Anyone due May 2004 .. new thread

[twiglett]

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GeorginaA how are gp and hospital responding to the problem ? are they reassuring at all? Presumably if newborns are more susceptible to ch'pox they'd try and keep you away from other new babies after delivery even after your official 'quarantine' elapses?

Suppose we should also hope that your dh stays spotfree so that your ds's recovery signals end of pox in your household. Is he immune? handy to have an immune person around, you could use him as shield...

Egypt my dh is very very book averse. made me giggle about yr bookmarks: I have also tried this. I have stopped commenting on it because it was becoming such an ISSUE. Nonetheless he has not yet asked me to bend my hand to any DIY, esp. since I worried both of us by using hammer action drill then feeling guilty about poss. effects on foetus. You seem to be achieving great things - maybe doing a crap job might work a bit in your favour??

They haven't really been very reassuring tbh Mostly they get into clinical talk about "balance of risk" with the OC and the chickenpox, forgetting the emotional side in that what they're talking about risking is my baby's life...

They seem to want me to keep attending clinic without any gesture towards reducing the risk for other pregnant mothers in my vicinity either, which annoys the hell out of me. I really don't want anyone else to go through the stress I'm under at the moment.

Plus the whole "if I'm looking like an extra from Outbreak I REALLY don't want to have to walk into the hospital every other day while I'm still poxy" issues that they seem to completely ignore. And that's if I'm not feeling so shit I'd rather not get out of bed. WHY they can't send a community midwife around instead of me going there I don't know.

Dh thinks he had it as a kid, so fingers crossed he should be fine.

I know I should try and stay thinking positive. Maybe I won't get it. Not doing very well emotionally at the moment though.

georgina, dont know what to say to you to make you feel better, but just hang in there.

spots, glad to hear your dh was adverse to books too! i just feel that dh is totally unprepared for this HUGE event in the very near future. he was swotting up for a motorcycle test last night and making me quietly mad. he can q happily prepare himself for THAT so why not THIS that is so much more important!!!!!!! grrrrrrrrrrrrr men

Hi quackers!! great to hear from you!

Thanks cue wry smile

g. you poor love you do sound shaky at the mo. Have you actually let them know how scared you are in all this? If you could find just one person between gp, hospital and any other source of informed support who could actually help you properly it would seem like such a bonus. I think the fact that you're relying on googlehorrors as your port of call for essential info is quite telling - are you maybe asking for less from the medics and mw's than you might? Also is your dh helping you cope? A Shield! A Shield! Please DO try thinking positive and don't let yourself be lonely when you're worried.

You're right spots... problem is, I'm so good at putting on a brave face and staying calm when with the professionals, it's only when I get home that I break down.

Problem is, I really don't see what they can do. And what I can say? "I don't want to do this anymore, I don't want to be here any more"? It's not like I really have much choice in the matter... just got to hang in there and see how it plays.

Sorry, don't mean to drag down the mood of everyone else on this thread as well

G,
I feel so sorry for you, heres a big ((((hug))) from me. I can only imagine how worried you are.
I hope everything goes ok. If its any consolation my mum contracted german measels while pregnant with me, this meant that I was born with measels but had absolutely no other problems whats so ever. I hope this helps to reassure you a bit. Im sure you and baby will be fine.
Take Care
xxx

Gergina I'm so sorry your feeling this crap. I feel quite guilty that I'm getting such wonderful care whilst you are being so badly treated - I want to send my consultant and midwife up to Worcester to look after you. I do know exactly what you mean - I'm in a similar position with the GBS and OC. Balance of probabilities is all well and good, but I jsut can't forget the research that says risk of sillbirth goes up to...., even though logically I know all the stuff about small sample sizes, not enough research,better scans etc
Which is why I ended up in hospital yesterday evening having a CTG (which was perfectly normal) after the baby had only moved 6 times all day. Of course as soon as they strapped the monitors to my belly he started kicking. And I then had to argue my way out of there (ended up leaving ama - no SHO who couldn't even spell cholestasis was admitting me)

Aw prufrock, I wish I could swipe your consultant and midwife too Sorry that you're having a scary time of it too. My mantra has become "not long to go now"!

I finally saw my own community midwife this morning - due to holiday/bank holiday I hadn't seen her in over a month. She was great and told me (paraphrased): "you're going to do really well, you're baby's doing really well and is in a great position... if you end up having to have it out the sunroof it's not the end of the world. You've done all the right things, and I won't lie to you, if I thought there was anything to worry about I would say so. Don't lose any sleep"

She also told me that the antibody injection I had on the Saturday after ds got spots was "fantastic stuff" and costs £3000 a shot - eep. She was very cross with the hospital staff for frightening me and was very motherly reassuring which was just what I needed. Wish I could take her into hospital with me when I have my induction

She was also pretty pro the homeopathy too, which I think is a nice sign.

Oh Georgina , so pleased to hear that you spoke to someone about this. It soundslike your midwife gave you the reassurance you needed. You just need to keep focussed on what she said, and keep her words in mind anytime you feel especially down. Remember stressing isn't going to do you any good. Sorry, don't mean to sound patronising! really hope you are feeling much better (((hugs)))

how great... she sounds like a dream...

