October 2006

[Bronze]

Am I the first one here or have I completely missed the thread? If this is the only thread please come and join me
Bron

hiya hope every1s ok!

welcome mellin!

swizzler- when u say "she cauterised my episiotomy as it was granulating" What does that mean???!!! Just curious as i had 2 have 1, & I have also been wondering what they do at the 6 week check.

youngmum- i just bout feel normal down there now, kai is 3 weeks 2day,& i had a few stitches. still bleeding aswell but only seems a little bit now.I guess its different 4 every1 though.

hope ur backs ok prettycandles!

Ohhh I love the sympathy - bring it on! . Dh is great at the support side, but I don't get much sympathy from him. Oooo I can find something to complain about if I try hard enough .

All I can say about my back is that it goes all the way from my head to my bum, and won't let me forget that! Still, it could be worse.

You are only likely to need cauterisation if you're not healing properly (tear or episiotomy). You'd know by the check-up whether or not you're healed, as you would expect to feel fine (note I don't say 'normal'!) by then. If there's still soreness, or there's discharge or smell, then you need to be examined, whether or not the doctor offers that to you.

We had a notsogood night last night - feeding at 1am and 5am, which meant that I didn't really get any more sleep after the 2nd feed. I'm convinced that if I get the early mornings and late evenings sorted (in other words that we all drag ourselves out of bed and get going asap so that ds2 is feeding during or immediately after our breakfast, and that I feed ds2 at about 11pm) everything else will more-or-less drop into place. I live in hope.

Ohmegawd I'm jealous reading about all these babies going close to sleeping through! Swizzler I can totally relate, most we've managed so far is 3 hours at night. Went to baby clinic today and dd has put on weight (great news because she was low birth weight) but I wanted to throttle the HV when she started telling me in a very patronising tone that I shouldn't expect to sleep for several months because dd is still small. I don't think I can last that long.

PS. what does LO mean?

LO = little one

Nice, patronising, HV. For her info, big babies don't necessarily sleep for long early on either!

hello all. well parents in law behaved beautifully after all the fuss prior to their arrival. phew! big relief.they were so good that now feel positive about asking them to come and stay and help-fantastic result. mil had knitted yet another great cardi and they brought a lambskin for lo. it's really great for calming hope down. we've put it in one of those baby seats so that she's quite upright (cos of reflux) and she often sits quite happily in it.
less great was realising the bleeding was worse again. had to go back to hospital last night with h and my mum as dh at work. the mw thinks h might have been feeding every hour because my milk production was down from infection. felt awful about that, especially as they weighed lo and she's still only 9lbs and a bit, when she was already 9lbs at 8 day check . had to go back for scan this am. they've said there is still retained stuff but they don't think i have infection-so confusing. i never had a temperature the last 2 times i had the infection and no smell. this time the bleeding smelt v wrong (sorry tmi) so called and now they say no infection but that maybe some of the placenta came out yesterday and that was what it was.
had a big wobble on dh after leaving the hospital as he said he had to go back to work.now feel bad about that.he's doing the best he can it's just that he's always working.
have spent alot of today crying, feels like bad pmt, nothing particularly wrong apart from sleep deprivation and cracked nipples but just feel really wobbly and tearful.
pmore the meet ups are great. felt bit anxious the first one but everybody was lovely and in the same boat which really helps at this stage.
rumpel sorry to hear you've had problems with infection too. it's pants being on antibiotics isn't it. re mastitis, i know i always bang on about this, but sounds like your lo maybe isn't latching on well and might help to see an osteopath because it can be due to their jaw and neck having been squished at birth-does your lo prefer turning head to one side? word of warning too-my sil had mastitis so fed one side only and she has now been left with 1 boob bigger than the other permanently .
it sounds blissful having a bath with your baby. i tried it after reading all your posts and then got really worried that hope was half out of the water and getting cold-what do you do about that?
whiffy/pelvic doors, good to hear from you again.
sorry for v v v long post

Ok maybe I'll attempt the travel to London! Feeling bit better now. Worried about the train from Gravesend with LO but we can do it. I'll watch out for arrangements!

marthahm- you sound very down at moment- keep your spirits up you can do it.

