August
Weeblewobbling: boy
Kipsonline: boy
Derpess :boy and girl (twins)

21st August
Weebarra (Whyriskit): girl

22nd August
Belvedere: boy

24th August
CheeseStrawCraving: boy

25th August
Girraferama: girl
AlwaysInLaLaLand: girl

26th August
JammyTummy: girl
Jennimoo: boy

29th August
Georgie22: boy
BinarySolo: boy
Charlw1: girl
Andadietcoke: girl and girl (twins)

31st August
Badguider: boy
Herewego2: boy

1st September
Flipflump: boy
Gingerandlemon: girl
MeanMrsMustard: girl

2nd September
SGJ: girl

3rd September
Sameoldsonganddance: boy
Frogchops: boy

6th September
Dancemummy09: girl
Jemimahpuddleduck: girl

7th September
OrdinaryGirl: boy

8th September
RakeABedOfTyneFilth: girl

9th September
Slowblonde: boy
Fl0b0t: boy

10th September
Redandyellowandpinkandgreen: girl

11th September
Emmadee: boy
Dexterpat: boy
Dorita75: girl
Wincher: boy

13th September
Kimjayne: boy

14th September
Runningbear78: boy
Weareboatsremember: girl

15th September
LCR77: girl
MummyOfPrawn/Orangekittens: boy
eeeknumber3: boy
Manoodledo: girl

16th September
HettySunshine: girl

17th September
Bippidee: girl
MrsMangoBiscuit: girl
GirlWithTheYellowHat: girl
Geesescareme: boy

18th September
Astroming: boy
Purplepoppyseed: girl

19th September
C0smos: girl
MammaGnomes: girl

20th September
Kittenkatzen: boy
SamiadsTiredMummy: boy

21st September
Joskar: girl

23rd September
Dakomponist: girl

24th September
Derbynottsleicsnightnanny: girl

26th September
TripleRock: boy
Kilkers: girl

27th September
racheymo2: boy

29th September
Nerual: boy

1st October
pinkapple86: boy

2nd October
Juniper9: girl

4th October
Fozziebear: girl

9th October
Readytosettle: boy

Thanks to SGJ for compiling the original spreadsheet!