May Emeralds 2014! :)

[x__amour]

bumpin, I'm not really sure what to expect as I've never had a vaginal birth but with my last hospital experience a lot of things were done without my prior knowledge. I don't even know what drugs they gave me during the section. It was just injection after injection, they even sedated me because I was hysterical and had no idea. I felt really unprepared so I hope maybe writing everything down will help me this time!

 

[magicwhisper]

i like the birth plan! i have a rough idea what i want but i havent written it down yet.

 

[Wannabe Mommy]

Wannabe mommy- that's ridiculous! I'd love a home birth but no midwives in my area were available, I understand why someone Else wouldn't want one though. What does the birth center offer that the hospital doesn't? Can you try the best you can to have that birth you wanted at the hospital? I know for me I really want a water birth so I have to go to birth center, hospital doesn't offer it. But if I just wanted a natural birth I could accomplish that at hospital. Will midwife come to hospital to help you?

MW advised she can't be there have to use hospital MWs who are set up for high risk which means their go to plan is constant fetal monitoring, IV and epidural 'just in case' a C-Section is needed. No pool or birthing balls or anything tailored for active birth is provided.

Big thing for me is it means I will have to push for what I want and would prefer to have MWs on hand who encourage my preferences rather than fight them. I don't want to be bed bound and would like a natural birth with no epidural if possible.

 

[gaves99]

27 weeks!! how'd that happen!?!? Think I will get my birth plan ready. You all have some great ideas I just didnt write them down yet.

 

[daddiesgift]

In America birth is usually more medically managed than naturally so having a birth plan with what you want is a must. Although with my second who was born in America I didnt have a birth plan after my firsts birth plan going out the window I just told them as we went what I wanted. And this hospital is well known for its high csection rate and epidurals but after my firsts birth I was too eager for the epidural. Most places will not take baby to nursery unless there is a reason. When they went to wash him I told OH to go with, then I followed soon after. Then when they could tell I was exhausted they asked if I wanted them to go take him to the nursery so I could sleep a bit and I said no and that was that. I think if you just make yourself assertive and know what you want no one is going to force you into doing what you dont want, unless medically necessary of course.

Wannabemommy- Im so sorry to hear that and that sounds like it will be hard but just stick to your guns and make sure they are listening to you. Id hire a doula if you can. Also this is just blowing my mind that they only thing going against you is your weight and they are considering that high risk and telling you all the things they will do to you??!! If you and baby are otherwise healthy no one can force you to get an epidural or strap you to the bed

 

[stouffer]

I'm not writing a birth plan really. Last time I just put something like "Dad to cut cord and announce gender".

I guess it's because you don't know how the birth will go or how you'll feel at the time. I had an induction last time and it was overall a good experience but there were a few aspects that I really didn't enjoy and want to avoid this time.

For example, while being induced I had the most painful part of labour on my own in the ward in the middle of the night. My husband wasn't allowed to be there and they couldn't even give me gas and air. I almost laughed when they offered me paracetamol.
I also had a huge run-in with the ward sister who basically tried bullying me into staying a 3rd night (NHS hospital - I thought they would be dying to get rid of me). She actually lied to me and said my baby was going to back in the next day and would go down hill because I was finding breastfeeding painful. FFS! Breastfeeding hurts sometimes! I ended up discharging myself because of that bitch and even had to kick up a fuss to get her to take out the cannula that they'd left in for over a day after it was needed.

So with that in mind I'm hoping to avoid another induction. Not much I can do about it if necessary but it won't be in the same hospital at least. The plan for now is a birthing centre because my husband is allowed to stay with me the whole time and it's closer to my home. It's a 30 minute drive away from a proper hospital though which is a worry.

 

[Starry Night]

x-amour - that sounds very stressful! I had everything explained to me step by step and I could tell the staff were trying their hardest to prevent my eventual c-section. They explained how I might need to be put under if my epidural had failed and they did a little "poke test" to see. I felt it and even as they were putting the mask on they explained what they were doing and made sure I understood. Even though my birth wasn't ideal I felt very taken care of and have no complaints. I'm sorry yours was rough.

I think the worst part of my hospital stay was the conflicting BF info I would get from the nurses. Each one had their own opinion on how to make it work. My friends have all complained about the same thing. I also didn't like getting my boobs manhandled. They'd just come and grab my boobs without even asking.

 

[x__amour]

https://imageshack.com/a/img577/2605/lnf3.jpg

28 weeks today! 12 weeks to go.

 

[Rosie06]

the last 2 days ive been having dizzy spells normally start when i get up from sitting or if ive had my head down then lift it up, ive checked my blood sugars and they are fine, anything else it could be?

im not going to bother so much with a birth plan this time, didnt even get looked at last time my main priority is baby is delivered safely, will prob discuss with MW on wednesday though.

x-amour such a cute bump!!! i look like a whale!

totally forgot but we have our 4d scan on tuesday so looking forward to that

 

[daddiesgift]

"Manhandled boobs" I've also had that experience! With my first the nurses kept coming in and squeezing them really hard to see what came out. Then after a few weeks of bfing I saw a lactation consultant who didn't really listen to me at all but I told her every time he'd latch he'd pull right off screaming so she said "you don't give him a choice!" And grabbed my boob and his head and shoved them together force fully and would not let go! Later to find I have a forceful let down and he was choking! So for weeks I tried her method of basically drowning him till it slowed down. With my second when I was having trouble I called a lactation consultant who came to my house and again with cracked bleedy 9 day engorged boobs she kept manhandling my nipples!! It's a surprise I didn't punch her in the face just from causing more pain. Never EVER have I been able to hand express and here she was trying to do it for me! Then she tried a sheild on me and her popping it off and on made me want to die!

