Premmie Mums #4

Hi lovely ladies, here's a new thread for you to all keep on chatting.

Last thread is here

OOHHH,
I'm first!!!

Bec, good to hear you are ok, glad that you have some symptoms!

We are good here. Family Care cottage are coming out today to see if they can help me with their problem child (and mine) Ivy. The ECHN has refferred her so I guess she is in sleep school today! Hehe, I don't like their chances!

Wishing your *problem* daughter a good day at sleep school today!!

AWWW thanks Kirsty!
She has baffled them all day and they have taken (rapid) leave from my screaming problem child!! LOL

Hey peoples,

Not much going on over here, Anneliese still drives me mad... Having probs with bowel movements... one every 7-10 days. So on coloxyl drops, if no improvement, off to paed's... Yay!!

Hows everyone been??

I put some new piccies up if anyone is interested. In the hyperlink, birth and beyond site

Well as of today the bf is almost come to an end. I have been persisting for weeks but with no success. I feel i have tried all there is to try and Nixon is still not happy bf. The only time we seem to work it is first feed in the morning. So from tomorrow i am going to just bf him first feed, then express throughout the day (until i get sick of that)
I feel a little sad i couldnt keep going but also extremley proud that we lasted for so long! To think Nixon had to learn how to suck and he did so well i am extremley proud of him.
I was about to look at your new pics tiff but Nixon is a calling so will try come back later to have a look at them.
Hope evreyone else is well, speak to you soon

hang in there Nic and be very proud of yourself and Nixon for how far you have come.

I am still expressing for Joel and it works fine.He just tries to bite me - LOL no teeth even and it hurts.He knows how to press my buttons.It doesn't take too much time. Whatever happens Nixon has had over 5 months b/feeding and you have done your best and more by the sound of it.:hug:

how is everyone else ?

Good morning....my name is Beccy.

I have a 4yo DD who was born at 36wks and didn't require any SCU...the only thing we found was that she had trouble with the sucking mechanism, but after my milk came in she fed perfectly til she was almost 2yrs.

I am nearly 32 weeks and I went into early labour last Monday. The hospital was able to stop labour and the Paediatrician gave me 2 shots of steroids to develop the baby's lungs incase the baby had to be born early.

I am hoping to get to 36wks at least....but I am terrified that I won't get there!

Can anyone give me some advice on what would happen if bubby came early? and can I try to breastfeed once bubby is strong enough? Will I just have to express each day at the hospital until I can try? Any success stories out there???

Thank you so much..
Beccy :)

Hi Beccy!
Congrats on your pregnacy. Congrats on making it to 32 weeks.
My twinnies were born at 30 weeks and as soon as they were off the oxygen, they were allowed to attempt 1 BF a day. I was encouraged to start expressing right from when they were born. First hand expressing and then by pump.
THey were given the EBM through a naso gastric tube until they graduated to suck feeds.
Noah never really took to the breast and so i continued to express for him until he was four months old. I fed Ivy until six months of age.
It is possible to BF a prem.
Ivy got the idea really quickly and just went from strength to strength. The frustrating thing for me was only being allowed to attempt once a day, then twice etc. It's because they get too tired.

At 32 weeks and with the steroids, hopefully your baby won't need any help to breathe or if he/she does then it should be minimal. Probably CPAP, which is a thing that looks like snorkels that pushes oxygen into the babies lungs. It als has a wet pack, which makes everything moist.
Baby might have to go into a humidicrib and may need to have lights because prems are often jaundiced.
he/she will most probably need a feeding tube in the nose.
There are lots of photos on Ivy and Noah's site if you want to look but there is also a really good site calle Austprem. It is an Aussie Victorian site and looks after premmie families. They'll be able to give you heaps of advice and support.
Welcome to our little group though. I hope that you make it to 36 weeks.

Tiff ~ thank you very much. You answered everything so perfectly. I really appreciate hearing about what could be...just to prepare myself.

Yes, the Paed was wonderful and said that the steroids that he gave me would be enough to sufficiently develop the baby's lungs so that if it was born now it would have no breathing difficulties! Thank goodness.

