Due February 2024 Thread 7!!🤰🩷💙

[AllAboardTootToot]

Cannot believe we are on the 7th iteration and the babies are starting to arrive 😭❤️

38 weeks this week! Can't believe it's now all our time!

@Hankthehonk enjoy!! Sounds like bliss!

my little one is also breech and I have an elcs booked in for 39 weeks, hoping she has turned so I can then start all the old wives tales in the book to make myself go into labour naturally before then but if I am breech, I won’t be at that!

i think she is still breech, definitely feeling weird pressure below but bump still seems super high!

I'm 36+3 and starting to get the labour anxiety, it will be my first so reading lots of stories and keeping myself occupied til the big day.

We must be due at around the same time!
I was in to see my consultant and was having some headaches and my BP was around 150/100 so the decided to admit me into the prenatal ward. At night it seemed to go up to over 160/100 so they have put me on medication and just keeping an eye on it now. I must get a machine to track it, would you recommend the one you have? No idea what to buy.

@mummylove24 sorry forgot to tag you 🫣

Hello all, I haven't been here for a while now but I'm now 39+1! The anxiety over baby's movements and now about labour is real! People keep telling me how exciting it is that it's so close but I just keep thinking that it is going to be at least a day of excruciating pain 😬 Definitely worth it of course!
Had a sweep last Thursday and my midwife said cervix was favourable and I was 1-2 cm already. She said if she wanted she could break my waters which is positive. I then assumed I'd be going into labour quickly which hasn't happened! So watching for any twinge at all at the moment and it's getting tiresome. Having lots of discharge and mucus plug has definitely gone... All the signs are there but it isn't happening!
I'm due on the third and being induced then too due to gestational diabetes so she has a definite date for eviction at least.

@FrostedFlake how are you finding the medication?
I'm on tablets for BP too and I'm really struggling with the dizziness they make me feel.

@CheeseAndCrackersx oh no, I’m sorry to hear that! I am only out of hospital as of yesterday and wasn’t sure if I was dizzy as I was no longer permanently lying down but it must be the side effects of it.
Would you mind me asking what dosage you are on and if you could recommend any BP machines it you have one?

I'm not to worried about birth (scheduled section) maybe cause I know what's going to happen unless the next 8 days throw a curve ball.

I am terrified of bringing baby home and knowing what to do.
I stopped researching for a while as it was really overwhelming me and everyone was saying different things. Now I have started again and I'm back overwhelmed.

Trying to breastfeed but worried if I can't. Worried I won't know babies ques or best way to settle them.
I have never even changed a nappy before.

anyone else just clueless???!

@FrostedFlake 200mg 3 x a day but I'll be honest sometimes I haven't took the morning 1 if I'm going somewhere cos i honestly can't walk around worrying I'm going to faint.

I haven't got a bp machine at home, I just have twice weekly monitoring with the midwife.

I am going to see the consultant tomorrow and I will be speaking about starting to lower the dose ready to stop taking them when baby comes cos I honestly can't look after a newborn going dizzy. Like I won't feel out of sorts as it is never mind the extra worry of going dizzy when holding him.

It's horrible medication to take!

I'm scared of this too @Mangotango39 - feeding, nappy changing or even just picking them up! Very little experience with new borns. I am hoping instincts will just take over and trying not to over think it (easier said than done...)

@Mangotango39 I felt like this with my first!
I used to always say to my mum, how will I know if he's hungry, she always replied with you will know.
She was right, mother's instinct just takes over and you know what they want!

I wouldn't stress too much about it, the MW will also help and show you in the hosp

@Mangotango39 I'm completely clueless too.

I bought a couple of books- "first time parent" by Lucy Atkins which I found really helpful, it's split in sections too so easy to go back and read the stage that you're at. And "the blissful baby expert" by Lisa Clegg, which is mainly for establishing routines a little further along.

I've also attended free online classes by mybabyacademy.co.uk, their free baby care class was great, also baby safety class and the first 6 weeks at home. I'll probably try do the baby care class again as it went over all the basics like dressing/bathing/nappies etc it was really really helpful and made me feel a lot better about what to expect.

@AllAboardTootToot thanks for the new thread ❤️

well I was in for a few hrs on Friday, got stitch removed (not the most pleasant experience but it’s done) and monitored baby to make sure all ok for a while and home. Been crampy and sore since, that can be normal but it would be very hard to know the difference between this and something starting. My cervix is now very open so 🤞🏽 it won’t be too much longer.

