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***************December 2006 ****************

999 replies

lucy5 · 23/01/2007 21:41

I can't access the thread with my rubbish Spanish internet connection. Could someone start a new thread and link it on the old one too. Thankyou. Hope alls well!

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
accessorizewithbabysick · 28/01/2007 21:38

Gloria, having said all that, if a bottle of formula now & again will save your sanity, you shouldn't feel guilty about it, esp if expressing not working that well for you. I wish I had done it the first time round instead of getting more stressed. And a printout from a website like Kelly's might convince your rellies to leave you alone...

satinshoes · 28/01/2007 21:41

agree with aq. my dh gave dd a bottle last night to give me some sleep and i feel much better for it. i never did it with dd until it was too late and she refused so i was tied to her until she could drink from a cup at 6 months.

Olihan · 28/01/2007 22:02

Gloria, constant feeding all evening here too (normally 6ish to 11ish, with a couple of breaks of about half an hour) AND the stupid comments from people who really ought to know better. I know exactly what you mean about not wanting him to wake up for while. Some evenings he's nodded off and has stayed asleep on the transfer to dh's chest then he starts shuffling and my heart sinks..........

Having said that, have you seen a bf counsellor about his latch? I think if he's not quite latched on properly then he can't get the milk efficiently therefore feeds take forever. That's what was happening with ds2 and the all day feeding has eased now, although the evenings are still hard going.

The other thing I'm learning is that he often tries to comfort suck, which doesn't bother me particularly but he gets really frustrated when he gets a let down and he doesn't want food. We've discovered that tight swaddling and a dummy to satisfy his sucking urge works a treat, unfortunately only if dh is holding him though! I think if he's on me he can smell me and wants a nipple not a dummy .

Anyone else's 4 weekers become very spotty? Ds2 looks like a 15 year old at the mo, poor thing. I'm fairly sure ds1 had it - hormones leaving his system, or something? Does that sound familiar to anyine else?

STUPID QUESTION ALERT: Margo have you had a name change? If so, who were you? I need to update the babies list for this thread and don't want to leave you out!

magnolia1 · 28/01/2007 22:12

Jabber, I position him slightly sitting up and lean back as much as possible which helps to slow the flow a little. He does still choke a bit but it's better than wha it was.

I went out for an hour and a half tonight and left Dh with bottle of expressed, came home to ds1 screaming He was fighting the botle and was so worked up bless him. I popped him straight on the boob and he was so calmed by it I feel so so guilty

babypowder · 28/01/2007 22:21

Oli, DD2 is very spotty too. And still yellow. Just gorgeous . The spots are perfectly normal, but if they (the spots)get a bit red and angry looking, a bit of EBM or cool water settles them down. Wish the same could be said for red and angry LOs

Gloria, my 5.5 week old is feeding all the time at the minute too. Cluster feeding is a bit of a drag, but it does mean that they are teaching your body to make enough milk to meet their needs. Ergo, they must be growing if they need more milk. It does settle down, but will probably happen at the next growth spurt again.

margo1974 · 28/01/2007 23:09

Olihan,

Don't worry I have always been Margo on Mumsnet. I have been an MN member for a couple of years but never got addicted until just after dd2 was born (someone told me off on a thread and it put me off, then during dd2s pg I was trying to decorate the whole house for what seems FOREVER!) Now the dishes and laundry pile up and DH is a Mumsnet Widower!

So my details ----

DD 2 born 2.19am weighed 7 lb 12 ozs on 12th December 2006.Her name is Olivia.
Birth was induced due to Gestational Diabetes (insulin dependant) Had epidural, but didn't have an assisted delivery this time.

Thank you for letting me crash on your thread!

You have all made me most welcome! I had better do some homework and read the previous threads about all of you.