I am feeling more and more positive everyday and, I have my fingers (and legs crossed)... LOL!

Thanks... I will have a look at the websites as soon as I get time today!

Cheers
Beccy :)

Beccy I had James at 32weeks & I had had the steroid injections for his lungs. In the first few moments after he was born he had trouble breathing so they took him straight up to NICU but by the time they got him up there he was breathing by himself so only needed a humidicrib to help him maintain his body temperature.

Hi Beccy,

I had my son at 33weeks. i had the steriod injections but the 2nd one was only about 8hrs b4 i had him and dont know that it had time to get to him. He had some fluid on his lungs and they started him with CPAP ( which is continuos positive airway pressure) but the was fully ventilated (tube from his mouth into his lungs) for 4 days when he was still working a bit to hard.
Most of us girls on here have pics of our bubs in NICU & SCN on our websites so just getting a look of what things go on may help.
i was able to walk through special care b4 giving birth & helped us to understand what goes on in there.
Not long after i had my boy a friend of mine had her boy @ 32weeks. But he did not need any help breathing. At 33 weeks i would told the average size is between 1.8- 2kg, he was almost 2.3kg
in regards to feeding. i think babys dont get their sucking reflex until 34-35weeks, so as Tiff said he/she may start with a tube into the nose & you expressing and gradually build on that.
i hope bubs can stay in there for atleast another 4 weeks for you. we will all b here to support u and offer and help we can. i just joined Austprem too and they r very supportive too. All the best Beccy

Hi Trish,
how are the boys going anyway? so is Joel always on a bottle then & Sam bf?

we are heading to Sydney on Thursday for a week and a half. Will just be hanging out with all our family & friends and we are getting Nixon christened on the 1st October.

Tiff- love the new pics, I LOVE those little outfits, were they from Target? I seen them a few times when nixon was only a month or two old & neally bought i think there is a dragon one? hehe they are great!

I said it in your thread but CONGRATULATIONS Rae!! cool both you and Bec first bubs are the same age & now u will be going through No#2 together!

Carrie? Haven't heard from you in a while, how is Kyla going? Hopefully over the gastro again and healthy & happy.
Simone- when do u come back from Perth? i tried giving Nixon some prune juice when he wasnt seeming to poo much, not sure if it helped or not but maybe worth trying!

Nic,
Yeah, we got them from Target! I loved the dragon one too but David thought seeing as we live in the county and Ivy just HAD to be a chicken, a cow (or Bull) would be appropriate for Noah!! hehe.

Sorry to hear that you are struggling with BFing. Don't beat yourself up about it though. You have done an amazing job, feeding him for this long. It's so hard with a premmie baby.
Hope the expressing goes well.

Hey girls :)

Beccy...my DS was born at 32 weeks. We had a bit of notice that he was going to come early and I was able to have the two steroid injections. They must have done the trick because he was breathing on his own a few hours after his birth. (He was put on CPAP for his first few hours as a precaution). I also expressed all his feeds (he had them through a tube) until he was strong enough to start breastfeeding. We gradually introduced breastfeeds and once he was able to have every feed as a BF, he was allowed to come home. (Total of 4 weeks in hospital). I still had to do a fair bit of expressing when he came home to supplement his feeds as he wasn't a very strong breastfeeder and eventually we had to swap to formula (about 4-5 months) as he just wasn't getting what he needed from the BF's, but he thrived regardless. Anyway, here's hoping that your little bub stays put for many weeks yet in any case! Hang in there bub!

Tiff...the new pics are great! I love the suits too - so cute! They are lovely pics of you with the twins too.

Nic...I second what Tiff said...you have done a fantastic job BFing as long as you have and you should be proud. Good luck with the expressing.

Trish, Kirsty, Carrie, Simone...:hello:

Big news here big news here!!!!

Today Nixon rolled from tummy to his back for the first time!!! hehehe i got so excited (i know when he is a rolly polly around the house i will be wishing he wasnt!) he did it at mothers group!
he has been trying really hard to do it from back to tummy, gets about half way. last night dh were sitting with him encouraging him but today he just did it without even thinking and from his tummy. i put him back and he did it again!

i havent told dh yet, gonna put him on his tummy when he gets home and hope that he does it for him!

