My Waters Went on Monday at 22+4 :(

[WorzselMummage]

Hi,

Does anyone have any experience of really premature rutured membranes ?

My waters went on monday as a result of an infection i picked up having an emergency stitch put in last week.

Babys fine and the stitch is still holding, i've not gone in to labour but obviously this is a grim situation and we're likely to lose our baby boy.

I'm on some wacking great antibiotics which are making me feel hideous but i have been discharged from hospital, there is nothing mroe they can do there apparently so i am home on bedrest praying babys lungs develop and he stays put for a few more weeks to at least give him a chance.

Does anyone know anyne who has been though this ?

You should be able to get a prescription for Domperidone because you have to be having supply issues after two weeks ? I think the idea being that it can take as much as ten days to come in after a section or premature birth when the body takes its time to catch up.

The Symphony is great, try and use that as much as possible because it?s much more ?natural? than the Lactina. I used to try and get to the Unit for as many sessions as I could. If Fifi had been in for longer than she was I would have refused to have left the hospital and scared them silly by quoting Baby Friendly at them! Being home makes expressing a lot harder, which has a long-term affect on your breastfeeding.

Remember as well that a breastfed newborn baby takes teaspoon amounts of milk at a time and feeds often. When in the unit they feed them more and less often, so you are having to ask your body to supply more milk than it should be doing and you are expressing it rather than having a baby take it off which isn?t as effective. I beat myself up for a long time over Tink?s milk but when I did the Peer Support course I learned that and realised it wasn?t my fault.

Nursing Tea is available in the UK.

My (extremely sympathetic) GP prescribed me Domperidone specifically to increase my milk supply.

I found that once I'd started taking it, and production increased I was far happier about expressing, the feeling of failure went, and I enjoyed the challenge of producing more and more milk.

My thoughts are with you - remember this is just a short period of your life x

Hi all

Sorry i have not been on and updated you all but its all been go with George so we have been busy. He had to have a blood transfusn ysterday as he's a anemic and keeps having these horrible dedats and bradys and also they thought he had an infction but apparently his blood count says otherwise, he's on antibiotics anyway as his tummy button is all swollen. He weighed 2lb7oz at the last weigh in so he's getting fat . He was on 9mls an hour but they hve dropped it down to 7.5 now - it looks a lot in the syringe when you consider how small he is !

Dd has been at my mums all weekend so we've also been off looking at new cars and enjoying the ability to go in to a changing room without a barrage of 4 years olds questions

I got some Fenugreek in friday and am maybe noticing a small increase in bm production. I tend to get about 70ml at night ( but leave in between 4 and 5 hours to pump ) and between 30 and 40 ml during the day ( every 2 hours 1/2 ish). I am not sure good that is but it doesnt seem like much. I have a Drs appointment in the morning so well ask about the domperidone. I could only get a appointment with a locum so i hope they are nice.. i need to get signed back on to drive although i confess i have been driving already .. i figured if i can sprint though the driving rain to the chip shop then i should be able to handle a vectra. I have no pain now so i cant see a problem but i am a bit worried about asking incase they say no, wait 6 weeks and i cant wait 6 weeks i have to drive whatever, Df goes bck to work tomorrow

Anushka, those shoes came yesterday and they are the most aborable cute lush things ! awwwwwww, thank you and your frieds so much . When Georges feet have grown enough to keep them on then i will take a picture and send it to you, at the moment he could wear them as a hat !

Leige, arggggg MEN ! i cant believe your Dh would say that, how utterly dimwitted ...

Hope your well, and you TBM, hows Sian ?

Skay, i am on a Bounty mission today, i will keep you informed!

xx

Glad to hear you're doing well, the amounts you're pumping sound great, it sounds like more than George is taking:

70ml between 4 and 5 hours = 14ml - 17.5ml an hour

30 and 40 ml in 2 hours 1/2 ish = 12ml - 16ml an hour

We're doing well here, Sîan has jaundice still and is a little sleepy which is affecting her feeding, if she's still yellow on Friday she'll be taken back in as she will be three weeks.

Hey Sarah,
yay, the shoes arrived, CHEERS!!! Some Canadian Content for Mr. Cutie-Pie!

[eeek emoticon] at the transfusion and swollen belly-button... please update, ok, will be thinking of him and keeping fingers crossed that it all resolves quickly. But 2 lbs 7 oz, OMG, what a chunkster .

I am sat here with an enormous cup of coffee because Jackbaby woke up at 1 am, all cheerful and babbling and smiling, and would not go back to sleep for a couple of hours. My hero DH finally got up with him and left me to sleep, bless his enormous heart of gold. So when I woke up I left him to sleep and am keeping smiley-boy entertained (by reading Mumsnet threads to him, LOL). [YAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWNNNNN]

I looked for my nursing tea and found I had two bags of it (it's loose tea), and I really can't drink much of it because of the aforementioned porn star boobs effect, so if the one you got doesn't work and you do want to try it, let me know. A little of it goes a very long way for me, and I'll only need a little to express a bunch before my OP in three weeks. I don't know if you could order it to the U.K., it's made in Florida and I have no idea if the woman ships to the U.K. But if I just send it with a customs label saying "birthday gift" it should be ok, shouldn't it? If you think Customs would be difficult about it I can include some more Canadian Content (maple syrup biscuits, anyone?) and "disguise" it that way.

