July 2023 (Thread 2)!

[RandomCatGenerator]

Creating a new thread as we’re about to finish the first - just as we finish our first trimesters!

@BackOfTheMum5net what do you mean by what you want from maternity leave?

@RandomCatGenerator 6 months, 12 months, when to start/finish, how much leave to take and when… is it just my hr that makes all paperwork needlessly complicated?!

@Ldougal92 We're in a small-ish town and we've only managed to get something from September 2024. Luckily my mum will help with childcare when I go back to work until then. I'm just glad it crossed my mind to look into it. I'd have had a shock if I started looking into it when baby was here 😂

Oh gotcha!

several women on the thread I was on for my first child used mat leave to start small businesses or side hustles. I wondered if you meant that! I felt a bit inadequate, I used my mat leave to recover from birth, try and fail to breast feed and so pump for hours each day, bond with my baby…😂

I should say sorry, I’m not in any way denigrating what they chose to do - I’m just so impressed, for me, I was just too tired to imagine setting up a small business as well!

@RandomCatGenerator my maternity ambitions are similarly modest: to get dressed most days, and to survive! I’m pleased mat leave is likely to coincide with the return of Neighbours to tv 😂

No mat leave projects here!

I found just staying in quite difficult, so went out quite a lot on maternity leave with DS. The first two months were hard as we had to stay in (lockdown) and poor weather but once March came round my local NCT organised a walk and talk in a local park and I really liked that. Then when everything opened up we did a class every day, although one of those was a mums exercise group so for me rather than ds but he seemed to like being outside in a park!

I was initially thinking I’d send ds (who will be 2 years 7 months when baby comes) to nursery two days a week, he currently does three. However, childcare is very tricky indeed around here, and DH and I are inclined to just keep him for three. I’m really pleased to be honest, it will give me a bit more time to chill with the baby and do classes for a baby not for a toddler! DH works away three days a week and my parents are dead, his live a long way away and are nice people but don’t really want to do any caring unless it’s absolute dire emergencies, which is fair enough, so to be honest I think I need all the help I can get!

Hi all :)

25+4. Feeling baby a lot more now, particularly at night time. He's having a party right now on the left side of my stomach.
Is it normal that I can physically see where he is? The left side of the stomach is very hard, rest of my stomach soft and it's raised where it's hard and that's exactly where the strong kicks are. DH has just felt a kick for the first time which was magical, just a bit freaked out that I can actually see in my stomach where he is, I didn't think that would happen until later in pregnancy.
Is it normal at this stage? Or should I be concerned? Is it normal to be more over one side and favouring that side? Or should he be all over and not making one side hard?

@AnxiousAnnie94 Mine is exactly like that too and I'm 22+1. I can't necessarily see it at this stage, but I can certainly feel one side being harder. It changes regularly as to which side she's on 😂 but it's generally more over on the right hand side

@habiller @rach971 thank you! Seems very real now!
I watched him move last night was the strangest thing, he made a little hard lump left side of my stomach and was kicking away and then all of a sudden the lump went and appeared on the right side where he then started kicking 🤣
He definitely loves bedtime though, I feel him throughout the day, but only little movements and then as soon as I get into bed, he's so active and kicks me hard.

I don't know if I feel him less during the day because I'm more active and on my feet all day at work, or whether at this stage, he just generally isn't very active during the day.

On Wednesday, I was a bit concerned I hadn't felt him much at all during the day and hadn't felt him at all from 4-7pm, so called Triage. Felt it was a bit silly, but they were brilliant and saw me almost straight away when we went in. They found his heartbeat straight away and said that he may just be getting into a bit of a routine now, but to come back again if I was at all concerned, even if it was the next day. Was nice to feel that they didn't think I had wasted their time.

@AnxiousAnnie94 my little one also
goes quieter in the day, but work
and life is so busy I wonder if I just don’t feel him as much? He definitely has party time as soon as I sit down

I believe they’re less active when we’re moving around because they like being rocked around by our motion - and annoyingly they wake up when we’re still and off to sleep! 😂

I get kicked a lot when I'm driving or at night while I'm watching tele. She seems to go to sleep when I go to sleep 😂 I don't feel her too much when I'm working either though, probably because I'm busy and on my feet all day.

Currently sat on the sofa and about 5 mins ago I don't know what she did but it felt incredibly strong 😂

I honestly think feeling and seeing the movements is the best part of pregnancy 🥰 enjoying reading others’ experiences too.

Does anyone have any advice on joint pain? My hips have been giving me problems for weeks which the MW warned me was the Relaxin hormone being a pain but the last week all of my joints have been in agony. Wrists and ankles especially - I wasn't in so much pain with a broken wrist!! Even my jaw feels odd - like my teeth won't fit together when I waken in the morning and can't chew until about lunchtime. Is this normal??

@Leezo No advice but I sympathise. In my last pregnancy I had terrible joint pain. Near the end my fingers felt like they were dislocating, anyone I spoke to about it looked at me like I was crazy 🤣 My wrists were painful too!

I'm 26 weeks now and feel like I have just expanded big time today. First day I've felt properly uncomfortable!

I've had a sore left wrist for a couple weeks now, sadly no advice for that, but for my back and hips the most effective thing has simply been sitting down with good posture. I find they hurt mainly if I stand or lay down too much.

Also, yesterday I finally had my anatomy scan! Won't know if they're healthy until I see my OB on Tuesday but I learned they are very active, and already fighting! Technician saw them punching eachother... Doesn't bode well for the future lol

Poor you @Leezo . I’ve found sleeping with a pillow between my knees helps with the hip pain for some reason. No tips for the rest other than paracetamol and hot baths if it’s too bad.

Insomnia hit me again last night and I was awake from 2am until 6am. I went back to sleep for an hour then it was time for work. I feel like a complete zombie today at work and could happily cry. Baby seems to be very active during the night, which doesn't help with trying to go back to sleep. I was thinking last night surely baby should be tired kicking me now and have a sleep 😂

Hey ☺️ hope you don't mind me jumping on, I'm due end of July x

With my third, I should add 😂

24+5 here, does anyone else feel very full very quickly, (like, uncomfortably full and almost nauseous), and food taking way longer to digest before feeling hungry again?
I'm eating a lot less than usual, but worried as I'm not even in my 3rd trimester yet!

Exactly the same here @Olegia . I’m very uncomfortable, and I’m 24 weeks tomorrow.