SI Graduates - From pots to bumps

[eloiseislost]

@AdriannaP
@ComebackQueen

I think it's just us at the moment (sorry if I forgot anyone) but hoping that more and more of us will be joining soon!
I figured it would be nice to stay in touch here too, throughout the exciting yet nerve-wracking next stages! 💞

How are you getting on? 🙂

🎉🎉🥰 congratulations @primrosechill!! What wonderful news!

Aww another member of the girl gang for this thread, congratulations @primrosechill

Also thanks for yours, @Makingnumber2 and @Bluey18 advice, spoke to my GP just now but midwife already called me in the morning.

Both said they understand my concerns but having one high reading when the other is within range means at this point there is a working artery and some women only have one for the entire pregnancy.

Baby measures bang on the dates so at this stage it’s not a concern, the GP though said, at 24 weeks if there is an indication of low growth that a consultant will then be involved at the 28 week scan, my midwife didn’t mention this but said next scan will give a clearer picture if we should get extra intervention.

The GP gave me some reassurance as this being picked up only means there’s maybe a 30-40% chance of having some form of complications, most go on to have normal, healthy babies born around 40weeks. So it’s absolutely no cause for concern right now.

I feel a bit of an idiot.

The GP though has asked me to speak with the midwife at my 25 week appointment for prenatal mental health support or they can refer me but I said I’ll talk to the midwife.

I think the GP could tell I’m a broken woman!

@ComebackQueen Aww that is such a relief for you, I'm so pleased to hear it. Don't feel anyways silly, how are we supposed to know these things unless we reach out to the professionals. And anyhow, you would think they would have told you this before instead of saying the midwife would ring you to discuss, anyone would have been worried in the same boat! 💕

Don't be afraid to talk to the prenatal mental health team or your midwife, they are there to help and anyones mind would take a bit of a bruising with everything you've been through with the sickness and everything else. I suffered PND myself last time and my only regret is not asking for some support sooner. Sending you a virtual hug xx

@ComebackQueen ah yay so chuffed for you that you got the reassurance you needed ❤️ and never feel sorry or silly for worrying! I was also going to ask you - do I remember correctly that you deal with vaginismus? If you don't mind me asking, have you had any further thoughts/conversations re birth?

Thank you all for your congrats - I lost a bet with my hubby, I was CONVINCED it was going to be a boy haha 😂 - but we had no preference whatsoever and are so chuffed either way 🥰 a little girl, what a trip! now the choosing of names begins!

@primrosechill I’m thinking either C section or Labour with an epidural.

I would rather do the latter on reflection as I’m just really anxious about the internals that are required and, the epi removes the pain from the examinations so wouldn’t be as scared.

My hospital (St Mary’s) have said I must attend a birthing options workshop that will go through every single birth option and, if I still want a C section, they’ll arrange for consultant to see me but they do want me to go to that before making decisions.

Also, they said they don’t usually discuss the birthing plan until much later but as I have vaginismus they were ok with trying to ease my worry.

My husband, weirdly, would rather I have an elective c section. He has been researching and thinks given how poorly I’ve been in then pregnancy thus far, he just wants a controlled, peaceful c section where it’s over a lot quicker than normal birth.
I just worry about the healing and not being able to push the baby in the pram or lift him for a few weeks.
My mother is advocating a C section and she had four natural births.

@ComebackQueen great news that you could get things explained more clearly and in a less worrying way than before! Never feel silly for panicking about this type of stuff- it isn't helpful when you have medical jargon chucked at you and then left without a full explanation.

I had my 12W scan today and everything looked good thank goodness! Baby was so active it was crazy and the technician was new to the hospital and accidentally printed us off about 15 photos which was a great bonus! They've dated me at 12w6d now so EDD has moved to December but I think there's a very high chance baby won't be here until Jan if they're anything like their big sister [smille].

Hope everyone is doing well today!

Aww that's fantastic news @Makingnumber2, so happy for you. Will you find out whether you're having a girl or boy or leave it a surprise? .

I'm 20 weeks today, and I'm having a pretty good day sickness wise! Just filling out my mat leave forms for work. My DD is starting preschool in September, her nursery told me they are going to be moving her to the "big kids" room soon to get her used to it and I'm feeling very emotional about her being so grown up today (which is pretty silly, she's not even 3 yet!). It all goes so fast .

She told me this morning that the baby was pulling faces at her, so the sibling rivalry seems to be kicking in already

Hi everyone! I'm back from the narrow boat from hell! 😂 It's good to be home, on my superking size bed!

