Due February 2025 - Thread 3

[UrbanSquirrel]

Following on from the two existing threads, welcoming all the intrepid ladies due in February, for further excellent support 🤗

@SBelfast It sounds so stupid, but the idea of a vertical section has never even occurred to me. Ditto ongoing uterine development - I kind of thought everything (baby/uterus) was 'done' now and just getting bigger. 🤦 Time to do some (apparently much needed!) reading.

I hope you manage to get some rest and/or get to go home soon. 💛

A classical can be a longer recovery, and may have implications for a future birth (as the scar is bigger down the front of the uterus). However the lower segment develops around 32ish weeks but it doesn’t suddenly appear so if the baby stays in a few weeks your birth options can change. Have they offered you steroids, to help babies lungs if they are born early? Big hugs to you I hope you both stay well and baby stays put a bit longer!

How are you doing this morning @SBelfast? Hope you've been able to get at least a little sleep! Have they given you any sense of whether things have settled / when you might be able to get out and rest at home? Can you at least get your partner / family / friends to pop in with some treats for you? (Noise-cancelling headphones sound like a good start 😜)

Thanks @Kumquat89 and sorry your having a tough time, my first pregnancy also so all new and scary:)
@QuantumPanic oh me neither never occurred to me.
@OrangeSlices998 ah good to know! They were talking about steroids on Friday but was a lot of information and was a bit shocked so not sure how much I took in. I'm pretty sure they said if I go into labour/look like I'm imminent to going into labour they'd give me the steroids then to help babies lungs develop. I'm 27 weeks today, so I'm really hoping can make it at least 7 more weeks as I read with this they could suggest birth between 34-37 weeks. Think they won't let me go past 37 weeks so only occurred to me yesterday but won't be a Feb baby anymore! Best case scenario Jan.
@UrbanSquirrel I'm feeling a bit more human this morning as I managed to get 5 hours sleep roughly last night 😀 ward was a bit quieter and my husband brought me earplugs. Visiting is good, partners are allowed to be here 11-8 and others 2-4 and 6-8. They turned a blind eye to partners staying late to help the new mums which was nice and I'm sure appreciated.
Not sure when I'll get out could be today maybe tomorrow, they are taking more blood today so I imagine might need results of that before being released.
There's a lady in labour in the bay beside me, getting an insight into birth/post birth I didn't really want lol. I was aiming for a blissful ignorance approach, deal with it when it comes! :)

@SBelfast glad you managed to get some sleep. Hopefully your find out soon whether you can go home.

Thankyou for sharing though, I keep thinking about my fluid as having very watery discharge and smells very sweet. But it's not everyday or all day. Did you have to wear a pad?

Hi @herewegoagain123456 no I didn't have to wear a pad, I just noticed dampness and to he honest I thought could just be discharge it was the sweet smell which does smell a bit like semen had me wondering as that was unusual. But it was very subtle. It was also varying amounts so I didn't notice it every day which is why I also thought it must be fine, was just the last week noticed it three days in a row and since I was meant to go away was just playing on my mind.
If your worried about it just call up and get it checked out. If your a normal person the test is really no biggie, speculum and a swab for a min and they will know the results in 5 mins. It was just a pallava for me since I'm phobic about it!
Wishing you well and hopefully it is nothing xo

Ohhh @SBelfast i just read your situation. Lots of hugs love!! I bet just being terrifying to find it out. When I went through the amniocentesis 2 times on the following 4 days after the Amnio, my discharge was more liquid than normal and I ended up on triage to get checked and they just made the kind of smear test as you explained. But, yes I didn't had any discharge as liquid as then... So it was good you went to get checked. I'm glad to read you feel better and could sleep a little bit more this time. Hopefully, you would be release soon and with the right hands and been constantly monitored would help both of you. My best hopes, kisses and hugs for you and your little one! 😘❤️❤️❤️

@Moyaingoya i understand your vent. I had a similar experience last time I saw the midwife but in my case was because they did a double booking and I had to wait around 40 minuts just to be seen 10. I felt the whole time as if I arrived at the wrong time (even though I had a message from her saying it was at 10 am) and I felt they were in a rush to get me out while with the other woman they were there for 30 minutes. I don't know.... I hope next time with her (next week) she's better. But I don't know if they rushed because they had someone else at 11 or so. Anyway, I arrived 40 minutes later at my workplace 😅 and yes, I had better things to do than stay waiting there.

