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? 🙂

Ahhh @eloiseislost that's a lovely bump 🥰 you look great! How are you feeling??
I know, the complete lack of regulations is bonkers - why can we never find a reasonable middle ground with these things 🙄
Quick question: For those of you who had the vaccine while already pregnant, how did you feel after the second dose? Was it much worse than the first one? (My first one was completely fine, just a sore arm. I only had it last week but hoping to find a walk-in clinic in early Aug to expedite my second one. I feel like there is a lot of scaremongering and misinformation again for pregnant women...)

@primrosechill I had my second dose when I was 16 weeks, I felt a bit more tired than when I got my first but nothing a long night's sleep didn't fix! Arm was sore for 3 days though -same as with the first dose. I didn't take any paracetamol though out of choice, I suspect it would've gone away sooner if I had.

Hey all! I know, very surprised that we fell pregnant first time with SI - we've had one IUI cycle but nothing other than that so it feels like we've fallen pregnant the second time we've had sex as my husband has never ejaculated during sex. Almost wish we'd known about SI earlier as feel like we've 'wasted' several years working on our sex life, but I also know that it's all part of our journey. Continuing to have the same minor symptoms but nothing much! 5w tomorrow.

@ejefferinton My husband has never ejaculated during sex either and, like you, I feel that we have wasted years by feeling frustrated, scared, angry and sad about it. We actually had therapy to address this, i.e.: the expectation of ejaculation and the assumption that it is the be all and end all. Now have a fulfilling sex life and a baby on the way! A year ago, if you had told me that's where we'd be, I would not have believed you! 😄

@eloiseislost that's so reassuring to hear! Yes we went down the counselling route too via the NHS for my husband but not a lot came from it and then they stopped it during covid. Then we needed to re-refer and got put through to the wrong person, but he suggested a fertility clinic (which we tried first) and SI so turned out for the best! So reassuring to have other people with the same experience, it can feel very lonely and confusing

@ejefferinton Our counsellor suggested SI to us actually! And she even warned us that, in her experience from her other clients, "it tends to work very quickly so be prepared". 😁 In the space of 4 months, I got pregnant twice, alas only one of the pregnancies was viable.
Delayed ejaculation is an issue that is rarely talked about and so misunderstood. When we went through our GP to ask for the referral to counselling, he said "I don't get it, what's the problem? Enjoy the endless sex!" 😳 Thankfully he made the referral. We had to switch to phone appointments due to covid but thankfully the service hasn't shut down.
We are still working on our sex life but, I must admit, my growing uterus and raging hormones are not helping at the moment! 🤣

Well I've had a hell of a day today, but all was well in the end and I got to see baby girl again! 💕
Had my 28 week appointment with the midwife, a student took my bloods and almost mutilated me, then she tried to use the Doppler and couldn't find the heartbeat so my heart started racing and when the midwife intervened she was shocked that my heart rate was almost as high as the babies! 😱
Then the fungal height measurement put me at the 3rd centile (26cm at 28 weeks) so they sent me to the hospital for a growth scan immediately.
Turns out baby is just about average size and everything else looks great! Bonus, the placenta has moved way up and is no where near the cervix! 🥳

Oh my God, so many typos in my message above, the worst one being fungal height! 🤢🤣 I meant fundal height!

Hello ladies I hope you are all well 💗. Congratulations @ejefferinton, I haven't been on the other thread recently but so happy to have another SI buddy on our lovely wee group 😊.

@eloiseislost Oh my goodness what a day you've had 🙈. Your wee girl looks so cute though 😊. And fantastic news that the placenta has moved 😁.

I'm 23+1 today. Got my first vaccine today, feeling so glad of it! Bit of a sore arm but otherwise feel great. Had my anomaly scan just last week, all looking perfectly healthy 👶. I'm starting to feel super excited now, I've done a bit of shopping for him and just really starting to believe I'm going to have a son in a few months 💙. It's been hard going with nerves and sickness but hopefully all worth it soon. My DD has helpfully suggested he can sleep in the bath when he gets here, hmm 🤔🤣

Sending lots of love to all you ladies and your babies 😊 xx

Thanks @Bluey18 and @eloiseislost. Slightly jealous of your lovely scans and bumps everyone! I’m only 5w+2 and it feels like it’s progressing soooo slowly! Hard not being able to tell people too. And obviously lots of nerves!

@Bluey18 I'm so glad your scan went well!! 💙💙💙
And great news about your first dose 💉 you did the right thing for you and your family, especially now with restrictions lifting while cases sky rocket! 😳

@ejefferinton Time will fly, don't you worry! Have you thought about how/when you're going to announce? Thinking of that is one of the things that got me going in the first trimester. Well, that and lots of private scans! 😆

@eloiseislost oh gosh what a stressful day for you!!! I hate those Doppler things- that’s my worst nightmare 😩. So lovely you got to see baby again though and all is well 🥰 and great news about your placenta.