Big hugs to you!!!
xxxx

Hi Worszel, hope things continue improving for George. FWIW I doubt there is a 27 weeker out there who hasn't had a blood transfusion - DD was considered a prodigy for only having had two and when you consider that they have less than a pint of blood to start with, and have to contend with daily blood tests it's no surprise.

Take care

Worsel, re the driving - sorry if I have missed something further up the thread but unless your insurance company stipluate it you don't need a doctor's permission to drive. Have you given your insurance people a ring? Mine weren't bothered as long as I felt comfortable.

Hi Worzel and George

Sorry to not have been posting RL caught up and we have all been ill and I didn't want to risk passing anything on to George (that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!) Please to see he is growing and is now quite the porker.

How was your doc's appointment? did you get the all clear to drive? what about the tablets?

Give George gentle {{{HUGS}}} and some for you too {{HUGS}}

Second the hugs!!!! (((((((HUG)))))))

How's my favourite tiny little man today? And his mummy?
xxx

Hello lovely

sorry i have not been on, i seem to have spent the whole of the last few days in the car.. who said driving already was a good idea !!

George is ok, he's been having a lot of desats recently and his oxygen need is going up instead of down, they thought he had a heart mumour but it seems that it comes and goes as the consultant can never seem to hear it they they thought he had a chest infection but xrays proved not and now they are treating him for reflux.. They have said that it may be just one of those things but the xray did show that his lungs were not as expanded as they would have liked them to be, i guess because of the lack of fluid/development. They have channged the are they give him oxygen, its on a nasal canula noow rather then just going in to his incubator to kelp him keep his lungs inflated, It seems to be working anyway. they considered putting him back on cpap but said it was a big step back, i dont mind what they do really, the desats are horrible

He's 2lb10 now, big fatty ! he's got cheeks and everything and he's coming out for more loves now too, i even got a bit of kangaroo care on sunday and he's wearing clothes and some how that makes it all more real.

he's going well apart from the lungs thing, the head scan was fine, the transfusion worked wonders and he's no longer bright yellow, just pink and lovely

I am fine too really, emotionally pretty stable and the expessing is improving. I managed to get Domperidone and am taking fenugreek too amd tescos own bounty bars .. boobs seem to be more productive and as a result i feel better, not sure if the bountys are helping with a milk producting fix or a chocolate fix.. either way i am happy.

How are you ?

Good to hear from you W, sounds like you are managing the rollercoaster incredibly well. Be assured that like transfusions, heart murmurs are really common and part of the premmie portfolio. If they haven't done an echo then it's likely they are not too concerned.

Great news re cuddles, its is soo important for both of you and very special.

Take care

Hallo sweetheart, I'm so glad to hear from you! Have been thinking about you (and hoping everything's ok). So Mr. Fatty has gained another ounce? Good for his mummy for making wonderful cream milk. [cheers emoticon]
I've also heard that oatmeal and Guinness (not together, you understand) improve milk quality and quantity. For me, Guiness brought in my milk the next morning when I'd been desperately waiting for it for 5 days, so I can recommend it. I doubt it's got enough alcohol to get George drunk, either .
So what happens when he desaturates? [eeek emoticon]

On a fun note, I took Jackbaby swimming for the first time ever today and he loved it!! Poor little man, his teeth were chattering after five minutes in the pool (he does like his bath rather warm) so we sat in the (warm only) hot tub for a while and splashed and played and then went back to the pool, and he was fine. He was so tired out he fell asleep in his pushchair on the walk home, and stayed asleep in it for almost an hour. Now he's staggering around clearly exhausted but not ready for sleep yet, LOL.

xxxxxxx!!!!

worzel, it's nice to hear that the weight gain is going well I had to express a lot with ds1 and breast compression helps a lot. You are doing so wonderfully. I have lurked more than posted but have followed from the beginning and kept you and George in my thoughts.

Morning Worzel and George

Please to see little man had put on more weight. UNfortunately his little setbacks and desats are going to be part of his journey for a little while yet. Keep strong and keep up the choc, fenugreek and pumping and in no time at all you will be picking up bigger clothes and nappies and wondering how he ever fitted in the tiny ones.

On another note - a friend who had her twins at 26 weeks took them home yesterday - 10 weeks after they were born - both having over trippled their birth weights!

{{{HUGS}}} to you all and remember you also need to rest to produce that jersey double cream!

