Londonmiss - glad that Little Miss has turned for you! I think I must be have the laziest baby in history - the Chicklet has basically been in the heads down bum up position since conception, and although I can feel him moving, judging by the pressure he's exerting on my bladder with his head he's not moving much which i'm taking as a good sign...!!
KitKat - hope your results come soon xx
Brunette - and I used to whinge about taking Elevit, B12 and an antihistamine every day, you poor thing honey! I wouldn't worry about your cold or the other drugs though, I know my GP is very strict about what I can/cannot take so they wouldn't be advising anything for you that's not okay. Hope you feel better soon, i've come down with a cold myself so am sharing your pain... Also - I had my NTS done at 13w2d, but I know you can have your bloods down earlier which speeds the results up significantly - is that an option for you if you're concerned about the timing?
Leabie - there must be something going around with all of us having colds, perhaps we're spreading it by osmosis!! Hope you're feeling better.
S'rose - oh i'm so jealous you're going to NY!! DH and I really wanted to fit in some east cost USA on our trip later this year to Canada but we just can't afford any longer than the 4 weeks we're taking and we can't fit it in. I'll be hoping for a full report complete with photos on a daily basis
Paula - yay, only a couple of days till your scan!!!
Loula - don't be a stranger, come share with us how you're going too!
Mitf - massage itself was just lovely, I just LOVED being able to lie flat on my tummy. I'd seriously consider buying a pregnancy massage table for my next pregnancy so I could sleep like that every night, hehehe!! The whole experience though and the atmosphere, well, not quite as good, but I probably would go back again...
Well we had our last antenatal class this week and it was really quite funny! The midwife went through what to expect AFTER the baby is born - including warning all the males not to get too excited if they have boys if they look very well endowed... as we all probably know, baby's genitals can be quite swollen and enlarged when they're born but reduce to normal size soon after. Apparently she's seen many many males get terribly excited and proud when they first lay eyes on their newborn son's genitals ... All the girls had a big chuckle when she said that and all the guys looked a bit sheepish, hehehe!
Otherwise, thought perhaps i'd start packing my hospital bags soon so i'm all ready. I feel a little ridiculous being ready so early, but everything else is all ready for the Chicklet - i've even washed all his clothes/sheets etc, so nothing else really to do...
Anyway, i'm off to research new computers as i've been whingeing long enough about this one. Hope everyone is having a lovely Thursday xx
Gees, I go out of town for a week and then it takes me an hour (on my boss' time, of course) to catch up on everything!
Firstly, congrats and welcome to KitKat, Loula, Leabie & S'Rose!!! (S'Rose, I LOVE your enthusiasm and excitement!)
Renee - happy belated birthday for the other day, hope you enjoyed yourself.
Miss K - the Wesley DOES sound good, but Nth West is less than a 5 minute drive from my house so I figure that I'll probably be at home when I go into labour and that will be quite handy. I currently work 5 minutes away from the Wesley so if I was working right through to the date then I might consider going with Wesley.
KitKat, regarding EDD - when I went for my first scan and we got the photo printout of little munchkin, the EDD in the bottom corner said 19th December, and that I was 6w3d. If I go back to date of last period, I was actually 7weeks on that day, and therefore in my signature I've put the date that I have worked out - 15th December.
Brunette - I am so pleased that your health insurance got sorted out and that you escaped in the crazy wheelchair for a few hours! Did you manage to fit in any baby shopping? How much of a tease are those catalogues that have turned up in the junk mail lately! BabiesRUs (ToysRUs) had some great prices, so I'll be sure to jump onto bubs.com.au and pramwarehouse and compare. I bought a Baba Sling from Ebay the other day ($26 plus postage, hardly used) and the lady I bought it off used it for her twins so I thought of you and wondered if you had worked out how you're going to carry your pair around? The Sling is the only thing I've bought so far as am waiting for 12weeks to hit (my birthday!) and I am still wearing those horseshoe earrings for us both.
