July 2023 babies

[Summermeadowflowers]

Hello everyone! So this is a continuation of the pregnancy thread(s) as we’re almost full.

DD was born by elective section on July 18th. Her older brother was born following an emergency section after a failed induction in December 2020 and I didn’t want to go through that again! It was a lovely chilled experience and I was a bit nervous waiting but felt like I was in good hands. I was also home the next day.

Feeding has been tricky for us. I really wanted to breastfeed but as with DS, DD hasn’t taken easily to it and struggles to latch. Nipple shields help to an extent although are not a cure all but she doesn’t get much milk and ends up frustrated anyway. I’ve mostly been expressing for her but realistically don’t know how long I can keep it up. It’s a shame as I do really want to breastfeed but it isn’t happening!

Oh and my wound is infected … lovely!

How is everyone else?

What happens at 12 weeks @habiller?

@Summermeadowflowers 5 hours in a jam. I cannot even imagine. We could at least let him out to run around (albeit around a rather cigarette butt covered roadside green space…but it’s something). Applause to you and DS!

@RandomCatGenerator - it’s the end of the fourth trimester (apparently.) obviously it isn’t as cut and dry as that, but their digestive systems are a little more mature, they sleep in slightly longer blocks and have a handle of day and night. And you get smiles to melt your heart.

We have a stable door in the kitchen and left the top half open last night. Not just unlocked, wide open! 🤦🏼‍♀️ luckily only looks out on fields but honestly!

As lovely as these days are, I will welcome longer stretches of sleep!

@habiller I hear you. We’ve not had proper ‘witching hours’ the last few nights. As nice as it’s been not having a screamy baby clamped to my boob for 3 hours straight while trying to eat my tea/put toddler to bed, it means we’ve also not had the nice ‘long’ (ha! 4 hours) stretch of sleep at the start. We’ve seen every 1-2 hours overnight since 8pm and i feel a bit broken!

@VivaVivaa yes! This is exactly what happened for us the last 2 nights. I don’t know what is better 😅 feeling like I’d rather the longer 4 hour stretch of sleep back!! Was also up 4 times last night and feeling knackered. My c section scar really hurts with all the getting up from lying down, especially while holding a baby after feeding. DD is also SO noisy at night at the moment 😩

Hi @Summermeadowflowers and everyone - please may I join?

Sounds like everyone is doing a great job, so hugs to you all 🤗

I've got a 2 year 5 month old boy and a 3 week (almost 4 week) old baby girl. My husband goes back to work this week and I'm a nervous wreck as to how I will cope. Currently baby sleeps amazingly during day but up every 2 hours at night (and takes ages to settle with gas etc so sometimes I don't sleep in-between feeds). Wake ups are usually midnight, 2am, 4am and then 6am - then my toddler is up for the day from 6. I'm coping at the moment because DH takes the two littles from 6am and I get a few hours sleep, but how will I cope when he's back at work? I don't know how I will have energy to entertain my toddler son and I feel bad.

Sending love to you all xx

@habiller you truly are not alone. Your nights couldn't sound note similar to mine. I keep reading this whole thing about '10 minutes', apparently after 10 minutes of grunting they should poo or pass wind, but let me tell you, my child does not do this. They also say that even with this grunting/ crying, they're probably not in distress, but I can tell you Arthur definitely is. At 5.30 this morning when he was arched back, grunting, red faced and screaming in pain for almost an hour, he definitely was distressed. He still hasn't managed to get that poo out that he was trying to do then, so he still isn't as settled as he normally would be now and keeps waking from his nap with little cries.
The doctor, as I thought, said there's nothing they can do. Said they could try and treat for refkux, but wanted to give gaviscon and I don't think I'm willing to risk Arthur becoming constipated from it.
I currently dread night times as I just know I am going to be up all night and, although tired, I feel I can cope better when I'm downstairs in the day light.

Got the six week health visitor visit at some point today - they don't give a time, just between 9am and 3pm, so it's a good job we don't need to go anywhere! I'm really really hoping Arthur is gaining weight to follow the same centile as he's been so fussy on the boob due to his tummy pain that I'm worried I've not been getting enough into him.

