Due in June - Thread 11!

[PlodandPod]

@Brightsmoke
@EarlGreywithLemon
@fpeg
@PeeAche2
@pregnancydiaries
@Rolledthedice
@Vimto1991
@Annabell1
@Prema112
@Lostintranslatio
@Roxystar23
@PleaseSendNoodles
@imhereforthecake
@RoseValleyRambles
@t0nim92
@Yecats22
@AlbatrossSociety
@unknownscot
@beansprout55
@MrsNT
@Letsbekindplease
@GrowBabyGrow
@MrsTwentyNine
@Flowerbug1994
@DaimDillyDoo
@MsBubbles85
@Octoblockisadick
@C1ueless22
@CurryandSnuggle
@rathernotshare
@InvisibleDragon
@4thtimethecharm
@ALHCTPS
@RooSut25

@Prema112 I know, I can believe it! It's taken forever but come so fast at the same time. Like @Vimto1991 I've still not bought/ built stuff, I'm pretty chilled about it haha. I figure most things are available at asda and there's one literally across the road from my house so I can get stuff at any point haha. Might regret the decision when I'm in labour but for now it works for me haha.
@destiEos that's ridiculous, 5th and 50th percent are so different! Glad all OK though.
@JAR1981 Ive got a scan Tuesday to see if baby still on 97% line, but no GD in my case. I don't trust the numbers anyway, like we've seen on here they can be so inaccurate. Re nappy bins, I'm not bothering. Nappy sacks and straight out to the outside bin for stinky ones for me is the plan.

I've been swimming quite a bit recently and it's so relaxing! Not 100% baby likes it though, he tends to wiggle a lot and stick random body parts out during and after. All day after swimming in the morning I find it hard to sit upright because he feels squashed and he pushes his shoulders out and things.

@CurryandSnuggle my bump makes the exact shape when I try to get up off the sofa or bed!! Is that the bum then? I was trying to figure out which part of the baby it was 🤣 So can we assume they're head down ? Ahh and yes @Prema112 ...next month!! Time is flying !!

Someone please explain what nappy bags or sacks are...never changed a nappy and I have no clue what to do with one...read something about trying to get rid of the poo in the loo first then disposing ?!

@Vimto1991 do you use any cream? I’m close to tears today. I bet with being on the iron tablets it’s causing me issues with movements although I don’t actually feel constipated. So bloody fed up today. My mum voiced she’s had piles since having my sister and that was 32 years ago! She’s named it and everything! I do not want to be burdened with a pile for the rest of my life haha. (TMI I do apologise but if we can’t say it here, where can we say it eh)

@MrsTwentyNine like little poo bags you mean? I got them from tescos for 16p a pack 100 - 3 years ago. They had piles for sale and I still have loads left. I don’t really use them unless out and about as bad for environment. Usually if nappy is dirty I just leave it at back door and take it when going to bin or take it right out to the bin. Never put poo in the toilet from nappy. Think that would be impossible with newborn poo anyway as it’s so soft and runny.

@Letsbekindplease have you tried prune juice or bran ? Sorry you probably already have...hope it improves :(

Ahh I see! I may need to get some because I didnt really have a plan for how to dispose of nappies except chucking straight in the black bin 😂

@MrsTwentyNine at my 34 week appointment my midwife felt the babies position and said it’s the babies bum, she is head down and her back is against my stomach. 🙂

@Letsbekindplease my parents suffer with IBS so I wonder if that’s why I got them during pregnancy, think I had one beforehand anyways but I’d hate to take a gander now 🙈🙈 I don’t use anything as most things seem to say no to pregnancy :( haven’t worked up the courage to speak to the doctors either even though I should. I don’t think they shrink after birth but more treatable when you can apply topics once baby is out. It literally has got to the point I need something for it but I feel we are so close to the end I should grin and bear it and I know that’s not the right attitude at all. 🙈🙈

also I don’t get baby poking out that much! I do see rolls and my stomach moving but never stays in a lodged place, but my baby is smaller and I am a bit chubby so maybe why? Also have an anterior placenta. I really wanted to see hands and feet. :(

@mrkb
your movements literally mirrored mine! I went in two weeks ago for reduced movement, then this week for excessive movement, I feel bad as baby is fine and I just never seem to understand what’s going on 🙈 anterior here, too!

@Vimto1991 reassuring to know I'm not the only one having these crazy movements!! 😅 it's just so hard to know with anterior because I honestly couldn't tell you if there was a pattern or not!

@mrkb I had a consultant call a while back about a Maternal request CS.

Basically, the consultant asked why I wanted a caesarean. I said there were 2 reasons - the statistics I'd read about birth injuries and that I'd had previous traumatic experiences that meant I didn't want to have an instrumental delivery.

She was very dismissive about the birth injury stats, but took the trauma/mental health/PND discussion very seriously and signed off on the CS because of that. She also referred me to the perinatal mental health team, in case I needed extra support, which was a nice thought but rather pointless (no way I was going to meet their criteria, it's basically a crisis team).