Lise - a boy! Imagine how simple the 'facts of life' talk is gonna be ;-)
Mitf - my hubby proposed to me at the base of Mt Fuji. I absolutely fell in love with Japan and we'd love to go back once bub is born and a bit bigger. Where did you go? Would love to hear about your experiences over there.
Mift, LondonMiss & Lise - when did you need to book your hospital? Do I have plenty of time, or is this something that should be booked as early as possible?
So pregnancy yoga - when should I start it, and Glenny & Brunette & MissK, did you want to sign up together? I'm not much of an exerciser much to my gym junkie DH's dismay. Also, re the classes at the hospital, did we want to do that as well. I was talking to someone at the wedding that I just went to up north and he said (the father of the baby) that classes were a waste of time, so I'm in two minds about it. [B]LondonMiss[B] - did you do them, any good?
Glenny - I think I'm resigned to the fact that I'll stay with Titiz, I've got the scan on Monday arvo which would be 10 and a half weeks (by my count, or 10 weeks by FS count). Should hear the heartbeat. I feel like such a ditz, because at our first scan he turned on the doppler and there was a heartbeat. So Dirk and I turned to each other and had a lovey dovey moment. It was only about a fortnight ago that I was talking to Kris next door to Titiz and she informed me that it would have been MY heartbeat - DOH!! Would have really appreciated him telling us that what we were hearing was not our baby's heartbeat.
So, at 10 weeks I've not put on any weight. I've found that my appetite hasn't been that great, I don't feel like cooking so have been relying on convenience meals (and a lot of deep fried stuff), so I'm a bit worried that I'm not giving the baby the best start in life especially at this really crucial stage. In WTEWYE, there's a pregnancy diet but there's just so much on there that I need to be eating, and I just can't do it.
LondonMiss - I think it was you that was saying that there's been zero or one case of listeria which makes me feel heaps better as I've avoided salad (in pre-made sandwiches) like the plague, hence I'm not really getting many greens in my diet as I'm too tired at night to prepare something myself. DH and I ordered and antipasto plate the other day and I didn't eat the cold meat, salami, fetta etc. I ended up with roast capsicum and artichoke hearts - lucky me ;-)
Oh, regarding the baby book debate, my WTEWYE is the Aussie edition and I got it for $15 at Aldi, so it wasn't much to outlay. Hanging out though for another week and then the next book in the True Blood series is released (WaaaHooo!) and then I can read something other than baby baby baby!).
So much has happened so I've probably missed some vital things that have happened in everyone's life for the last week, sorry!
Take care everyone, don't work too hard ;-)
Chrissy xx
Last edited by CK77; May 20th, 2010 at 04:30 PM.
: spelling like a pregnant woman
a) booking a hospital. I think I did it about 12 weeks and then felt offended that no one saw me until I was about 18 weeks. I felt totally rejected after going through IUI and seeing a doc practically everyday! So don't feel offended.... it's just a sign the docs think you are 'normal' which is a very new and odd feeling!
b) yoga - as soon as possible for maximum benefit. I did it for two reasons: one, firstly the physical side - lots of squats and so on are shown to be really good in labour and the special focus on preg stops you doing anything too dramatic that might damage your ligaments. Secondly, the mental side. I have grand plans of avoiding pain medication well, other than a bit of gas and air and I hardly think that counts in the scheme of things : ) and yoga is really good for helping you read your body and get used to the constant adjustments you'll do in labour. And thirdly, just thought, I've met three ladies the same week as me, so it's a good network thing... I mean, you can't really ask your workmates, "Did your nipples change colour this week?" can you. So useful to meet other preg people in the area.
