The March-ers 2019 - Baby Talk #1

[Angelmiracle]

Congratulations to all the mamas with their new babies 🌸

Now the fun really starts 😄

@toastfiend - baby boy - 28/01/2019
@TheWanderlust - Baby girl - Althea - 7lb6oz - 16/02/2019
@PurpleFlower1983 - Baby girl - Matilda - 17/02/2019
@Wineandchoccy - Baby girl - Lois - 6lb12oz - 19/02/2019
@Harley8888 - Baby boy- Logan - 7lb4oz - 01/03/2019

@Chyrsalis2017 @AssumeItWasSomethingClever I'm having the same problem with my baby. She only really wants to sleep on me during the day. When I go to put her down she wakes in about 10 minutes. She's also been really fussy and fidgety the past week from around 7pm to 10pm. So I don't have any advice neither.

@ballanj sorry to hear your struggling with baby. I don't have any advice hope someone else does. Sounds really awful for you all

@ballanj Sorry to hear about your struggles. I don't know how old your LO is, but mine is 5 weeks+2 days and we've been struggling with the wind big time since he was about 2.5w? But I really think it got better over time - I'm more conscious of the bf positioning and he seems to know a lot better, how to do his business. However, I don't think ours was ever as bad as you describe. I think going to the GP might be a good idea - you can't survive on no sleep, and the cries won't do any good for your mental health either.
I really hope things get better for you very soon!

No issue with baby sleeping in the pram or sling - they are still tiny!
DD pretty much only sleeps on us or the sling during the day and it hasn't affected her using her moses basket at night.

She is growing well and was 7lb 7oz this week - she is properly in newborn now! We kept all the baby stuff first time but it is all going this time for definite - no more kids here

@ballanj the only advice I’ve been given is to keep A upright foe 20 minutes but don’t know if that’s more for the sick than the wind. I wind her halfway through a bottle by sitting her forward on my lap and normally get a good burp but not so much after the feed. We try a combo of sitting and over the shoulder. It is exhausting though I feel for you.

@ballanj that sounds horrendous. Definitely give the HV a ring - you can't carry on like that. So sorry you are having such a time of it. Also, I'm sure your body is the last thing on your mind right now but just wanted to say that I too have had the brown line appear on my tummy post birth, as well as a dark brown belly button which looks ridiculous as I am very pale. They do both go eventually - I had the same with my first baby!

@Gronk27 also sending sympathy your way - how gutting to have to go back in foe surgery. At least it will then be the problem solved.

I agree with @SquirtlesMumAgain - J only sleeps in the pram, sling or on us in the day but goes down like a dream in his basket at night. I'm not sure why as it's nothing I've done, but I am very grateful for it!

Had a bit of a crazy night - I started vomiting at 8.30pm and from there was vomiting every 45 mins to an hour until 1.30am. Don't know if it was a bug or something I ate. It was awful; I couldn't hold down any liquid and was terrified that J would need to feed loads and that I would end up in hospital on a drip! However J slept from 8pm till nearly 2am, and then again till nearly 6am! WHAT an amazing night for him to do that! Thanking my lucky stars!

I hope you feel ok this morning, I had food poisoning when Dd1 was small it was horrendous

@BadBadBeans hope you're feeling better and it was just a 24 hour thing. Illness is hard enough but when you've got a baby to look after it takes it out of you so much.

Oh my body is very much on my mind in spite of the horrific winding issues with Charlie! Yeah it's funny how I didn't notice any pregnancy line when I was actually pregnant only after.

@Gronk27 Yes everything you've said is pretty much what we do. Tend to wait for Charlie to have a natural pause on his bottle before sitting him up to wind. Sometimes he stretches out so makes it hard to which I'll then put him over my shoulder. We do tend to get some burps and he does bring up usually, yesterday was just horrific though.

@Sheeni My little one is 6 weeks and 3 so I think it really is just a stage and probably doesn't warrant a call to the HV but I think I'll call them anyway.

I'm amazed that my periods have kicked in already (I'm not breastfeeding so not a complete surprise by any means!) but I'm wondering if I can use tampons? I know NHS and other guidelines say to wait for your 6 week check but my doctors are useless and I'm not due for that until 22nd May when I'll be 10 weeks! I might well have another period by then. I had stitches but everything is completely healed and lochia stopped about 2 weeks ago. I know it comes down to an infection risk which is why they say don't use until being given the all clear but I know in my body that I'm absolutely fine. What are your experiences?

