Pregnancy advice in 1979?

[catsofa]

I'm pregnant and my mum is no longer with us, so I'm going to miss out on hearing about her own pregnancy with me.

I'd like to read/hear about what advice was given to pregnant women at the time in the UK, 1978/79. Was anyone here pregnant then? Know anywhere I could find any old books or information?

[Devora]

I was born in the mid 60s. I won't share my birth story here because my mum would never forgive me (it involves street drugs, beatniks, rolled down jeans and slap happy midwives) but I rather like her anecdote of the tough labour she had with my little brother. She says she spent most of it in the labour ward loos, wailing in pain (to get away from the slap happy midwives) while the other mums passed her fags under the door. Screaming in pain = verboten. Smoking on labour ward = no problem.

[squizita]

Sunna that sounds in line with what my mum experienced. SoundS like it was very regional!

[nagynolonger]

I gave birth to my first baby in 1980 at the age of 22. I don't think anyone considered me too young!

I'm sure no one went to see the GP before they had missed two periods. There was no home testing so I took a urine sample to the chemist and had to ring the next day (I think!) for the result.

Eventually went to the family doctor at about 12 weeks. He asked date of last period and other early signs. I think he did an internal as well. From memory he filled the booking in forms for the hospital on this visit too. I was expecting to go to the large teaching hospital in the city but GP said I was too young and healthy and I would have to go to a maternity home in a small village miles away. The place was staffed by midwives and nurses and doctors only came in to do antenatal visits or to attend to mums who needed stitches after birth.

I think I went to the maternity home for 2 or 3 visits before the birth. Most of the time GP did the bp checks and weighing at the surgery. I did go to the main hospital once for a scan to check my dates.

We were told not to smoke but that a drink was fine so long as we didn't get drunk. We were also told to drink stout and eat liver at least once a week.

I went into labour at night and wasn't shaved or given an enema because the staff were too busy and I was almost at the pushing stage. DH was allowed in once I was in the labour ward. He was kept outside for quite some time. There were no epidurals (no doctors on site) only gas and air. Midwives didn't do the stitches after an episiotomy (sp?). I delivered just after 4am and wasn't stitched up until a doctor arrived at 9am. It was agony.......much worse than the birth and the doctor told me off and complained that he would be late for his own surgery.

I stayed in for 6 night after the first birth. The babies were looked after in the nursery for the first night but after that mums were expected to do everything for the baby.

I bought the book 'Childbirth' by William Nixon, revised by Geoffrey Chamberlain. I was given two booklets by the nursing home which explained the 3 stages of labour and basic baby care.

[MamadotheBUMP]

Blimey! My mum had me in '91 and drank the odd glass of wine and smoked during pregnancy, had to fight for a home birth as the dr didn't want to know and used to put me in the garden in a silver cross for hours alone! Sounds quite old fashioned for the time, although other stuff was 'current' recommendation like bfing, sleeping on backs etc. Started weaning at 4mo with baby rice and cauliflower cheese!

I gave birth this year and was flat out with stirrups! Not my preferred position but couldn't move due to epidural

[Devora]

I was birth partner to my friend in the early 1990s. She was young, healthy and had a completely uncomplicated natural birth ("I meant to ask for pain relief but actually it's not painful enough to bother"). She then stayed in hospital for a week ("I don't want to go home! I'm having a lovely time here, making friends and getting help from the lovely midwives").

Fast forward 20+ years, and there's me - old, tired, barely able to walk after a long back-to-back labour followed by emergency CS - turfed out within 48 hours. From the moment I was wheeled out of surgery, expected to do everything for my baby, and for myself. Not everything has got better!

[LavenderFox]

One piece of advice from the olden days that still keep creeping up is 'toughening your nipples for breastfeeding' by either cutting a small piece of your bra away where your nipples are, and letting them rub against your clothes, or brushing them with a nail brush. I still encounter the occasional mum who ponders about this, and happily tell them it is quite unnecessary....

[MrsFruitcake]

I was born in 1975. Took DM 3 months for a confirmation of pregnancy as the Doctor sent her away when she'd missed 2 periods and told her to come back the next month if she missed another, and only then did he do a blood test to confirm it.

DM (denies it but know it is true) continued to smoke throughout the pregnancy and had pre-eclampsia which put her in hospital. I was born 5 weeks early.

She put me to sleep on my front and lectured me when my own DC were born that 'I put you to sleep on your front and you're still here'. Old habits.

[MrsFruitcake]

Posted too early...

When DM went into labour, they refused to call my Dad. He arrived just as I was being wheeled down to SCBU.

She got pregnant with my DBs (twins) 3 years later, and at 34 weeks and with pre-eclampsia and one DC breech, she was allowed to give birth vaginally. Not sure that would happen these days but thankfully, all turned out well.