Thanks @Piluka much appreciated:)
Getting used to the ward now and able to get some sleep.
Keeping busy by starting to buy baby stuff, had wanted to wait till third trimester as I was superstitious so we've literally not a thing bought yet.....

Speaking of; does anyone have a list of stuff for baby they can share? We've made one but neither of us has any experience with babies despite being near 40 lol.

@SBelfast What a time you've had, it's so important to trust your instincts and get checked isn't it! Hopefully you can get home soon, sending lots of hugs!

In regards to baby stuff I think the main things are somewhere to sleep, pram if using, car seat, a few clothes, things to feed with if you need to and most other stuff you can get once baby is here on next day delivery etc... as you don't know what baby will be like. There's quite a lot of offers on stuff coming up to black friday so is a good time to buy.

@SBelfast maybe other more experienced mums can correct me but in terms of clothes I think I’ve read somewhere on mumsnet that you might need about 10 of each item? Bodies, outfits, pyjamas etc? It’s a good question, I’ll be following.

@SBelfast NHS and Start4Life have some decent lists with the absolute basics (obviously there's loads more you can buy but these are a good start!). It's tricky to say how much you'll need because depends on if you get gifted a lot and also how big they are when born and how quickly they grow.

www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/caring-for-a-newborn/what-you-will-need-for-your-baby/

www.nhs.uk/start-for-life/pregnancy/preparing-for-labour-and-birth/what-to-buy-for-your-newborn-baby/

Thanks so much @elb1504 @prizecow @Kumquat89 really helpful!
One thing I've seen here is a few of the mums saying the new born stuff isn't fitting their bigger babies lol. Not sure how common that is as most of these mums are in the ward due to emergency sections.
I'm hopefully getting out today 😊just have to have another scan and get my after care transferred back to my home hospital (which is a couple of mins from my house).

Glad you are managing to get a little sleep @SBelfast - it must be really difficult being in the ward although I'm so glad you're in good hands. Very grateful to you for the reminder of how important it is to trust instincts and get checked out.

Sorry to distract from the conversation about baby kit, but when we were discussing caesareans, I think I said I'd have a quick look at the chapter on 'positive caesareans'/'gentle caesareans' in the Positive Birth book once I was home.

Some of what counts as a 'gentle caesarean' is hopefully already standard procedure - like offering to play music, keeping the room calm and quiet, and delayed cord clamping (although most hospitals only do a minute by default, and 2-3 mins is better). But there are two little things I thought were interesting suggestions:
-the ECG dots are attached to mum's back so that she can have skin-to-skin with baby immediately
-the IV line is placed in mum's non-dominant hand so that it is easier for her to touch and caress baby
-It also mentions bringing out baby more slowly?

There's also a section on 'mother-assisted caesareans'. Apparently this is where your hands are scrubbed up and gloved like a surgeon's, then guided down to take hold of baby as it emerges, and to lift him/her up to your own chest, rather than being handed your baby! I had no idea that was possible! I can well imagine that there might be some reluctance - ahem, refusal - to do this from the surgeons if they've not done it before, but I thought it was fascinating that this was even possible, if the doctors are willing. Some of this was worth sharing I hope x

....oh and I'm definitely following with interest any conversation about kit! I'm planning to buy just a few things for the 0-3 months age, in case I give birth to an absolute chonker, and then to order a few more babygrows etc online once baby is here. This may be naively optimistic about my ability to function normally in the early weeks! I am so clueless! x

On the topic of clothes for baby, don’t take the size labels too literally! With my first, she was 8lb 6oz and she still fit in Next “first size” which claims it only fits babies up to 7lb 8oz!