c) classes, yes I'm definitely finding them useful. There is obviously a problem in getting it at the right level - two people in our class seem to know more about child birth than the midwife and are insanely irritating with it; some people ask questions like "is that actually when the babies born then?" when she's been explain pushing and crowning for an hour... yeesh.... For me, a couple of tips that she's given us have made it worthwhile (even though I am a good girl and have studied my books comprehensively!) so for example one of the things she said that really struck me, was no matter how good your birth partner and or your husband is, and your medical team; ultimately this is a journey you are making on your own. You are pushing a baby out of your body. And to make sure that you do it the way you want it, and make sure you are number one, and if you can, take time on the journey to be on your own even for a few minutes. I think this was rather empowering (at the risk of sounding mushy) and made me think that it's not anyone else's strength you are going to rely on, but your own. The other thing she told us a lot about were the hormones in birth. In this instance, adrenalin is the enemy and can slow things down and is basically caused by fear. So a lot of what she talked about was identifying your fears, and working out ways to deal with them, and so on. For me, a key part is recognising that pain is not the same as fear. Personally, I think the "birth is like a butterfly landing on your fanny" school of hippy childbirth is a dangerous lie. Far better from my headspace, to accept that pain is inevitable and not part of some evil plan God has for my perineum. So, a long winded answer to your question but there's also many practical reasons to go - e.g. breastfeeding info, parking info (5 min contractions not the time to find out that the machine only takes 20c pieces or something), when to come to hospital (this bit was particularly useful) and a few stories of 'births I have seen' which were really interesting.
d) Listeria. Had a really long chat with my auntie over the weeknd. She's a food hygeine specialist with what used to be the Ministry of Agriculture in the UK. She said that listeria was once a very high cause of still births but that this was primarily in Europe where farmers were making soft cheese using wooden moulds that were first made in about 1250, then turning them by hand, on shelves that were last cleaned about the time Napoleon was invading Russia. She has a very high opinion of properly cleaned metal shelves and automated cheese turning technology that she has checked is used in most australian fromageries (I didn't ask her to check this, she just did it herself ha ha). So whilst she's certainly not advocating that we all go out and start scoffing the brie, it really depends on what sort of cheese you are eating. She says a baked (bubbling) cheese is completely fine (which was lucky as DH and I had just eaten a baked brie for dinner : ). Her main advice on whatever you are eating - cook it correctly, and eat things that are either hot or cold and never lukewarm esp when you are out.
e) Nutrition. I'm pretty useless on this... my new rule is that one meal a day has to have good nutrition... three is too difficult to organise. If the rest is chocolate well, baby will just have to survive on that!! Perhaps try a watercress salad with your dinner? I sneak good nutrition in - like tip half a punnet of raspberries on my cereal or something. Aunty told me that with most brands, there's as much nutrition in frozen berries as fresh ones and about quarter of the price.
f) heartbeats... ha ha I did exactly the same thing. The doc explained it to me on the last visit - there's three things to listen for: your own heartbeat, the blood in the placenta which sounds a bit like a water swoosh, and the babies heart beat which is much quicker and quite staccato, a bit like marching music if you know what I'm on about!
Sorry, that's a really long and waffley answer to your questions. Hope it helps, feel free to disregard some/ all of it!!
The good news is that DH has worked at home today and I haven't yet killed him, although I have glanced to check the size of the patio a couple of times just in case.... I hope you are all travelling well x
but so wonderful to see..
a big hello to all you new girl joing this thread and i wish you all a wonderful pg.
also a huge hi to all my old girls its been a while but ive just been reading up on some posts and your all going so good.thinking of you all girls chins up and enjoy the ride
love smithy
KitKat, not long to go will your first scan on Tuesday. You and DH will love it. Do you mind if I ask what our "chronic high blood pressure" is? I'm normally 120/80 but since being pregnant have been 140/80.
Renee, glad your MS was better yesterday and you had an enjoyable breakfast.
Chrissy, thanks for looking into yoga classes. As I said earlier, I don't think I can do them but am still keen to do antenatal classes together if possible. Some nights wil be difficult for my DH as on certain weeks he works nights (Tues, Wed and Thurs) and plays touch footy on Monday nights, so it might have to be weekends for us anyways. I don't know when we are supposed to start them but a book I read about twins said I should do mine early, like around week 16? Anyway, I'll do some research into this.