[Chardonnay73]

I was born in 1973 and my poor mum was expressly told she could NOT bfeed, no way, not possible as she had had a benign lump removed in 1972 I really felt for her, she was so envious of all the lovely times I had bfeeding my two, and angry she was denied the most basic primeval function as ' a doctor had said so'

My dad wasn't allowed in the delivery room and smoked cigars in the waiting room!!

Same doctor told her the awful news that my dsis had died in the womb at 35 weeks, on the ward, curtains open, with 12 medical students around her bed.
She was induced and wasn't allowed to see dsis and she was taken away and mum still doesn't know where she was buried. Just awful

[halfdrunkcoffee]

My mum also tells me that when I was born there was no paternity leave for dads. Normally, my dad wasn't allowed to take personal calls at work, but she called when going into labour and was asked if it was a matter of life or death - she said it was a matter of life! I don't know if he was able to take a couple of days of work.

[halfdrunkcoffee]

Chardonnay73 that's awful. Your poor mum.

[nagynolonger]

Almost everyone used terry nappies. We were told to buy the best quality we could afford. I bought 4 dozen Harrington ones. I soaked them in the nappy buckets with Nappisan and then washed them in a twin tub every 2 days. There were disposable ones called 'Snugglers' but they weren't very good. Terries folded into a kite and fastend with nappy pins was what I did for my first 4 DC.

I did breast feed and the midwives at the nursing home were really helpful with that. They had plenty of time to help.

Transporting a baby around in a car was very different. Newborns travelled in the pram body or a carry cot strapped into the back seat. From about 4 months they travelled in a car seat that was permanently attached to the rear seat. Toddlers used a five point harness sometimes with a booster cushion. Lots of parents held babies in their arms and didn't bother with car seats.

Children didn't have so many vaccinations and I think they stared them later. Lots didn't bother with whooping cough because of scare stories.

[Wobblestones]

I was born in 1979. Mum had a straight forward natural birth and breastfed me. I was taken to the nursery at night but she kicked up a big fuss to the nurses about bringing me back during the night for breastfeeds. It was standard for the babies to be fed formula overnight so their mothers could sleep. Apparently I was the first baby born in that hospital to have never had formula - go Mum!

[Devora]

My grandmother had most of her many children at home. She had one twin birth in the hospital; one of the babies didn't make it. She told me, "they said she was born dead but I know she was alive - I saw her. But there was something wrong with her, so they took her to the sluice room and smothered her. that's what they did back then." When I expressed shock and sympathy she said, "Oh no, they did the right thing! They're the experts; they know what's best."

That was in the 1950s. People really did accept the authority of doctors.

[LaVolcan]

How awful Devora. I thought they had progressed by the 1950s. Much the same happened when my granny had twins but that was in 1929. One was stillborn and one was born alive but not encouraged to live: 'He wouldn't have amounted to much' was the story and you were just supposed to shut up and get on with it.

They would almost certainly have saved that one now, who would probably have grown up with no problems.

[HazleNutt]

I was born in another country - with both me (78) and sis (85) dads were not allowed in the hospital. And I'm not talking about delivery rooms, they were not allowed in to see their babies til it was time to go home. So dads all gathered under the windows of the hospital after their babies were born and yelled - 'is everything allright?' Mothers stayed in the hospital for about a week. Can you imagine, not being allowed to see your newborn baby for several days?

All babies were taken away to nursery and only brought back every 4 hours for feeding.

[spiderlight]

I was born in 1972. My mum was 46 and was told there was no point even trying to breastfeed because 'you'll have no milk at your age'. Apparently this was not up for discussion - she wasn't the type to challenge the all-knowing doctor but it was just presented as a statement of fact that she would have no milk and that formula was better anyway, so she never tried. She was also told she had to have a CS because of her age and because she'd had virtually no antenatal care - she didn't know she was pregant until six weeks before I was born because they'd been trying for 14 years with no success and the doctor had told her I was the menopause

[BuggersMuddle]

I was born in 1981. Mum was 28 and labelled 'elderly primgravida'.

She wasn't encouraged or discouraged from breastfeeding, but due to crap maternity, spiralling interest rates and being the main breadwinner, it was pretty much irrelevant as she had to return to work within weeks of birth. She had to stop work at 7 months though as in her profession you weren't allowed to work beyond that

She gave up smoking and drinking. For the latter she got a bit of stick as many were still on 'Guinness for iron' and as s result she's now vehemently anti-drink in pregnancy to a ridiculous extent (e.g. A woman drinking a glass of champagne at 8 months would get my mother tutting about selfishness )

She had to fight interventions in birth and was treated as a 'silly little woman' when she questioned anything. Managed to fend off the forceps, but not the (probably unnecessary episiotome). Albeit she was in labour for a bloody long time without early intervention.

