Due December 2024 - thread 3

[CatCaretaker]

Thread 3 - for those of us still waiting on our babies, and those whose babies have arrived safe and sound.

Previous thread:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/pregnancy/5202240-due-december-2024-thread-2?page=40

@RedRobyn2021 Not 100% sure yet and waiting on some blood tests which should come back tomorrow for more answers.

My placenta was small and cord was short but never picked up in my scans, and I had quite a few,
He is also quite small, 6lbs 3oz at 39+6 and my first was 7lbs 3oz at 38+3, so this, plus gases found in the umbilical cord and also the placenta size all indicate that he wasn’t growing well.

Just think it was all a series of unfortunate events but speaking to the NICU consultant earlier today, he seems really positive and we got him out just in the nick of time.

@Firsttimetrier congratulations on the arrival of your little one, but I'm sorry it wasn't the birth you wished for and was so traumatic for you. But thankful you're both safe and doing well. I hope you and baby can go home and recover soon. ❤️
Sending love to you all.

@RedRobyn2021yes I'm definitely going to look into some baby classes, my midwife advised about one just up the road from us actually so going to look into that. Plus I'll ask my friends who've mostly all had baby's on their recommendations locally.

@Twinkletwinklelil@ RedRobyn2021 thank you for the recommendations regarding the nappy rash. I had been using the sudocream care and protect, I actually went through a whole tube and it didn't seem to make any difference. We did some nappy off time yesterday and I switched to just the normal sudocream as I thought it had a thicker consistency, and today it looks a lot better thankfully. So hopefully it's on the mend. @RedRobyn2021 I actually read that the washable diapers can be quite bad for nappy rash, as they're not as absorbent. Although my mum used them for a short time with my sister (35 years ago mind) and advised against them. She said they're a nightmare with constant washing etc which I can imagine!

@Twinkletwinklelil really feel for you regarding the sleep. Thankfully little man will go down, but he does wake frequently in the night for feeds, and what I'm struggling with is when he's feeding, he takes an age to finish!! (He is formula, bottle fed) it can take over an hour for him to finish 80ml/100ml. That a couple of times a night doesn't equate to much sleep..
are you waiting for her to fall asleep before transferring her to the crib? Or is she waking as soon as you place her down? What we found worked for us, is nappy change, swaddle, white noise and feed. We turn the lights off and tv right down, and hold while we feed, then we put him over our shoulder to burp/bop up and down and once burped, do circular motions on his lower back/bum until he's asleep. Then lower him into his next to me crib, bum first and then head with our hand underneath and slowly remove it. Then we keep one hand on him for a minute and slowly release. He will often stir, and make a lot of gurgling sounds etc but not cry but he'll then just doze off. We don't intervene when he's making those noises, only if he's crying.
A midwife also recommended using a heating pad in the crib before putting them down so it's warm and not going from the warmth of being held to the cold of a crib. Maybe worth a try?
The sleep deprivation is a killer, you have my sympathies.

Also ladies; could things i wanted to pick your brains about. As mentioned above, feeding... our little one is formula/bottle fed, he's taking about 3-4oz per feed now (every 2.5-3 hours, sometimes longer overnight). We are using the Philips avente bottles, we started on the newborn slow tests but it was literally taking nearly 2 hours for him to finish a feed. So we went up to the 1 month tests on the HV recommendations. But still it's taking him 1+ hour to finish a feed. It's making life impossible to get things done by the time you feed, burp, sterilise, nappy change etc and during the night feeds is a killer, I feel myself drifting off when feeding him.
Any suggestions. He can become quiet fussy when feeding, will make all the ques he's hungry and then you place the bottle in or near his mouth and he'll start throwing his head around with his mouth open, then he'll start sucking and is latched but will do a couple sucks then a looooooong pause. He's done this with both teats. We've tried everything from changing how we position him while feeding, burping regularly during feeds, infacol as we thought it maybe reflux or colic, waiting longer inbetween feeds etc. It doesn't seem to make a difference. He's also extremely noising when feeding, grunts and groans and sometimes tenses up and goes bright red, but then will happily carry on feeding.
Any ideas?? When googling, it says a 3+ week old should be finishing that much feed in about 30 mins. He's doubling almost tripling that.

And also; ladies who've had a ceasarean, I'm not 3 weeks +2 days pp and the wound is healing really well, no weeping, but it's still super sensitive and my whole lower tummy from belly button down still feels very very tender and bruised and swollen (still quiet protruding) and out into my hips. Is that normal? I know a few of you had one before me and maybe further along in your healing journey. Just wondering when it might start to subside? I know I'm still very early on and am feeling a lot better within myself, just curious.

