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Hi Guys! We moved the day after I got out of the hospital so I just now got the laptop up and running! Jack is great! He was 11 pounds 13 ounces and 22 and a half inches long! I've lost 30 pounds since the birth. Most was baby! He's not sleeping well yet at night but we're working on it. I am tired and trying to keep up at this point. I have had my Mom here the past few days and my Hubby will be with me until Wednesday next week so we're in good shape I think. Thanks for all the well wishes. I'll try to post a pic: http://www.darthunix.com/pics/displayimage.php?album=161&pos=6 He's almost as big as his sister! I might not be on as much the next few days so good luck to all of you with your babies!
Posts: 601 | Registered: Sep 2002
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I have news as well...*drumroll* It's a boy! It was so amazing to see my little baby on that screen. Everything was as it should be (two arms, two legs, two kidneys, good spine, cerebellum, bladder, stomach, good strong heart), and all in the right range size-wise. They didn't change my due date at all.
I've been grinning all day!
Posts: 1635 | Registered: Aug 2002
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Congrats to dawnmaria and hansenj!!! I am so glad my baby wasn't that big. And the ultrasound is really exciting. My husband and I were talking about it afterwards. The weird thing inside me went from an it, to a baby and more importantly, a daughter. And if we have a daughter, that makes us parents.
Posts: 1001 | Registered: Mar 2006
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And yay for boys, hansenj. We can't wait to find out what we're having, Emma has been asking for weeks already Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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Boon
unregistered
posted
Boo has been insisting that *he* has a baby in *his* belly, too. And his baby is a boy, and is named Maurico.
I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow. I'm taking a huge long list of questions to ask him, as well as the summaries of some studies I've read that refute what he said last time. I'm not really looking to make him mad, I just want to know where he got his numbers. If he pulled them out of his butt, I'm finding another provider.
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Yay dawnmaria!! I can't even imagine an 11 pound baby!! That's a major accomplishment!!
Congrats on your little boy hansenj!! It's so amazing to see that little tiny person and so comforting when all the bits are as they should be.
Good luck with your doctor's appointment tomorrow Boon. I hope if this doc isn't the one for you that you can find a good one quickly!
Posts: 5879 | Registered: Apr 2001
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Congratulations, dawnmaria! He doesn't even look like a newborn - he looks like a beautiful 3-month-old.
Yay for boys, hansenj!
I hope you're not too uncomfortable, divaesefani.
Boon, I sympathize. We had a surgical consult in Newport News and I didn't like the guy, what he had to say, or how he said it. He will not be involved in Aerin's surgery in any way. Good for you for doing your own research and sticking to your guns!
Posts: 3037 | Registered: Jan 2002
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And is there anything worse than being pregnant AND sick? My voice is almost gone, my nose is runny and conjested at the same time, and I've had a three-day headache-- all this on top of the normal pregnancy stuff. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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posted
I have the same thing. This cold is driving me absolutely nuts just as I get to into week 13 and am suppose to be feeling better. Add to that a headache and neck ache that won't seem to go away and avoidance of medicine and I am really grouchy these days. Although seeing the cute baby pics and hearing about people finding out if its a boy or girl make me smile and think about how happy I'll be when its my turn.
Posts: 416 | Registered: May 2005
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Yeah, I'm looking forward to the end of the first trimester. Although I actually had "morning" sickness until about 7 months the first time around, hope that doesn't happen this time...
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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I'm so sorry you guys are sick. That has to be awful.
I'm really hoping I don't get sick this week. Every time we go visit my inlaws I get a cold. I'm having lots of fun visiting (even the plane ride wasn't bad) and really really don't want to get sick. So far I'm doing well, so I'm hoping I can keep it up. After we get back, I'll experiment with not taking my anti-nausea meds and see if I can finally go off them (I'm taking so many pills, I'm really getting tired of it).
Posts: 5879 | Registered: Apr 2001
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I'm having trouble finding one in my area that isn't held during the middle of the day (doesn't everyone work??) and/or doesn't cost hundreds of dollars.
