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Premature birth

Connect with others and find premature birth support.

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Original poster

Preparing for a premature baby

71 replies

Upwind · 09/12/2008 08:53

It seems I will probably be induced/sectioned this week or next due to IUGR and olighydramnios. I will be 32 or 33 weeks, but obviously my baby's weight won't reflect that.

Is there any thing I should be preparing now to make it easier to care for my tiny baby? Any resources I should access or products I should invest in (e.g. sling, electric breast pump)?

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JumpingJellyfish · 23/12/2008 14:35

So glad to read your news Upwind- and great that you can hopefully relax and enjoy your christmas knowing that your little one is growing happily inside you

Good luck with the next scans and hope you have a few more weeks yet before little one makes an entrance into the world!

Try not to worry, it is possible that earlier scans got measurements a bit wrong- I have been told accuracy is very dependent on how the baby is lying at the time. When my DD seemed to slow down/stop growing it was while she was breech and transverse and now they think some of those measurements were incorrect. Like you said rest assured that you are being closely monitored and don't be at hesitant to ask for extra monitoring if anything worries you!

Happy Christmas! xx

Jenbottleofeggnog · 23/12/2008 14:36

That's great to hear! Good luck with the rest of your pregnancy.

Original poster

Upwind · 06/01/2009 09:56

Another update though this is now the wrong thread title and forum! Unfortunately it seems that the last growth scan showing growth was overly optimistic. Yet another growth scan has indicated that the baby has not actually been growing and I have had it checked and rechecked. Fundal height has also not increased in months.

I will be induced tomorrow at 37 weeks though it is really a trial of labour. With the baby's weight estimated at

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lizzytee · 06/01/2009 13:28

Hi there and well done to get to such a late gestation, and I hope your delivery goes well. Do try and make sure that you get good support with establishing feeding - as he is technically term this can get overlooked, especially as he may or may not need to go to special care depending on weight at delivery.

It is also not unusual for low birth weight (ie under 5lb) babies to be given small amounts of formula to maintain blood sugar levels - it might be worth asking what the hospital's clinical guidelines are on this, and to ask if any such supplement can be given by cup or ng tube rather than by bottle.

Best wishes to you both

Jenbot · 06/01/2009 14:35

Good luck for tomorrow, what a rollercoaster for you!

Original poster

Upwind · 06/01/2009 14:38

Thank you Lizzy! I'm torn between being glad I've reached such a late gestation and between worrying that the baby should have been born weeks ago, since it has not been growing.

I am half dreading the induction, because we still don't know what is really causing the IUGR and what it means for our baby. And half thrilled that we finally get to meet them!

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trixiethepixie · 06/01/2009 15:03

Huge good luck to you upwind. I spied that all things were not as well from a reply on the preg board.

Be glad that you have reached a late gestation. It doesn't matter if the baby has not been growing as long as everything else is ok. My ds also stopped growing for 2-3 weeks before they decided he had to come out, and that was because my placenta had completely packed in. He was 2lb 7 and is now average for his weight, 15 months old trying his hardest to talk and walk. You will be amazed how quickly those little IUGR babies come along.

Again all the very best of luck for tomorrow. Will be thinking of you xx

Original poster

Upwind · 06/01/2009 17:58

Thanks Trixie! I'll be back in a few days to update you all and hopefully provide photos of my tiny babe!

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AngeG · 06/01/2009 20:33

Good luck for tomorrow Upwind, fantastic that you've got to such a good gestation. Looking forward to seeing photos.

Original poster

Upwind · 23/01/2009 17:48

To update you all - we have our tiny DD homel. She was 4lbs4 and spent a few days in special care and a few more days before her weight started increasing and they were happy for us to leave the hospital.

I am shattered but happy

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mspotatochip · 24/01/2009 08:48

Congratulations upwind! I read your thread and wondered how it had gone

trixiethepixie · 25/01/2009 11:25

Brilliant upwind. I had been wondering how things had gone with you.

Congratulations on the birth of your dd. x

lizzytee · 25/01/2009 20:35

Really delighted to hear it Upwind, had been wondering how things went. DD was 4lbs4 when she came home so you have my sympathies re the logistics of feeding a small baby! How are things going?