@ballanj only other things i’ve been told is really make sure the teat is always full of milk but sure you’re doing everything and that a dummy can help x we also have a very windy baby this afternoon.

@badbadbeans I really hope you’re feeling better. It’s so awful when you’re feeling ill and you have a little one to look after.

I was awaken at 5am by the 5yo crawling into bed, saying his tummy hurt and then vomiting!

@ballanj we go through periods where the trapped wind is really bad. My current theory is that it seems to be when the Infacol is getting near the end of a bottle so that I'm probably drawing up air as well. It really irritates me that the bottles are opaque! I think I'm gonna start decanting it into something clear going forward

@ballanj we had the same issue and were prescribed gaviscon... we would spend ages trying to burp him and when he finally would he would vom. A sachet in his milk 3 times a day has been a dream! He is giving us proper burps now and no more throwing up.

@Sictransitgloria Yes to Women's hour & @melissa112 thanks for the suggestion. We do something quite similar in the flat we we walk around on a 'tour' of the kitchen, hallway & dining room, and I point out things like dAddy's coffee machine and mummy's shoes... we've sighed up for baby yoga next week so can hopefully add some of that to the repertoire.
Sorry to hear about everyone's trials and tribulations, I've been reading the thread with interest but posting a bit less as I've got a sore arm from too much iPhone use. Whoops!! Hang on in y'all - 🤞 e get some sleep tonight.

@Angelmiracle glad all is well with DD! How has DS taken to having a new LO around?
Yeah she has been suffering pretty bad, we have just been continuously watching her like a hawk. Today as been a good day though but she seems to be struggling this evening.
Iv read that giving a dummy can help them - although I want to try and avoid dummies as I don't want to be woken up to put it back in (not in a selfish way, sleep deprivation is a horrid thing and struggling anyway with the lack of sleep 😂)
I'm registering her tomorrow at the doctors so I will definitely be making an appointment and saying I want medication as she's in pain it isn't fair on her!
Are you pumping aswell as feeding? How to that work with supply? Do you over produce then?

@BadBadBeans Sorry to hear you've been ill, hope you're feeling better! What a little angel sleeping like that for you!

I hope no one thinks i’m a terrible person but I’m doing two days work today and tomorrow (I’m freelance) and Adela’s with Nanny. Feels very strange. Like a cross between guilt and freedom!! And like I’ve forgotten something. Interested to see what my boobs do as we’re sort of combo feeding. Got my pump with me just in case.

@Sheeni how are things today? Is your little one feeling any better?

@ballanj that sounds really tough! I hope the HV can give you some advice today. I started my period yesterday at 6 weeks +6 days. We combi fed for 2 and a half weeks ish then formula only from then on and i completely forgot i would get periods again. I did read this thread yesterday thankfully even though i didnt have time to reply and didnt realise we may not be able to use tampons. I didnt have any tears, just small abrasions that had some 'just incase ' dissolvable stiches that had gone by 5 days pp but read on the NHS about some wound between the womb and placenta coming away and to wait until after my 6 week check..i dont even think the GP will examine me as i had no tears and I'm now 7 weeks pp with no appt come through. Ive just used pads since it started last night but would much prefer to use tampons. Did you make a decision on what to use? Oh and mine doesn't seem to be any lighter than usual so far 😬

@Angelmiracle hi! Glad to hear all is going well with you and your little one. 6 hour sleeps sound amazing!

@Chyrsalis2017 hi and welcome unfortunately i can't offer more advice on the catnapping. Like @SquirtlesMumAgain my little one only really sleeps on me in the day. This is fine as i love the cuddles but sometimes its tough as i have a dog who needs feeding and water changing, letting out, and dirty clothes to wash, ours and his etc and as soon as he gets lowered into the moses basket his eyes ping open and he starts to cry. Me and DP joke that he has set up some 'being put down ' alarm system..he has an arm trailing which always seems to touch the side of the crib on the way down so wakes him. Or he grabs hold of our tops while asleep so we have to dettach him which wakes him. Not true of course but gave us a chuckle. He does settle in his snuzpod at night thankfully (sometimes..).must finally look into slings!