Gloria42 · 28/01/2007 23:58

DS (another spotty 4-weeker) is now with DP for settling after 3 hour feed. Latch is definitely improved today, no pain at all on left and improved on right (my weaker side) so hopefully this will lead to better milk production (Olihan, I definitley think DP smells milk from me all the time - he definitely settles better with DP than me, even when I do the same things)
Thanks for all your support! Feeling much better about things

Gloria42 · 28/01/2007 23:59

So off to bed now, fingers crossed for a good night x

jabberwocky · 29/01/2007 04:31

Weaker right siders unite

Thanks for the letdoen/posiyioning tip, Magnolia. Will def give it a go.

Ds2 at 9 weeks is finally slowing down on the cluster feeding and spots have cleared up although his little cheeks are still a bit rough and get irritated easily.

He had a good night last night. We'll see how it goes tonight

satinshoes · 29/01/2007 08:19

my left side is weaker

DD is 7 weeks and also has teenage acne. poor thing

castlesintheair · 29/01/2007 09:31

I've not been feeling too great. (Thanks for asking AQ). I fainted again and probably have to go to hospital to be "investigated" unless things improve. I'm back on the Spatone but feel pretty feeble. At least my DD2 is being kind to me - sleeping from last feed (11pm ish) to around 6am. She does stuff her face all day though DS off school with another effing bug. They are little darlings though and very good to their tired old mother.

Know what you mean Eli about staying away from other children. At the moment I would like us to live in a bubble for a couple of months until spring. Although I shall probably go completely maaaaaaaaaaaaaad if I don't get out. Vicious circle really.

Indith · 29/01/2007 09:39

Not nice Castles, hope your dcs kep behaving and you take care of youtself.

Ds slept so amazingly well last night. My washing machine broke and floodd the place so little advantage of the fact was taken.

castlesintheair · 29/01/2007 09:41

Gloria, I found expressing really affected my milk supply for some reason The more I did it the less I could express IYKWIM. I don't bother anymore (partly because I'm a lazy arse) and just give formula when I'm out (to avoid fainting) and last thing at night. Doing this doesn't seem to affect my milk supply at all and DD2 sleeps well (see my previous post). Oh and btw, NO THIS STAGE DOESN'T LAST FOREVER, it just feels like it will sometimes

For those who have spewy babies: midwife pal told me not to give SMA at this age as it is a notorious spew-maker (DD2 seems to spew on formula only - too rich maybe?). Anyway, she told me to give her Cow & Gate and hey presto it stays down!! I noticed that it does have the consistency of wall paper paste though so maybe that's why ...

jabberwocky · 29/01/2007 09:48

So sorry to hear the fainting is still going on castles. I can't imagine what it could be

Ds2 is sleeping much better lately. 4 to 5 hours at a stretch and naps are back

castlesintheair · 29/01/2007 09:52

Thanks girls and hooray for big sleeps Indith & Jabber (although you couldn't take advantage Indith, typical isn't it, but hopefully better tonight).
Jabber, apparently it's to do with the drugs I was given for my section. Still, at nearly 9 weeks. I am amazed!

Gloria42 · 29/01/2007 09:53

hello ! After all the worry (and two empty breasts - now I definitely know what that feels like!) DS slept from Midnight until 5.30, got the expressed bottle from his dad, then slept until 8.30. Had a nappy change and a bite to eat and is now snoozing again! Yippee!!!!!!
I'm off to make a coffee before things change
PS Castles, thanks for advice. Feel a bit anti-formula, the ingredients list full of mono-this and mono-that put me off. Will perservere (spelling??) for a couple more days with expressing but already have carton of SMA & C&G in the cupboard in case of emergencies!

jabberwocky · 29/01/2007 09:56

Big congrats, Gloria

Castles, I didn't know the drugs were the culprit. How bizarre!

Ds2 has drifted off. Am about to take advantage and get a bit more sleep...

satinshoes · 29/01/2007 10:07

Morning all. I survived my first night without DH since DD was born. Managed ok but she wanted feeding at 2.30, 4.30, 6.30 and 8.30 this morning. so i'm a bit tired. as had to get DD1 dressed and breakfasted in between.

DD1 is now at preschool and DD2 catching up on all the sleep she should have had last night.

castles - hope you feel better soon

Elibean · 29/01/2007 10:13

Well done Gloria, wow!

