Due July 2024 - part 3

[Oatmilktea]

I noticed the other thread was full and have started a new one.

Lovely to hear of everyone’s 20 week scans. Thanks to those of you who gave me a list of baby essentials, very helpful!

Hope you’re all doing well!

@ceruleansky - that’s so sweet! Yes he gets cross if I lean something on my bump for too long (if I’m reading a book or something on my phone for example), responds to his brothers voice first thing in the morning and usually has a wriggle when I’m reading to DS as well. I think some music gets him wriggling as well but I’m not sure on that one if it’s 100% consistent

Just catching up on messages.

29 weeks over here and my back is killing meeeee. It's fine in the morning, gets achy during the day, and then by bedtime I can't even lie down without being in pain. One specific muscle in my left shoulder. And baby definitely kicks or punches my ribs as well. Think it's still moving around lots, and not sure it's on its way to the right position. And stretch marks are coming in now, ugh. I don't actually mind them, they're not super obvious and feel a bit like battle scars anyway haha. But at the same time, I didn't get any last pregnancy, so it's still surprising and different.

I did the positive birth company hypnobirthing course last time and found it a helpful way to go through everything with DH in particular (no classes because of COVID). Also love their FB page with birth stories. Not sure I'll do it again now - I think I just need to YouTube the breathing exercises to remind myself. It made me dead set on the birth preferences for a natural water birth and then when my labour took like 3 days and required intervention due to exhaustion I was quite disappointed. I didn't really have a bad experience I'd say, but the PBC leans a little towards toxic positivity imo? Like, breathing and positive affirmations did absolutely nothing for my situation because it just took a really bloody long time and there's just no mind over matter to things like dehydration...

Congratulations all on the birth of your babies!
Can't believe how quickly time is going, I've finally bought stuff this weekend otherwise I'd be bringing mine home naked at this rate! So bored of comparing prams, car seats, sleeping bags, etc...there is a lot of choice out there!

I looked into hypnobirthing last time but couldn’t get into it. It seems to centre around the fear-tension-pain triangle and cutting it at the fear. No fear > no tension > no pain. Being a scientist my logic was that you could also cut it at the pain. No pain > no fear > no tension. The epidural was my friend 😂

@Amberellaella how did you find the epidural? That is also a consideration for me. I think it will just be useful to look at the other stuff so I can cope with the birth whatever happens.

@Amberellaella hahhah I love that take, I'm for sure not opposed to the epidural!
I considered looking into hypnobirthing, but I suffer from chronic pain anyway, so I figured I'm used to breathing through and focusing on anything but the pain 😂

I did hypnobirthing last time and sort of doing it again as part of a weekly pregnancy yoga group. I found it useful to learn about what is actually happening during labour and birth. Sometimes I find the affirmations a bit much. However, if it wasn't for the education part that my husband joined in with I could have accidentally had a breech birth at home as it have him the knowledge to be able to identify I was in labour when I was adamant it was just trapped wind 😂

@wannabe123 blimey! Did you know you had a breech, just not know you were in labour?

@Sophie3003 yeah I knew I was breech and was advised to go into hospital as soon as I went into labour so they could do the c-section. Started having contractions at about 6pm-ish and shrugged it off as Braxton Hicks and went to bed. Woke at 1am and my husband recognised the breathing I was doing and the way I was reacting from the birthing course and off we went to hospital where it was found I was already 4cm dilated!

32 weeks and found out from growth ultrasound that baby is breech too- came as a surprise as 2 different midwives said she was definitely head down 2 days earlier!

Has anyone previously had a breech baby this late on? I feel like I've resigned myself to the fact I'll probably need a section- her head is so high under my ribcage and her bum is so low I just don't see how she can have the room! And she's 95th centile too

Blimey!

@glasshalffull0 they don't worry about it until 36 weeks, which is when my breech baby was discovered. I had the same situation as you though with positioning (bar not 95th centile) and the ECV was a waste of time!

I had a lady in my antenatal class last time whose husband said he thought she needed a poo and then the baby came out on the toilet!

