February '15 babies - appearing thick and fast!

[GeekyHybrid]

Our first thread on the 'other side'. And may all our soon to be mummies join us in this adventure through the early days of parenthood as we continue to share exciting times.

Sending well wishes WhyO, I really was freakishly lucky that SPD tapered off quite fast.

RE: the DTD thing... Uhm.. I'm four and a half weeks post section and I'm still bleeding. Not a huge amount, but enough to put me off trying... Should I have stopped by now?

WhyO that is funny I am imagining it being in Take a Break and him looking all sad with an overbearing woman standing over him hands on hips!

Thanks guys.

frenetic its normal to have some bleeding for anything between 2-6weeks after. As long as it looks normal for a period type bleed, smells normal and you've not got any particuarily noticeable pain in either the scar or very bottom of stomach/just above pubic bone, its normal to still have some bleeding.

Memphis - Thats exactly what we were joking about.

Haha WhyO. I must admit that those trashy mags are my guilty pleasure when I'm on my own - I was sitting in Costa with baby reading Pick Me Up earlier today and had to keep covering any particularly lurid headlines when people walked past so I wouldn't be judged!

God what a bloody day!

I can't believe how unsettled we still are nearly 5 weeks on! Maybe I'm expecting too much? Although DD1 was a hard baby, literally cried all day and never slept during the day, by 5 weeks she was sleeping through the night after going down at 7pm! I had my first night out at 5 weeks! That's where we are now and everything is still all over the place! I'm hoping to take LO to the doctors tomorrow, she's still got this same cold 3 weeks on and her sickyness can't be right. I had changed her clothes 4 times within 2 hours tonight, I just don't know what to do with her her feeds are still so irregular too, is this normal? I just don't know what to do half the time.

As for DTD, DP is desperate to but I'm going to wait until after 6 week check so they can check if I've prolapsed or not, something still doesn't feel right down there.

Frenetic I bled for over 5 weeks, only enough to use a panty liner it is totally normal so don't worry

I don't have any abnormal pain but I did notice a pulling sensation when I walk upstairs... Though I assume that's scar tissue forming/shrinking?

Frenetic I'm still bleeding too. It's really frustrating because it's such a tiny amount and it's been a tiny amount each day since week 1 but it just doesn't stop.

We've made it home with my mom in tow Semi useful. OH is still sleeping (he's back at work later today), mom appeared for 5 mins so I got to eat my breakfast but has disappeared again The sun is shining but I have squirmy baby on my chest!
Though the Infacol is really helping he's still very chuntery and often squirms, arches his back a lot and sounds like he's straining in his sleep. Any ideas? It's drop in clinic tomorrow so no panic but any advice welcome.
Oh, and just to add to the dtd conversation. Thought about it briefly - meh! Think I need to feel human first

whyo I really giggled at your mil taking your hubby for the snip. frenetic glad you're having 'good' days. I think at this stage that any day that's not a disaster is a good day. bang hang in there!

Re DTD I have had thoughts but that's all they are. LO is only 3 weeks so not feeling like there's any rush. DH and I are are equally knackered and both presently anaemic (me from blood loss, him from his crohns) to feel particularly so inclined anyway!

Finally got a prescription for gaviscon for LO, I really hope it makes a difference.

Are you glad to be home geeky? Although I'm sure you had a nice time!

Going to get Bethany weighed this afternoon, 2 weeks ago she weighed 8lb 6oz so and I'm going to guess 9lb 11oz, she's getting so chunky now!

One step forward, two steps back.. LO slept 11-3, then decided not to doze off until 9am. Ouch on so many levels. I hope this is not a new trend!

Despite being on Lactulose, he's also still straining and grunting. I hate seeing him so uncomfortable. Plus he'll only settle with DH. Not helping my state of mind :(

purple I confess to having bought those trashy mags to keep me occupied in hospital when I had csection.

bang daft question are you sure LO has a cold - its just reflux can make them seem like they have a cold and from how sicky she's being reflux could be the true culprit. Reflux could also explain her unsettledness (is that even a word? - baby brain moment).

Frenetic pulling felling on scar is normal, its if it properly hurts even when not moving that's when to worry.

geeky could just be you have a windy baby, even with infacol, but worth reading about silent reflux (like heartburn) and seeing if that sounds familiar.
Oh and it was my mom, so DH's mil that took him.

HV called on Monday to see how I thought DD was doing now, after her initial weight gain issues. I said I was going to try to get her to clinic because I'm not convinced she's gaining weight (the 0-3 month clothes she only just fit in at birth still fit at 5weeks), so she is coming this afternoon to weigh DD.

Good point whyO, it seems to be a cold as she's got snot and some phlegm, could the reflux cause that? I've just given her the first bottle with gaviscon in, so we'll see! But she is so noisy generally and when she's feeding she's even more noisy like she can't breathe and she chokes pretty much during the whole feed.

Bang Just seen your latest post - glad you got gaviscon.