WTG Nixon!! :clap:

What a clever boy! Did he do it again for his dad, Nic?

haha Nope he didnt do it for daddy! He didnt want to be on his tummy once he was home! Oh well he will c it soon enough! He was just happy to hear that he did it anyway!

Thank you so much to the beautiful, warm women in here that gave me so much information and support in your posts. It is very much appreciated.

I am going ok atm. Had alot of bad pressure & sharp pains again today...so I've been taking it extra easy this afternoon. I am still very scared that I won't be able to make it to the 36wk mark...but after all the fantastic info you gave me, I feel alot less stressed if the event happened in the next few weeks!

Thank you for your concern and I hope all those gorgeous babies continue to thrive and do so well! :)

Thanks again.
Beccy

Yay Nic!!! What a clever little boy Nixon is!!!!
Sorry that he didn't do it for daddy though!

Beccy, you are very welcome. I'll keep everything crossed that you make it to 36 weeks.
Hope to hear all about your beautiful baby soon. :hug:

Bec, thanks. I love the photos for this month. Ivy has been SO smiley since she started on the pepti junior. All her tummy pain has gone and she is a much more relaxed baby.
Noah is always cute. He just turns it on, especially for the ladies!!!
How is Josh going?

Hi Kirsty :hello: How are you going, hun?

Trish, Carrie, Simone, Rae, Racca, kitten2b, how are you and all your little ones?

Anyone heard from Welshgirl yet?

Thanks Tiff,
actually Nixon rolled for dh thismorning which was nice! dh worked till 2am so when he woke up (i had nixon on the bed just fiunished feeding) Nixon did one for him. Nice thing to wake up to isn't it!
Beccy- glad your bubs is still staying put. so what happened? did u just start having contractions?
yes i was thinking of Welshgirl too, i am assuming she would have had bubs by now, hope they r both well.

Hey everyone...

Nic, im coming back on the red eye on oct 1. With 3 kids, yay... *WOOHOO* to Nixon for rolling :D

Becky, Anneliese was born at 30 weeks due to a uterus infection, she had the steriods when i went into labour at 25 weeks, and i think they worked a treat, as she didnt need anything at birth, she came out screaming!!Needed the humidicrib for a couple of weeks. Breastfed at 31+4w, came home 27 days later, at 34+3w. She's now 15 weeks old (5 weeks corrected) and no probs at all. Most babies do ok once you get over the 30w mark, and you're well over that. I think your bubby should be fine... Every day theyy're in you is a bonus. Sending sticky vibes your way...

Well everyone, I spend saturday night crying, my precious Western Bulldogs got SLAUGHTERED by the Eagles at Subiaco... Luckily Im also an Eagles Fan!! (only partly converted to Doggies for DH!!)

Perth is GORGEOUS, so warm... Makes me kinda sad to come back to melbourne, we never have weather like this!! Normally when i walk out into an overcast and windy day, you expect that cold blast of wind... not here-its WARM!!! OMG i forgot how much i love it here, ill miss it when i go back.. :(

Simone- I am going to sydney tomorrow, coming back on the 2nd.
Actually yesterday here in Melb is was 30!! but i know what u mean about the weather here....
we have Nixon's christening on the 1st, hope all goes well.
Im also meeting up one day with my gf who had a little boy at 32weeks. He is 12weeks old now and from the photos he and Nixon look so alike they could be brothers! my little neice told Nanny she saw Nixon the other day when went to visit her!

Simone ~ thanks for the great info about your little girl. I am taking it day-by-day and I know that the long he/she stays in there, the better it is. Thankyou

Nickers ~ Yes, I was restless one night and then at 1am the contractions started and were 3 mins apart. The hospital gave me Pethadine to quieten everything and 2 huge shots of Steroids to develop the baby's lungs incase I had to deliver....thankfully, everything has settled down and I have been taking it very easy!

Tiggy ~ thanks again. I promise to try and hold out just a little bit longer. Will see what happens.