Your last post sounds much more positive Georgina. Can you try and wangle it so that more of your appts are with her? And maybe at home? I'd tell you that its not long now - but I know that the last few weeks of pregnancy do drag even without your additional worries.

I had my appt with midwife on Sunday and have got another on Friday to check size of baby - which might lead to a growth scan. At 33 weeks I was 33 cm (spot on) but at 36 weeks I've jumped to 38cm. But don't know what they expected - DS was 9.10.

I do feel much more positive today, thanks! She really did make a huge difference (and she's great with ds - examined his tummy too, asked him how many babies he had in there and "listened" with the device switched off, which thrilled ds!). I hadn't realised how much I'd missed her until today - she's very down to earth and friendly.

With the run-up to the birth I should see her once a week now, so not too bad. And she'll be the one visiting me after the baby's born, which is great as I trust her, and the after-birth visits were the ones I found most stressful with ds.

I'm half wondering if I should ask if she could be there at my induction, but I suspect it doesn't work like that. It's a shame my hopes for a homebirth didn't work out, she'd have been fantastic.

I've just realised I have NO idea how long this kid is.... looks at notes

33cm (I'm 35 weeks). EEP... 4/5 engaged... that's good right?! (I thought my ribs weren't aching as much today...) How do those numbers work? The lower the number the further engaged?

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Bozza what did mw say about your home birth thoughts?

Your midwife sounds lovely GeorginaA, I went to the Health Centre yesterday for the usual! She is the 6th midwife I have seen now, and probably the most miserable too . . . .

She had this attitude of "so why are you here exactly?" the whole 5 mins I was in there and wanted to make my next appointment for the 5th May - I asked her if I could have at least one more before that as I'm due on the 9th!

I suppose I should glad that she obviously has no cause for concern but still! I am also 4/5 engaged, please tell me this is good and things might happen sooner rather than later! I am going to pack my hospital bag just in case, just over 2 weeks to go - blimey!

Glad you are all still well despite the various lurgies xxxxxxxx

libb that reminds me so much of my first pregnancy - I don't think I saw the same midwife twice, it was horrible - as a result none of them really took responsibility for you or were that interested I really think continuity of care can make a huge difference to your emotional and physical wellbeing.

Argh, bag packing! I have a list sorted but most things are stuff I can't put in until the very last minute! I feel so disorganised this time around compared to first time around!

i know what you mean georgina. i have actually bought a second hairbrush/toothbrush and my friends were v thoughtful and got together a whole load of mini toiletries, like shampoo and facewash etc. i havent anything to put in last minute now except FOOD FOOD FOOD! Well worth spending just a bit more and getting the whole lot ready i reckon, so can just run out the door. have to say, just packing a bag was more stressful than thought! had/have lists coming out of my ears. feel better now its done though.

i don't know whether 4/5 means 1 more 5th to go or what!?! thought it did, but so many people are questioning it i now realise i dont actually know. praps should put a post out to mears

this thread is so useful - i am 4/5 engaged too and not sure what it means. I thought that the head became engaged much later in second pregnancies (oris it the other way round, pregnant brain can't cope !).

Last day at work tomorrow - hurray !!!!

Mini toiletries ... what a damn good idea, why didn't I think of that?! Pregnancy hormones are eroding my brain, obviously...

Sorry to but in ladies - Georgina, could you tell me what the technical name is for the liver problem you have? My midwife ran blood tests on me today to test for it and i wanted to look into on the internet to find out exactly what it means.

Thanks

P.S not long to go now for all you May mums to be - best get thinking about what you are going to post on the "birth announcements"

I hope this helps, I looked on IVillage . . .

"I am now 37 weeks pregnant with my fifth baby. Yesterday, my midwife said the baby's head is four fifths engaged. With the second, third and fourth babies, the head was free almost until the last day. Does this mean I may produce early?

To find out if your baby's head is engaging into the pelvis, the midwife feels how much of your baby's head is lying above your pubic bone. The way in which a midwife records engagement can be a bit confusing if you're not a midwife. If she can feel four fifths of the baby's head, she writes down 'four fifths', but this actually means that your baby is only one fifth engaged.
If she can feel two fifths of the head above the pubic bone, the baby is three fifths engaged. If she can feel one fifth of the baby's head, she writes down 'one fifth' and the baby is four fifths engaged. If she can't feel the baby's head at all, the baby would be fully engaged.

As it happens, when you are pregnant with a second or subsequent baby, it is quite common not to engage until the last minute. I can't say for sure, but I think it's most likely that you will go into labour at around the same time, perhaps a day or two earlier, as you did with your previous pregnancies"

Hi, SpringChicken! It's obstetric cholestasis (I hope I've spelled that right now!!) but don't get too googly and panic yourself please (I'm terrible at doing that myself).

There's a really good support site at Itcy Moms - it's an American site, but there's lots of useful stuff on there.