Frenetic is lo having infacol? Lactulose can cause trapped wind, so whilst lo needs that its worth giving infacol to help him bring up wind.

Is your DP pulling his weight now? Especially at night on non-workdays?

Also please don't feel bad if LO seems to prefer DH. Firstly I bet most of the time he's trying to settle LO after you've been dealing with LO for a long time, so he's nice and fresh which I think always helps. Secondly hes at work in the day, so LO doesn't see him all day, so hes like a new person each day to LO and again he's fresh not having had to deal with a hard baby all day.
I pretty much guarantee if you and DP swopped roles LO would settle easier for you than he would for DP.

He's doing most of the work at nights at the moment, which is so helpful because I'm struggling mentally and physically. I just feel like I'm a milk production entity... Constantly hooked up to a pump, but unable to emotionally face giving it up and moving to formula. In a stuck place with it.

We have gripe water and infacol, which is better for trapped wind?

Sorry ended up duplicating post as it seemed to have got lost this end but then appeared when I posted again - whoops.

Frenetic - This - I just feel like I'm a milk production entity... Constantly hooked up to a pump, but unable to emotionally face giving it up and moving to formula. In a stuck place with it really hit a cord with me. Its actually made me cry - I felt like that with DS only instead of a pump I was constantly attached to a LO, who wouldn't settle. I had really bad PND with him. Really bad. Every day was like a living hell. I dreaded him feeding. Dreaded it. Hated it too. It got worse and worse until by 7weeks I found myself not even wanting him near me and I just wanted to run away. I did love him with all my heart but it was just so hard and I felt so trapped. In my head I was a milk production thing and nothing else. Yet I could not face stopping. The guilt just thinking about it was beyond any kind guilt I'd ever felt.

Then at 8weeks I saw a counsellor. In just the first session she helped me realise that both of us were suffering. There really weren't any benefits to continuing. I felt like I'd been freed. Over the next week I added in a bottle of formula a day. My DS was much better on formula (positively thrived on it, which he hasn't with bm), much calmer (still a demanding velcro baby in the day until 6months but he didn't scream anywhere near as much and would sleep 12hrs at night!). I was a million times happier and whilst it did take more counselling to get passed the PND, stopping bf lifted the worst straight away.

I look back now and in all honesty I actually regret how long I tried to carry on bf for. I wish for both DS and my own sake I'd given up sooner. Formula is not poison, it is nutritionally complete and a very good alternative to bm - babies can and do positively thrive on formula. You are not a worse mother or a failure for stopping with bm/giving formula.

On logic alone I know that formula is absolutely fine for LO. I know that I'm still giving him all he needs. It's a mental block I feel like I need to get over. I almost feel scared of being alone with my son for prolonged periods because I worry I won't be able to calm him.

It's not helping that CS recovery is so slow, don't know if it's just me having a pants immune system but I still have to massively limit my activity. Plus my tummy seems swollen today after being out and about yesterday. It's so frustrating.

Frenetic could you afford to/would you feel like seeing a counsellor? It was the best thing i could have done at that time. There was a part of me that knew formula was a perfectly valid option but I just couldn't actually let myself even think about putting lo on it because of the guilt. The counsellor took the guilt away. You don't have to stop like me but just taking away the guilt should help you feel better about whatever form of feeding you do, as you'll feel less trapped into it.

Bang reflux can cause snot and phlegm, I forget the actual science behind it but I think it was something about phlegm is to try and deal with sore throat reflux can cause and snot because milk can end up going into their nose and the snot helps clear it. Its something like that anyway.

Frenetic are you still using infant gaviscon? it caused no end of trouble for my 1st baby. He was also prescribed lactulose to try and deal with the consequences. That didn't work and we ended on a ridiculous merry go round where he was suspected of having a cows milk intolerance and I ended up being dairy free as I was breast feeding. Never got to bottom of what was wrong. He definitely had reflux but I really believe that infant gaviscon did not really help - just upset his stomach. He ended up taking ranitidine and domperidon (don't think this is prescribed anymore) which seemed to settle reflux but not create the problems that infant gaviscon did. This is just my experience but though sharing it might help.

Reflux is horrible and I found it pretty isolating. The constant being sick, so unsettled, poor sleep...If it's any consolation my 1st baby grew out of reflux. Weaning really helped and at 3 1/2 he has no allergies or any other digestive problems. I know weaning sounds a long way away but I just wanted to offer some light at what can feel like a long dark tunnel.

The gaviscon was doing nothing, so he was moved to ranitidine, and he's not had any reflux symptoms in a while, just the straining.

WhyO - I think I'll mention it to my health visitor. It would be nice to talk to someone.

Just been to see my GP about swelling in my abdomen and she said I'm clearly overdoing it and need to rest more. More? I already feel like I spend a stupid amount of time doing nothing. I'm so scared of not bonding with my baby, already a worry.

Gah, today is a bad day for tears.