Are they worth it, or should I just sort of wing it? Is there some website I can gather the important information and share with my husband, or is it the sort of thing you really need to do in person?
posted
It depends on the class, and on what type of birth you're planning. I wanted natural childbirth and after reading 3-4 books there was nothing presented in our pre-natal classes that I didn't already have a pretty good grasp on. In fact, I probably could have taught the class.
Bob, however, learns better by hearing than by reading, (and he hadn't been reading as obsessively as I was) so he got more out of it. Plus the teacher (jokingly) assigned us to write a poem in honor of the placenta as homework, and he really got into it.
I don't think it was worth hundreds of dollars, though, either way. The exception might be if you're taking a specific type of class, like the Bradly Method or something along those lines.
The important part is getting a tour of the hospital and talking to the nurses on the maternity floor, but you can probably set that up yourself or have your doctor arrange it for you. And if you are writing a birth plan, have your doctor review it first and then take it along when you tour the hospital. It helps to focus the conversation if they know that you've already done your homework and have some idea what you're talking about.
Posts: 9866 | Registered: Apr 2002
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Lissande- are you planning on natural delivery? Most of the information in my class, I could have found online. The benefit of doing the class in person is learning/practicing the relaxation techniques. Since I did an epidural pretty quick, relaxing wasn't a big problem for me. My sister in law did it natural so the classes were more important for her. My classes were offered by the hospital. Your obgyn might be able to tell you about some good resources.
Posts: 1001 | Registered: Mar 2006
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Thanks for your advice - I'm not decided on whether I want an epidural and how natural I want to go - I'm giving birth in a hospital, but if I can make it without the epidural I probably will. Don't really want to commit myself before I know what labor is like for me.
I would like to at least be aware of different techniques, particularly ways my husband can be helpful during labor (massage back, whatever), and anything else to expect or prepare for. I've been to the hospital I'll deliver at, and would attend their childbirth classes as well, but they are one of the ones offered for 90 minute sessions during the work day - I could do that, since my maternity leave starts tomorrow (taking the rest of my vacation before it officially starts Oct 1), but my husband works, and I think it would help him to attend with me.
And I was SLIGHTLY exaggerating with the hundreds of dollars comment - I had just seen a class offered for $200, which seemed totally inappropriate. The most expensive courses I've seen otherwise are under $75. Which still seems a bit high, but whatever.
Posts: 2762 | Registered: Sep 1999
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posted
I think ours was around $80, but it was six sessions, so it didn't seem that out of line. Having your husband there is very important -- it gets you both on the same page and provides an opportunity to discuss your preferences in different situations. If you're going to go by yourself you might as well just read a book. (IMO, of course.)
And speaking of books, Bob said that Father's First Steps by Drs. Bob & Jim Sears was the book (of the several he tried) that really helped him feel confident about his role in the birth process.
Posts: 9866 | Registered: Apr 2002
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posted
If you want to do a natural delivery (no drugs/epidural) then I highly recommend a real lamaze/childbirth class that focuses on relxation techniques. Ask first. I ended up signing up for one that basically assumed we were all getting drugs/epi and the breathing/relaxation exercises were a joke.
Of course, I loved my epi and won't go any other way now that I've experienced it, but it would have been nice to have real options. :=)
Just so you have a perspective from someone who used and loved the epidural, here's how it went for me:
I was undecided until a few days before I delivered, when I went into the hospital on a false alarm and the nurse told me to, "Come back when it really hurts." I decided then and there that I was too wimpy to go it alone.
I went into the hospital with hard labor pains at about 5:00 in the morning. At 8:00 I got my epidural and there was almost immediate relief. Yeah, I couldn't move anymore but I wasn't moving anyway -- it hurt too much! My husband and I then passed a very pleasant day playing cards and reading Harry Potter together. At 3:00 the contractions were coming so hard and close that I could feel them through the epi so we turned on the TV and waited for permission to start pushing -- which came as Oprah started (4:00).
I had no trouble feeling the urge to push through the epidural and I delivered at 4:37. (Average first time moms push for 2 hours -- so that's fast!)
They put him on my stomach immediately and I actually cried. It was pretty emotional. After they weighted and checked him I was able to nurse him for the first time.