 

[Lilly12]

Cute bumps!!



Mine is so much bigger this time around!

We just found out we are moving… THIS WEEK!!
So I'm packing like crazy since we are moving on Wednesday/Thursday, we just got the news yesterday lol.
So happy though, we will have a single family home with a yard and 3 bedrooms, 2 full baths and a 2 car garage and huge driveway (garage will be my business storage and stuff). So excited!!
We will also still only be 10 mins from the beach, and it is a nice neighborhood.

 

[Excalibur]

Happy 27 weeks!

Amour - Happy 28 weeks

Rosie - Yay for having a 4D scan, only 2 more sleeps

Lilly - I hope everything goes well with your move

I have my 28 week scan tomorrow with the Fetal Assessment Unit, can't wait to see Jayden again

 

[magicwhisper]

yay to moving hope it isnt too stressful for you

 

[ltrip84]

Rosie, have you checked your blood pressure?

 

[Phantom]

Baby has been feeling so low. I get tons of kicks to my cervix. I'm overdo for an OB appointment too because they said they would call to book one and they didn't. Should have gone with a midwife I think.

I can't believe I have almost 99 days to go!

 

[bumpin2012]

I think the worst part of my hospital stay was the conflicting BF info I would get from the nurses. Each one had their own opinion on how to make it work. My friends have all complained about the same thing. I also didn't like getting my boobs manhandled. They'd just come and grab my boobs without even asking.

OMG. I could have written this! I was sooo frustrated with the breasfeeding info. G refused every attempt to feed him, and just got more and more frustrated. One nurse would tell me to pump some colostrum and dropper feed, another would tell me not to pump, but just keep trying him on the boob. Then the 3rd told me to hand express, and fingerfeed, another wanted me to pump into a little bottle for him. Nipple shield, no nipple shield... I was an emotional wreck and so confused. I feel like those first 3 days of inconsistent and downright contradictory information ruined our breastfeeding relationship. I never did manage to get him to breastfeed much, and was in such a depression over it, it was ridiculous! Never again will I put that much stress on my family over something as silly as breastfeeding. I will try again, but if it doesn't work, baby is getting a bottle.


Lovely bump! Im soooo much bigger this time around. Uncomfortable already, my whole abdomen feels tight and heavy.

Good luck with your move Lilly!

Phantom, I feel lots of cervical pressure and what feels like little fingers playing with it. Most of the kicks I feel are directed at my hip. Baby is insistent on being transverse, which is starting to freak me out a little...

 

[Rosie06]

Rosie, have you checked your blood pressure?

no i havnt i dont have a bp machine im at midwife on wednesday morning im going to mention it to her then, it just random times it happens though theres no pattern to it where i could think its related to something x

 

[emalou90]

All these poor people being flooded in the UK
Feel so sorry for them! Bit OT but nobody seems to be doing anything apart from the residents!
There just isn't enough people to help x

 

[ltrip84]

Rosie, have you checked your blood pressure?

no i havnt i dont have a bp machine im at midwife on wednesday morning im going to mention it to her then, it just random times it happens though theres no pattern to it where i could think its related to something x

I really think that's what it could be. I would try to get up from sitting much more slowly to see if that helps. I remember reading somewhere that blood pressure can do that if you get up fast. Let us know!

 

[Starry Night]

I think the worst part of my hospital stay was the conflicting BF info I would get from the nurses. Each one had their own opinion on how to make it work. My friends have all complained about the same thing. I also didn't like getting my boobs manhandled. They'd just come and grab my boobs without even asking.

OMG. I could have written this! I was sooo frustrated with the breasfeeding info. G refused every attempt to feed him, and just got more and more frustrated. One nurse would tell me to pump some colostrum and dropper feed, another would tell me not to pump, but just keep trying him on the boob. Then the 3rd told me to hand express, and fingerfeed, another wanted me to pump into a little bottle for him. Nipple shield, no nipple shield... I was an emotional wreck and so confused. I feel like those first 3 days of inconsistent and downright contradictory information ruined our breastfeeding relationship. I never did manage to get him to breastfeed much, and was in such a depression over it, it was ridiculous! Never again will I put that much stress on my family over something as silly as breastfeeding. I will try again, but if it doesn't work, baby is getting a bottle.


Lovely bump! Im soooo much bigger this time around. Uncomfortable already, my whole abdomen feels tight and heavy.

Good luck with your move Lilly!

Phantom, I feel lots of cervical pressure and what feels like little fingers playing with it. Most of the kicks I feel are directed at my hip. Baby is insistent on being transverse, which is starting to freak me out a little...

I had a similar experience. I ended up FF'ing DS because he refused to nurse and he wasn't even peeing anymore and I was spiraling into post partum depression with all the stress. I had even seen a lactation consultant who had said "i can make any baby nurse". Obviously, she had never met my child. I'm really hoping to BF this time but I'm not willing to put myself through that level of stress again. I think it will go better if I pretend I'm an "old hand" at it and just try to figure it out at me and my baby's own pace. And if I have to go to FF then so be it.