Anyone due in April 2024 #3

[XenaTheWarriorPrincess]

New thread for April due dates!

Feel free to tag people from the old thread so they can find us easier.

@Mrsttcno1 @BVIre same same although I've been ready from like week 15😂😂😂 so all I'm preparing for now is literally birth

@Cora24601 it is time to relent and buy a pregnancy pillow , you’re right , hopefully it helps !!! I’m going to try and work right up to 38 weeks , we have to come off work here at 38 weeks , but I’m falling between 2 jobs and 2 HR departments as I rotate every 4 months, so much paper work to submit !!! It’s really difficult to figure it out. I don’t know if anyone else here is from Ireland but between maternity leave, unpaid leave , parental leave and parents leave it’s a bit of a minefield

Hope everyone is well and managing the breathlessness as best they can.

I'm 28 weeks tomorrow and still not having regular movements with my anterior placenta but will discuss at midwife appointment on Thursday.

It's all feeling real now and I'm wanting to get organised, especially considering I may need a c section if my placenta doesn't move up (currently low).

Can anyone point me to a tried and tested hospital bag packing list please? I'm intending to breastfeed. Not sure whether it will be worth buying or hiring a tens machine if I might need a planned c section?

Also any tips for changing bags? We haven't ordered the pram yet and I know lots of the packages come with a changing bag but not sure what most people use. Also aware some bags not advertised as changing bags might be better and much cheaper so any suggestions would be welcomed!

Sorry for the long post, feeling overwhelmed and under prepared x

@ZB86 in terms of baby bag, I found a backpack type the easiest with my son. When it's not attached to the buggy it's much easier to chuck it on your back than the ones hanging down your side they get in the way much more x

@ZB86 when you say you aren't having regular movements because of your anterior placenta do you mean days where you don't feel as much? I felt hardly anything all day and night yesterday and was freaking out! Would love to know what advice your midwife gives as I think im going to end up in the assessment clinic every week otherwise. My midwife is pretty unclear when I mention it as she just said I should be starting to notice a pattern now... I keep thinking I am and then suddenly have 1-2 days of barely anything

@ZB86I can’t fault my Tiba and marl backpack. Pricey but honestly lasted for about 3 years of continuous everyday use. Will go for that brand again this time I think

@1994jk I'm 29+1 and little lady changes her patterns very often still. I used to feel her every morning when waking for work, without fail. The other day she didn't move until around 1pm, I was about to consider going to hospital t check she was ok and then she didn't stop moving until bedtime 🤣. Since that day I no longer feel her much in the morning, mostly from lunchtime onwards but honestly she makes her own patterns everyday 🤷🏼‍♀️. My midwife didn't ask for patterns last week, just asked if I feel her and I said she beats me up at some point everyday lol

@1994jk I can still go days without noticing any movements at all, then have the odd day when I feel some proper kicks and others when I feel less strong movements. Times of day on days I do notice movements can vary. When I have called MAC previously they have been really supportive but I do still struggle being the only one responsible for deciding when it's right to be worried. If I don't feel reassured after midwife appointment on Thurs I will call MAC. Hope you start to have regular movements/receive reassurance soon x

@Ttcmumma good to know patterns can still be changing then! I'm only just 26 weeks today so I suppose it would still be normal for it to change so much still. Thank you

I'm due 5th April planning on going on maternity around 25th March, but we own a store and I work on my feet a lot (granted I have office jobs to do) but mainly wandering about the shop floor. We also need to be prepared to cover me being a small business, and it coincides with the Easter holidays so I can spend some time with my other two children hopefully before he arrives!

@ZB86 yeh im completely with you on that, having sole responsibility to monitor these movements and know when to act is difficult!

That's what yesterday was like for me, I felt something around 3am and nothing for the rest of the day! But today I've been feeling movements all day again so 🤷🏻‍♀️ it's hard. Thank you, same for you, once things are more regular it will be so much easier to tell if something is wrong.

i am due on 8th April
mat leave start 1st April

my colleague told me when she had her first child, she took 10 days off to ‘prepare’ for the arrival. And ended up she was really bored and never again for her next child.

in terms body conditions, as 3rd trimester started (I am week 29), I feel conditions not as easy as 2nd trimester.

Lower back ache + mid shoulder ache - as in the belly sunk in and my husband said my posture look like tried to pull back on the upper body and sticking the belly out.

sometimes walking leg got some sort of numbness

and also the easy out of breath like others mention.

though last two weeks I haven’t been doing preg yoga due to busy from work, not sure if it might contributed to the weakness on the body.

On the reduced movements note, did anyone else not know that if you report reduced movements I believe they said any more than 3 times, it limits the options you have for your birth as even if every time you go in it’s all fine, the fact you have gone in 3 times basically flags you as being “high risk”, so you can’t have certain things one being a water birth?

I wasn’t aware of that but it was something that we were told last week when we had our growth scan so something to bare in mind!

I had a health visitor come by this week and she mentioned that I should have already gotten my Red Book and to ask it from my midwife on the next appointment. At what point were you given the Red Book? I'm 29 weeks today.

@SummerOak I'll be 30 weeks on Monday, haven't got it yet and didn't have it for my son at this point either. I actually think I got it after he was born tbh

@Ttcmumma ah thanks, glad it's not something that we need to have urgently.

Question for those of you with heartburn. Is it normal to feel nauseous because of it? I woke up at 3am last night because of nausea, then had acid in my throat. Had a bit of milk and went back to sleep propped up on my left side, luckily could sleep again. I'm still feeling a bit nauseous this morning. I think it's heartburn, never had it before.

I am almost 31 weeks so want to start getting prepared and buying stuff for my hospital bag.

Just wondering if anyone has any recommendations for items for the recovery after birth.

I have my red book @SummerOak I was given mine at my 20 week scan appointment and they then checked I had it at my 25 week appointment. And yes my heartburn makes me feel really sick as well it’s awful x

Hiya, what's the red book?🙄I never heard of it and don't have one either. Thanks.

Don't panic, you'll be given one (and it will be explained to you) at some point! In my area it's only given to you after birth. It's used by healthcare professionals (and parents) to track weight, height, vaccinations, milestones, etc.

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/babys-development/height-weight-and-reviews/baby-reviews/

Guess the Red Books are given at different times in different trusts. Just another confusing thing.

Sorry you have heartburn too, it's the worst @Mrsttcno1. I hoped to avoid it, but nope.

Our trust only used to give the red books out once baby was born and they are being done away with completely, same as the blue notes will be an app, so not everyone may get one.

On the back/hip pain, I normally wake up with pains in both my legs, anyone else? I think it might be to do with circulation as going for a walk in the evening helped?
Also does anyone know if we need a detachable/carriable car seat to leave the hospital? We got one which is supposed to stay in the car and a separate pram as we were planning to leave hospital using the pram and then transferring our girl to the car seat. But DH got "told off" by his sister as apparently they don't let you leave the hospital?

Also is anyone else doing a prenatal course? I'm doing one and they talked about breastfeeding but I'm getting lots of adverts about the Thompson method which says traditional breastfeeding techniques are terrible etc. (Nose to nipple, cross cradling) so I'm not sure what to do / who to believe 😑.

@Petris123 I wasn't allowed to leave he hospital with my son without a car seat but I heard this prior and brought it in so don't know what they would have if I said I had one in the car, you may need to speak to them x