& @LilyJessie sounds like you could be holding your baby very soon if not already!! Wishing you all the luck for your birth!! Keeping everything crossed for you!! ❤️🤞🏼 hoping for a safe arrival for you and baby...

@Lunamoon23 again, no advice as I'm behind you but comforting to know others are having similar issues. I'm hoping to EBF my LO but at the moment it's necessary to supplement with formula as she's still hungry after being on the boob. I'm working to build up my supply. In the meantime it doesn't help that she resolutely refuses to open her mouth, even when giving hungry cues (sucking her hands etc.). She just sits there with little pursed lips. It's very very cute, but it means feeding takes absolutely ages. I actually need to wait until she's crying then shove the nipple into her mouth and she looks a bit surprised, then sucks away contentedly. The hospital midwife was in yesterday for ages and was really helpful, but had no ready solution for the pursed lips issue.

I also had cesarean but it hasn't even been a week yet. Mine is still painful in a sharp, stingy way, and my abdomen aches in general (I assume that's from the cesarean, rather than the labour, but I have no idea really). To the touch though the wound area is numb. I can't feel it when I touch my own skin. It's a very odd sensation. It does seem to be healing well though, like yours.

@CatCaretaker it's very frustrating isn't it. He will take the bottle in his mouth and he'll latch to it. But then just sit with it in his mouth, will do like two sucks then a lonnnnnng pause, I normally have to break the seal (latch) to get him to go again or wiggle the teat around in his mouth but again, he'll suck a couple times then another looooong pause and it goes in like this for like an hour to an hour an a half. And currently he seems to be consistently hungry, so he's feeding alot and it just swallows up your whole day/night. Everytime I google it they say 20-30 minutes at his age for that amount of milk.. which isn't helping as I feel like somethings wrong or we're doing something wrong. I had my discharge appt with my midwife yday and I mentioned it then and although she's been a fantastic midwife to me, she didn't offer much advice or support, just a ... yeah, it can be time consuming. But literally, how am I meant to ever get anything done if it's taking this long every feed 😂😂 or how am I meant to sleep longer than a 2 hour stint without then being awake for 2. I sometimes wonder if this is why he didn't take to breastfeeding, if he's a lazy feeder? Well that and the lack of proper support we had. X

@CatCaretaker yes that all sounds pretty normal from the Caesarean, it will ease (the stingy pain). I oddly don't seem to have the numbness I hear alot of people mention. But I do have a burning pulling sensation a couple fingers width both and beside my incision which I believe maybe the nerves that have been cut during the op. I've heard it can cause a burning like pain after. Xxxxx

@Lunamoon23 oh wow, that does sound very frustrating! Maybe he is just very content in your arms and wants to hang out ❤

@Lunamoon23 thanks, will definitely try your method! She’s been good tonight and last night but we have a reflux issue with her so I have to hold her til she burps and (almost always) spits up..
found when we were putting her down she would end up spitting up in her sleep - waking her and me up and then having to change her clothes.. so difficult 😥

does anyone recommend Infacol for this reason too? I really can’t remember if it helped my son but I remember him hating it lol

@RedRobyn2021 thank you! Will also try this - I remember sleeping with head and arm in my sons next to me to help him go down too 🤣 the things we do! He didn’t settle until 3 months 😥

in the day she’ll do 10 mins in the sleepyhead. My husband loves sitting with her on his chest but I’m really trying to get him to stop and start putting her down - even though she wakes so much this way, whereas in arms she sleeps for 2-3 hours!

@Lunamoon23 can you reach out to the HV about the feeding pauses? There should be some feeding groups locally you can get support from?
I remember with DS he would feed for 45 mins, we would have to hold and burp for 20-30 mins. Add that to the changing etc it is a looong break between naps/sleeps.. also every 2 hours. He’s just a bad sleeper I think and we never nipped it in the bud (totally breastfed wouldn’t take a bottle) until he was weaned off (2months before I gave birth to my girl!)

Second time Mamas have you found the postnatal cramps much worse this time? Midwife told me it gets worse with each child you have. Feel like I’m having a really heavy period. And they get worse when I’m breastfeeding too, which I know is normal but still very unpleasant!

@MaybeBaby2024 yes! They were horrible!
I was taking paracetamol once the painkiller pessary wore off. Really awful pain and so hard to cope when you’re breastfeeding too 😥

Honestly I didn't think they were that bad at all

I did have one cramp one time that really hurt, I felt it all in the tops of my legs too. But other than that they were fine

@Lunamoon23

I don't formula feed but that sounds like a normal amount of time to feed to me. I would completely ignore google regardless. He might become faster as he gets older, the suck suck long pause is what he's supposed to do though. You want him to follow his hunger queues and not overfeed, the best way to do that is to drink the milk slowly.

