October 2007 - the golden piglets have landed

[Mumpbump]

I couldn't find a postnatal thread - not sure if I am just missing it with post-childbirth brain! Anyone else around??

Muppet I had to go and buy some new jeans. Was a size 14/16 befor pregnancy and now am a size 12. I have to say i am annoyed as all my fav jeans fall down!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dalrymps - as a guide Ben was 8lb 11oz born, by the time he was three weeks old he was having 6 feeds in 24 hours and each bottle was between 3-4 ounces. Don't feel guilty about ff if you have to. It boils my piss that such pressure is put on new mothers to bf, if it isn't working right and you feel unhappy and you feel you have given it your best shot, then you should have no qualms about stopping. I have been so much happier this time round ff, I still remember the agony I went through with Sam and the pressure I felt to carry on even though I wasn't happy, I find I am enjoying Ben's first weeks far more than I did Sams. As regards wind in ff babies, I am finding that with a combination of Dr Brown's bottles, Cow and Gate Comfort formula and Infacol, Ben hardly suffers, whereas I bf Sam and he had awful colic... go figure

Right, am coming clean - I am really down, and could do with your help ... here - giving up bf not an option by the way!

I have to suggest one of these for grumpy babies:

www.brightsparkslingsshop.co.uk/store/WsDefault.asp?Cat=CoorieFleecePouches

mine has been a godsend - he settles in it withing five minutes ever time.

Mairwen particularly hates being in the sling ... any tips for getting her to like it would be appreciated - she likes to be held - sitting upright for preference, as she likes to have a good nose!

ejt just posted on your other thread - big hugs honey.

gemma - hello honey! Had been missing you. Sorry to hear you've been having a rough time. If your flow is too fast I have heard that nipple shields work well to slow the flow down - might be worth a try?

Dal - don't feel bad about considering ff - I am doing this since Adam was 5-6 weeks old and its the best decision I ever made. You need to wait until you're ready to make this decision though - it might be the right one for you and if so then better a happy mum than any amount of breast milk. I too hate the guilt trip put on people to bf. If it works for you then thats fantastic but if it doesn't you're NOT a bad mum for thinking about stopping. Try expressing for a bit though - this might allow you to have a bit of a break and your nipple to heal and then you will be able to be happier with the bf. Basically what I'm trying to say among the waffle is that you shouldn't feel guilty if you end up0 ff but make sure you are truely happy with that decision or you will beat yourself up over it.

Hello everyone else. Off now as its the last night with my parents and sis. Might not be about tomorrow as flying solo for the first time but will be back asap xxx

ok.......i need help!!!!.............i finally stopped bleeding last week and then today and yesterday i have had some EWCM! thats 'egg white cervical mucus' for those of you who never struggled to concieve!!! it is the type of mucus you get when you are in the fertile part of your cycle and if you struggled to concieve like me then you are constantly on the look out for it! well...................when i noticed it tody i started thinking how nice it would be to have 4 kids.........and how exciting it would be to be pregnant again..............how how nice a july baby would be!!!!.....................SEE ........... i need help! ..........someone remind me how horrible it is being pg................and that most days i barley cope with 3 of them let alone 4!!!

BARELY cope with 3, not barley!

Hi all

I'm too zonked to reply to everyone's posts but I wanted to say hello and hugs to all of you who are having a tough time - I'm dreading DH going back to work next week as he is the model father and Rebecca is a daddy's girl already - and I can't even begin to imagine how you're all managing on your own!

Rebecca will be a week old tomorrow. She is gorgeous and doesn't cry much yet - guess that's to come. I'm bf her fine but only using nipple shields - she won't latch on otherwise - my mw seems to think that's fine having weighed her. Does anyone think I'm storing up problems to come? The NCT classes told us not to use them under any circumstances...

We went out for the first time today - to Borders (don't laugh Alice!) and Starbucks for coffee and cookie. Rebecca slept through the rainy experience.

The section doesn't seem to be hindering me that much - I've not had much pain, etc. We're inundated with visitors though and I'm spaced out!

Hugs to everyone and your gorgeous little ones... oh, and Greedy... NO!!! Not four!!! Please. Remember how impatient you were when lo was late...

Greedy -- Can't believe you can even be contemplating it at this stage. Am genuinely shocked!!

Greedy!

