38+6 weeks pregnant- anyone fancy joining me in a babywatch thread?!

[RoseBud2016]

39 weeks pregnant tomorrow. I lost my mucus plug 2 weeks ago and have been getting tonnes of low down pressure and sharp stabbing pains in my cervix ever since, but no progress.

This is baby 2 for us. DD is just turned 2. I’m impatient for baby to arrive but also desperate to savour the last few days (weeks ) with my little girl.

Anyone in a similar position and want to join me on bsbywatch?

Baby Rosebud the second arrived this morning at 2:41am weighing 9lb 6oz at 40+4. She is perfect in every way! 💕
Contractions started yesterday at 11am. Until about 4pm I thought they were just regular Braxton Hicks but then they started to increase in intensity and I realised they were actually the real deal!
By 6pm they were 45 seconds long and 2 minutes apart but I was coping well at home. Then my water went and it went very quickly from there!
5cm at 10pm when I arrived at hospital. 9cm after I had been in the pool for 45 minutes!
But the pushing was tough because she was back to back and has a very big head.
Very happy though- so much quicker, and less traumatic, than my first birth. X

@Mrsmummy90 I'm hoping for a similar age gap, naively I thought one of the advantages would be less jealousy

Congratulations @RoseBud2016, glad you had a better birth experience this time

@Mrsmummy90 - ah glad you’re doing well! aw, I guess it takes time for them to adjust. Enjoy these lovely moments with your new one :)

I’ll have a look into it :)

@RoseBud2016 - I was going to ask how you were doing as you’d not posted for a while! Amazing news, congratulations!! Glad it was a better experience for you. So happy to hear of your new arrival :)

How many of us are left?!

Congratulations @RoseBud2016 😊 glad it went well!!

@RoseBud2016 congratulations! That's wonderful.

I'm still waiting, pretty much every day this week I thought it was about to happen so I'm starting to get pretty pissed off! I lost the mucus plug yesterday after a long brisk walk. Had contractions overnight and ar one point nearly called the hospital. Thankfully I didn't as they are dying down again now.. I'm so frustrated. I had a really long early labour with DD and everyone promised me it would be different this time

Sorry for rant. Good luck everyone!

Morning all,

@RoseReally - right there with you. I almost called labour ward and then they died off again, so frustrating. I’m starting to get backache now and stomach ache back this morning, just not in the form of contractions! Meh.

Still nothing happening here. I've got to the part on the hypnobirthing course when she talks about due dates. Apparently the average date for first time babies in the UK is 40+10 which makes me feel a bit better, yesterday I read only 1 in 10 pregnancies get to 41 weeks but that's obviously including 2nd and subsequent pregnancies.

@Triskaidekaphilia my first was 40+10! But my 'labour' started at 40+8. I had myself convinced that this one wouldn't be so late, I'm much less convinced now!

@Fae1989 so frustrating isn't it? I had really bad period pains and backache after my sweep and after I lost the plug. Now pretty much nothing. I am trying really hard to stay positive!

@Triskaidekaphilia - I like that she calls it a ‘due period’ rather than a set date, it’s so difficult though cause you just want to meet your little one! Hang in there! Things can happen quickly still. I’ve been watching positive induction videos on YouTube and they have helped!

@RoseReally - definitely frustrating but I saw he midwife today and she said (which I found really helpful!) that these are all the signs of your body gearing up for labour, it’s just a case of when! So I’m trying to view them as positive!

Had my second sweep today. Still only 1cm but she could feel baby’s head and she said it’s well ‘wedged’ in my pelvis 😂 lovely! Cervix is soft and 1cm long which is an improvement! Hoping I can stave off induction on Sunday but we shall see!

I’m putting the progression down to bouncing on my ball for hours yesterday!!

Hope everyone is doing ok and hanging in there :)

@Fae1989 sounds promising, my cervix was 2cm long at my sweep on Wednesday. Fingers crossed you won't need the induction but at least the end is really in sight now!

Sending dilating vibes to everyone!