That Day 3 hormone crash is hitting.

Not feeling tearful, just very irritable! Think I shall be biting my tongue a lot today 😅

First time mums how many weeks did you go into spontaneous labour?

@MaybeBaby2024 I’m day two and still in hospital. A lady in the bay opposite had her little girl visit but then was told she needed to stay in an extra night. Little girl absolutely distraught and the mum is crying too and it’s set me off.

We’re hoping we’ll be discharged soon, as we were discharged from NICU yesterday and waiting on one blood test.

Hate this in limbo stage of the hospital. It’s absolutely boiling, so loud, little sleep and feeling claustrophobic in our bay.

@Firsttimetrier Glad to hear baby is out of NICU. I know, the postnatal ward is difficult for most people, not the kind of environment you need when you’ve just been through everything you have.

Fingers crossed you get home ASAP.

@Mama2b99 my waters broke at 39+5, but spontaneous labour hadn't started 24 hours later so I was induced then due to risk of infection. No idea how long it would have taken for labour to start spontaneously.

I'm second time but with my first it was 41+5 and I didn't have any kind of induction, including no sweeps

But with my second I was only 4 days over!

Interestingly they were both a very similar weight at birth DD1 was 8lb4 at 12 days over and DD2 was 8lb6 at only 4 days over. So I guess they really do come when they're ready

I hope you get to go home soon lovely, it is hard in hospital. It sounds like everything is going well and it won't be long. Have you got plenty of entertainment? iPad/magazines/book/snacks

We’ve just started the discharge process, so hoping to be home by this afternoon 🤞🏽 just seems to take ages getting medication etc together, but glad they are sending me home with lots of pain relief. I didn’t need it last time, but this time my section is much more painful but I think that’s due to how quickly they had to do it. They also went in through my old scar and said they tidied up some scar tissue.

I downloaded a lot of stuff to watch on my phone, but absolutely over watching things and can’t concentrate with reading due to the noise 😬

I haven't had a chance to read all of what has happened on this thread, and I will as soon as I can and reply to those who I can/ get the updates on your bubbas/ lives/ pregnancies/ births/ tips.

Just wanted to update, we had our baby girl on 4th Jan! A whopping 9 lb 12!!
Ended in emergency c section after 36 hours labour/ breaking waters/ inductions/ meconium in waters/ etc etc. but I would do it all again right this second!

I love being a mama!!! My tiredness says otherwise mind haha!!!

Congratulations @LilyJessie 💗

Congratulations @LilyJessie

@LilyJessie huuuge congratulations!! ♥️

Congratulations @LilyJessie sorry to hear it was such a long delivery but glad to hear it seems very positive!

hope you are both doing well!

@CatCaretaker @RedRobyn2021 @Twinkletwinklelil thank you for replying to my previous post regarding feeding. I reached out to my HV and she actually suggested making the whole in the teat we have a little bigger which we did, and it's like night and day! Finishing much much quicker and with little pauses like before - I'm guessing he was getting too tired with the teat before! He's just a little milk guzzler 😂
We also mentioned about the grunting. Apparently it's a really normal thing and even has a name, 'baby grunting syndrome' apparently it's them getting their pelvic floor working and digestion. Some baby's are just noisier at it than others and they quickly grow out of it. Just glad it nothing to worry about, I worried he was in distress.

@Twinkletwinklelil we used infacol at the start and then stopped (for no particular reason think we just got a little slack and forgetful with it) but have been using it religiously before every feed since Saturday and it's made a big difference. He's burping during and after feeds a lot easier and seems happier for it.

@MaybeBaby2024 hope your hormones are starting to level out a little for you now ❤️ it can make you feel like a crazy person can't it haha. I keep getting period like cramps in the mornings at the moment, I'm 4weeks pp on Thursday this week, don't know if it's my uterus still contracting?

@LilyJessie huge congratulations on your arrival. Sorry to hear the birth was so eventful but glad you all got through it safely. Take it easy for these first few weeks and just focus on lots of baby cuddles and your recovery! ❤️

@Firsttimetrier im hoping your home now and able to get some proper rest and enjoy your newborn! I couldn't wait to get out of the hospital and I was only in 26 hours, horrible places, although I know it was needed in your case but there's no place like home. I'm also glad they're taking care of your pain management, be sure to take it easy once home, rest lots (easier said than done I know) and enjoy baby. Xxxxx