@BadBadBeans oh no! I hope you're feeling better now? Baby J sounds like a superstar with his sleep while you were poorly!

@Hermagsjesty hope your 5yo little one is feeling better now?

@KarBB glad I'm not the only one walking round pointing things out 😁 I'm convincing myself that it does something useful but if not it keeps him quiet for a while haha

@Gronk27 i don't think you're terrible at all! Adela is in good hands and it's important to keep some of yourself too. Hope the next 2 days go ok

We had a terrible night. We fed G his 5oz at 8 then put him to bed when i went up at 10. He woke me up at 1:20am and i was feeling all smug until after that feed he didn't sleep more than a couple of mins til 6:15am. I tried everything to settle him. He did fall asleep on me around 4:30am but i was too tired to keep hold of him so had to put him back down. He woke up and was still unsettled. No full on crying, more me trying to settle him constantly before he got to that point and I have no idea why. I was in tears at 5am i was so tired and came downstairs to feed him. Think the tears were just from exhaustion but also knowing DP was in work today and knowing i had to do it all alone today with an overtired baby. He's sleeping on me now but i need to change his steriliser fluid soon so he has a bottle ready but know he's going to wake up as soon as i go to put him down. No cups of tea or proper food today. that's another thing getting me down. I was only 4lbs off my pre pregnancy weight after a week of giving birth. I wasn't bothered either way and had no plans to get rid of baby weight quickly but he's so hard to put down that I've just been eating easy to grab crap and actually feel and look disgusting. My belly has gone noticeably bigger the past few weeks and i just don't seem to get long enough with him asleep not on me to make anything vaguely healthy and in all honesty i don't have the energy to either. Sorry, moan over now.

@ballanj i know you were saying you hadn't had your 6 week check so thought I'd let you know that i called my GP surgery to find out when I'd get an appointment through and turns out i had to arrange it myself. I didn't realise so we've got it next week. Just thought I'd give you a heads up incase your surgery is the same

@melissa112 I totally hear you on the unhealthy eating. I don’t usually have a very sweet tooth but have been totally addicted to chocolate since Baby DS came along. Think it’s the tiredness! Trying to take some long walks to even things up a bit... I have LOADS to lose though... Sorry you had such a bad night, can be totally draining.

@gronk27 I don’t think badly of you at all! Needs must when you’re self employed and it’ll be good for the baby to have some bonding with another loving adult. I’m a freelance too and have already had one work meeting and another coming up in a couple of weeks - taking baby along for now though.

The big kids are at school a bit later today as they have clubs (5yo thankfully made a quick recovery from his bug and has gone in) so am trying out a baby group this afternoon, it’s a church hall one for under 1s so I think the main point is for the mums to catch up, so I won’t feel too bad about wasting my time if DS sleeps through it. He loved baby massage the other day but it wore him out - he slept for hours afterwards! Also, it was a bit stressful getting there on time - this one is drop in which I think works better for us for now.

@Hermagsjesty glad that the baby massage was a success! We're on the waiting list for a baby sensory class and on the lookout for a massage one. Good news that your 5yo made a quick recovery

Oh i have loads to lose too. I was 4lbs off pre pregnancy weight but pre pregnancy weight wasn't great haha. The week i found out i was pregnant i had started my diet, decided to rebrand it as healthy pregnancy eating but not to lose weight, then morning sickness hit and appetite went. When it came back i craved all the bad things! Ah well, i really want to do some long walks with the pram but George seems to cry after about 30mins and its hard to settle him again

Hope you have a lovely time at the group class today!

HV cane this morning and she is going to try and get some medicine for LO for her reflux and said I should complain that the hospital didn't give me any as she has it bad!

@melissa112 I feel for you! I hope he settles for you! I'm in the same boat I was in tears T 4am this morning due to no sleep and knowing I had to go today alone. Have a virtual hug from me!
Have you thought about using a baby carrier? It's a godsend around the house! It may help you to be able to have him on you and get stuff done / eat properly! Could you perhaps meal prep in the evening when DP is gone hokding baby like batch cook some pasta and veggies mixed in or something? Then in the day all you have to do it grab it out the fridge.
I hope things get easier soon!