@RoseReally - 2cm is good - I didn't realise it needed to shorten so much and 2 is better than 3! Here's hoping, so ready to not be pregnant anymore :)

Ditto vibes back at you!!

Morning :)

How is everyone?

Apart from persistent stomach ache (thanks world!) nothing is happening here. Looks like induction will go ahead tomorrow, I can’t face being this heavy and full for much longer!

@Fae1989 sorry to hear that, but there is still time! I know what you mean about the stomach ache.. my tummy feels tender and hard, like I'm recovering from a tummy bug or food poisoning or something... no symptoms of anything progressing for me either though :( 41 weeks now 😔

@SenoraSurf - thanks lovely. Maybe all these symptoms are promising in that at least something is happening?! Still time for you too :)

@Fae1989 yes and about the 'due from' rather than 'due by' date. I watched the one about having a positive birth with induction as obviously that seems like where I'm headed at the moment.

Though watching has made me realise I really don't want the syntocin drip unless it gets really late on- I have this weird issue with things like cannulas, IVs, epidurals, anything that needs to stay attached and I kind of didn't take that into account. Same with the fact I probably wouldn't be able to go to the birth centre or have a water birth. So I'm hoping the pessary might do enough on its own, even if I have to try it a couple of times. I may also ask if I can have another growth scan before deciding whether to wait/induce with drip/c-section because they said she was big before, so perhaps best not to wait too long.

@RoseReally love it, we definitely all need some dilating vibes

@Fae1989 oops, by the time I finished my post it was a x-post, sort of I'm doing ok, lot of pains for the past 24h, but they seem too high to be labour related, think it's indigestion. Few cervix twinges as well though. How are you feeling about your induction?

@SenoraSurf that's the same as me, loads of stomach pains and I feel really rough. Loads of braxton hicks with my bump getting really tight, but they don't hurt so it feels like I'm uncomfortable for no reason.

@Triskaidekaphilia I know how you feel, I've lots of pressure just above my belly button (apparently it's baby sticking its bump out. Baby feels lower to me but my bump is still so high. Yes to the cervix twinges too!!

Ive got another sweep Tuesday and then MW wants to induce Thursday or Friday if that fails :(

Technically, today was my 'proper' due date, before the scan measure changed it. Theoretically though Im measuring 2 weeks bigger which isn't great 😵 I'm worried about baby getting stuck or them having to break its collar bone to get it out. I haven't had any growth scans so literally based on MW measuring my bump :( (I know it's not accurate but it's scary nonetheless)

@Triskaidekaphilia - Is it worth asking if they do that balloon induction? It might be, especially if you're not keen on the drip. I can't fault you, I don't like the idea of it either! If you're already having symptoms then the pessary might just get things going - or it might start on its own beforehand. It's the not knowing that's getting to me, don't know about you! You can definitely request another scan, especially if it puts your mind at ease. If it's any consolation my midwife said yesterday that the babies that are estimated to be big are generally smaller when they come out - so it's very possible you could have baby naturally, it's just a case of how you feel at the time. Have you got a date booked for induction yet? Did you feel like your other sweep did anything?

I feel like we are all having really similar symptoms! I could tell I was having pains in my sleep last night but I was so tired that I think I blocked them out. I've not been very UFO today either :/. Bit nervous about my induction to be honest, I was really hoping it wouldn't get that far and I'm pig sick of being examined. I only really accepted it on the basis that knowing my luck, he'll be two weeks late and I'd have to be inducted anyway!

Dilating vibes to you both :)

@SenoraSurf My bump looks quite similar! I think what's happening with me is she's putting pressure on my stomach and causing indigestion! They're really sharp pains, right now in my sides but earlier it was in my upper back as well.

My due date was originally different too, by my scan date I'm 41+2 but by my original date, which was more accurate by when i ovulated, I'm only 40+3. Bump measurements are so inaccurate. I was two weeks behind at 32 weeks so they gave me a scan only to find baby was on the 95th centile. And then this week I've been measured as 39 and 41 weeks on different days. So hopefully it doesn't mean anything bad. I have the same fears about baby getting stuck though.

