Pregnancies April 2018 - #3 the babies are nearly here !

[DaisyLand]

So we’ve nearly finished with thread 2! Just on time for the babies joining us !

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/pregnancy/3070393-Pregnancies-due-April-2018

I haven't been keeping up with this thread.. but commented a lot earlier on!

I was due 7th April.
Finally gave birth 17th April!

Contractions started waking me up around 2am, I kept going back to sleep. But I was fully awake at 5am, they were 6-7 minutes so I had a shower (needed to wash my hair!).

I also changed 2 lots of bedding and hung my washing out! I got my other two ready for school and MIL took them. They had no idea I was in labour.

Anyway! Got to the hospital around 9:30. Examined me and I was nearly 4cm.

At 10:45, they took me to the delivery suite and said they would break my waters in a few hours.

At 12:05, my waters decided to break on their own! It was at that point that I had my first bit of pain relief - gas and air.

Felix entered the world at 12:32!

He is 8lb11 (previous babies were 7lb 1 1/2 and 7lb10 so I was not expecting that!)

Had a tiny tear but so small they said they won’t stitch it. I lost a lot of blood, after 4 injections and 5 tablets up my bum, they gave me a drip - which took 6 attempts for thto cannula!

Luckily that eventually stopped but we had to stay overnight as they weren't happy with a noise he was making - only sounded like snoring and he hasn't done it since!

I'm very lucky that my contractions aren't as strong as a normal person, I was able to breathe through them up until my waters broke. I was ready to push as soon as that happened so I assume I made it to 10cm with nothing (not even paracetamol).

I had gas and air but I don't like how that makes me feel so I only had it until I could feel it going to my head, then i would take a break and just breathe through the pain, then go back to it.
DH said I barely made a noise throughout and that I handled it amazingly.

We came home Wednesday afternoon after waiting ages for the paediatrician. Our children had no idea I had had Felix, so when they came home from school, they had a big surprise because I was waiting with him on the sofa!
They absolutely adore him!

Congratulations everyone on your new arrivals, sounds like you're all doing really well.

We just had some bad news - our baby is unlikely to be able to come home for at least a month, possibly up to 4 months. He also isn't allowed any breast milk which makes me wonder what the point of expressing is. It's so horrible to think of him down there in the neonatal unit, only seeing us for a few hours a day, never being cuddled, and never being fed, for the first few months of his life.

@Harry sorry to hear that sending virtual hugs. Do they have a plan of action for little one? I’m sure neonatal will still let you have cuddles they are amazing people in neonatal. I remember sitting crying my eyes out the first time I got to see isobelle properly and the lovely nurse in there just holding me whilst I sobbed. My hubby had already gone home to look after our older two I had just been transferred to the ward from delivery suite as had lost a lot of blood so they kept me on delivery suite longer as wasn’t stable enough to move. So I literally got wheeled to the ward and refused to get out my wheelchair until they took me up. I had to leave Imogen on the ward whilst I went down to neonatal then broke my heart leaving her after just 20 minutes as I knew Imogen needed feeding upstairs again. The day after when my hubby wheeled us both down to see isobelle though the staff again was amazing and said to me did I want a cuddle and cue me blubbering wreck again. But I treasure that first proper cuddle on her own as my first cuddle in theatre was with her sister too before Isobelle then got taken to special care. It’s a huge rollercoaster of emotions but the staff are amazing. Make sure you talk to people about how your feeling.

Harry sorry to hear that about your little one. I was so lucky that Lyra was only on intensive care for a week, but I agree with Bez9087, the staff on intensive care tend to be utterly amazing and will completely support you. There should be a counsellor attached to the unit, maybe a family liaison nurse too who will offer support.

Do they want you to express to keep up your milk supply so you are able to breastfeed when you get your baby home?

@Harry sorry to hear that about your little one sending and hugs for you. Really hope that your little one comes home sooner rather than later .

@Harry congratulations on the arrival of your little bundle of joy. I hope all goes well in NICU and that you are together soon. I second the old rest up advice...and Sleep between NICU visits.

Good luck to all those being induced and/or in labour!

amysaurus you are absolutely right that motherhood is a hard work. For me now it seems like the hardest I ever had. It's hard to deal emotionally and physically as sleeplessness and hormons contribute to the emotions run wild so I just cry every day. Waiting for when the things will get easier if they ever will.
Don't worry Rae we are all sleep deprived

Harry sorry to hear that your little one has to stay in the neonatal unit for a while. Hope your baby will go home with you soon!
pinkflamingo sounds like you did so well through labour! Congratulations on your newborn,wish you many nice cuddles.

They just keep saying they want to check he's OK before they let him leave but I wonder if there's something more they're not telling us? It's a bit demoralising to express milk for a baby who might never be able to have it, surely if we have to wait 4 months to breastfeed, most of the benefits will be gone? H is saying that he might go back to work and resume his paternity leave when the baby comes home but I'm (possibly irrationally) worried about him bringing illnesses from his office and giving then to the baby.

Other C-section ladies, how long does it take before you can move normally again?

@Harry have you asked the doctors outright? I doubt they would keep something from you but ultimately you need to understand exactly what's going on and someone needs to spend to explaining everything to you to put your mind at rest.