Went to visit my grandma today, she is very sleepy but still managed to hold Samantha. Quite sad to watch but I managed to hold back tears.

I was thinking of bathing with LO but maybe I'll shower first! I'm sure the warmth of the person LO's are laying on helps to stop them getting cold?

Nearly finished my Xmas shopping today!

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Help am bleeding again,like a period,i was told i would not get periods if i breast fed so whats going on? i have not overdone it today and baby is 6 wks old and feeding lots in evening.I dont know if i should be concerned,have also posted on BF thread.

had you completely stopped bleeding after the birth totally?

Marthahm: hope you're getting as much rest and help as possible. We've got a baby seat plus lambskin as well - great as W happy to sit and nap in it during the day.

The granulation was something to do with the cut not healing properly and 'inside' cells remaining on the outside of the wound - I think that's what she said. Anyway, they'er burnt off now.

Catgirl: is there a John Lewis plus cafe at Canary Wharf? I have some vouchers to spend

i thought it had all stopped about 10 days ago,just a bit of a discharge if you know what i mean,but i feel like i have period pain...i dont want periods it was one of the reasons i breast fed

It could be your periods. My mum's returned at 6w with each of us, despite bfing.

When you bath with the baby (which I can highly recommend ) you could put an extra heater in the bathroom if you feel it's too cool. We ue a little fan heater. Also, run the bath as deep as you can, sit up, hold the baby upright under the arms and dunk him/her between your legs. They get good eye contact that way, feel secure because they are being held, and can swish around and kick to their heart's content. You can alternate that with any other position or hold, or even feeding.

Haven't bathed with ds2 for at least a couple of weeks. Must do it again - it's blissful. Trouble is, I can only do it when dh is available to hand him to me and take him from me.

Evening All -

Had post natal - just a chat - she looked at my boob but it is much better today as I grit my teeth and fed her loads from it yesterday, massaged and took homeopathic remedies. Totally PO with it though - so easy on the left side.

MARTHA - sorry your feeling blue - being poorly makes you feel much worse. Sending you healing vibes. My right boob has always been about 1 cup size bigger anyway so it might actually even me out!! Bathing with LO is lovely. I hold her head in both hands, thumbs tucked into her shoulders/arms and let her float in between my legs on her back. If she is cuddled in I use a sponge to soak her with warm water regularly. She loves to kick her legs. had to bath her in her little bath today as when got back from Docs she was covered in poo as the nappies I've got just now are rubbish! She is getting too long for it now though.

She slept from 11pm to 8am yesterday and is having a sleep fest today!! Growing.

Rumpel: would recommend Pampers - they seem to keep most of the poo explosions in

hi all.
Martha sorry you are having such a rough time. Try to take is easy (well as easy as you can!)
Youngmum-I think it is quite normal for bleeding to stop and start. In my case annoyingly am still getting a slight discharge and DS will be six weeks on Monday.
Swizzler-your 6 week check sounds very thorough which is good. Have booked a smear for a couple of weeks time and not looking forward to that. Had treatment for dodgy cells a while back and have to have yearly smears now, and should have had one in May so overdue. Get v.nervous about them now in case something shows up again.

Totally does sound like a period.
rumpel glad the boob is a bit better.

Re the meet up, canary wharf is a bit of a b*gger to get to from here, but DH finishes for Xmas on 12th, so if it is anytime after then we could make it as I will bring him along if that is OK, and he can drive. don't worry if you'd rather do it earlier

Rumpel: the doc said they might have to repeat the smear as bfing can skew the results. It also took her ages to find the cervix as my pelvic floor is not what it was - must do more of those exercises

Meeting up after the 12th fine for me - prob good to do so before most people finish work - what about between the 12th and the 18th?

typed a really long message the other day about canary wharf etc, and then braodbend stopped working and haven't been able to get on since But fingers crossed this time.