[slapsgreedyroundthefacewithawetfish]

Now, get a grip of yourself woman

Greedy - you made me laugh! I was going down the "4 would be great" when this lo was only a few days old. Happily for me, a wound infection and breast duct thrush have put me off the idea for a while . It's bizarre isn't it? Pregnancy is awful, and 3 is v.v.v hard work - so why do we think 4 would be marvellous .
Sorry for all those feeling rough - these early weeks are exhausting and fraught. I am not in any way wishing to comment on those who have stopped bf so please don't take it as that - I just want to encourage those who are still going to keep going if they can. I've had terrible problems ( still have excrutiating thrush) but really wanted to continue bf and have found a fantastic bf counsellor and group at my local hospital. It meets twice a week and it is making the most incredible difference to me. My latch had become dreadful due to pain from thrush, but that has now been sorted out, and I'm glad that I am still bf. It took me weeks to find the right group and counsellor, ( Rory now 7 weeks old) but I'd recommend for those finding it hard, to persist and search the web and local health services for good support. It can feel very lonely bf ( even on this thread as Gemma said yesterday, we seem to be in the minority) and it really helps to get together with some other determined stugglers!
Stefka hope that your thrush is resolving. ejt - how long did your thrush take to clear? Sorry your baby is finding things hard. Read your other thread. My dd2 had reflux, doesn't sound dissimilar. HOpe you get it sorted out soon.
DS has woken up - best go!

Choc and Alicet,
I am confused on nipple shields as well....

I have heard they may help with my fast flow (it's in the book you reccomended, alicet, which I have bought...) but elsewhere I read they should really only be used as a last resort as they may create problems with bf altogether. For the moment I am just hoping my flow will adjust over time.

Choc - if your midwife thinks it's ok in your case, though, I would follow her advice.

Hi all

Well i was told my Oliver this morning that he liked daddy best.....
Daddy then bollocked him again and sid we will start taking toys away if he's going to carry on being so rude. In the car on the way to school he then said to me 'have I been good? Are you ging to tell Daddy I've been good?' So my little toad knows exactly what he's doing.

Have massive headache today and achy calf muscles and are really tired as dh decided to try to give me more sleep by keeping Henry downstairs for longer and giving him another f/f. This would have been great but no-one told my boobs who were still expecting to feed at 2am ish!! I was full to overflowing and Henry had just been filled up so I ended up expressing which really woke me up and then couldn't get back to sleep. Poor dh, he thought he was helping!!

Need to go now as H needs feeding speak later
Emma
x

I would second Katsch that if bf is important to out there is a lot of help out there - go get it! I bf Sam for 5 and a half months after a rocky start where I almost gave up and thoroughlly loved it. I was quite sad when he decided then that he didn't want it anymore. This time it wasn't right and I am ff but doesn't mean I wouldn't want to big it up and suport those who are wanting to carry on!

GREEDY!!!!!!! Behave mrs! Are you mad!!??

Choc and Gemma - some people say that used over time nipple shields can reduce your milk supply due to reduced stimulation. This isn't the same as using them for a few days to give your nipples a chance to heal though. I bf to 5 and a half months with Sam using them though so nearly the 6 months recommended. He did have bottles at night and he did self wean then (see above) so who knows if thats due to nipple shields or not? Having said that without them I would have stopped bf at 2 and a half weeks so my attitude was that if using them meant I stopped earlier then so what - without them I would have stopped anyway. If Rebecca will only feed with them then I don't see you have anything to lose if she wouldn't bf without them. Good luck!

Off now - m d and sis off soon so going to have a bit of last quality time....

And choc I won't add to your massive stream of visitors until you are ready but if you need help next week when dh is at work give me a shout. Esp tues thurs and fri when Sam is at nursery. We can come and take you out, I can take rebecca out to give you a break (in my double pushchair with Adam) or bring lunch and cake. Your call like I said before open offer that you can take up next week, next month or next year - no visitor pressure from this mum who knows what thats like x

Hi ladies

Busy day for us today - popped down to the hospital as thought my milk duct had blocked again... Doc had a good look and decided its the swelling and bruising from the minor surgical procedure she did last week (glad as the next step would be with a scalpel, not a needle). Been able to hire a breast pump which is fab and means I'll start being able to have an early night.

With nanny in tow carrying Izaak (as he's too heavy for me to lift in his car seat after my section) we met daddy for lunch before having to feed in not such a great location (Bangkok is not BF friendly). Then spent ages sorting stuff out in the bank before taking the little man along to be introduced to all of daddy's staff in the office.

Little man was well behaved during this mammoth trip out but then had an expected melt down when we got home.

Greedy - although I've only got one LO I'm already trying to persuade hubby to try for a second one... Its something I'll be asking my doc about at my 6 week check.

As for everyone struggling with BF - don't be too hard on yourselves. I've had tons of support which has made a huge difference - without it I'd probably have given up before it got easier.