Terry nappies yes, due to being skint (cf interest rates, as she was in a professional job) but also disposables were rubbish.

She was encouraged to put me to sleep on my stomach, but I always slept on my back regardless. I was never fed through the night - she was encouraged to give water until I realised I had to sleep through. I am rather short, but in otherwise reasonably good health

[dancestomyowntune]

I was born in 1984, mum had dreadful morning sickness and was hospitalized with a virus. She clearly remembers being told that I wouldn't survive, and if I did I would be severely disabled. She stubbornly refused a termination. I'm fine.

She was shaved and given an enema, and my dad was present, although years later when I was in labour she discovered my dad had refused to let the doctors give her an epidural! I was put in the nursery but mum was convinced she could hear me crying so made them fetch me back!

She used Terry nappies with me but gave them all away when she discovered she was pregnant with db! She does say that I was dry at twelve months tho. Fast forward twenty years and I was told off for potty training at eighteen months!

[HippyPottyMouth]

MIL had BIL in 1970 and DH in 1972. She can't remember whether she gave up smoking. She insisted that FIL was there, but he didn't have any paternity leave beyond that. Breastfeeding wasn't the done thing. She was given tablets to dry up her milk and that was that. She fed them on demand because she couldn't bear to hear them crying.

I was born in 1980. My mum gave up smoking but was encouraged to drink stout and eat liver. She wanted to breastfeed but they told her I wasn't gaining enough weight because she hadn't got enough milk. She took a bollocking for missing her antenatal classes even though I'd been born early! The midwife demanded that I had a name as soon as I was out. They hadn't decided and dad wasn't there, so Mum gave me the first name she thought of. I travelled in the carrycot on the back seat without seatbelts, but when I was big enough to try and escape I was fastened into the carrycot with straps that converted to reins when I toddled.

[gutzgutz]

My mum had a 70s Penelope leach mother and baby book which talked about making the formula up with the right amount of sugar! Have I made this up, does anyone know? Wish I'd kept that book.

I was born in 1978 in a large west London maternity hospital and never heard any horror stories although I imagine as a specialist hospital it had the most up to date research/ facilities available. Having said that, DF on hearing I would be hours went off to football training. If DH had tried that....!

DM kept one of her maternity dresses imagining me or DSis might want to wear it....oh the hilarity of that ugly tent dress. DM was slightly offended " it was very fashionable!!"

[IdaClair]

I'm an early 80s baby and my Mum is not with us either but she copied out her maternity notes and when I was cleaning out her stuff I found them.

She was given an epidural, episiotomy without permission, and threatened with forceps if she couldn't get me out. Then kept in the hospital for 14 days.

When she got home she had the health visitor every day for a month, on day two she told her I looked small and sickly and she should bottle feed. So she did. I was weaned at 8 weeks onto dried baby food which came dehydrated in bags and had to be mixed with water and left overnight.

When I had my oldest she told me having a baby at home was a death sentence and I had no idea what I was letting myself in for. I've had all my babies at home since but she did not live long enough to know that.

[LaVolcan]

My mother had a book about feeding babies and it talked about diluting cows milk and adding sugar, so you are not making it up, but it was earlier than the 70s - more like the early 50s. This is when 'bottle feeding' was being promoted as being scientific and progress and breast feeding was looked down upon. A whole generation of late 40s, 50s, 60s mums were totally undermined as regards breastfeeding. It was a bit better by the late 70s and early 80s but still a long way to go.

I haven't kept the book, so I can't remember much about what else it said. Something about coddled eggs (i.e. only half cooked), because they were easier to digest!

The mind boggles at some of it, but it has made me wonder what a generation of MNers will be exclaiming about in 20-30 years time.

[squizita]

LaVolcan and how many of our kids will be passing on 'folk memories' as what happened to everyone.

My mum gave birth at the same time, same hospital as a couple of her friends. When the whole 'men weren't allowed in' she has actually corrected them: they were but the friends said no because it was 'weird' to them at the time. They then told their DCs, when it became the norm, that they had been forbidden (possibly because they felt judged).
My dad was at most of my birth but he came over queasy and had to be called back from taking a breather so he didn't miss the big event!!

Because I collect the documentation, like you say I see a lot of things which hail from the 50s in all areas of domestic/family guidance which in collective memory has become amalgamated with everything 1949-1985.

In actual fact it seems there was HUGE variation from place to place in the 70s.

[Kasterborous]

I was born in '72. I was breech which they only realised when they x-rayed my Mum to see. She was kept in hospital for a week after I was born, everybody was then. Brest feeding was discouraged, so I was formula fed.