Anyway, there are lots of coffee shops - Starbucks, pret, cafe nero in Jubilee Place shopping centre in Canary Wharf, there are also 'proper' restaurants, but they are not that buggy friendly - coffee shops are as they have tables in the shopping centre as well as inside their own shops, so lots of space. There is also a pizza express in the other shopping centre (Canada Place??), above the Canary Wharf DLR station. Lifts from all platforms, loos and baby changing all available (there are always groups of new mums meeting up, it looks like!). There is a Waitrose Home and Food, which is Waitrose with two floors of selected JL stuff - there is a nursery dept and toy dept!

Believe it or not, and it won't last, but both boys in bed! Not sure what to do now - I'm sure I'll think of something!

Hope those of you that are feeling lousy for whatever reason, feel better soon - have only skimmed thread so apologies for not addressing anyone specifically.

Still breastfeeding, despite a really bad day on Wednesday - it helped that Thursday was a really good day! Although evening bottle feeds seem to be getting earlier and earlier.

Pizza Express?

DS still awake and yelling - playing Johnny Cash to calm him down (not working so far...)

I can't believe what I did this weekend . Never understood before how women could be pregnant again by the time they have their post-natal checkup - previously it took months before dh had even a glimmering of a hope!

And I'm wearing a pair of pre-pregnancy trousers.

It's still only Saturday, but it's been a great weekend so far! Even though ds2 was up twice last night, and threw up in our bed.

Sorry, peeps, but I'm feeling sickeningly cheerful. Hope you're also having decent weekends.

Pizza express at canary wharf is on top floor and although huge and usually empty after lunch rush, I think it is accessable only by escalator??? If people want to do pizza express then maybe the one we used near oxford circus as very central and no access problems??

Re using lambskins - you may want to check if the lambskin is organic and if not be careful only to keep LO's in for short stretches of time.... hate to get people worried but here is explanation why you need to be careful stopsidsnow.com/Sheepskins.html

BUT totally organic skins are apparantly perfectly safe....

Marthahm you sound perfectly normally miserable. Hate to hear that you have got the blues but think it may all be related to having a flat full of other people - I think you've probably bottled stuff up and it is now flooding out. I had bouts of real misery with my first even though I felt I was coping OK in other respects (was fairly relaxed with DS, didn't get stressed by his crying or anything). I just used to have crying jags once a week or so.
Naomi Woolf wrote a good book which had loads about new mothers never really being given the chance to consciously mourn the loss of the life they had before LO arrived. Even though we all long to be mums it doesn't mean we can't also want to cling onto aspects of our child-free life and I reckon that underlay a lot of the bouts I had initially when I became a mum - though I never felt it at a conscious level. My DH linked it all up for me when he pointed out that I was still pouring over Sunday paper travel supplement articles about romantic hotels in exotic locations when realistically I knew I would never go to these places now.... his comment set me off on a big 'clear-out' emotionally... Anyway, enough of the rambling, just wanted you to know that you are probably more normal than those who sail through joyfully (haven't met any of that type yet),and there are lots of differnet but perfectly logical reasons why you might be having plenty of 'down' time.

Oh, and Martha, I met one of your old colleagues from Harley st on Friday - chap called Daniel Brown. Took my DD to the local osteo practice in my town to check out her colic and was thrilled to find an OCC-trained person there. He's found out what is causing all her pain (some stuff all trapped up in her neck which is feeding down to one side under her ribs), she is miles and miles better after just one treatmewnt and we can finally see some hope at getting the colic licked. Hope so as DD at the moment is in so much discomfort and it seems to be making her a really sad little soul.

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Prettycandles, I was going to post wondering how people managed to conceive a third child - nothing to do with whether you want sex or not, but logistically how? when? where? (unless maybe it is possible to have sleep sex?) However, you have now given me hope. (Not of having a third child, but that at some point in my life there might again be a time when me and DH are alone in a room together for an hour and we are not just collapsed in front of 'Lost'.) You are an example to us all!