Lise - aka "Buttercup" - thanks for relating your experience about your nuchal scan test. I do admit to being worried due to age. It's so unfair that we're considered over the hill when you reach 35!
Hello all. Don't worry, most classes don't start until about week thirty/ thirty two although best to be signed up to them by week 20. In answer to a belly button question, yes, I had pain under mine for a while and now what looks like a dark smudgy ring of make up after a big night out round it. I'm assuming its just bruises from stretching but I like to think of it as my fairy ring like you get in a lawn. No one in the medical profession seems the slightest bit interested, so I just rub cream on it... my best friend from the UK arrives today and I've got a sore throat and a sore head (I think we know the source of the crime) and I'm miserable. And I'm fed up I'm miserable on such a day.... : (
Brunette - my chronic high blood pressure has varied in severity over time but I've had it since I was a teenager (it runs in my family and there doesn't seem to be any cause other than genetics as I'm not overweight, work out (and used to be very athletic at the time it was first diagnosed), never ate salt until I met my DH, etc). Anyway, when they first caught it when I was a teenager, my BP was around 160/100. All through my early 20s it was like that; sometimes I'd go to the doctor and it would be as high as 170/100, which is really bad. For years the doctors had a hard time getting it under control even with medication, and it would go up to the levels I just mentioned. Finally I found a GP (who was also a cardiologist) who was more aggressive in treating it. After that, as long as I was on medication, it hovered around 110/70. I should note that this doc takes a very aggressive view on treating high blood pressure; under my old doc, my BP, when I was on medication, was in the 130-140/90 range, but this doc thought that was still too high so he kept fiddling with my meds till we got it to 110/70, which he thought was perfect. Interestingly, I talked to him about what would happen with my drugs and everything should I get pregnant around the time DH and I first started TTC (way back in 2004!). The doc mentioned that I wouldn't be able to take my drugs b/c they can cause birth defects. In fact, he had a patient who was a Broadway actress who insisted on staying on hers when she was PG b/c it also controlled her stage fright, and her baby was born with a hole in its heart. However, the doc said that the pregnancy hormone tends to naturally suppress blood pressure during, at least, the first half of pregnancy, so he said that his first instinct would be for me to go off all of my drugs when I got PG and just monitor things. We never got beyond that in any discussions since I never got pregnant before I left New York.
When I moved to Australia, my BP ended up lowering a bit on its own -- must be the more relaxed Gold Coast environment compared to working at a high-stress job in NYC - lol. My new GP here in Aus. clearly did not appreciate how bad my BP had been despite my telling him my entire medical history and giving him a copy of my chart, so it took a bit of fighting over the course of several months for him to give me the prescriptions I needed. It seemed that he couldn't believe that a young, healthy-looking person needed those kinds of pills; he just told me to exercise more and cut out salt, which was a total joke considering that I never even touched salt until I met my DH, and used to work out 3 hours a day with the varsity crew team when I was in uni (at which point my BP was very high). Anyway, I finally convinced him that I needed some prescriptions even if he wouldn't refill the exact dosages my NYC doctor had been prescribing (very frustrating), and we got things back kind of under control (keeping in mind that he thought it was ok when my BP was at 135/90, whereas my old doctor was adamant that that level was too high). Then we started TTC more seriously again, so I had a whole new rigamarole when I asked the doctor what medicines would be safe if I was TTC (since I was back on the one that causes the birth defects). Basically, the doctor was clueless. I can't believe he had never had to consider the suitability of BP drugs in pregnancy before. He even told me the drugs I was on were fine, although I knew they weren't. After he told me they were class A (safe in pregnancy), I came back with printouts showing that they were both class D (teratogenic -- ie, causes birth defects), and he was just like, "Oh, I guess I was wrong." Great, and imagine what would have happened if I had beenn dumb enough to listen to you, you dope! I brought in print outs from legitimate medical websites listing the handful