March Monkeys 2016: 21 boys and 15 girls born

[littlelily]

Like you Joo, I don't really have a plan at the moment. There aren't all that many options in my area. My sister had a lovely water birth in a birthing centre but they don't have one where I live.

I think after talking to the midwife I will have more of a plan (I hope!).

On a side note: what is everyone wearing? So many of my tops show the bump so obviously! I was wearing lots of leggings but they are digging in at the waist. Should I buy some maternity ones or just the next size up? Seeing some friends next week camping and don't want to tell them yet.

 

[stuckinoki]

I'm rocking a lot of loose sundresses atm. I'm so bloated and pants just aren't working. Lol

 

[Buttercup84]

Oh gosh, another one here whose first labour didn't go to plan at all. I ended up induced with pitocin at 11 days overdue. I had an epidural which worked really well but the whole experience was fairly traumatic (second bordering on third degree tear and 2.5 litre hemmorhage requiring a blood transfusion) My second labour was another post dates induction (this time 13 days overdue, I obviously keep them too comfy in there lol!) but the cervadil gel put me into labour and I progressed really quickly after my waters broke on their own (1h45 from 4cm to baby and 45 minutes of that was pushing as she'd turned back to back!) I only used gas and air as pain relief, partly as there was no time for anything else lol, but I ditched it during pushing anyway as it was making me lose focus. No tearing and minimal blood loss too Only thing was the midwife I had was a cow and insisted on constant monitoring even though I wasn't on pitocin so there should have been no need and she wouldn't let me be upright to push but generally it was a much better experience than my first labour.
I'm pretty well expecting another post dates induction (I'm not comfortable going past 42 weeks and my girls were 9lbs 4oz and 9lbs 7oz so i'm confident they were truly late and not incorrect dates) though i'll try all the usual tricks to coax him/her out before then!

 

[CurlyRose]

I've bought jeans in a size bigger to account for the bloat, and already live in loose fit tshirts, but they aren't doing the job, sadly dresses and nice clothes are no good for work, so there's not much more I can do! A colleague told me this morning that I was showing early, didn't believe me when I said it was just fat and bloat!

 

[Left wonderin]

I feel soooo bloated !!! I look 9 months !!!!

 

[joo]

I have just had a birthday so spent my money on some much needed clothes! Hadn't really bought much since I had my daughter so everything I had was pretty well worn/ill-fitting and definitely showing the bloat! I am now wearing my normal size jeans plus a pair of jeans in a size up, and longer/looser/floatier tops. I have dug my maternity clothes out, but not quite ready for them yet. I was in them early last time too. I think the bump bands will be coming out soon, as well as the hair bobble over the jeans button! I was reminded yesterday how my bump showed more in the afternoons last time, as my bloat now looks smallish in the morning and then looks like a 6 months pregnant bump by mid afternoon!

As for labour, if it feels like it did last time then I reckon I will kbow to get hospital, thus hopefully avoiding the panic I was in last time. From there I am hoping I will keep more control and have the confidence to do it how I want to (within reason).

 

[stuckinoki]

Old navy is having a 30% off sale today online...I was able to pick up a couple pair of jeans [$15.99 on clearance!] I got 5 pairs of jeans and a tank top for $60...I had a $35 credit and with the discounts and my credit I got $140 worth of stuff for $60 so I'm excited!

I already have a ton of tops and dresses, our thrift store in Japan was AMAZING and I was constantly buying stuff all while we've been TTC...I have a hoard of maternity wardrobe just itching to be worn! So far my shorts and stuff still fit, though a couple of my sundresses are getting tight in the belly...it's all bloat though! ha ha ha

Also, I'm SUPER EXCITED! I just talked to my Auntie [who is just about the only member of my family that I love and get along with] I told her the news although DH made me promise not to tell anyone, but I HAAAAAD to! I'm going to head down to Myrtle Beach for a little road trip and family vacation when DH starts school next week. I'm really looking forward to it! When we lived in NC we were only a short drive from them and I spent just about all of my summer weekends down there. Now I'm missing them terribly so I can't wait to visit and lounge by the pool and eat junk food

Sorry for the ramble, I'm just super excited!