Love and hugs to you both xx

Can we have new pics pleeeeaaaaase?
[hopeful emoticon]

yah! just caught up on this, congrats! he is beautiful...

Aww bless JackBaby [swoonemoticon] We took Grace swimming once and is was so cold it inspired a complaint, she was blue

The desats are just when his oxygen dips, they are trying to keep it between 84 and 95 as apparently thats the optimum levels for their eyes and lungs. When he desats it drops below that, sometimes down to 40% and then that might cause his heartrate to drop its pretty horrible to watch really but they think its the reflux and when i went in last night he was completly stable and thats after starting the renitidine, gaviscon and domperidone so hopefully that will have cracked it

George is still doing well, nothing more to report really. We'll have to see if he has grown any more later, you can really see it now, especially in his cheeks ! I think he's catching up with Jack !

Jabberwocky, the breast compression is great for me too.. well i think thats what i am doing, basicially squeezing my boobs but i tend to get more milk out though, possibly 50% more then if i just left the machine to it. I dont know how well thats going to work when i actually try Bf though, will my boobs be used to it do you think ?

Ooops, How lovely for your friend ! I cannot wait for George to come home, he's 3 weeks old now so we coud have 7 or 8 weeks left ! its racing by it really is, because i'm so bloody busy probably ! dfs in the studio today and has scarpered with the car so i am under forced house arrest... i desperatly need to have a tidy up, there has been a pile of clean washing on the kitchen table for well over a month

Mil is driving me up the wall. She took 2 weeks off work to 'help me out' after a specicially told her there was no need and is now busying herself making thinly veiled snide comments every time i see her about the fact that i am not taking her to the hospital every day and especially that she's not had a cuddle yet.. I just dont get why she thinks she has a right to hold my son who shouldn't evern have been born for another 10 weeks !

She's taking me to the hospital later and i know she is expecting to have him out but i am just not going to. He's got enough on his late without being passed around like a toy and any love time belongs to me and DF anyway [protective mother bear emoticon]

Any ideas how i can get the point accross without alienating her ?

erm..I cant think of anything else to say !

NEED-TO-CLEAN.... cant be bothered though

Hi W, I would not worry too much about compression just yet, once they are ready to feed it is amazing how hard a little baby can suck. You may also find that once your supply is a little more establishd you need to do less of it, but glad all tactics are working.

RE your MIL and cuddles, perhaps have a quiet word with George's nurse or the sister in charge and ask her to explain to your MIL that a baby as young and small as him can only spend a little time out of the incubator, or being handled, and that at this stage it really needs to be with you to help you breastfeed him. Then it doesn't come from you and isn't a DIL/MIL issue. If you are confident enough with cares, perhaps getting her to help with a nappy change or setting up a tube feed (eg one while you are cuddling him) may involve her enough.

I think your feelings on the subject are entirely sensible and pretty grounded in sensible clinical realities. I would really carefully supervise anyone who visited in terms of handwashing and the only other person other than me and DH who had cuddles in hospital was dd's godmother who is a neonatologist and very close friend.

I think that one of the issues relatives have to deal with when a very premature baby is born is that for a while they are not like other babies. Some fear it and just stay away, others come to visit half expecting to see something grotesque (a number of our visitors exclaimed that dd was perfect - what were they expecting, the baby from Eraserhead?) Others (my dad was one) bring all their own emotions and fears and expect you to deal with them at a time when you are frankly running on empty, and it sounds a bit like your MIL is in this category.

DD is yelling so must dash. Perhaps sending your MIL in the direction of the ironing pile might help?

PS me and DD love the pictures, looks like he is chubbing up beautifully.

Lizzie thats a really good idea about the nurse

Adam spoke to his Dad about it last night so hopefully he will have spoken to her and i wont have to.. she's lovely she really is but she had her own way with her first Granddaughter who's mother, by all accounts, was completle waster and left her dd with mil all the time so she is used to having her own way and being centre of attention and can be a bit manipulative with them emotionally, sweets for loves type thing and how's my little girl type comments,its pisses me right off but i let a lot of it slide because her first granddaughter was taken away so she's insecure i think... she just wants her own way with George, its nothing more that that, well she probably too wants to get her hands on him before my own Mum does, its all a bit childish ..

Anyway, what a tangent ! I think she really struggles with the fact that i am in charge of my kids and not her, she'll probabaly listen to the nurse and then say something like 'of course i didnt want a love now, he's only 3 weeks old and then raise her eyebrows at me.

Gah !

jeez, i need to usemore full stops !

annnnd breeaaaaattttth

Oh and when i say taken away i mean her waster mother had an affair and took her to live in wales and refused all contact.. it sounded when i read it back as if she's been abducted by aliens or social services.

nothing that exciting.

Haven't posted on your thread before worzel, but was reading it before Xmas and have just caught up now. Many congrats on George's arrival, well done for keeping him safe and well for so long. Looking forward to hearing more updates as he gets bigger and stronger.