of blood pressure drug that are known to be safe in pregnancy (Aldomet/methyldopa and labetalol, in case anyone is curious) and he poo-pooed them. Instead, he told me I had to ask an OB/GYN what I should take and gave me a referral to the most clueless OB I've ever met, who just said, "Why are you asking me? Your GP is the person who should know this". Thanks for taking my $220 for nothing, doc. (This was the same OB, by the way, who at the same visit refused to do a pap smear, which I needed, and had me do an FSH test but then didn't tell me till 17 months later when I finally went back for the pap smear that I had high FSH, should have started TTC with AC the year before, and would have no success with IVF b/c the stim drugs wouldn't work on me. Like, thanks for being so on the ball to tell me this at the time I did the test, dude.) Anyway, I went back to the GP with a big stack of research, thanked him for wasting $220 of mine for nothing, and pretty much told him that since no one here seems to have a clue about high blood pressure in pregnancy, you're just goig to have to do what my research says: put me on Aldomet (generic name methyldopa) so that if I fall PG and don't find out right away my baby won't be injured. He then, finally, tapped away at a few medical sites on the computer while I was sitting there and says to me, as though I had never told him about this drug before, "According to my research I'm going to switch you to this drug called Aldomet!". DUH. Anyway, I did switch to Aldomet. It did an OK job of controlling my HBP, but, unfortunately, I had to go off it because I got this bad form of anemia that is potentially life-threatening that is a known complication of the drug in 25% of women who take it. (Then the same GP started telling me I had to spend $$$ working with a hematologist to figure out what was causing the anemia! Needless to say, I refused to go to the hematologist and the anemia cleared itself up once I went off the drug.)
Right after the Aldomet debacle I started working at a local university and was able to start seeing this great GP at the uni medical clinic. This guy, like my old cardiologist, has a much more "modern" view that even levels in the 130s/90 range are too high. So he put me back on the stronger drugs I was on before and I got back down to the 110/70 range. Before I started fertility treatment, he just told me to let him know right away if I got pregnant (since he knew I was trying), and that we would adjust my drug regimen then. Interestingly, when he gave me my referral for IVF, he just told me to mention my HBP to the FS, and indicated that the FS would tell me what to do about the drugs if I got pregnant. However, even though the GP mentioned the issue in my referral, the FS never once even mentioned my BP to me. Granted, I didn't bother asking him either except for at my first meeting with him when I mentioned that it might be an issue, so I can't pin all the blame on him. I should have insisted on speaking to him about it at some point before I got my BFP, but I somehow thought I would jinx things if I did, so I didn't. Anyway, clearly high blood pressure in pregnancy is a bit of a black hole in that the GPs think it's the pregnancy docs' problem, and the OBs seem to think that garden variety high blood pressure (not pre-eclampsia) is the GP's issue.
SO, after this long and convoluted tale, what's ended up happening with me is that I realized about 2 days after my positive blood test that I better stop taking my meds, so I just stopped them cold turkey before I even had a chance to talk to a doctor. I realized that very early pregnancy is the exact time when they do the most damage, and, in fact, I'm kicking myself that I took them at all during the 2nd week of the TWW. Well, I just have to pray that 2 weeks or so on the drugs didn't do the embie too much harm. Then I went in to my GP this past Tuesday to let him know I was PG and discuss the drugs. First, he was shocked that the FS had blown off the stuff he mentioned in the referral about my HBP. He said the FS should I have been on top of that even if I wasn't nagging him about it. After the confusion my with old GP and old OB/GYN, I just said that I wasn't surprised. Second, he mentioned that his natural instinct would have been to put me on Aldomet, since it's safe in PG, but that he couldn't since he already knew I couldn't tolerate it. (How nice to have a doctor who listens to what I tell him, unlike my original GP down here!). Then, he said that his next instinct was to keep me off drugs at least for the first trimester and see how I did. I mentioned to him that that was my old cardiologist's plan, based on the fact that HBP supposedly naturally goes down in PG, and he agreed. However, he said this would all be dependent on my BP actually lowering on its own. If not, he said that he would refer me to a cardiologist to see ASAP, with the idea that the cardiologist would find some other drug to put me on and would monitor me closely during the PG along with whoever I get as my OB. If my BP was OK, however, he said that he would be comfortable not to give me the referral and just to continue monitoring me himself. So, the big moment was when he took my BP. On his first try, it was 136/90. He was that was too high, and that if I was consistently over 135/90, he would be sending me to the cardiologist. 