The epidural made my legs feel rubbery for about 2 hours after they took it out and then I could walk no problem. By the next day I was more bored than anything else.
Posts: 2392 | Registered: Sep 2005
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I loved my epidurals, especially the last one. But I've heard really great things about HypnoBabies if you don't want an epidural but are unsure of your ability to focus using Lamaze techniques (which do NOTHING for me, but guided relaxation helps a TEENY bit, moving makes the pain worse for me, and my bp drops so low after a while they won't let me move anyway...) Anyway, that's another option. I've decided I'm getting an epidural every time, because I love them. I played Hangman, sang along with music, and watched M*A*S*H (because the dvd player didn't work) last labor. It was awesome. I knew I was in transition when Hawkeye wasn't funny all of a sudden and I made my husband turn off the tv and get the nurse. Sure enough as we were waiting for her I felt the need to push, and when they checked me I was ready to go! Yay for epidurals!
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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So if I could always feel my contractions through the epidural, does that mean that the epidural worked differently for me or that I was in pretty heavy labor when I got it?
Posts: 1903 | Registered: Sep 2003
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It could mean either. Or it could have been that you register pressure as pain (I do. But last time they gave me a narcotic as well as an epidural, good stuff. So I kinda forgot I was in pain even as the pain was going on.)
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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quote:Originally posted by dawnmaria: Hi Guys! We moved the day after I got out of the hospital so I just now got the laptop up and running! Jack is great! He was 11 pounds 13 ounces and 22 and a half inches long! I've lost 30 pounds since the birth. Most was baby! He's not sleeping well yet at night but we're working on it. I am tired and trying to keep up at this point. I have had my Mom here the past few days and my Hubby will be with me until Wednesday next week so we're in good shape I think. Thanks for all the well wishes. I'll try to post a pic: http://www.darthunix.com/pics/displayimage.php?album=161&pos=6 He's almost as big as his sister! I might not be on as much the next few days so good luck to all of you with your babies!
Wow! Your son was almost twice as big as mine when he was born. OUCH!
posted
Oh, I didn't mind feeling the contractions still. In fact, I'm seriously considering not getting an epidural next time. I was just wondering.
Posts: 1903 | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
I didn't have an epidural or any drugs, but I didn't end up using any of the pattern breathing or "techniques" from the one session of our class that dealt with it. I tried at one point, but it felt kind of stupid and I was doing just fine with breathing in whatever way felt right at the time. So that's what I did.
Posts: 9866 | Registered: Apr 2002
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Boon
unregistered
posted
quote:Originally posted by ketchupqueen: Boon, how did the appointment go?
Let's just say I'm feeling very unsupported in my wishes for this birth; both my husband and my mother are very afraid and basing their opinions and demands on their fears instead of on the research and my wishes.
I'm tired already of the "ifs." I can have a VBAC "if" I go into labor spontaneously by 41 weeks. I can have a VBAC "if" I'm making "sufficient progress" during labor. I can do it "if" I'm a good little patient and let the doctor make all the decisions for me. Gag.
I am not broken. I am more than a uterus, and it's not on the verge of exploding. I will give birth, and it will be beautiful.
I'm presuming your husband and mother have a founding for their fear?
Still, not stress you need, and it sounds like you know what you want, and it is, after all, your body.
Posts: 4393 | Registered: Aug 2003
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quote:Originally posted by ketchupqueen: Boon, how did the appointment go?
Let's just say I'm feeling very unsupported in my wishes for this birth; both my husband and my mother are very afraid and basing their opinions and demands on their fears instead of on the research and my wishes.
I'm tired already of the "ifs." I can have a VBAC "if" I go into labor spontaneously by 41 weeks. I can have a VBAC "if" I'm making "sufficient progress" during labor. I can do it "if" I'm a good little patient and let the doctor make all the decisions for me. Gag.
I am not broken. I am more than a uterus, and it's not on the verge of exploding. I will give birth, and it will be beautiful.
Sorry. /rant
I assume you are familiar with ICAN? I'm sure you are. They can't make you go along with their ifs. You have the right to choose your treatment. (((hugs))) I'm sure it will work out.