 

[joo]

Sorry, I don't mean to scare any new mums-to-be with my war stories! I was just under prepared and in denial! I could totally post a list of things to have prepared in advance for anyone wanting to avoid being the panic-stricken banshee screaming down the Labour and Delivery ward like me

 

[joo]

Aww stucki I'm excited for you! It's great when you get to tell someone IRL. It's lovely talking to ladies online, but it gets REAL when you share it with someone in your life

 

[mac1979]

Sorry, I don't mean to scare any new mums-to-be with my war stories! I was just under prepared and in denial! I could totally post a list of things to have prepared in advance for anyone wanting to avoid being the panic-stricken banshee screaming down the Labour and Delivery ward like me

I am keeping my story to myself as I don't want to scare anybody either.

Think I may dig out my maternity clothes tonight to see what all I have. My Raptor was a summer baby so most of my maternity shirts are short sleeves or tank tops. Those wont do for cold Nebraska winters.

 

[ferens06]

Both my labours were good and positive, to balance things out. My first was an induction too that lasted 8hrs. My seconds labour started naturally and also lasted 8hrs, both were born in a birth pool with no pain relief except the water itself (gas and air makes me sick).

Try not to worry, each birth goes differently. What happens to someone else has no relevance to your labour experience my birth plan was brief because really its not a plan, its just a list of things youd ideally want.

 

[.hopeful.one.]

I have been wearing a few maternity things along with nice stretchy yoga pants. I've been finding my regular jeans to be very uncomfortable even though I've actually lost weight since becoming pregnant.

As far as a labor plan... I don't have one lol it makes me really anxious thinking about it. Can we just skip to the part where the baby is in my arms!?

 

[joo]

Did anyone try hypnobirthing, or is anyone thinking of trying it? I saw a lot of ladies on here were doing it last time I was pregnant, but I never looked in to it.

 

[ruby83]

Most people I have spoken to say their subsequent lab ours were easier. I take solance from this! Also no matter how traumatic your first birth was, we all came out the other end, recovered and are now lining up to do it all over again! Haha

Last night was my first bout of nausea. Didn't vomit but felt wretched and had to sit next to the toilet burping like a sailor under I got some relief!

 

[KalonKiki]

My labor last time was awful, but fortunately I went in without a real plan because I knew that likely things would not go my way. I was diagnosed with preeclampsia in Triage after I went into labor (even though high blood pressure was literally my only symptom, I had no swelling and all of my labs came back normal). My labor lasted about 11 hours and I was given an epidural after 9 hours of labor (the stress from the pain of my contractions was causing DS's vitals to crash every time I had one and I wanted an epidural from the get-go anyway, I was actually upset that they made me wait so long). My water broke entirely on its own while I was in Triage and after the epidural and induction (they induced me after the epidural to speed things up because of the high blood pressure). DS was born at 38 weeks exactly weighing 5 lbs 3 oz and our hospital stay was about 4 days. I had a vaginal birth, my doctor was kind enough to avoid a c-section if at all possible even though they definitely had probable cause to suggest one.

This time I'm hoping that I give birth closer to my due date, have a baby closer to 6 lbs, don't have high blood pressure, that my labor doesn't last as long, and that my hospital stay doesn't last as long. We don't have birthing centers around here and considering how my last labor and delivery went I am not comfortable with the idea of a home birth. I am however worried about the hospital I will give birth in this time since it will likely not be the same one as last time. The last hospital is now a 2 hour drive minimum (it was 15 minutes away last time). I will likely choose the hospital 30 minutes away over the hospital 15 minutes away (I've heard very bad things about the closer hospital and I am not comfortable with the idea of giving birth there).

Nausea has started right on cue today. It makes me nervous, I'm really hoping that this isn't a sign that my MS will go the same way this time that it did last time.
Also super constipated today (sorry TMI) and more exhausted than I could have ever imagined, I slept so much today and still feel tired.

 

[BabeAwait]

Mac The birthing center is midwife led. I don't know of any midwife led hospitals and honestly any further away from the two I'm considering isn't a practical drive. It's ridiculous there are rules against water births, like for what reason? Are they uneducated and think the baby will drown or something? Lol. I admit I've thought "well if I start pushing in the tub they won't stop me".