Jo
x

Inzidoodle - sorry you are feeling so down Big Hugs xx

alicet - I am continually surprised at how similar our experiences have been, especially with our Sam's and bf'ing etc

muppetgirl - so sorry Oliver is playing you up, it must be really upsetting, but try not to worry it is just a phase I'm sure

gemmamc - I echo what alicet said regarding the nipple shields. I used them with Sam too from about two weeks in, until I stopped bfing at 5 months, didn't effect him in anyway, if anything it helped with the transition to bottles

To those talking about babies again , I have definitely finished at two, I can't imagine going through it all again a third time never mind a fourth

Sam has reverted to baby like behaviour atm, especially since he has been poorly too, he wants cuddles all the time, and he has started asking for his bottle of milk in the mornings again, especially when I have to feed Ben, he is also being quite petulant at times and hard of hearing

I've kept him off nursery again this morning as he was awake a couple of hours during the night and didn't wake up till 9.30, so would have been a waste of time taking him in. From 1am till 3.30 I spent my time backwards and forwards between the two of them got back in bed about 3.45am then Ben woke up again at 5am and then 6.15am, so I'm shattered today. Oh well I suppose I can't expect every night to be as good as the other night

Oh and I have added some more up to date pictures of Ben & Sam in my profile

Hi All

Jacob has actually gone down for a nap and not spent the whole time crying so I'm taking the opportunity for a quick catch up!

Inzi...my DH went back to work yesterday and we were both miserable about it too...I really missed him and he said that he felt really emotional all day in the office because he felt bad for being there and not at home with us...it still sucks quite frankly, but even today we both feel a bit better about it. It's amazing what a reasonable night's sleep will do!

I've been having some problems with bf too. I had a rocky start because of anaemia, which meant that my milk didn't come in till day 5 and poor LO virtually had no food till then! He struggled latching on at first and then seemed to get the knack. However, over the last couple of days, for no apparent reason, he seems to be struggling again. I just can't seem to find a good position for him...he'll latch on for a second but then lose it again...which gets him all frustrated so he he starts thrashing around and makes it even harder for himself! Has anyone else had any experience like this?? Any advice?

Hi to everyone - hope you all have good days with good LO's and lots of sleep!

Inzi honey I really feel for you - I felt exactly the same when dh went back to work after my first. Enjoy your last day and time will fly till you are able to drive and are more mobile - I think MrsFish was driving at about 3 weeks?

MrsFish yes things have worked out very similar for us! Would have been even more if i had a different surname and adam would have been Ben too! . Sorry you had a shite night - hope your day goes better. Sounds like overall you're doing pretty well?

Ejt - hope things are better today honey...

Hello to MrsJo and everyone else...

Well we moved Sam into his new room last night and it went really well. He was so so excited bless him I didn't want to put him to bed! His old room was tiny but this one has room for loads of toys. Downside is now whenever we have guests they will have to sleep on a mattress in the sitting room but never mind. Getting plans drawn up for an extension that will hopefully be built spring next year so its only a temporary thing....

Adam and I have been to mothercare this am - off now to finish moving Sam's stuff into his new room while Adam sleeps in his hugabub...

Colly cross posted... Adam did this in hospital - I was advised to put my finger in his mouth and massage his palate until he gets a really good suck going. Let him suck for 10 secs or so so then take your finger out and give him your breast. Worked a treat for us!

hi all.. 1 handed typing apologies...

flying visit again .. his nibs is in a 'won't be put down without grizzling' mood.

sympathies for everyone feeling low at the moment... I bet when these babes get to 3/4 months things will improve for us all....

Still having the screaming heebeegeebies at 10pm - 12 ish, which is very tiring... wish I could work out what its about - but can't.. have tried all sorts but he just seems to need to scream - know the feeling!

I would suggest a dummy for babies who are crying a lot - they do help a bit, and anything that gives you a bit of a break has to be worth it - I used to have very anti dummy feelings with ny first... but frankly all my principles have gone now!

I now realise parenting is all about getting through - whatever way you can.

hi all

just had mw round to weigh henry and he's 15 days and now weighs 11lb 2ozs. wondered if i was over feeding him but mw says that you can't overfeed a b/f baby -is this true?
he feeds mainly 2-3 /3-4 hrs so i think he's just going to be like his rugby player hunk of a daddy....

those with crying babies (Oliver was one~) we played piano muisc to him and this did seem to sooth him a little. not 'baby' music, real music. he also loved looking at the contrast of the black beams and white ceiling as we lived in an old house at the time. you can get those board things to put in their cots that black and white swirls, sqiggles etc. i made some out of paper plates and felt pen, much cheaper...

speak later x

Thats right Inzi, I started driving at 3 weeks 2 days and haven't looked back since. I was told that as long as you can perform an emergency stop comfortably you should be ok. Oh and the six week thing is mainly for your insurance company, but as long as you check with them you should be ok

alicet - yes I am tired today but other than that things are going very well. Ben is much easier than Sam was, I think that is down to ff'ing though