October 2017: Babies are here!

[Nessalina]

There's been a flurry of new arrivals on the October thread, so here's somewhere for us to share the excitement and terror of our newborns!!

Have you been doing pelvic floor exercises @doomkittycleo? Also have you spoken to DP about it? I was really surprised that my DP was totally unfazed by it all and even offered to have a look to see if it was healing properly (i declined ) also I downloaded this app called Squeezy which is by the NHS and it’s actually really good, it takes you through timed pelvic floor squeezes and reminds you to do it through the day. The mw checked out my stitches today (so that was nice... ) and said it all looks really good and healthy and the bit I thought was my cervix being low is my anterior wall and it should lift back in to place.

Also hooray for Dexter who has already regained his birth weight and more at the grand age of 9 days! He’s now 4.250kgs and was 4.1kgs at birth. Felt so proud.

Has everyone else got the little red book? I didn’t know if I was supposed to fill some of the info out in it or wait for the health visitor..

@Gimble, I have done some pelvic floor exercises, but as the tear is on my labia it's unlikely that pelvic floor exercises will do much for it. It's not affecting my continence or anything, it's just not as tidy as it used to be. But as I said it's not that noticeable anymore.

DP said it's not an issue, he hasn't looked at it, but said that he isn't worried about what it looks like anyway. I'm sure it'll be ok.

Don't write in the red book yet, the health visitor will fill it in. There's a bit at the back for you to fill in when baby meets various milestones, but I think that's the only bit you do yourself.

I'm sure it'll heal fine @doomkittycleo , the body is pretty good at sorting itself out, and I'm sure they would have insisted on stitching you if they thought it would cause any long term issues for you.
If it helps, even if you get the stitches it still stings like a motherfucker when you wee Because the injected anaesthetic makes your bits swell up so much, they have to leave some give in the stitches so that when the swelling goes down they don't pull too tight. So basically there's still an open wound there, it's just sort of a more managed open wound! So you've avoided a week's worth of swelling on top of the stinging at least

How's it going folks?

Hey @Nessalina, feeling so much better now. Think I had a little bit of the baby blues when we first got home. Now I’m much more able and I only cry because I love him so much, rather than ‘what if I fail him?!’ ha. He’s such a good little chap and I think I’m getting at least 8 (broken) hours a night!

Dexter has thrown up an entire feed everyday for the past 3 days. Usually whilst he’s still on the boob. He seems to be really going for it but also being a bit squirmy and then whoosh out comes all the milk (all over me..!) got the HV coming tomorrow so will ask her about it but can anyone shine a light on why?! My milk actually is sometimes spraying out so I dunno if he’s just drinking it down way too quick or it’s positional ..

How’s everyone else getting on?!

Glad you're feeling more yourself @GimbleInTheWabe I always feel like 'baby blues' doesn't really cover the crushing fear and weirdness of your life completely changing and you being responsible for this tiny being that doesn't care if you sleep It does pass thank god!!

M has done a couple of spectacular 'whole feed' voms, I honestly think it's greed as it usually happens where she's fussed for more food, I've offered boob 2 and she's scoffed it all, but not had the space for it! I've heard that if they have a windy tum it can feel like hunger, so they can over face themselves but it will come back up!

Yeah I think that could be it @Nessalina, going to check with the health visitor tomorrow when she comes as he just did another vom up. How are things with your? How old is your lo now?

We’ve had two sets of visitors today with the final duo arriving at 7pm tonight, feel bloody knackered and I got 8 hrs of sleep last night! I really cherish the days when it’s just me, DP and dex.

M is three weeks old tomorrow! She's getting on well, though she had an epic 'won't be put down' night last night which coincided with DH going out and my friend coming over to give me a massage, so there was a lot of wailing She slept ok though thank god, I had visions of not getting any sleep at all! I'm getting 6hrs or so most nights in 2/3 chunks, which I think is pretty good at this point!
Visitors can bugger off mostly IMHO, definitely a one set per day limit is the most I can hack!

Hello! Me and baby Lewis have come over to join you from the antenatal thread. He arrived on Sunday morning via express delivery

Things are going well so far, he is a pretty good baby. It is so much easier second time around, just knowing how to do things like nappy changing and feeding, and also I think my expectations are more realistic! I really feel for you first time mums, it reminds me of how bewildering and stressful those first few weeks are when you feel totally clueless but you have a little life to take care of.