Original poster

Upwind · 27/01/2009 10:55

Thanks all!

Lizzytee - it is going great in that she is at last gaining weight after not growing for so long. But as you may have guessed, it is not easy for me. My DD had to be tube fed formula in the SCBU for the first few days due to severe hypoglycemia and her blood sugars taking a while to stabilise. So it took her a while to grasp the concept of opening her mouth and actively feeding to get milk whether by breast, bottle or cup.

I've been trying to wean her off formula and EBM on to the breast but we still really struggle with getting her latched on properly and my nipples are getting quite sore! Being so tiny she also has to be fed at least every three hours - but she demands to be fed at least every two hours, which is definitely a good thing but very tiring!

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lizzytee · 01/02/2009 20:53

It's a tough road Upwind....however, she WILL get bigger and it does get easier.....it was honestly the only thing that kept me going. What kind of help are you getting with feeding in real life - if there is a good local bf group you may find it helpful, if only for support as it sounds like you are doing a great job. However, I'm a bit worried that you say you are sore: what help have you had with positioning?

(Sorry for tardy response)

Original poster

Upwind · 09/02/2009 15:42

Hi Lizzytee - another tardy response from me, it is now hard to find this forum!

In real life I had lots of help and support on positioning and latching at the hospital - but only one person noticed that my DD was not taking enough nipple in and one of them had scabbed over by then. It has never really healed in the three weeks since and they are both a bit sore but not terrible.

I will go to a breastfeeding group tomorrow and see how I get on

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lizzytee · 10/02/2009 16:58

Glad to hear it, depending on how you get on do also consider calling a helpline such as la leche or NCT as not all bfcs or supporters are all that confident in supporting parents with prem/low birthweight babies. The best guidance I got with dd was to always be very careful about positioning and to ensure good head and neck support. The breast and bottle feeding forum is also a good source of support.

Take care

Original poster

Upwind · 10/02/2009 18:23

Thanks again - you are right about the lack of confidence in the bf supporters at the hospital. One midwife, after I had finally been shown how to get her to latch on properly but was struggling to do it, claimed that she is so tiny her mouth was just too small. I think they were confounded by her tiny size, though it would obviously be easier for a normal sized baby to latch on well. She clearly can and does feed well though, since she is gaining weight and following an imaginary line below the bottom one on the chart

In case anyone in a similar situation digs up this thread - if I was in the same position again I would pump colostrum while being induced to reduce the need for formula in the early days. I would be more assertive in getting help with bf. Also I would rest more while my DD was in NICU and SCBU. I insisted on being there, doing the nappy change and trying to bf at every feed for the first few days and then spending an hour trying to hand express afterwards with the result that I wore myself out. I should have got more sleep and just enjoyed getting to know her as much as I could.

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lizzytee · 12/02/2009 10:08

How did you get on at the bf group? Do let me know as the fact that you are still sore and have not healed fully suggests that there is still something not quite right with positioning and that hands on help IRL should help you with that. It is very good news however that she is gaining weight.

I know what you mean about people being sceptical that a little baby can feed by themselves and I often think that the fact that most "how to" pictures show babies that are not newborns does not help as the baby/boob size relationship is different iyswim.

Please don't beat yourself up about what you did and didn't do....the first few days is such a whirlwind and the conflict of emotions when your lo is in special care is so, so difficult. I would not beat yourself up about your dd having had formula: the fact that your dd was born low birthweight means (from what you have said) that her being given formula in the early days may well have been an appropriate intervention. It can be very hard to extrapolate guidelines that are totally appropriate to term babies with no complications to special care babies and a lot of the available literature does not even try. The fact that you are breastfeeding her now is what matters most.

Take care

Original poster

Upwind · 12/02/2009 15:36

I chickened out of walking in a blizzard to the BF group! Will definitely go next week.

I think the formula was essential for my DD as her blood sugar was extremely low. But I would have liked to have had more colostrum to give her. Hand expressing when exhausted and emotional after the birth was really difficult. I had two days of slow induction before they put me on a drip or broke my waters - hand expressing then would have given me something useful to do!

OP posts:

lizzytee · 12/02/2009 20:59

I see your point . Re both snow and hand expression.

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