October 2019 Babies

[Figuringitout]

Creating a thread for graduates of the October pregnancy thread. Hoping to see some familiar names, but also welcome new ones who want to chat about how their newborns are getting on.
Thought I’d tag a few other people who might want to come over. Feel free to tag others - no offence if I missed people; I have baby brain!
@Frizzy1986 @Em39ma @HJWT @SC0508 @cattaxi @KatnissK @Sw2102 @Positivity86

Hi everyone, bookmarking my place. Not been on here much since giving birth but finally have 2 mins.

I'm day 4 postpartum and cry every time I look at my little lady. All is going well though. She is just so perfect.

I had a long labour, starting with my waters slowly breaking on Saturday morning. Contractions started on Saturday night and carried on until I had her at 5pm on Monday!! We weren't able to have the planned water birth because of risk of infection, so we were on the main labour ward being closely monitored. I made it to 8cm on gas and air, but then went to a different level and was screaming for an epidural which they gave me quickly thankfully. I just couldn't take another contraction! I started pushing 4 hours later. After an hour of pushing they called the doc in who advised I have forceps for the last 2 pushes as baby just wasn't moving down. 10 mins later she was here. I had an episiotomy so still very sore.

Hope everyone else is doing ok with their lovely little babies xx

Can I hark back to the post-natal bleeding convo? I'm day 12 and the last couple of days it's got heavier again after easing to a very minimal flow - especially at night with gushes of it coming out (especially when i go to the loo!). I did mention to the mw and she just said it's normal to be heavier on and off but I find it weird as it had almost gone and is now consistently heavier? Seems like some others on here have experienced similar though? Seeing midwife again on Wed so will mention it again if it's still heavy! With DS1 it just got steadily lighter with no gushing and thought after a c-section it wouldn't be as heavy so it's slightly stressing me out!

Hey @KatnissK I don't know if it's supposed to be that way but I am the same. I am 19 days PP.
I don't remember it being this way last time but that was 6 years ago so memory might be failing me

@Ju5tAgirlstandinginfrontofaboy thanks - interesting yours is similar. Maybe lochia is heavier in subsequent births? I guess as long as there's no sign of infection it's ok. I'm a little twitchy about blood loss after a pph with DS1 but hopefully it's all ok.

My bleeding has been the same, I thought it was calming down as was barely bleeding then woke up next day and it was heavier than it had ever been! It seems to be slowly reducing again. I've had same issues with breasts leaking (bottle feeding) thought they had stopped as nothing on breast pads for over a day and then suddenly it started again when I wasn't wearing pads luckily i was just at home with OH and saved myself any embarrassment 😂

Another one here whose bleeding slowed down then got heavier again for about a week. Starting to ease off again now.
Anyone else feel like they could pass out with exhaustion most days? Probably getting about 2-3 hours broken sleep each night. I’m so short tempered with DS1 during the day, I feel so bad for constantly snapping at him. He’s only 3, I wish I wasn’t getting so annoyed with him, I feel like the world's worst mother

@DisneyIsMyDrug I feel the exact same luckily DS hasn't been as bad as what I expected but there has been times I've just felt like I wanted to loose it but I know it's not his fault it's the tiredness. OH goes back to work this coming week and DS goes back to school on Monday, feeling nervous about being at home all day alone again and having to get into a routine of getting DS to school etc on time with a baby. DS has a certain routine in the morning that cannot be broken or causes meltdowns and really worried I won't cope very well.

Ah it sounds as though this stop/ start pattern is quite common then! Thanks guys, I feel reassured.
I too have the mum guilt about my 2yo and god knows what will happen when DH is back at work....eeek! I foresee a lot of coffee and sugar in my near future to see me through.

Hi! I hope everyone’s had a good day?

@KatnissK we are the same amount of days post section. My bleeding had stopped, then I went for a walk this afternoon & it came back quite heavy & red. I remember it doing this last time- coming back when I was more mobile & walking further. I’m pretty sure it’s nothing to worry about, especially without any other symptoms.

@DisneyIsMyDrug I’m coping with the tiredness ok so far. But I do feel like I’m constantly telling ds1(4) “no.” It’s hard. He just wants to cuddle & play with his brother, but isn’t quite gentle enough. He’s under the weather too, which is making him extra emotional.