@melissa112 Maybe a little better, but still not great. Had a very unsettled night. Still struggling with the reflux I can see it's really bothering him and to be honest when I remember my pregnancy reflux and how I hated it, I can't blame him. We have the 6 week appointment on Friday, so if he's so unhappy still, I'll check with the GP re: medication.
I think we're getting some first smiles already though! I'm still not sure if they're the "real smiles", but if not, he's surely practicing a lot

Thanks everyone for the wind advice. Charlie seems to be getting much better with it these last couple of days. I'm finding keeping him upright and really watching his feeding cues is helping (as in winding when he has a natural break, not 'overwinding' and knowing when he's had enough feed) I've not called the health visitor and will keep an eye as he seems much more content in his tummy. He's also bringing up less feed now so I wonder whether it was just his tiny stomach getting used to taking more feed. He is currently on 5oz/150mls but when made up is probably closer to 6oz.

@melissa112 thanks for the heads up. Yeah I was told my GP would write to me but we re-registered with a new GP as I was still under my old address at a different surgery so thought I better ring to book it. Me and Charlie will be 10 weeks by the time they can see us both which is just ridiculous! Ideally wanted the all clear from them before getting back to my running but I can't wait another 4 weeks. I feel absolutely fine in myself so am trusting I know my body well enough to know if it's too soon.

I decided not to use the tampons in the end, even though I'm fully healed down there. I'd been using the sanitary pads for the most part so thought I might as well stick to them. I read the same advice as you on the NHS website about the placenta leaving an open 'wound' but would like to think that too would have healed by now. I'll definitely be back on the tampax for the next one that comes along!

I didn't expect to have one so quickly. Mine is not much different to usual, perhaps was a little heavier. I think mine is coming to an end now after 5/6 days. In desperate for a bikini wax aswell!

@melissa112 only just read all your last message, I'm sorry you had such a bad night totally feel your pain. We had the same last week two nights on the bounce. It's bloody hard isn't it. I think the 6 week mark is a development stage as well so things tend to get a bit out of sorts. Things will hopefully calm down for you soon. Everyone says it does get easier so keep that in mind aswell (although I know it's hard when you're in the middle of it!)

Question to all.....has anyone jumped back on the bandwagon in terms of the S word yet....? I'm wondering how that first time is going to be. Should we ever find the bloody time that is!!

@shiny888 hope your HV can get something for your little one soon. Its definitely not right that the hospital didnt give you anything given how bad it is. Thank you for the virtual hug, right back at you! Today has been as bad as anticipated as hes so overtired. Managing to put him down when i really need to but its only for 10 mins until his 'not on mummy ' alarm goes off bless him. He doesn't seem to be in any mood to interact or even sit in his bouncer so its been a tough one. I have thought about a sling but no idea why I've not got the mental energy to research them given I'm stuck of the sofa most of the day..definitely on the to do list, and good shout about cooking and storing food, i didn't even think of doing that! Hope your day has been good and you have managed a nap!

@Sheeni poor thing i also remember pregnancy reflux and it must be horrible for them,.even more so with not understanding what's going on. I hope the GP can sort you out with something on Friday. He sounds about the right age for them to be real smiles now

@ballanj glad Charlie is doing better with his wind/not bringing up as much, must be a relief! Wow 10 weeks is quite late! Do they definitely do an internal exam or only if you've had stitches? Yeh I'm sure your body will let you know if you overdo it on the running. I also didn't expect the period so quickly, was hoping for a few more weeks! No idea what to expect in terms of regularity. I was always pretty much bang on 28 day cycle so it'll be interesting to see what happens. Think I'm gonna hold off tampons too this time just to be sure.

I thought he was going through his first development leap last week or 2 when he was being really clingy and cranky. Hes 7 weeks today and no sign of it ending but I'm trying to count my blessings that most evenings he does sleep quite well..and the smiles are well worth the leap crankiness. He's also seemingly becoming more aware of his limbs and keeps practising this 'whoop whoop' kind of fist pump which makes me laugh. He did it when Liverpool scored the other day so DP was made up haha.

Oh in terms of the S word..i only bled for about 2 weeks after birth and as I'd had no tears we did it that week and have done a few times. It didn't seem any different to before pregnancy and didn't hurt but I'm not sure if thats because of the no tears/stitches etc