I had my scan end of last week. All was well. I freaked out the past couple of days because I felt like I couldn’t feel the baby moving as much, but she’s back to kicking me in the left pelvis this evening 🥰. I guess at only 21 weeks they are still so small and changing positions a lot, so plenty of places to hide.

@Bluey18 congrats on your scan. So exciting 😍🤩. How is your sickness? Xxx

Glad everything is OK @Bizawit - must be such a relief!
@eloiseislost think we're just going to tell people as we see them from the 12 week scan (which should be beginning of September). I'm conscious that some of my friends would love to have kids and don't want to make a big announcement and make things difficult for them! Annoyingly we're meeting up with lots of people over the Summer so it will be hard not to tell them! Currently my boss, our parents and a couple of close friends know - they knew we were planning IVF and asked us about the consultant appointment so I didn't feel as if I could lie!

@primrosechill by the way I had both my first and second vacs when preg. Second one was a couple of weeks ago at 19 weeks. I did feel worse than the first, but nothing a good night’s sleep didn’t fix. I had a very sore arm, and I was absolutely exhausted for that day and had a lack of appetite and generally felt a bit miserable. But it only lasted the same day and the next morning I felt fine. No temp or anything. I had my 20 week scan a week later and baby was doing great ☺️.

@ejefferinton aw that’s considerate of you on the announcement. when you have a more complex path to pregnancy etc, I think it makes you so much more conscious of what other people might be going through. And so many women have challenges getting pregnant and with miscarriage etc 😔. I never did a big announcement for the same reason and also am really wary of sharing scan photos etc unless people ask for them.

That’s lovely that some of those closest to you know already. It’s so amazing how quickly it happened for you with SI ☺️. I feel like more people should be educated about this method as it does work so well.

Thanks @bizawit. I was planning to do the same with scan photos (all being well) and I'm not really on social media so won't be putting anything on there. I used to find it quite difficult when people announced their pregnancies, even while being pleased for them. I honestly didn't even think SI was a realistic option and we were only really doing it while we waited, so can't believe it worked first time! We'd had fertility tests so knew everything was technically good but part of me wishes we'd known sooner as I'm nearly 36, but another part of me knows it's all just part of our journey. Feeling quite nauseous this morning so definitely feels real today!

Congratulations on all the scans and new additions to the thread.

I’ve had a growth scan today and, I’m apparently on the 50th projectile (is that what it’s called lol) so the sonographer said it’s exactly average.
I think that’s a good thing?

I was told I can’t miss the 28 week scan or 32 because I was flagged in the system for ‘high resistance’ so even though it looks average now, third trimester monitoring is required but I just checked my notes and everything on there said ‘normal’ or ‘within range’.

I thought month six was third trimester but the man who did my scan said no, month seven which is 28 weeks. So he said as long as I attend my scans, there’s no issue.

I have been referred for a glucose test, husband’s father suffers from it (tablet controlled) so they said due to my age, the baby’s paternal history and me also being of mixed ethnicity, I should do this in 4 weeks, I booked my 28 week scan for 16 August now. There’s an issue with booking system at my hospital so I literally have to book as I go in for the next scans and, confirmed my 28 week midwife appointment for 17 August.

I’ve also been getting online mental health support which I think, has helped me be more positive because, a few weeks ago, I would have been worrying why the baby isn’t closer to the 100th projectile range.

Also, I’m now at peace with the HG being around until Labour day. The guy that did my scan said, most people he sees past 20 weeks that still have vomiting at that stage usually are vomiting even at a 40 week scan!

@Bluey18
are you on zofran? It’s the only thing that’s taken the edge off for me although, not to alarm you…. There are days I still vomit with the melting tablets but that’s usually times when I end up hospitalised as dehydration has completely consumed me! I hope you’re fairing better and have evaded hospital admission and, today my hospital confirmed all covid measures will continue even though it’s ‘freedom day’.

@ejefferinton Oh, those early days are so hard, so nerve-wracking we have all been there! I find focusing on the next milestone and trying not to think about the long haul so much easier at that stage! I'm sorry if I missed you saying it but are you going to have an early scan? Might break up the time for you if you are feeling anxious xx

@Bizawit Lovely to hear your scan went well! I think it is really hard to feel consistent movement at this stage, as you say they are so small!. Thank you for asking for me, still a bit sick but massively improved thankfully

@ComebackQueen Brilliant news on your scan too! Percentile is just how they measure your baby based on averages, if you lined up 100 babies from smallest to largest, yours would be exactly in the middle weight/height wise . Sounds great to me, my DD was on 99th percentile and she was pretty big. This baby is also 50th percentile or thereabouts which I'm very happy with! I'm so sorry to hear your HG is still around. I have to say, I've noticed my sickness has improved quite a bit in the last 2 weeks, I'm 23+4 now. I'm on Cariban which is the main medication offered in my country. It seems to be working as I'm only throwing up occasionally now and I can usually avoid the triggers (certain smells and being in a car are two big ones for me) Thankfully I have not been hospitalised since 17 weeks. Hopefully we can both avoid going in again for the rest of the pregnancy, even though I've had my first vaccine I am so nervous of catching Covid in there!

