December-the 'Merry Christmas' Babies!

[Calmriver]

Hi Guys, thought I wouldn't betray our months of being together...whats a week amoungst friends!!!

lowfatmilkshake - i think you have to go with whatever helps them sleep

annaspanner - my DD had a few days of only wanting one side. not sure what the problem was although i had changed bra and it was squashing my nips so maybe a bit flat? also growth spurt can really affect their habits so dont worry too much.

i tried using infacol but my dd screamed the place down and spat it out all over me. i was v sticky and the orange smell made me want to vom, so i havent given it to her again. i've heard it is very good. not sure how long you give it to them though.

Anna, ds2 gets wild at the breast like that sometimes. It seems like he does it when he is really hungry. It takes one aback, doesn't it?

Satinshoes, I asked the HV about Infacol as it worked for DD but has no affect on DS. She said basically it jus neuturalises stomach acid. So I switch to grip water and it works a treat on settling him after a feed. Boots do a nice apple flavour one for use from 1 month - he loves it and smacks his lips for more, but I only give 2.5ml each time

Anna It took about 3 to 4 weeks of infacol at double dose to start working for us but the combination of that and a vibrating chair seems to have provided an almost permanent fix, now if DS is bad with colic we just give him infacol at double dose for a day or so and it seems to right itself again. But really its the chair that has been the biggest help.

Sounds as though between us all we've covered just about every feeding, sleeping, and winding issue possible

Its very reassuring, really. Had visit from HV today, though tbh felt sooo much better just from having phoned her two days ago and blurted it all out that I wasn't too sure what to say to her . And dd, of course, had a scream-free evening last night, and was all relaxed and feeding like a textbook baby when she arrived. But it was nice to see her anyway - she weighed dd, who is now 10lbs 11oz (no wonder my back hurts!) and gave me a diary thingy to keep if I want to, to get a reality check of how much dd is actually crying. Apart from Tuesday evening, it turns out she's well withing non-colicky normal limits - whatever that means.

Thanks for the support a few posts back, I definitely am glad I yelled for help when the GPs wouldn't provide what I wanted (Ranitidine, mostly]. I think I was just pissed off and sad about the interruptions to family life and bonding that we've had - the hours of distress on Tuesday night were just the last straw, and offloading felt great...

Anna, that pulling on and off the breast is standard during windy/pain-y times for dd. I think she doesn't know what she wants herself then - a mixture of hunger and wind pain probably?? If my nipples get too mangled I tend to switch to EBM in a bottle, but sometimes I can get her through it and calmer by holding her close and letting her latch on and off without pulling too far away (if that makes any sense).

I've started trying to encourage just a teeny bit of routine today...as in, not letting dd sleep more than 2 hours during the day (in one go, that is). Would dearly love to get a longer stretch in the early hours of the morning!

Re Infacol, it seems to work for some babies and not others - worked well for my neice, but didn't for dd at all. And isn't for dd2 either, not least because she hates it and spits it out like a missile - nice to know she's not the only one doing that

Milkshake, just to say on the larynx front - I totally relate. She sounds like a squeaky door, or a distressed moorhen, or an asthmatic duck or something.

I've got used to it now (though its louder than it was, apparently it can get louder for a few months before vanishing) and now that I'm not worried about it, am almost enjoying other peoples' reactions...sad, aren't I...

DS was awake all day yesterdy and when he did sleep it was only in brief naps of no more that 20 minutes. And at 11pm he was still wide awake - but content. So I made my self cosy on the sofa and woke at 1am to find him fast alseep so we crept back upstairs. He woke then at 4am. Going 5 hours between feeds is great, but it's never when I can sleep at the same time I am one tired, red eyed mummy today!

It might have something to do with hi not getting fresh air, so we're oing out today to make sure he gets lungs full of the stuff.

Morning all. glad you feel a bit better elibean.

milkshake - dd started with a 5 hour sleep 4 nights ago and has had at least 4 hours in oe go each night now. i am v. pleased. you might find that ds 'gets it' and starts having this sleep each night. fingers crossed for you.

welcome back milkshake

Anna- just to second all the others, this fussiness I think is quite normal. DS1 did it and now DS2. I think its just an odd phase they go through. I was really worried with DS1 but his weight gain was not affected in the slightest. I think all you can do is make sure they are well winded and try and few different positions for breast feeding-0 e.g. rugby ball style. At the end of the day I figure if they are really hungry they won't fuss about if there is a nipple in front of their face, so don;t worry too much.

Had 6 week checkup yesterday and all fine with us both. Had to think about contraception for the first time. Think am going to go for the coil- don;t like the idea of it but seems pretty faff free and I guess you can forget about it once its there- has anyone else had one fitted and does it hurt (sorry to ask such a chidish question )

sorry to the non-Brits, but just to talk about the weather for a minute my back lawn is currently a duck pond. Its quite nice having the change really..........might take some bread down later and feed them.

judemum, i have my 6 week check next week and was thinking of the coil. dont fancy the pill as makes me too hormonal and everything else is a hassle. interested to here other thoughts about it...

thinking about the coil here too. But it's quite expensive here and we're still trying to get hospital bills sorted - insurance is balking at paying I'm starting to get fairly stressed over the whole thing actually.