In my hospital bag I took 2x newborn and 2x 0-3 sleepsuits and vests which was more than enough, had I had to stay in any longer I’d have sent DH home to pick up some more sleepsuits in the right size but she was born Wednesday evening and we were home by Thursday lunchtime (despite an EMCS!) so only had her in two outfits.

As long as baby has somewhere to sleep, a way to eat, a way to get home and something to wear, you can pick up anything else as and when (but yes, I had about 10 newborn size outfits, all sleepsuits as I couldn’t be faffed with actual clothes when all she did was sleep and shit in them haha!)

Here is part of my baby spreadsheet with amounts of things and RRP. Ignore the colouring, that's just my code once something is already purchased

Sorry the first one was blurry, hopefully this is better

Oh my goodness @Odessa1 you have a spreadsheet! A woman after my own heart 🤣 though I confess I don't have one myself; I'm using Pinterest boards this time, as a way to keep track of what I've bought.

@retrievermum and @CarrotySnack, @Kumquat89 and @prizecow, thank you all for thoughts on things to get. I'd once again thoroughly recommend Vinted even for basics like vests etc - there are some really good offers to be had. And regarding non clothes stuff, I would also flag that Facebook Marketplace is amazing. We have almost everything now and have managed to get all of it second hand - thank God, because baby stuff isn't priced for public sector salaries 😅

@SBelfast, I'm rooting for you to get either discharged or moved back closer to home as soon as possible. I hadn't realised that you weren't even in your home hospital! Take care - you seem to be facing this unexpected development with great patience and good humour. Well done you 🤗 xxx

Oh, and just to add, Happy Third Trimester to anyone else who's at the 28 week mark! Apparently the fatigue just increases from here on in, which will be fun, considering that I already have the sleeping pattern of a sloth with narcolepsy.

Glucose tolerance test tomorrow morning. Eek. Wish me luck 😬

@UrbanSquirrel fingers crossed it will go well and you can eat mince pies without fear this Christmas (the one thing I miss all year round since I left the UK 😅)

@Odessa1 I’ve been wanting to start a list soon too so this will be so helpful !! You are amazing. I still can’t read it very easily for some reason though. When I zoom it goes blurry.

Ooh @Kumquat89 I hadn't registered that you weren't in the UK. Where have you moved to?

PS Yes! Mince pies! 🙌🏻

Ive also got a list (without clothes on it) which I followed fairly closely first time if anyone wants it! Not as comprehensive as @Odessa1‘s though!

@retrievermum All lists very much appreciated! x

This was everything I got pre-baby last time but some of it can wait until after they’re born, and some depends on circumstances of birth/feeding but it’s fairly generic!

NURSERY / SLEEP
Next to me crib
Mattress
Sheets
Leak protection sheet
Blankets - knitted (cellular) x2
Blanket - jersey
Changing mat x2
Baby monitor
2 sleeping bags - 1.0/2.5 tog
Nightlight
Sleep aid eg white noise
Room thermometer

TRAVEL
Car seat
Pushchair/pram
Travel cot
Baby carrier/sling
Changing bag

HYGIENE ESSENTIALS
Nappies
Cotton wool / baby wipes (water wipes)
Barrier cream
Baby bath
Ramer sponge
Baby shampoo
Baby body wash
Hooded towels
Water Thermometer
Nail file/clippers
Hairbrush

HEALTH
Nose clearer
Thermometer
First aid kit Inc infant painkillers
Nappy cream (metanium/bepanthem)
Saline nose drops
Baby vaporub
Humidifier

FEEDING
3-5 Nursing bras
Haakaa
Breast/Nursing pads
Milk storage pots/bags
Lots of muslins
Dummies
Readymade formula bottles

PLAY
Baby swing/ bouncer
Play mat
Teething ring
Baby books
Comforter

POSTPARTUM
Pads
Dark knickers
Dark towels
Water spray bottle
Nipple cream