Ds has been super sleepy today. I’m hoping that carries on to the night time!

Does anyone else who is breast feeding feel like they do nothing else all day?
My poor Dd (6) is being super patient with me and mostly keeps herself entertained.
Baby seems really windy and a bit sick-y at the moment so I'm often holding him upright on my chest or feeding.
Wonder when normal-ish life might resume?

Oh yes @Ju5tAgirlstandinginfrontofaboy - constant feeding here too.
If ds1 is anything to go by, I think that they get way more efficient and things settle by about 6 weeks. But every baby is different, so who knows?
I’ve been sat here for ages wanting to pump a bit of milk to clean his manky eyes, but he’s yet to get off my boob long enough for me to pump a drop!

@KatnissK I totally get it, after the haemorrhage this time I panic every time theres a gush of blood 🤯 mine seems to have 99% stopped now though so maybe was a final clear out 🤷🏻‍♀️

@DisneyIsMyDrug yes also exhausted, DS has been up since 1.30 am which is now 2.5 hours with the clocks changing? DD is also playing up even though DH has got in bed with her so today is going to be a LONG day 😥

@SC0508 I am also panicking about how I am going to get DD to nursery on time next week! Lots of planning the night before I think 😬 It will be hard with feeding being were ever and when ever atm!

@Ju5tAgirlstandinginfrontofaboy @cattaxi DS tends to feed more at night atm and every few hours in the day! He keeps choking on the milk though if anyone has tips to help with that!?

@HJWT it definitely plays on your mind doesn't it!!
@cattaxi - that's good, hope mine stops soon!

kellymom.com/bf/got-milk/supply-worries/fast-letdown/

@HJWT I got the above link from the lady at FAB. Not sure if there are any useful tips there.

Orson was super milk sick on me last night. Cue bedding change and me yelling to dh to come and help. He didn't hear a thing, but thankfully my folks are visiting so came in to help.
I seemed to have leaked a lot of wee overnight 😔
It's stressing me out a lot.

Also think after a hard stool I've got a bit of a fissure or something so that's sore now too. I've finished my lactulose so might see if I can buy some from the pharmacy just to give it time to heal a bit.

Those worrying about school runs, I found it terrifying but it was better than I thought. The day goes fast though as it feels like it's pick up in no time.

@HJWT I was going to post the same link as @frizzy1986. Kellymom is a great resource for all bf stuff.
Ds feeds most of the night, then sleeps some great 3-4 hour stretches in the day!

@frizzy1986 can you stomach prune juice? I find a small glass every day keeps things soft & regular. I’m still on iron, so it’s much needed at the moment!

Anyone else‘a older kids up super early thanks to the clock change? Luckily, dh got up with ds1 while I stayed snoozing with the baby.

@cattaxi I really don't like prune juice. I forced myself to eat some tinned prunes when I was almost due to try and clear everything out and it was awful.
And yes, dd arrived in our room at 5:30am wanting to go into my parents room. We subdued her until 7am.

@SC0508 DH is also back at work tomorrow & DS at nursery, so also dreading trying to get everyone ready in time as DH starts at 7am so can’t really help much. Fingers crossed you can stick to your routine & avoid a meltdown.
Can I ask what everyone’s night time looks like? Particularly if you are breastfeeding? We’ve tried to split the night so one of us stays up with DS as he doesn’t settle for long in the next2me, but it’s inevitable that whenever it’s my turn to sleep, whether it’s the first part of the night or 2nd part, that DS won’t settle. Whenever we think we’ve got his pattern sussed he mixes it up 😩

@DisneyIsMyDrug Coby was sleeping 3 hours waking for feed and change then going another 3 hours! Last night he slept 9.30-12 and then was fussy until 8AM when he finally settled for 1.5 hours! He's currently having a really long nap... typical 😁

I do it all myself and DH sorts out DD if she wakes up which she did last night so he got in her bed! I sat up eating chocolate watching youtube 😂 I need a TV in my room!