5 minutes later, he took it again, and it was down to 127/79. He was happy with that. He told me I'd have to monitor it daily, however, and if it crept up to the point where it was consistently over 135/90, I had to call him immediately. Since then I've had readings the past few days in the 120/80 range, including 118/80 when I went back to the med clinic on Friday (2 days ago) at the doc's request and had his nurse take it, and 120/72 yesterday when I got back from acupuncture. I've never had my BP that low without medication since I was about 13 years old, so I guess it's true that pregnancy really does naturally lower blood pressure. As for you, Brunette, it's interesting that yours has gone up, but I suppose with all the stress you've been under with your pregnancy, perhaps it's not surprising. Is your doctor concerned about it? 140/80 really isn't all that high, esp since your systolic # (80) is still looking great, and I suspect that if it's only like that for a few months he probably won't do more than monitor you for pre-eclampsia. As for me, that's my biggest concern: the fact that people with chronic HBP like me have a heightened risk of pre-eclampsia. But I'm not going to worry about that until I'm a lot farther along.
Sorry for the long story, but I thought this might be interesting not only for you, Brunette, but also for anybody else dealing with blood pressure issues. (Actually, Brunette, I suspect this level of detail was way more than you wanted to know, but I still put it in just in case it helps somebody out there!!)
LondonMiss - sorry you're feeling sick. I hope you are nevertheless able to enjoy having your best friend out for a visit!
Smithy - nice to meet you.
MissK - thanks for the welcome and nice to meet you!
Lise - you gave me a laugh with the Buttercup story. It must feel quite odd indeed to be leaking before the baby is even born!
Renee - just congratulating you on managing to make it out to breakfast. I hope you continue feeling good!
A big "hi" to Glenny, Leabie, CK77, and everybody else.
Smithy~ Wow,Little Charlie has grown so fast! She is such a pretty little girl too.You are right in being so proud.She is adorable.
Londonmiss~ I hope your feeling better soon.I was looking at your ticker and it seems like yesterday that we were all so early on in our pregnancies.It seems ( well at least for me) to have gone so quickly.I bet now that i have said that it will S-L-O-W right down. Its weird for me because i know i have 10.5 weeks to go but if little miss peanut doesnt grow i might only have 4 weeks to go.Fingers crossed i have the 10 weeks for her sake.(health wise)
Lise~ I am 29.5 weeks and have gained 9 kilo's. I hope i can put on some more.Since my appointment and having been told...YES..TOLD to eat more mars bars (due to my perfect GTT) i have been eating like crazy.I can hardly move im so bloated.If it helps bub to get fatter then all the better.Im sure i will soon rolling instead of strolling down the street..LOL.
Hoping all is well.Not long to go for you either.Will have to log back onto fb to see your bub when he is born.Has Kyra posted pics of Tristan?
Miss K~ I cant believe your 16 weeks already! Well done.That has gone quickly too.
Well i hope everyone is doing well.
As for the weight gain/loss questions by the newbies,i lost 2 kgs in the first trimester and didnt start gaining til 12 weeks.I didnt have sickness,just lost my appetite in a huge way!
Belly Button question???....mine started to hurt at 20 weeks when the uterus reaches that point.My ob said iits normal for itching and pain there as its just stretching.Like London miss,i have a brown smudge where my outie once was.Its now flat.
Well after a long day of shopping and eating im going to do some ebay shopping for more sculpting supplies.
All the girls had a big chuckle when she said that and all the guys looked a bit sheepish, hehehe!
but so wonderful to see..
- thanks for relating your experience about your nuchal scan test. I do admit to being worried due to age. It's so unfair that we're considered over the hill when you reach 35!
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