The whole conversation was about 20 minutes by phone. After that, my midwife gave me a leaflet with some info about risks and I'll have an appointment a few days before the birth to sign consent forms etc.

I found the consultant discussion really awkward and exposing tbh. I don't usually see myself as a victim and felt like I got put in that box rather than being seen as "rational adult making a reasoned decision about serious interventions on her own body" - but such is female healthcare I guess.

My baby also has a very erratic pattern of movement. He has a wake up kick session when I wake up, moves around a bit when I eat breakfast, then is fairly quiet but with intermittent bursts of small movement throughout the rest of the morning and afternoon - absolutely no pattern, but usually something every 2 hours at least. He gets a bit more active sometime in the late afternoon and has longer periods of movement throughout the evening and when I eat dinner. I guess that's kind of a routine? But still stressful when I'm thinking "He usually moves around when I'm on the bus - why didn't he today??" etc etc etc.

Currently feeling pretty shite. Had a cold since Thursday and my sinuses (and brain!) are all clogged up. Have been moping around between the sofa and bed all weekend. Not helped that I didn't take a sick day on Friday and then stayed up "late" (11.30!) because we had friends round for dinner.

Anyone got any good cold cures for during pregnancy? Usually like lemsip but apparently that is not allowed. Honey and lemon, paracetamol and steam inhalation may be as good as it gets!

@InvisibleDragon thanks for sharing that - I want mine for very similar reasons so really helpful to be able to compare. Totally agree about being a rational adult wanting to make decisions about her body!

I was saying to DH the other day that it's so weird because at work I'm a professional adult who can advocate for herself and is respected and unafraid to state my opinion but for some reason when I set foot in the midwife room/hospital/doctors office I suddenly become totally unable to express & advocate for myself. I've actually had two really awful hospital experiences, both ending up in pretty scary circumstances that could have been totally avoided, that were compounded by me not being listened to by a doctor and then doubting myself and not feeling like I could push back. I just don't want to deal with that in birth! Even my friend who says that her birth was an amazing and empowering experience was sent home (unexamined!) because they didn't believe she was far enough along based literally on the fact that she could speak in between contractions!

@mrkb because I’ve had previous birth injuries I didn’t have to argue for my section, but if I’d had to I’d have referenced this from the RCOG:
“If you are in labour and choose not to have an assisted vaginal birth, the alternatives are to wait for your baby to be born without assistance or to have an emergency caesarean. Your healthcare professional will discuss your options depending on your individual circumstances.
A caesarean in the late stage of labour is a more complex operation than a planned caesarean and in some circumstances may increase the risk of harm to both you and your baby.
(…)
If you are certain you would not want an assisted vaginal birth, one option is to choose a planned caesarean birth before you go into labour. If you are considering a planned caesarean you should discuss this with your healthcare professional during your pregnancy.”

And “In the UK, approximately 1 in 8 women have an assisted vaginal birth and this is more likely (1 in 3) for women having their first baby.” (my* *bold)
Heres’s the link: www.rcog.org.uk/for-the-public/browse-all-patient-information-leaflets/assisted-vaginal-birth-ventouse-or-forceps/

@mrkb so with you on this finding it hard to advocate for yourself !! Anyone you ask would say am loud and probably have a big mouth and to much to say for myself but put me in a room with a midwife or doctor and I’m like a little girl !!! I had growth scan on assessment unit this morning and my baby has been breech since before 28 weeks and still is at 34 he’s got 12 days to turn which I feel is unlikely but I i feel like everyone I speak to wants me to deliver vaginally and I am just so scared of it. I also don’t fancy the ECV at all just not for me. I think am going to arm myself with some research for my next all in 12 days so I have the confidence of some facts with me and so am not seen as a push over.

@EarlGreywithLemon - I've just screenshot that! I've seen lots about my general rights to an elective but not in relation to not wanting an assisted birth - that's so helpful!

@Flowerbug1994 yes same! I honestly am like a child! It's so weird and I hate it - but I don't think doctors etc help sometimes - they can be quite condescending. It doesn't help that I've had a midwife be quite rude and cut me off when I tried to talk about ELCS at my 28 week appointment. I'm also one of those women you read about who was told they had anxiety rather than a genuine medical issue and I totally just accepted it at first for some reason, simply because a doctor had said so 😅 I don't fill myself with confidence with regards to successfully advocating for myself when literally in labour!

@CurryandSnuggle that's amazing - hoping she says the same to me at my 34 week one which is this Wednesday. Though normally the main thing I get is that he is measuring huge

(Not at all to diminish anxiety but I had gallstones that had been building up for over 2 years so it definitely wasn't anxiety)!

@mrkb good luck, hope it goes smoothly and there is no need to argue!