Ours varies @DisneyIsMyDrug

After the final evening feed (anytime from 9pm-11pm) I'll change him, get him in his bed things and take him upstairs. He'll go down in his gliding crib fairly easy (most of the time) He then goes around 2-3½ hrs before his next feed.
Then he'll feed for around 15mins and go back in his crib (although it can take up to 30mins to settle him to sleep)
Thats our cycle. Sometimes he'll have one of his super awake stints during the night so he'll feed and I just have to cuddle/interact with him for an hour or 2 before he chills out and goes to sleep.
I only change him if it's a dirty nappy or he gets grumpy as a nappy change would wake him up completely and I'd be screwed.

We have good nights and bad though and although this is our most common nightly scenario, there are nights that are completely different.

If he doesn't settle, have you thought about cosleeping?
If we are having a truly awful night, I will lie on my side, latch Orson on and cosleep. He will dose off towards the end of the feed and I manage to dose off too. He is in a baby sleeping bag and I make sure that he isn't under our duvet at all. I will sleep in almost the recovery position so I'm not at risk of rolling over onto him. It's not my ideal (I'm just not confident with it, but know people who cosleep every night) but if it gives me a bit of sleep then I do it.
Obviously important to follow cosleeping rules if you do this, but as long as you follow the guidelines, it is safe.

Oh and I also do it all myself. I only wake dh if I'm really struggling ie he's been crying for ages and nothing settles him, I haven't slept a wink all night and need him to take him for a while to let me have an hour.
Plus I wake dh is dd calls for someone or the dog randomly starts barking.

@DisneyIsMyDrug I do all the nights. Dh is in the spare room - I can’t stand looking at him sleep when I’m feeding! And ds1 still often wakes at night, so dh deals with him.
We have a sidecar crib, but so far ds likes to sleep next to me. He mostly goes in the sleepyhead, but sometimes I feed on my side like @frizzy1986 describes above & we sleep like that.
Ds doesn’t really have a pattern yet. Sometimes he goes 3 hours in between feeds & sometimes he feeds all night! He has been really settled in the daytime, but has broken his heart whenever I’ve tried to put him down today. I fear a long night ahead!

I hope everyone else is ok?

How has everyones day been? We had newborn photo shoot today, didn't really go as planned! DD was hard work so doubt we got a pic of them together and Coby moaned a LOT because he doesn't like being on his belly! So over all money down and stressed out day 🤣 hopefully will feel better when I see the pics!!

To top it of he has just been sick all down my back an hour after his feed 🤷🏻‍♀️

Oh @HJWT I bet you get some lovely photos.
Ds isn’t very sicky so far, but he poo’s everywhere when you change him! Today the HV grabbed his blanket to put on the scales & he shat all over it. It was clean this morning!
We’ve had a lovey day. Dh at work & the 2 older kids out. Ds & I spent some time getting to know each other, napping and going for a walk in the beautiful autumn sunshine. Hopefully the fresh air means he might sleep tonight!

@cattaxi did the fresh air help with sleep? My older 3 have just left for school with DH. It’s a very stressful hour with tears From most of us at some point! All calm now and can feed baby in peace. Still very sore nipples during feeding, midwife checked again yesterday for tongue tie and watched me feed, she can’t understand why it’s causing pain as she thinks latch looks good. I haven’t had this problem with the other children. She’s going to ask the infant feeding support team to look too but it seems a bit of a mystery so far! I also don’t feel like I have as much milk as any other time. I haven’t leaked once or leaked out the other boob while feeding from other side. Finding it all really difficult at the moment as house is getting more and more untidy, getting behind with washing and It’s stressing me out. Not getting much sleep, I’ve always co-slept and fed side lying with the others but this is much more difficult with the pain. Things can only get better I guess!!

That sounds tough @maryrobinson82. I hope you find out what’s causing the pain. Is baby gaining weight ok? I’ve not had any leaks this time & was a bit worried about supply, but hv just reckoned my boobs know what they are doing this time! Ds is already back over birth weight at 2 weeks, so there must be plenty of milk. I spent a fortune on breast pads I don’t need!
The fresh air did the trick - he slept 12/5 and has been snoring now since 6:30! Hopefully it lasts 🙂

I’m dreading the school mornings next week. And this house is also a tip. The sun is shining today, so I’m going to try to get some washing sorted.