@Summermeadowflowers I hope your tongue tie appointment goes well and sending hugs, I sobbed when Arthur had his done, was so horrible listening to. Although it did help his latch (although it has now gone bad again and I don't know why 😭)

It’s so hard when they are in pain or discomfort. DD screws her eyes shut and bangs her head around I just hope she knows I’m there and comforting her.

Welcome @Lwizzer , my DD is 4 weeks tomorrow. DH only took just under 2 weeks but has been ‘working from home’ I needed him to when I couldn’t drive of course but he’s back in the office for two days this week and it’s a relief, because he’s just like catnip to DS so I spend half the day trying to keep DS away from him and the laptop. The really frustrating thing is we have an entirely separate annexe to the rest of the house that for some reason is gathering dust. The only problem is he does get back late but I find it enraging having him have a peaceful spot in the home!

Today is my husband’s first day back at the office too, after 4 weeks off.

Bebe and I are washed, feed and dressed, he’s been pretty clingy and the house looks like a boob went off but we’re surviving. It’s rained pretty heavily here so I haven’t been outside but we’re surviving!

DC2 hasn’t done a single nap over 15 minutes yet today 🙃 thought the noise and general ambience of soft play might be soothing, I was evidently very wrong. Not a chance of no witching hour tonight!

*A bomb went off! Can see why auto correct would think boob was my most used word though… 😂

@habiller yes! 4/5pm and I dread it. That's about the time he starts being unsettled for the evening :(
I am pleased it's not just my DH that doesn't hear any of the sleep disturbances!

Everyone keeps telling me that it gets easier, I'm just waiting for that time. I feel so sorry for Arthur as it's not his fault that he's going though this discomfort :( but I also just cannot wait to have some more sleep and feel more human.

I also dread the evenings. Particularly when she's had a really good, calm day where she's slept well, because that usually means she'll be awake a lot at night. I could deal with her being awake around 3/4/5am if I'd had a good couple of hours sleep but she usually wakes JUST as I'm drifting off.

Bought some anti colic bottles and Co Lactase drops in the hope that might keep her more settled. She seems to really suffer with wind, she's always grunting and drawing her legs up and farting 🙈

We had a really fussy evening, although not as bad as a few nights ago.

DH is really getting on my nerves which is usually a sign of tiredness, but he holds DD so oddly (he isn’t generally strange …) for some reason he puts his hands around her waist and sort of holds her out from his body. You know how the baboon on the Lion King presents a newborn Simba? It’s like that but with her facing him not outwards.

I try not to say what the hell are you doing! I’ve tried ‘I think she’d prefer to be next to you’ and similar variations but he keeps doing it. It’s making me want to not give her to him but I have to because I have to deal with DS. And he keeps trying to force a dummy on her

I am getting a little frustrated and in the snatched sleep i do get I am dreaming of expressing we’ve decided to rent a hospital grade pump. It is a double so theoretically I’ll cut down on pumping time if nothing else!

My dd vomited quite a bit this morning all over me and herself. She didn't cry after but I don't know why she was sick. I had just fed her and she burped and then was sick :(

@PinkPink1 Aww sometimes it just happens, so long as baby is well enough in their self I wouldn't worry x

Have a bit of a tmi question ladies. Im 7 Weeks PP and light bleeding has started up again the past week or so. I thought it was my period making an attempt to return but I'm not so sure now. Seems to happen mostly after physical activity. Anyone else having this? Don't recall it happening after my other babies.

@habiller I am so sorry you’re having such a hard time. It’s totally valid to feel the way you are, and the sleep is so difficult, as is BF. Sending lots of love.

I am pinned to the sofa today as Elijah has a throat infection and is not the happiest little baby in the world. Snotty and vommy and just altogether a bit sad, poor thing.

Another person here with a DH who can sleep through any baby noises!! How do they do it?!

I’m having the same experience. It stopped and after about 2 weeks then returned after 3.5 weeks. Is patchy - some days nothing, other days like today what feels like a period.

Didn’t happen with my first.

I asked the midwife about it last week (I had extended midwife visiting) and she said it was totally normal and likely still the lochia rather than a period.