Hi everyone! Joining the thread with baby Zoe, delivered on Monday by c section at 40+10 weighing 9lb 6oz!

How's everyone doing? I'm so tired and can't wait to leave the hospital and get home. We've just officially been discharged, hurrah.

What day did everyone's milk come in? I still just have colostrum at 3 days on. Been putting dd to breast almost constantly (she's constantly rooting!) since a few hours after delivery and did lots of skin to skin. Unfortunately dd isn't latching properly, possibly due to tongue tie, and my nipples are already cracked and painful. Currently trying to hand express colostrum and top up with formula before seeing lactation consultant tomorrow. Not an ideal start but I really do want to bf this time as it didn't work out with ds.

@TippetyTapWriter mine started coming yesterday evening and was properly here this morning. So it was three full days from 5am Sunday. I’m guessing yours might be the same time tomorrow that Zoe was born. The couple of days before are a real killer though.

Hi everyone,

Was hoping to join for some support with my first baby if that's ok? Expected due date of 11th Nov however little Olivia was in a hurry and came on 8th October, 5 weeks early. Despite being so early, she weighed a decent 5lbs 11oz and after a quick visit to the special care baby unit for jaundice treatment and to establish my feeding, we got home a week later.

Absolutely loving being a mummy, even the sleepless nights as tough as they are, are bearable knowing I get to spend some quality time with her. I'm breastfeeding and it's taken a while to get there with it and for Olivia to start gaining weight however really feel we've turned a corner after the last few days. I do have a question though - when I'm putting her to the breast, she has an absolute carry on every time, thrashing, moaning, straining to do the toilet etc. This can last from anything between 2-10mins before she latches on and feeds like a dream. Can anyone offer advice as to why she does this? If it's normal or if there's something I'm doing wrong potentially or whether it's a sign of something? I'm planning on contacting a breastfeeding advisor on Fri.

Hi girls, baby Lydia Beth arrived on the 24th October at 9.23pm weighing 7lbs 12oz. Thankfully I'd prepared to be quite flexible with my birth plan as I wasn't in as much control as I'd have liked to be, we had meconium and I went from 2cm to pushing in less than 3 hours, all so quick I didn't get the epidural I was asking for! (But never originally thought I'd want)

Since the birth she's been in and out of scbu with possible infections but hopefully we'll get to go home tomorrow. I've had to hand express colostrum as she's been too filled with mucus and too drowsy to latch. We had a good feed this evening though, and aside from the man on our post natal ward snoring so loudly he's waking up all the babies, things look like they are on the up!

Finally joining after what feels like forever! I was due on 7th October but our little boy Thorin decided to hang in there as long as possible and came after I was induced on 22nd October, arrived at 5:08am weighing 7lb 11.

The birth itself was fairly traumatic as it turned out during labour Thorin had turned back-to-back, had his cord wrapped round his neck three times and an arm pinned up by the cord. I was rushed to theatre after more than three hours of active pushing for a forceps delivery and episiotomy with a spinal block. It's all such a blur to me, I didn't even know I'd had an episiotomy until nearly 2 days after the birth as I was bed bound with a catheter but didn't think to question why! Now I'm sat at home 3 days later feeling sorry for myself with what I'm guessing are infected stitches. Salt baths for me, yay(!)

I'm loving being a mum despite the hard work and physical pain. I'm lucky to have a truly incredible husband who I can't honestly say I couldn't have got through the birth or coming home without. I'm determined to breastfeed but Thorin's taking a little while to get the hang of it- his forcep marks mean his face was tender after birth so he couldn't latch or suck. I'm going to a breastfeeding workshop tomorrow so will let you know what they say @Dollydaydream2829 as we have a similar thing, except he hasn't mastered the feeding like a dream part either! 🙈

Sorry your dd has been poorly bobbiepin! Hope she's doing ok now.

Another one with feeding problems here. My nipples are cracked and bloody, I'm now engorged and nothing is coming out! Just written a big moany post about it in the feeding section and got some helpful responses but I'm still feeling despondent. And so so sore!

Welcome welcome new mums! Nice to see the group getting bigger

But if a personal question but is anyone else still bleeding down below? I had a 3rd deg tear but it’s def not my stitches bleeding. It’s more like a period and I probs change pads about 5 times a day but I wondered when it should stop?