@Fae1989 I've looked the balloon induction up, it seems mostly for vbac as an alternative to the pessary, then they normally break the waters afterwards so there would be more of a set time to have to get baby out. I'd rather try a few pessaries first as the effect is similar without having to insert anything into the cervix, but after that I'd be willing to try the balloon.

My induction with the pessary is booked for Monday, and with baby fully engaged, I have this image of her waiting to be let out of my stubborn cervix so that's why I'm hopeful! My second sweep wasn't really a sweep as she couldn't reach the cervix enough to do one. She did attempt to pull it forward and there was a tiny bit of blood and it felt like I could touch more of the cervix myself the next day. I'm happy for them to do one more sweep before inserting the pessary but I wasn't willing to have another this week because wednesday was a bit rough.

The problem I'm having is that UFO positions are not comfortable to me at all. Yesterday I tried to stay in them nearly all afternoon/evening and it brought my PGP back. It stresses me out trying to stay that way, I can bounce on the ball to stop slouching but when I try and lean forward I get tired really quickly. I can stay calm or stay UFO but not both!

Remember if they check you and find you're really dilated or any other drastic change, you can always change your mind about the induction. But it seems you're also keen to get it over with now! Maybe with all the symptoms you've already had, the pessary will work first time (if that's what you're starting with).

Wishing you luck for tonight @Fae1989 , am thinking of you and if nothing happens, I hope the induction is ok and all goes wonderfully to plan! Xx

@SenoraSurf- thanks lovely! Good luck for your sweep. I’m sorry I missed your earlier message, think I cross posted! Try not to worry too much about measuring bigger, your bump looks so neat and I’ve often heard they get the measurements wrong! Fingers crossed things start moving for you soon.

@Triskaidekaphilia - they’re doing the balloon one for me (not sure why cause I’ve never had a baby but apparently it’s gentler and as it’s meant to be an outpatient one I should be able to go home, fingers crossed!). I totally get where you’re coming from though, I guess each method has it’s pros and cons. You never know, a sweep might do the trick and save you the trouble of an induction, but like you say with mine, the option is there.

The ufo thing can be frustrating, especially if there are other issues at play like you say!

If it’s any consolation to either of you my midwife said smaller babies have a tough time getting stuck because there’s more room for their limbs etc whereas bigger babies just have to come out! I guess there’s never going to be a risk free scenario but at least if we have big babies gravity might be our friend!!

Best of luck to you both, hopefully catch up tomorrow!! X

@Fae1989 probably just different hospitals prefer different methods. Mine's outpatient as well, think I just have to be monitored for 30 minutes after the pessary then can go home. DH has taken the day off to come with me in case of anything unexpected.

Today I've been leaning forward a little when on the ball but when I've been on the sofa I've just ignored that and done what's comfortable. Had the odd painful contraction here and there amongst all the usual painless ones. They only ever last about 10 seconds though, way off the 30 or whatever they're supposed to start off as in labour.

I've heard bigger babies can mean easier labour as well, mostly because of gravity. When they first identified she was big they gave me all the warnings about shoulder dystocia, getting stuck, 3rd degree tears etc. which was the first time I'd had any real concerns about labour.

Good luck with your induction if we don't catch up before then!

Definitely better if you can go home afterwards! Good shout having DH have the day off, you never know!

Tbh I think there’s a lot of conflicting info out there, but mostly I understand gravity to be on our side. Even small babies have a risk of shoulder dystocia etc don’t they. My midwife’s approach was quite good, she said you’ll either give birth naturally or you won’t! 😂 I think she was trying to say don’t worry too much haha!

I’m right with you with the odd niggly pain and tightness. Although mine baby’s been doing somersaults in there all evening - ouch!

Thank you lovely, hope you both have a nice Sunday (preferably one involving dilation haha!)
X

@Fae1989 Your midwife has a good approach. My new motto is "she'll be here next week" (tomorrow it will change to 'this week')- I still have my order of preference but however my birth ends up, I'll get to meet my baby soon and that's the most important thing :) Hope today went/is going/will go well for you.

How is everyone doing?