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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posted
All right, I have a question that's going to totally go against the grain of what I know you're supposed to do. But the thing is, multivitamins make me sick. I don't even take the gut-wrenching prenatals that you need a prescription to get...just over the counter multi-vitamins that have all the recommended levels of whatever for pregnant and trying to conceive women. They make me sick. Half the time I get nauseous and about once every two weeks I actually throw up.
When I was pregnant with my son, I would go for a few days and then stop for a few days until 4 months, when I quit entirely. He 100% fine, btw.
Since we started trying a few months ago I've been back in the on again off again vitamin thing. My husband thinks I should quit. He has absolutely no faith in manufactured vitamins and I can't entirely disagree with him. My body sure doesn't seem to like them.
I'm in an on again mode this week, mostly because I found out for sure that I'm pregnant, but I just hate them. Yesterday they went past nausea and gave me a piercing headache (and this is too early for morning sickness....I just missed my period).
So, now that I'm done ranting, does anyone have any thoughts on prenatal vitamins? Is there anything else I can do? I try to eat well. Could I just drink orange juice every day or something?
Posts: 2392 | Registered: Sep 2005
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posted
If you want to keep taking them, try taking them right before you go to bed.
Studies have shown that taking prenatal vitamins reduces the risk of a lot of nasty things. That does not mean that if you don't take them your kid will have any of the nasty problems -- after all women have been having babies for thousands of years before anyone knew anything about vitamins.
If it were me and I could not take them I'd be most worried about the folic acid. But whole wheat has a lot of that, as does asparagus and spinach. So I'd eat a lot of those, and look up other foods high in folate. Higher risk of spinal bifida with possible paralysis, and mental retardation is something I'm willing to do quite a bit to avoid, even if the chances are pretty low anyway.
eta: I have heard that many women find the prescription prenatals less noxious than the over the counter kind.
Posts: 9866 | Registered: Apr 2002
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posted
I did a look up of foods high in folic acid a long time ago and I eat many of them on a daily basis. One of the best sources is a bowl of breakfast cereal, actually.
Also, folic acid needs to be in your system at the time of conception or it's too late. So if I didn't do well enough between the vitamin every other day and all the asparagus, peas, spinach, broccoli, and cauliflower I eat for dinner then the damage is done.
I'll try the bedtime thing, though, and see if that helps.
Posts: 2392 | Registered: Sep 2005
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posted
(just an aside, more a clarification -- the current recommendation is for folic acid supplementation for 1 month prior to conception and at least 3 months afterward)
Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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quote:folic acid needs to be in your system at the time of conception or it's too late.
Well, not really. See, folic acid does different things at different times. Although if you don't take it for the first two months it isn't there at the recommended levels to reduce the risks of some things, for others you need it as far along as the second trimester.
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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posted
I wasn't on any prenatals before conception since I wasn't exactly planning to get pregnant. It was freaking me out, but my doctor said that the risk was low and that my baby should be okay. Perhaps she was just trying to placate me, I don't know.
I don't like asparagus and peas, and we really don't eat cauliflower in my home, although I think it is tolerable. I love broccoli, but I don't think we happened to be eating it much for months before. *sigh*
I wish this whole folic acid thing were publicized a bit more. I had no idea until AFTER I got pregnant.
Posts: 2880 | Registered: Jun 2004
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posted
The fact that you need it in your system prior to conception is why so many foods are fortified with the stuff -- that way even if you're not planning to get pregnant you're not totally deficient in it if you've eaten breakfast cereals or anything made with enriched flour.
Posts: 9866 | Registered: Apr 2002
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quote:Originally posted by Katarain: I wasn't on any prenatals before conception since I wasn't exactly planning to get pregnant. It was freaking me out, but my doctor said that the risk was low and that my baby should be okay. Perhaps she was just trying to placate me, I don't know.
I don't like asparagus and peas, and we really don't eat cauliflower in my home, although I think it is tolerable. I love broccoli, but I don't think we happened to be eating it much for months before. *sigh*
I wish this whole folic acid thing were publicized a bit more. I had no idea until AFTER I got pregnant.