@Bluey18 glad to hear your medication is working, and we both stay out of hospital.
I am now going to take my first covid jab next week because I’ve lost confidence in the UK Government as they’ve lifted most restrictions this week and, I’ve seen idiots being idiots so I think I’ll take the vaccine now instead of immediately after baby is born.

Haha I called it projectile instead of percentiles

Even more relieved that it’s looking good, I also got my husband to measure my belly and I’m within 3 behind the number of weeks but as I’ve had the scan and baby’s usually grow last trimester the most, I’m not stressing at all.

I Hope everyone is staying hydrated and out of the sun during this heatwave.

Thanks @Bluey18 have decided against an early scan and just trying to feel hopeful as long as I'm not bleeding and still feeling symptoms! Half way through the first trimester now!
@ComebackQueen glad things are looking OK! I'm HATING the heat and I'm only a few weeks pregnant, can't imagine how those of you with some big bumps are faring! So glad I'll be at my most pregnant over winter!

@ejefferinton the heats terrible isn’t it?
When is your 12 scan btw? I noticed after that scan, things felt like they moved on much quicker and the 20 week scan comes around even quicker.

That's reassuring @ComebackQueen! I'm 6w today but haven't heard anything from midwife so don't know yet when scan will be, should be early September though. I'm hoping I can just get it in before I go back to school as I work in a school and it would make my life a lot easier!

Hi all- hope everyone is doing well and surviving this heat! I am deffo finding it a struggle and am only 17weeks! Am mainly trying to stay indoors in front of a fan 😂

Had my midwife appointment yday and heard the heartbeat which was exciting although it took her what felt like forever to find it and I was starting to get a bit panicky but thankfully she got there in the end. I’ve got just under 3 weeks now til my 20week scan.

I feel your pain @ejefferinton- the first trimester dragged so slowly for me and tbh this trimester is dragging too. I’m hoping that being off work for summer hols will help time speed up a bit?!
Great news on your scans @ComebackQueen
@eloiseislost your bump is looking fab! I’ve finally started getting one but mainly still look like I’m just really fat 🙈
Great news on your scans @comeback and @Bizawit! So lovely seeing baby 🥰
@Bluey18 I’m glad you’ve found a medication that’s now working. Those of you with HG have had such a rough ride.
I know someone said the sonographer said if you were puking still at 20 weeks you’ll Be puking at 40wks but with my DD my puking did stop at 28weeks- so hoping the same for you guys!

I’ve been feeling really anxious about restrictions being lifted and have my second vaccine at end of August. Sadly not in time to fully protect me for when I go back to work in school with hundreds of teens and no masks or social distancing but I should have coverage from 2nd jab by the 2nd week back so that’s better than nothing I guess. I’m praying guidance for women from 28weeks remains work from home in autumn but the HR woman at my work said she has it on good authority (although didn’t say from whom) that the guidance will be changing by September. 😭 trying not to dwell on it too much as it is sending my anxiety levels Sky high!

@ejefferinton follow up with the hospital if you haven’t heard anything by week eight, I got referred to St Mary’s and within three days my booking appointment letter arrived.

I’ve noticed, everyone’s using covid as a get out of jail card for things. For example, I was told I had to have my whooping cough at 20 week scan and, still nothing but now booked in to have this done at my GP surgery instead. I wasn’t aware GP surgeries dealt with pregnancy vaccinations but mine do and when I went for some constipation issues related to the medication I’m on for HG, they said they’ll do the jabs at my surgery next week.

@Makingnumber2 eek you’re working at a school, fingers crossed you can still WFH until your Mat leave can start.

So glad to hear your HG stopped at 28 weeks, I think mine is around forever, one of the sonographers told me it’s likely I’ll be suffering, maybe to a lesser degree until Labour day!

It’s funny how you found the second trimester dragged, I think I found it goes by quicker mainly because I had all these extra things flagged so when you’re dreading the next scan or appointment, it comes around far too quickly lol.

This is going to sound so dumb but who tells you how much formula a baby needs based on their weeks/months?
Is there an idiots guide book or something?
I’ve suddenly thought of this at almost 10pm on a Saturday night:..!!!!’

Does anyone know if the covid vaccine will interfere with whooping cough if taken in same weeks?

If so, I’ll delay the whooping cough, I have to go to a vaccine centre for covid but surgery for whooping cough.

I’ll call surgery on Monday to double check!