I had a really good experience with the epidural, but I know not everyone does. I could still walk, and go to the loo, and even feel when it was time to push. I had a long labour as well (~30 hours) and you get to the point where you just need to rest! Also they put an IV drip in so you don’t need to worry about getting dehydrated. It wore off quite quickly and I was able to walk up to the ward once they let us out of the delivery room.

@Amberellaella that sounds really good, I like the idea of having control and feeling something!

I am terrified this baby is breech. Don't know what I would do; would still hope for a vaginal birth, but I believe it depends on the type of breech, whether that's possible?

Enjoyed my epidural also, it helped me sleep after 3 days of labour. I like the idea of 'natural' labour because it just seems like less faff? No messing about with needles and drips and whatever. Is that weird? Would just be great to get in a bath and breathe out a baby, right? But I'm strongly in the camp of 'don't be in pain when you don't have to be' and 'make use of modern medicine when you can', so makes sense to me to make use of everything available when required. I couldn't move at all though, which I would have strongly preferred :(:(:(

@AnonymousXXIX I was advised to have a caesarean as they said there just isn't the expertise to deliver a breech baby safely (they don't do it so no practice) Also my surgical pharmacist friend said to me as soon as she found out I was having a breech that if I hadn't decided she would send me the infant mortality rates with breech natural births. My Nan also had a breech years ago and had to be cut internally underneath.

@AnonymousXXIX in really worried about this baby also being breech. I barely sit on the sofa now and sit on my ball instead because I read it can help. He does keep changing positions but not sure if he's gone head down.

@glasshalffull0 I had my midwives who told me baby was head down last time and I don't think he ever was as scans always showed him bum down. I think it's quite tricky for them to feel.

@wannabe123 my consultant said 'some people have breech babies' when I asked if I would end up with another one 😬. I am not sure at what point they would stay the right way round or from what I have heard they can turn last minute.

@Sophie3003 I had a friend whose baby was head down and engaged for weeks and then after a really long induction managed to spin. They didn't realise until a midwife went in to check dilation and things and got kicked!

@wannabe123 that is scary!

Hi, does anyone have any experience of SGA or IUGR in their pregnancies? Midwife measured my bump on Friday and booked a growth scan due to measuring small. I wasn't worried at all as bump seems nice and big and definitely growing to me. Had the growth scan yesterday and was sent to triage for further assessment as baby is on the 3rd centile. The consultant said between 3-9 is SGA and below 3 is IUGR so I'm right on the cut off. I have to go back in 2 weeks for a rescan but I am slightly panicking if this means I may have to deliver early. From the scan they said the placenta is absolutely fine so naturally I'm worried something is wrong with the baby. 2 weeks just feels a long time for me to wait not knowing a lot of info.

@Yummum19 Oh no I'm sorry you are feeling worried!! I do not have experience with this but just wanted to offer some support! Try taking it easy and trusting it's going to be ok! ❤️

I am also waiting for test results for my liver as have been super itchy and I am worried my bump is small, growth graph went down a bit but borderline so will check at next appointment how growth is before a scan may be needed. Hopefully all is ok!

@Yummum19 Hey I’m currently the opposite way. I have severely high amniotic fluid and GD so waiting a scan Tuesday so see if my little girl is off the scale (she was close to being over on my scan last week) so may need to deliver early too. Try not to worry too much, my positive thinking is that they are keeping an eye on us to assist in the best and safest way possible for our little ones and us

@Jess725 @AimeeLou84 thank you and sorry to hear you’re both awaiting tests too.

I think it’s just the unknown. I’ve been pretty chill in regards to buying bits and now I feel like I should have things ready and packed, just in case! They also told me to keep a close eye on movements and come straight in if anything changes and although I was anyway, I feel like I’m spending my day fixating on them now.

@Yummum19 Oh the movements thing is another thing I fixate on. I’m in twice a week now on the monitor for half hour a time because her movements reduced and I found myself laying still all day marking them off 🤦🏻‍♀️ I’ll await someone to tell me anything more stressful and worrying than pregnancy!