All of you sleeping beauties, I'm sooo - still not able to get more than a 3 hour (or very very occasional 4 hour) stretch out of dd. Mind you, she's so snotty at night that she's waking every hour or so to cough and splutter and choke. And has vomited mucousy milk all over me this morning

Castles, sorry you're still feeling so crap - sounds as though you're sensitive to the drugs they gave you, really hope they leave your system soon. If we weren't carrying ear infections and snotty colds we could come and un-stir-crazy you, or vice versa - as it is, last thing you need are extra bugs!

Re expressing - I'm doing a lot of it, as dd does better not choking on bottles atm. Maybe 3-4 times per 24 hours. And now I'm getting shooting pains in both breasts; does anyone else get that, or should I blame the Medela pump for being too enthusiastic?

satinshoes · 29/01/2007 10:15

Eli - I had shootin pains last week for a couple of days. I feared thrush but the Dr was convinced. A couple of days later and it disappeared, but i did notice it coincided with DDs growth spurt so could just be 'over-use'

castlesintheair · 29/01/2007 10:19

Hi Eli, yes unfortunately I think we need to quarantine ourselves for a while. At least I know I'm not the only one! And that's another reason I don't express anymore, I used to get awful pains with it in both breasts. I think I sometimes turned the pressure up too high as I was so impatient to get on with it

Olihan · 29/01/2007 11:21

Am also of the long sleep stretches, the max ds2 manages is 3 hours. Had a horrible night last night, he decided he wouldn't latch on at all to my right side (also my weaker one - what is it about that side?) and had a rubbish latch on the left. Everytime I got him latched properly he had a couple of sucks then shifted his head so he was only on the nipple. I got so frustrated and ended up shouting at him which woke dh up who helpfully advised me to calm down from the warmth and comfort of the bed. Obviously that went down really well .

TBH, I'm getting really worn down by the whole bf thing. I'm just finding it so stressful, I never know whether he's getting enough, there's no pattern to his feeding, every change in his pooing habits makes me worry, he's still not back to his birthweight, I have no idea if my supply is any good. There is a little voice in the back of my mind that is saying 'if he was on formula you'd know what he was taking, if he cried 20 minutes after a feed you'd know he wasn't hungry rather than wondering if he'd been latched on properly and got enough, DH could do every other night feed, feeds would only take a short while, not a hour so I wouldn't have to keep telling ds1 and dd to wait for things.' Then the other part of me just wants have been able to feed one of my kids and not be a complete failure at the most natural thing in the world. It's ironic really, I can get pregnant at the drop of a hat, have incredibly easy pregnancies and births but I can't bf.

Sorry, it's getting to me at the moment, think the lack of sleep is taking its toll.

satinshoes · 29/01/2007 11:24

olihan - its very hard but try not to feel like a failure. this isnt really about cuccess or failure but about finding what works best for you. have you tried expressing? that way DH could do the odd feed and give you a break?

castlesintheair · 29/01/2007 11:48

Oh Olihan, I know how you feel. I think bf'ing is the hardest thing about being a mother. It is especially hard when you have 2 other LOs running riot. Do what is best for you. As you know there is much much more to being a good mother than bf'ing. I'm probably going to have to stop altogether soon if these effing headaches/fainting don't stop but that won't stop me from being a great mum I feel much happier already now that I am giving DD2 one bottle of formula a day - it takes the pressure off me and at least I know she gets at least one decent meal a day
That is my view and I'm sure there are those that will tell you to keep b-feeding but I just want you to know that you aren't alone and I think you are doing a fab job however you choose to do it
Oh, and it's amazing how much easier everything seems once you've had some sleep.

Olihan · 29/01/2007 11:55

Satin, rationally I know you're right and it's not about success or failure but I've never quite got over having to ff ds1 and dd. Ridiculous really, I know but I still feel guilty. Mind you, I'm already feeling bad that ds2 has had more bf than the other 2, god knows what I'll be like if I actually manage to do it exclusively until 6 months! My HV's favourite piece of advice is 'guilt is a waste of emotion' and she's so right but it doesn't make any difference to me!