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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

What do I do?

5 replies

jaquline166 · 17/12/2020 20:39

Hi, I'm Jaqueline. Me and my fiancé are now 3 months into pregnancy and last night I couldn't sleep. I was freaked out because I realised, I don't know what I'm doing!! I don't have any parental figures and all my siblings/friends don't have any experience in parenting or pregnancy either. So I quickly downloaded this app because (not to be dramatic) I guess this is my last resort. I'm looking for someone, anyone...a friend to help me. I just want to know stuff like, what classes do I go to? Where do I shop for furniture? What books do I read? Any advice would be a massive help. P.S: I'm also completely stuck on names so I'd be happy to take suggestions haha.

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Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
shelbyrae · 17/12/2020 20:44

Hey, don't stress! Having a baby isn't that complicated otherwise no one would be able to have one, lol. But I get how you feel!

Has your midwife given you any advice or resources? She should be able to point you in the direction of parenting courses - either free or for a fee like NCT.

Once the baby comes your home visitor can help, and there are baby community centres, breastfeeding clinics, gp drop ins and stay-and-plays that can all give you advice and more of a sense of community.

Does your fiance have parents that can offer advice?

LouiseTrees · 17/12/2020 20:45

You have come to the right place. Books - what to expect when you are expecting. Buy furniture- John Lewis and Mamas and Papas. Classes (in advance) - NCT if you can afford it. Classes ( after) - la leche league for breastfeeding. Not sure if you also want like fun class recommendations like baby sensory etc. Names - what are family names and we can maybe give updated versions of those?

Bogardicia · 17/12/2020 20:54

Take folic acid. You can get decent furniture from Argos, they don’t need much and definitely don’t need anything too expensive. Make a list of clothes you might need, Asda is good if you’re not wanting to spend too much. If you google search for what clothes you need, then example lists come up. Your midwife should give you a note for any essential classes.

ForeverBubblegum · 17/12/2020 21:22

Hello, and welcome. First thing to tell you is that 90% of parents also have no idea, and are just winging it, same as you. Don't worry, you will pick it up when you need to. Practically speaking you need surprisingly little for a newborn, and just gradually accumulate stuff as they grow. Maybe have a look round in January sales, she what you like the look of.

Broadly speaking you will need

Somewhere for baby to sleep, I went with a cot upstairs and a mosis basket downstairs (they need to be in same room as you for 6 months), but it depends on how much space you have.

Some form of transport, I mostly used a sling when they were little (look up localsling library for great advice), but not everyone gets on with them so you might want to get a buggy as well so you have options.

Some clothes, about 10x vests and onesies in first few sizes and some cardigans will do. Mine didn't really ware proper outfits until 4 months +, so I ended up with loads of bearly warn 'propper' clothes. If you see anything you like offer just get it in a bigger size and store it, you'll thank yourself in a few months time when they've had another growth spurt and you don't have time to shop.

Have a think about if you want to breastfeed, I found it relatively easy and a general fix all (hungry, thirsty, tired, needs a hug - a boob fixes everything) but not everyone gets on with it, and formal is fine too if that works better for you, I'm sure plenty of people on hear will be able to talk you through what you'll need.

Thatwentbadly · 17/12/2020 21:26

Don’t buy at specialist baby furniture. A normal chest of drawers are fine. Lots of people like the next to me cribs for the start and then use a cot or a cot bed. Babies should sleep in the same room as an adult for at least the first 6 months so you need to make sure hot have space for that. Or you could skip the cot and follow guidelines to safely bed share.

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