I found after 1 week moving around was much easier. Hardly noticeable after 2 weeks but you still need to be careful. And keep the wound dry.

Sending you virtual hugs x

Same as @anna really after about a week it didn’t feel as sore moving by two weeks I was confidently up and down out of bed. I’m four weeks on today and i just remind myself if I’m sat back on the sofa to use the arm of the chair to pull me forward so I’m not using my tummy muscles.
My insurance said if drs happy I can drive and spoke to drs he said if can do an emergency stop so going to maybe attempt driving this weekend with dh as he’s back at work Monday and Sod’s law the weather all next week for us is rain rain and more rain so unless we get soaked on the school run I want to ideally drive it. But it depends how I get on this weekend. Iv started lifting the girls in their car seats this week and seems to be okay. Only one at a time mind lol!

And we are home! Baby Joshua has fed already and is currently sleeping, feeding is so much easier now we are home.

@Harry I'm 3 days post surgery I can move, but i have to take it slow. I can push myself off a chair and I can just about get up and down off the toilet..showering is going to be interesting as our shower is in a bath so not sure how I'm going to get in and out! The walk from the ward to the car to come home nearly killed me.

Advice I was given was to rest as much as I can, but have short periods of being mobile.

So glad your home @amy and that baby Joshua is feeding well. Enjoy being in your own surroundings.
Hard to believe we have had our girls four weeks today. It’s going far too quick. Poor isobelle is really struggling with colic at the minute, I feel for her it’s like she’s got a constant battle... she was the one in scbu, she’s on precautionary antibiotics for her kidney and needs hip scan (although her sister needs one too) and now colic I just think the poor love doesn’t catch a break and she’s full of a cold and is all snotty 😔 got her some saline spray today to squirt up her nose. She wasn’t impressed. Still got blocked tear ducts too 🙈 Picture of isobelle just because she’s still bloody cute 😍 even if people have asked me today if they are both boys because they had turquoise on 😏

Hi all

Harry sorry to hear about your little one. Sure they shouldn’t keep anything away from you specially if they’re telling you that you need to stay 4 months in nicu. Hope you get answers to your questions and are soon allowed to go home.

Well we are home from the hospital, sadly without our baby. We cried when we got back to our flat thinking about how much we'd looked forward to bringing him home. But he has to stay in hospital while they try to figure out what happened and to make sure it doesn't happen again.

@Bez9087 She is very cute.

Who is still pregnant?

Feel like its just me. 40+3 today.

@harryharry you cry as much as you need too. Have they given you any answers yet?

I know your not in England / UK is there a language barrier happening? Have you asked outright if its heart/ lungs/ infection? Xx

@harryharry sending big hugs. When my older one was in special care I was give little squares of muslin to put in my top to make them smell of me. Then they were put in the incubator. I'd like to think that it was comforting for them to have something that smelt of me. Would they let you do something like that?

@Loosemoose28 - So far they've ruled out infection and heart problems but they still don't know the cause.

Congrats on all the babies sorry to hear some of u ain't getting all the snuggles u wished for yet but hopefully all babies be home in ur arms soon.. there cant be many of us left to still have our babies at this stage I'm due on tue 24th so hoping go close to date 😉

I was due on the 24th but she had her second episode of reduced movement so I'm being induced and it's taking as long as I'd read.

It looks like she she'll end up being born on my evil (not an exaggeration) sister's birthday, was so hoping it would be today instead.

Congratualtions on new babies!! And sorry to hear that there has been some complications for some. Everything about becoming a mother seems very unpredictable. I hope soon everyone will be past the turmoil and settled with their babies. @Loosemoose28 I am still pregnant! 39+3 so a week behind. Feels like I might be the last man standing!!

@loosemoose28 I'm still here! Due date was yesterday. I have to go into hospital tonight as they want to induce me as the baby is measuring large, but I think I am going to refuse the induction and just see about monitoring. It's so hard to know what to do for the best!! I want my baby here but I don't want all the extra risks of induction if there's no proper need for them.

Hi Ladies, hope things are going well for you. @HarryHarry hope things are clearer for you soon. And every day is a step towards home.
Thanks to everyone's advice about Induction. It was really helpful. I went in for my last monitoring visit on Friday at 5pm. Had a bit of backache and mentioned to midwife that my first baby delivered really fast. So they examined me and found I was already dilated with an open and favourable cervix(!) they wouldn't let me leave! Proper labour started at 8pm and my little (8lb 11oz!) boy arrived at 3.50am in the birthing pool, with just two paracetamol! He was FAST! Home by 9am. He's ace. I think it's all still a bit surreal.
Ladies who are still yet to have their babies, all I can say is things can literally change in a second! I was at 40+10! Fingers crossed for you all! X

Congratulations on the arrival of the newest member of your family! @Kirta sounds like everything went well for you!

@Harry fingers crossed you get an answer soon and you can go home with your little one soon.

Just wondering when people saw the community midwife after being discharged? I came home on Friday and was told to expect a call by day 2 at home for the midwife to come and do a home visit, we are now on day 2 and I've not had that call...