On a brighter note, ds2 just did a 4 1/2 hour stretcg but daytime naps are all over the place and it seems that a fussy period between 8 and 11 pm is now the norm

I wanted to get a coil after DD1, but as I had a C-section they couldn't do it at our surgery. the mini pill was a complete disaster - think I tried every available brand over the 2.5 years I breastfed for. Moving onto the combined pill made me a hormone-crazed zombie (despite having been on it for 20 odd years) Am seriosly considering leaving it up to DH this time ....

On another subject, is anyone taking Vit D supplements or giving them to their LO's? We don't seem to be spending any time outside at the moment, and I really worry about calcium absoption and osteoporosis in later life. It runs in our family and really eant to give DDs the best possible start.

Are there complications with getting a coil fitted after a C-section? That is what I was planning on... in case I ever need contraception again.

Think I need some matchsticks for my eyes. Screamed from around 8 til 12.30 then slept til 8.30 but fed every hour!

He is such a snacker, almost never feeds more than 5-10 mins at a time and if I do manage to get him going for longer he brings it all up again but I can't keep feeding every hour! Getting my first HV appointment Monday which I'm looking forward to. Think a fair amount of our screaming sessions are wind related but he is almost impossible to get burps or farts out of so instead I gt those agonising evening hours on end where there is nothing more I can do to help other than keep cuddling and massaging.

Babypowder the pill made me into a hormonal split personalitied meg b*tch so I left the contraception up to DP and now we have DS

(The Jan post natal thread scares me, they have been talking about sex already......)

I am sooo tired. Speaking to other mums today I think DS problem with sleep may be lack of fresh air rather then over eating as SIL suggested (is'nt a well fed baby a slepy baby?) so am resolving we all go for a stroll everyday - unless weather goes like yesterday again!

Also someone suggested putting him in his cot in his room so he can be put down while awake but his fidgeting wont disturb his daddy, which is the problem. Anyone else already put DC in thier own room??

Am a bit apprehensive as DD stayed with us till 16 weeks. And even when she moved in to her room I had the monitor glued to my ear - which I will do again with DS!

Contraception......going go to eau naturel!!
Sorry but dont want anything invasive and dont want to risk side effects of the pill!

I tried to have a coil fitted after my section with ds1 (I'd had one previously) but froze up completely so they couldn't insert it! I was having the same problems with sex at the time - was a little traumatised by the section, well ok completely traumatised! Just a word of warning if you are a bit emotional about the whole thing that your bits could tense up so much they can't do it! And yes, it is quite uncomfortable having it fitted. Worth taking a kalms or something beforehand & paracetemol afterwards I think. But it's a really good solution, I was v.happy with it & am going to try again when stitches have completely healed. Might try to have sex first tho to see if something can fit down there...
Thanks for toddler-sympathy, mine is driving me crazy, it's all no-no-no all day long. Finding it hard to like him very much, he's being quite unpleasant at times. Trying hard to remember that he was once a little baby too & the apple of my eye, not feeling like a great mum at present, getting ratty a lot & on Wednesday he got a nappy on him as I couldn't cope with any more poo!! I got dp to give ds2 a bottle of formula so I could put ds1 to bed for once. And he took 3 hours to drink 8oz OMG! And still wouldn't go to sleep so I had to feed him as well when I was meant to be getting some sleep..still, payback was a 7hour stint last night so I ought to be able to keep my temper with ds1 today!
Anyone else finding it really hard to just get a meal on the table for your other child/children, I just don't have enough hands as always winding ds2. In order to do tonight's I had to cut up all the stuff last night & cook it now so I just had to reheat later. Is this how to do it? Any other ideas to manage it as DP doesn't get home until 6.30 at least.

hi ladies

will catch up later,,,i have an electric pump now...so excited!

AQ, I just put DD2 down to cook & so the other 2 can eat. I think they are used to eating with her screaming in the background now How else are we meant to manage? My DH is never here.

Eli, pleased you are feeling better. As the advert says "it's good to talk".

Re coil: my mum nearly died as a result of very heavy periods & an infection from it but that was about 15 years ago and I'm sure it's much improved. I wouldn't go down that route personally, I don't like tampering with nature by filling my body with unnecessary drugs/hormones as you've probably guessed from all my homeopathic ramblings!! I am a hippy by nature though and most of my friends who have it are very happy with it. Also, I shall probably never have sex again ...

I use infacol & gripe water. I'm not sure if they are working or the colic days are nearing an end but there is definitely improvement on the wind front.

Both DDs very ill with chicken pox. Things can only get better!!

Have just tried my pump and there is NO suction??? Whats going on???

hi guys, have read up about the coil and a bit worried as have always had long, heavy periods and apparently this can make it wors.e anyone know anything about zlink{http://www.womens-health.co.uk/mirena.asp\the ius?}

the ius?

My sister has the mirena, she had it fitted at the same time as having an op for endometriosis and hasn't had a period since. She did have problems with cramping after it was fitted but then she has no kids and it is not normally recommended if you havn't. It is a local hormone rather than going through your whole body so doesn't affect you in the same way the pill does. But, as with every hormonal contraceptive it affects different people in differnt ways and some women do have mood swings etc caused by it the same way some do on the pill. The great advantage of course is that it is statistically as effective as sterilisation so certainly tempting!

Hi there! Have had a crappy week, virtually no sleep, two out of 3 sick, and still all the business of living to do!

Will zip down the thread to try to catch up a bit, then see whose on the thread now...

Kirsten is already 4 weeks old... where does the time go....