@Flowerbug1994 I felt the same way in my first pregnancy- that an ECV is not for me, and no way would I deliver a breech baby vaginally in a million years. In the end she turned by herself, but I wasn’t going to give in.

Just remember that they can’t actually refuse you a section, it’s against NICE guidelines. And if a specific consultant does try to refuse, you can ask for another who will do it. Very best of luck, fingers crossed!

@Prema112 that was me, thanks for checking in! DP had surgery 2 weeks ago so I’ve been non stop looking after him, house, dog and working and it’s been tough 😢 lots of tears and breakdowns of ‘I’m too fat and pregnant for this shit right now’ lol but he’s getting much more mobile on his crutches and able to make dinner/help with some housework now which helps massively!

had my 34 weeks midwife appt last week and baby has dropped quite low already. Probably from doing all the extra work and stress last few weeks.. but she said she wants to meet both me and DP at hospital for 36 weeks appt to go birth choice meeting etc instead of at the gp like you would usually. Anyone I have asked about this said this is odd so I’m thinking she knows something that I don’t?! Is baby going to be making an early appearance seen as they are so low already?! Has anyone else had this?

havnt been able to keep up with the thread but congrats to those who have their little ones earth side already!! How amazing <3

@Letsbekindplease I am the same! Last night was horrendous! Heartburn was so bad I kept refluxing, was sick with some acid and woke up a few times chocking on some reflux.. scared the hell out of me!! I think I made the mistake of going to bed too full so making sure I eat earlier and don’t eat anything within an hour and half of going to bed so it have time to settle

also my birthing ball is my new best friend!!!

My brain won’t let baby win. I’ve felt them move for about what feels like 45 minutes which seems so wrong. Started off with movements, hiccups, then more movements and I actually got anxious they were moving too much! Although I remember someone’s midwife said movement is always a good sign - just not sure what excessive movement is, like lots of panic moving, this was very natural feeling. I did a bit of digging, I wasn’t aware of this so I’ll share with you guys:

Normal fetal movement:
During quiet sleep, your unborn baby may be still for up to 2 hours. During active sleep, he or she kicks, rolls, and moves often. During the quiet awake state, he or she may only move his or her eyes. The active awake state includes strong kicks and rolls.

for all I know, baby was in active sleep, got the hiccups, and was in active awake state as a result! 🙈 maybe they’ve only just got big enough or into a position for me to feel this! Also they can be in the quiet state for two hours!! And that’s not even including quiet awake state! So they can be awake and not feel much for three hours, here I am expecting something every hour. I really wish this was educated more. They tell you to spot movements but don’t tell you what to spot. 🙈 it’s helped my anxiety a bit, I’m cooking dinner now and hoping my moving may lull into sleep which is so odd of me. I love feeling them move, but now I’m panicking it’s too much. 🙁

@Prema112 @JAR1981 i agree that milk-fed poo is pretty inoffensive. Most of the time it’s just a mustard-coloured smear. But - holy hell - when they move on to solids. Wow. But you’ll be surprised how relaxed you’ll become about bodily fluids. That said, just threw up a little thinking about the nose sucker thing you’re supposed to use when they have a blocked nose as a baby - beyond revolting.

@JAR1981 I had a nappy bin upstairs for night changes and not wanting to go down and put outside. But day time I'd just put them straight in the outside bin. Word of warning, empty the bin regularly 😷🤢

@Prema112 I keep thinking how soon he'll be here, even if he's really late 😱

Ladies I have had such a terrible day. I decided to clean all the door handles, taps, light switches etc with antibacterial spray since hubs and I are obviously both using and I want to avoid his COVID. However i unfortunately gave myself an electric shock on a light switch as it turned on. Buzzed through my arm and made me drop the cloth and squeal. Cue a big row with husband who decided to lecture me on the dangers of using a wet cloth on a light switch, lots of tears, Google basically telling me baby wouldn’t make it, a trip to the labour ward for fetal monitoring and an ECG alone. All seems fine with baby for now and lots of movement in bed as I write this however Google has really scared me that something could still go wrong and I haven’t been able to make up with husband since we can’t really be in the same room together. I hope tomorrow is a better day!

Oh @JAR1981! What a horrible night for you. If it makes you feel any better I had an electric shock several days ago when I touched a plug that I had just pulled out of the wall - felt like an electric fence kind of jolt, similar to you probably. Baby was moving as normal afterwards so I didn't even think about phoning anyone and he's been fine since xx
What did they say about it??
I'm sure once you've both slept on it you'll make up in the morning OK. xxx

I’ve been feeling movements since pretty much 8:30pm yesterday. 😬😬 I wonder if baby has dropped so now I feel them sleeping, too. I’m still feeling bigger movements for my “pattern” as they like to call it, but I can feel rolls and mini kicks all the way between. 🥺 I’ve not slept properly all night as I’m scared this isn’t normal.

@JAR1981 if you got a clean bill of health from the hospital I am sure you and baby will be fine. Google is not your friend. Did they give you any advice whilst there?