Also does anyone else have a refluxy baby? Poor little Dex can get quite unsettled after a feed and I have to really wind him and hold him upright for a good while. Would love any tips people have! Cot is already on a tilt.

@GimbleInTheWabe yes I am, and changing about that many times, I had him 8th October. MW said you can bleed up to 6 weeks, and only to worry if having to change pad more than twice every 30 mins

@mummabubs that sounds so traumatic, are you doing any better now? I hope your bits heal quickly! We've found bf a bit kf a struggle. The hospital wont let us home yet until we've got it set which is a good thing I guess. After posting that last night we had a really horrible night. I got about 45 mins sleep and we were both very upset.

@tippety thank you, she's doing much better now. Been discharged from SCBU and had all interventions stopped. Poor thing is covered in plasters for her cannula and blood glucose tests! Tonight is the big bf test, if we can make it through the night and feed well and no big breakdowns like last night we should be able to go home. My nipples are killing but we're going to power through!

@gimble I think the bleeding can continue for about 6 weeks or so. The mws here are telling me 2 days pp that I shouldn't get through more than one pad an hour with no clots bigger than a thumb nail. If you're a couple of weeks in then I think that sounds ok but maybe ask the health visitor?

How are you getting on @Bobbiepin How did the breastfeeding go last night? If you struggle when home I used nipple shields on someone's recommendation and they were amazing! Gave my nipples a chance to recover then I stopped using them, mine were chapped and cut and I was expressing blood, because DS was tongue tied.

Hope you escape soon!!

@bobbiepin & @Gimble, my bleeding stopped in the last week (5 weeks since birth today) or so and although like a period I still got a few clots about the size of a 50p towards the end of that time. Usually the bleeding is heavier when you've just been breastfeeding due to uterus contracting.

It also stopped and started a bit during that time, but all seems to be settling now.

lionqueen did the nipple shields stop the pain? Which ones did you use? And how did the tongue tie affect your son's latch? Sorry for all the questions but I'm close to giving up on breastfeeding. I'm finding the pain much worse than my c section! Dd apparently has a tongue tie though lactation consultant doesn't think it would affect her feeding. But she has a really shallow latch and only gets my nipple on her mouth, none of the breast. And I'm now engorged and no milk at all is coming out either by pumping or hand expressing!

Hope you get home bobbiepin.

Thanks for the bleeding info, my mw mentioned nothing about this so was feeling a little worried. Going to brave another look at my stitches later after a shower 

Hope you get discharged @Bobbiepin, are you on the main ward or your own room? There’s nothing worse than the sea of blue curtain to make you feel like you’re in a goldfish bowl.

My HV gave me a leaflet with all these free drop ins in my local area and one was a bfing clinic, think I’m going to go to the next one as I think I’m an overlactator, poor dex keeps getting sprayed in the face and coughs/sicks up his feeds because he has to drink so quickly. Anyway hopefully some of you have this facility too?

@TippetyTapWriter I used the tommee tipee shields, cost about £5 and they were amazing! Pretty much completely took away the pain when I was about to give up breast feeding.

I didn't realise he was tongue tied originally but my nipples were agonising and cut and think that was because of that as he couldn't latch on fully. Since they sorted that I've not needed the shields, plus using them gave my nipples time to heal. However he needed winding a lot more with the shields!

We're home! She seems even smaller here than on the ward. Thankful for no one else snoring and keeping us up (other than DH) and for a toilet that I can use bare foot. credit to the hospital, the whole place was spotless but its still a public toilet really.

@Thelionqueen1 i'll definitely look into the shields, I've been using lanisol ointment which is very helpful but I do think a little protection for a day or two might help.

Either way, happy to be home.

@GimbleInTheWabe Definitely go to a clinic, we went to our local breastfeeding clinic this afternoon and they were utterly amazing- managed to get Thorin latched for 15 consecutive minutes (our record before that was 20 seconds and a poor latch). I know it's still going to be a struggle, but I feel so much more positive now that we can do it. He has a really small tongue so they say that's why he's not feeding well at the moment but this should improve over time.

@Bobbiepin I'm still in a lot of pain to the extent that I thought the stitches might be infected but midwife today said they're just very swollen, not infected. Hopefully they'll start to heal soon as the pain is making me pretty miserable!