I am 25+1 today and I think the movements are starting to settle into a kind of pattern. 💓

@Bluey18 Yay on filling your mat leave forms! I did the same last week. I have 4 weeks of annual leave to take, so my mat leave will start on my due date but I'll stop working 4 weeks before that, so 10th September. I will be working from home from 16th July too and -I won't lie- I'm looking forward to that because I have 0 motivation at work these days, all I think about is cute baby clothes I want to buy! 😁
As for the packing service, I would say go for it if you can afford it (we found a company that charged around £200 so it was a no-brained) because friends are lovely and newborn cuddles is the best currency in the world, but there is something to be said about the speed and efficacy of professionals, plus the insurance for your stuff (it'd be very awkward if a friend broke your TV for example 😬) and the fact that they provide all the packing materials. I sound like an ad, but discovering this service has changed my entire world view! 😄

@Makingnumber2 Massive congratulations on your scan! 🥳 Are you going to have another private one between this and the 20-week one? I didn't and the wait was soooooooooo long!! But you might hear the heartbeat on your 16-week midwife appointment -if it's done in person. 💓

@primrosechill Welcome to team girl!!! 💝💞💖 So excited for you! We wanted to find out the gender early so we can decide on a name before she is born -we are notorious for not agreeing on most things! As luck would have it, we found her name pretty much a couple of days after we got the results from the Harmony! So we've known from about 11 weeks but we recently started referring to her by her name. It makes it feel even more real! 😬

@ComebackQueen I'm so glad you got some reassurance! As my friend put it, they always find "something wrong" because the 20-week scan is so detailed. And while there are sad, tragic stories out there, the vast majority of pregnancies progress well and have excellent outcomes. 💙

Hello fellow mamas to be! How are you all feeling?

@Makingnumber2 congrats on your dating scan. I had mine earlier this week too and they moved my due date by a day so it's now Jan 9th. Everything looked good so we finally told all the family and friends who didn't know yet!

@eloiseislost only a couple of weeks until you can stop going into work! Very jealous of all of you who are close to your mat leave, I am now getting more and more demotivated 😆

What a lovely scan photo @primrosechill 💕
I am doing very well, but I'm getting bigger by the minute and can't get comfortable in this heat! 🔥🥵
I've been buying all sorts of cute stuff for the baby, which I then hide from DH who wants to be sensible and buy the essentials -leaving the cute outfits for family and friends to buy. 😄

@primrosechill yay so exciting to have the first scan and see baby in there!! Hope you’re feeling alright as you come to end of first tri!

@eloiseislost I actually took your DH’a approach with number 1 and didn’t buy anything fun only sensible and regretted not buying a few lovely pieces myself! So I say go for it!! Hope you can get near a fan and with your feet in a paddling pool on days where weather is warmer. I am glad I won’t have to do final tri in summer like I did last time that’s for sure! I really want a scan in between 12 and 20 wk but I can’t financially justify it and my 16wk appmt will Be in person and midwife said she will listen to heartbeat. I keep having sudden spots of anxiety that having the vaccine will have done something to the baby- I know it’s so totally irrational- and then I have a panic. I think if these episodes get more frequent I will just book the extra scan because the financial loss will be outweighed by hopefully more peace of mind?!! But my DH just thinks I should wait until 20wk which is on August 11th. Can’t wait!!

Yes @Bluey18 we will deffo be finding out the sex because I want to know if I can pass all my girl bits to my Sister and SIL and grab boy bits from my friend who had a little boy in Jan a few years back! Plus we wanted to know sex for when we tell our DD we are having a baby- we don’t want to tell her before and she gets a preference for brother or sister and is then disappoInted if baby isn’t what she ordered!

Congratulations @primrosechill !!! You are through the first trimester 🤩🤩🙌🏻🙌🏻. Lovely scan photo 😍.

I stopped getting notifications for the thread somehow so dropped off for a bit, but have been wondering how you ladies have all been getting on. Need to catch up…

@eloiseislost you must be so far along now?! When is your dd again?

@Bluey18 omg so sorry to hear you are still SO sick. I continued to vomit everyday until about a week ago, but I think I’m finally moving past it thank god.

@Makingnumber2 I know the feeling about scans. I was on the fence about whether to go for one in between 13-20 weeks, but in the end I haven’t. I decided I’d only be reassured for 5 mins, and then get anxious again 🙄. Plus I started feeling the baby move much earlier than last time and got some reassurance that way. you might find that too with second babs? When did you start feeling your first and how far are you now?

I’m 19+3 now and feeling the baby everyday which is nice. Anomaly scan is next week. I’m trying not to think about it too much, otherwise I will just get stressed. All in all , I’ve managed to stay much calmer during this pregnancy than the first. If all goes well, it be amazing to know I’m past half way..