Littlelily I've had to wear loose tops since I found out due to bloat. Flowy pieces help. If you'd feel more comfortable in maternity clothes I say go for it! Can't hurt to stock up early. Oh and yoga pants I wear as much as possible they are SO COMFY.

Joo Ugh I have the same problem. My stomach looks almost normal in the morning and by bedtime I look 6 months pregnant.

I wish we could get gas and air here! Can I just like move to the uk to have my baby? Lol. Things look much more pleasant there on One Born.

 

[CurlyRose]

Ladies with horror birth stories, keep them coming! I like to be prepared in all honesty, the birth that I was partner for was pretty brutal and that didn't put me off, so I'm not sure anything will. I'm sure it will change when I get there, but I'm really looking forward to the challenge of the birth and seeing how I will manage it!

 

[KalonKiki]

The best birth advice that I can offer to the first timers is if at all possible try to make your OB/midwife wait as long as possible to manually break your waters if you want a pain medication free birth (that is if they don't break on their own sooner). Contractions can be annoying but completely manageable before your water breaks but after is when they become incredibly painful and close together. I would also work on stress/pain management skills. You think you understand how painful and stressful labor is until you actually experience it. It is oddly one of the most thrilling moments you will ever experience in your life though. I would also like to remind everyone that no matter how their labor/birth ends up going you are NOT a failure and you will do an amazing job bringing your babies into this world no matter the means.

Also for those who plan to get epidurals: DEMAND that epidural as early as possible, do not let them wait until your contractions are unmanageable or you're having contractions on top of contractions to finally give you the juice. It's so much harder to sit still for the epidural when you're in that much pain.

There are so many things I could tell the first time moms about what to expect with labor (like that it's completely normal to shake uncontrollably while you're in labor, WTF?) but then this post would pretty much be a book.

I absolutely love belly bands! I bought one and started using it at around 8 weeks with DS, it was so comfortable and kept me in my pre-pregnancy jeans for so much longer. I'll probably start buying maternity clothes in October (depending on how fast my bump grows I may need to start buying them in September instead). My bloat pretty much looks like a 3-4 month bump day and night, it doesn't tend to change much. I'm still able to go without the belly band yet though because my bloat bump is slightly higher than the top of my pants.

 

[NDH]

BabeAwait that's exactly what a lot of women at my local hospital dis before waterbirths were finally allowed. All the rooms have a big tub for labouring but until 6 months ago policy was you had to get out to push. But they can't physically remove you from the tub so just don't get out and they can't stop you

Just so everyone is aware, despite what medical professionals say and want you to believe, YOU are the one in charge at your birth and you don't have to allow anyone to do anything you don't want them to do. Hospitals have policies that are often not in your best interest and its ok to refuse if insist on things that you want that are against policy. They may not like it but everything is still your call.

And just a note about birth plans, as some people see them as a rigid "this is how I want my birth to go" and some don't bother doing them so they won't be disappointed, but I still highly encourage everyone to do one. It doesn't mean that you expect that it will turn our that way, but I see it more like a map. This is what I want to happen but in the event of xyz this is still important to me and that is less important. It's about researching what your options are so you are prepared for different possibilities so you can always remain an active participant in your birth rather than having things done to you and not even knowing why. A birth plan can be as simple as saying "please treat me with respect and as an individual. Ask my permission before doing things and present me with options and risks and benefits of each so I cam make an informed decision instead of giving me your recommendation as if its something I don't have a choice about and it doesn't have any risks"

 

[joo]

The best birth advice that I can offer to the first timers is if at all possible try to make your OB/midwife wait as long as possible to manually break your waters if you want a pain medication free birth (that is if they don't break on their own sooner). Contractions can be annoying but completely manageable before your water breaks but after is when they become incredibly painful and close together.

Completely the opposite for me! My contractions were thick and far omit top of each other right until the end, then the midwife broke my waters and i had a little relief! I am also taking solace that each labour is different. My mother had a pretty much identical labour with me (the eldest), even down to the same birth injury and same sort of recovery after, but her next two births were pretty much plain sailing with no injury. This makes me feel better, plus I think I have more confidence now to trust my body and pay attention. Last time I was definitely working against myself ! I am definitely DEFINITELY going tp be looking at some pain management techniques which is why I mentioned hypnobirthing.