He wasn't just making you feel better...the odds really are low. 7 in 10,000 births last I read, or less than .1%.
There is a lot of information out there about folic acid. Perhaps gynecologists should discuss it with all women of child bearing age. They WILL talk about it if you say you're trying.
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I don't eat a lot of breakfast cereals, but I probably eat a lot of stuff with enriched flour. So, that's good.
Posts: 2880 | Registered: Jun 2004
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One of our major projects at the March of Dimes is folic acid education and awareness. I've been taking it for years. Here's some info.
I cannot extol the virtues of prenatal vitamins enough. Particularly those with omega-3 fatty acids. I took DuetDHA even before conceiving Aerin (I'm on them now, in fact) and she was the only 26-weeker the docs had ever seen that didn't have any brain bleeds. They made me plenty sick, but I'm so thankful that I took them anyway - Aerin needed all the help she could get.
Posts: 3037 | Registered: Jan 2002
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posted
OK, so this is old news now, but congratulations to dawnmaria anyway! What a cute, cute baby!
I decided not to worry about the folic acid. I wasn't trying to get pregnant (was happy to get pregnant nonetheless), but according to my mypyramid stats, I was still getting lots of it through food. (Before the pregnancy-induced vegetable aversion, we ate lots and lots of spinach, broccoli, etc. etc. etc.)
But given what I've read, if we decide we even might have another child, I'll be sure to take a supplement.
Posts: 834 | Registered: Jun 2005
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Jack had his 2 week check up today. What I thought was just a little rash or baby acne turns out to be a staph infection. They put him on Ceflex and some phiso-something soap to bath with a couple of times. I a little paranoid that he's going to have a reaction to the antibiotic. He's been fussy and super gassy all day. I don't know what else to do for him. Hubby just got him to go to sleep finally. As soon as I get the Princess down I am going to take a shower and pass out! This was my first day out and about with both kids alone. I feel like I got my butt kicked. How do you go to the bathroom with a toddler and a stroller? I had Leslie stand by the door where I could see her feet and told her to hold Jack's stroller and tell me if anybody came in the room. I had her sing her Abc's and it worked out fine but it's nerve racking! Just getting everyone in the car seems like a major production! I think my running around days may be over for a little while!
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And to all of you out there that have more kids then I do I tip my hat! I do not know how you do it!
Posts: 601 | Registered: Sep 2002
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I'm in my 16th week, and I've been having this weird pain that mostly occurs about an inch below and to the left of my belly button. Baby kicking shouldn't hurt at this stage, right?
But I'm quite sensitive to pain, so I was thinking that maybe it IS the baby and it's just my pain receptors kicking in as usual. It's a bit of a sharp pain that's almost like an irregular pulse--the pain seems to come in batches for a minute or several. After that happened some last night, I got a similar pain that was persistent on the other side--that hurt much worse and didn't pulse (go on and off) at all. I had to curl up in a ball on my side to get it to go away. I'm pretty sure THAT wasn't the baby.
I've been having the first pain on and off today, and sometimes it's lower, where I imagine the baby actually is. It doesn't feel like worrisome pain, it's not really intense, just more sharp and localized.
Should I worry? Perhaps it's just more round ligament pain? The pain that the doctor identified as round ligament pain last time was lower and on the sides (felt like kidney pain), but I guess you can feel it all over?
Posts: 2880 | Registered: Jun 2004
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posted
I've heard of babies managing to get in just the wrong position to pinch nerves and cause pains like that, but usually we're talking 3d trimester...at this point the baby is still quite tiny. Kicks are usually more like flutters. They can get painful later on when the baby is bigger and kicks a rib or something.
It couldn't hurt to call your doctor and ask, right? I'm sure it's nothing, but that's what the doctor is there for. Posts: 2392 | Registered: Sep 2005
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Yeah, I have a call into the nurse, and I'm sure they'll call me soon.
I figured I might as well call now, since I don't want to be worried about it over the weekend and not have anyone to call.
Posts: 2880 | Registered: Jun 2004
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