@Bizawit I'm 26+3 today! 🥰
I finally feel regular, strong movements! It took foreeever, probably because she's my first.
Best of luck with your anomaly scan, the waiting is excruciating but the chances of everything absolutely fine are massively in your favour! 🙂

Hi ladies. I’m so sorry I’ve not been around much. I’ve been having a rough ride with sickness and not being able to eat. Finally been given a medication that works though I have to be careful and try not to take too often.
I went for a scan on Saturday. I was 15+6. They told me it’s two boys. I know I shouldn’t be but I am kind of gutted not to get a girl. 😞

Also what do you ladies say when asked if it’s a natural pregnancy? I am amazed how many ask me!

Also I’ve been feeling movement since week 14 which I find really odd and early since these are my first!

@Remembermee

If it’s not IVF/IUI or an assisted pregnancy via official channels, this is considered a spontaneous pregnancy per my notes.
I told my midwife how I conceived and she literally thought I was insane for not knowing it’s still deemed a natural conception.

So if anyone ha asked I say it was all natural with a helping hand from God LOL.

Also, I’m having a boy and I must admit I have to train myself to get over we only have women and girls in the family so I won’t be doing any girlie things with this little one, but I am fortunate I was heavily involved in my two eldest nieces big girlie moments like prom (one even wore my dress from a wedding reception where I deliberately purchased one that was OTT after husbands cousin wore white to my wedding, and looked like a bride to covert the attention) so will actually be lovely to experience doing more male cantered things. As I actually was a ton boy growing up, I think or hope, I’ll really enjoy being a boy mum. I know given my age and how difficult this pregnancy is, I doubt I’ll ever be blessed with another one. So I just feel so fortunate I have an opportunity to be a mum and all I want is him to be healthy, happy and know how much I love him.

Hello ladies! I hope you are all well!

@Bizawit When is your scan this week? Will be thinking of you!

@ejefferinton Huge congratulations! 🥳 I know you were not in the undergraduate group for long, but you're welcome here! 💞

Hi everyone, thanks @eloiseislost! Still trying to get used to the fact that I am officially pregnant - after a failed round of IUI we definitely didn’t think SI would work the first time!

@ejefferinton It was meant to be it seems! 😉 How are you feeling other than shocked?

Yes @eloiseislost I agree! Feeling slightly nauseous, a bit tired and sore boobs! Also seem to have diarrhoea... sorry if TMI! Only 4 weeks plus 4 though so very early days... just hoping and praying that it will stick, 12 weeks seems like a long way away!

@ejefferinton No such thing as TMI here! As weird as it sounds, enjoy the diarrhoea now because there's a good chance constipation will hit you very soon and that's torture! 😅
Think of it this way, it's about 7 weeks you have to wait still! Also you'll see your midwife at 10 weeks for your booking appointment, that breaks up the wait a bit. Are you planning on any private scans?

Ha ha, thanks @eloiseislost! It feels quite early for symptoms but reassuring in a strange way as it makes me feel pregnant! Don't think we'll have any private scans, our fertility clinic offer a 7 week one but obviously we don't qualify as we conceived 'naturally'. This is my first pregnancy and quite anxious about mc tbh but reminding myself that the statistics are more in my favour of it being successful than not!

@ejefferinton I didn't get many symptoms until I was 6 weeks an even then it was a vague feeling of nausea. That progressively got worse and I was constantly nauseous unless I was stuffing my face with carbs until about 14 weeks!
In terms of anxiety, I was using this website A LOT in the first trimester: datayze.com/miscarriage-reassurer. I had an early mc in my first pregnancy which was right before this one so I was a proper bag of nerves! But you are right, the odds are always in our favour. 🙂

Hello all, sorry for the silence on my end! I'm 14+2 today and starting to notice a small bump 🥰😭 Had a big event at work last week that kept me stressed out and then as soon as I wrapped it up I feel like the stress and tiredness hit me all at once and I have been really feeling it! I didn't think it was possible but right now I feel even MORE tired than in the first trimester. Can I please go on maternity leave 5 months early? 😂 I told work yesterday about the pregnancy and now that I no longer have to hide it I feel like I'm also struggling to hide my lack of motivation hahaha.

@ejefferinton huge congratulations! And on the first SI try, wow 🤩 the first few weeks seem like the time is going at only half the pace... I hope you have some nice things planned to keep yourself distracted. And welcome to the joys of pregnancy poop 💩 lol, I'm constipated 90% of the time still.

To all the other ladies, hope you are doing well ❤️ some of you must have such big bumps now, time is flying. @eloiseislost are you officially working from home full time now?

@primrosechill Speaking of big bumps, mine looks (and feels) huge now, at 27+4! 🤰🏻
I had zero motivation for work since I was about 8 weeks or so along, I reckon I'm at negative levels now! 😅
Thursday is my last day at the office, Friday my 28-week midwife appointment. With the restrictions mindlessly (imho) easing in the UK, I'm glad to be able to be at home and feel more safe.