@Mangotango39 i hear ya, I’m so ready to meet her and see her wee face but I’m terrified of everything that comes with that and everyone seems to have a horror story that they are dying to tell me 🙈

@Hankthehonk enjoy every second of today, it sounds bliss❤️ I’m off to watch a football match in the wind and rain 😂 not as relaxing lol

is anyone the absolute opposite on the sleep front? I’m sleeping 12/13 hrs at night and could easily nap for 2/3 hrs in the day. I’ve low iron so I know it’s prob linked but I just seem to always be tried and can drift off anywhere 🙈 (I’m on iron but I think I’ll bring it up at appointment on Wednesday as I don’t think I should be this drained all the time)

I'm 39+1 today, and I'm feeling more normal than ever.

Reading everyone's insomnia messages that's completely stopped, even waking up for the toilet, last night I slept from 12:30-6:30 before waking...

Got more energy than I've had in a long time, no pains, cramps, back pain, nothing... I'm definitely not complaining at all, and know I've got things easy, but also think I'm in for a longggg wait until baby tries to make an appearance.

I really don't want to be induced and have already tried broaching the subject of a section with MW if it got that point and it was dismissed 😖 (I know I can still refuse an induction but do not want them to then make me wait even longer and "monitor")

Anyway, just wondering if anyone else is in the same boat? Or from past pregnancies? I always expected to go over as it's my first and it's definitely my luck, but any "symptom" I read about pre labour or anything I've just not got anything close. I feel as well as I did 10/15 weeks ago.

Always prepared myself to go over which I'm glad about, I don't feel fed up yet or anything but would just like a tiny inclination that somethings happening 😅

@FrostedFlake oh that is high BP. Mine hasn’t got there, I think that’s why they haven’t given me meds. I got mine BP machine from Boots https://www.boots.com/boots-pharmaceuticals-blood-pressure-monitor-upper-arm-unit-10217395

@Havanalily1806 ahhhh I'm with you on the induction front! I have heard way too many stories about negative experiences that I really don't want to be induced.

My midwife however has said I can opt for an elective c section if that's what I prefer.
I also don't love the idea of major surgery and longer recovery - I feel so torn!

Desperately wishing this baby to come out before 41 weeks so I don't have to make the difficult decision.

Glad others feel scared too - yes picking up and not letting the head wobble lol!!

I don't want to midwives to think I'm stupid asking simple things eek.

I am currently reading 'the discontented little baby book' it's quite good so far! There was so many to choose !!
Still loving podcasts but again they are so many differing opinions and suggestions across them.

@msp2023 @Havanalily1806 same here, there is no friend or family, I know that was induced that didn’t end up in emergency c-section, it was double the agony pain! My Consultant said she was going to book an induction as if it was my only option, I didn’t like her attitude, she was pushy. I don’t think she liked to be challenged, but I stood my ground, respectfully. I said no. I’m doing extra monitoring now and IF there is a clear medical need for baby to come before 40-weeks I’ll choose a c-section.

In our prenatal class last week all of our partners learned how to bathe and change the babies, we learned too but not hands on, the instructor was trying to encourage them to be involved. Anyway, they had these weighted knitted dolls that were used for the demonstrations and we got to practice holding them and passing them to each other while supporting their heads, I found it so useful.

My friend was induced at around 41 weeks and didn't have a c-section but she did end up having an episiotomy. Her main advice was to definitely look into ways of coping with contractions and birth, such as hypnobirthing and if you're on pitocin just get the epidural.

Thanks for the new thread ❤️

Just to balance out the inductions with some positive stories (for anyone that's having them) mine was fine. I was up and walking my dog the day after. No tears or interventions. Both my sisters had more than one induction fine, as did some of my friends. I know only one c section from induction personally, and that was very early in the process because baby needed to be gotten out earlier than the induction could.

It's not a walk in the park, but it wasn't horrific for any of us

No one can refuse a section, if you really want one try to speak to someone else maybe? (If that’s what you were saying you wanted?)

I shared a bit of my induction story earlier, just to add a bit more since people are worried about them: the intensity of contractions was tough, and I did need episiotomy and ventouse delivery. However, that might have happened whether I'd been induced or not.
My recovery was quick and straightforward though. Obviously I'd prefer not to induced again but I believe it was medically necessary for me last time and wouldn't be too stressed about doing it again if it's necessary this time. Overall I feel positive about and proud of my birth experience- I can get a bit defensive whenever induction or interventions are implied to be failures in some way (not that anyone is saying that here).
All that being said, if anyone wants a section then it should be an option, sorry some people are having to fight for their choices.