Thanks again everyone...take care
Beccy

Hi there -
Sorry i've been mia lately - Just been very busy!!
Tiff - I'm so glad to hear that Ivy is doing much better. I had a look at your piccies and they are so gorgeous!!! I love the outfits and both Ivy and Noah look like they're doing beautifully.
Nic- You've done so well with the bf. I hope things pan out with it and that you can make a decision that your happy and content with. YAY on Nixon rolling btw!!! Clever little one!
Beccy - Hi there - glad to see your little one is staying put for the moment!
Kyla was a 28.6 weeker and is now doing great!
Hey Simone, Bec, Rae, Racca and Trish!!
Welshgirl - Hope things are going ok!!

Well things are going well here atm - Kyla's top two teeth are through and one next to the top teeth. She's starting to eat a bit chunkier food and since Sunday has been commando crawling . YAY!!!

OMG, does anyone have days where their babies don't sleep??????

I am going insane! Grizzly grizzly tired babies who don't know what's good for them (or me hehe)
ETA; Carrie! Great to see you in here! Excellent news about Kyla's crawling! How cute.
Did her teeth give her much grief?

Aw Tiff - Hope they give you a rest soon!!!!! I don't know how you do it with twins - I think you must be an amazon woman!
Kyla has actually been great with her teeth - no probs at all!!! And I love that she's crawling.

Hi there,

Well after checking this forum out every so often, I've finally decided to go ahead and post something! :) ...with a little prompting from Rebecca (he he) and even if it is nothing much!

Anyway, Keira was also a premmie (32+3) but is now a healthy one year old.

Hi Mac!
Welcome!
Congrats on Keira turning one!!!!
Can you tell us your premmie story, why Keira was born at 32 weeks?
Hope to get to know you better.

Call me Cats! Couldn't get that one when I signed up!!!

I still don't know why Keira came early. I had a great pregnancy, kept fit and healthy etc.. I went for my regular Prenatal appointment in the morning and everything was fine, then late morning my waters started breaking (at work!!). When I got to the hospital and hooked up to the FHM, it was recording contractions, although all I could feel was a slight backache - nothing really. I was given drugs to try and stop the contractions and the first steroid drug for baby's lungs. When it was showing no signs of stopping, I was transferred to the larger hospital with NICU facilities.

Labour started just after 4am the following morning and after a straightforward 7 hour labour, Keira was born! She had APGAR scores of 8 & 9 and was 2.685kgs (90 percentile for a 32+3 weeker) so I got off lightly with her coming early!!

She developed a Pneumonia and slight Jaundice a few hours later and was very ill for a couple of weeks. I don't know whether it was due to not being able to get that 2nd steroid injection or something else. She eventually pulled through though and has come on from strength to strength since thankfully!

That's about it!!!

Welcome Cats!!

Well, things are going well with Anneliese, she's finally (tmi warning!!) pooing again, so no need for trips to the paed's... She's a grumpy lil sod though, wont sleep unless she's in mummy's arms :) She's been a bit snuffley and unsettled, but i've started giving her a supp feed at the night and its helping her settle a little... Im still breastfeeding, which im really happy about

Nic, you did awesome to breastfeed to 5 months, Especially expressing and bottle feeding. I went crazy just doing that the 7 weeks while Anneliese was in hospital!! You're awesome for going that long, be proudof yourself, supermummy... :D

Hi to everyone else...

Welcome Cats! Wow, Keira had great apgar scores! It must have been a scary few weeks when she had Pneumonia. It's great to hear that she is going well now. She's the same age as my DD Kyla who turned one in Aug (her due date was 7.11.05). How is Keira going with all of her milestones - have you had any issues?
Simone-
Hi there! Good to hear that Anneliese is pooing again!! I know the feeling - Kyla always has probs pooing, although she is slightly better now we still give her senakot every few days! It's great that the BF is going well for you!
Nic- How's things going for you with the BF?

Not much has changed here - Kyla is getting better with the crawling. Otherwise nothing else to report!

Hi there!

Yes, Keira has met all her milestones and the nurse told me at the 'year old' visit, that she's now just above the average height and weight, so I'm thankful of that! She still isn't crawling yet although she wants to, but loves to stand.

How is Kyla with her milestones?

She is a bit slow with her general motor skills - not commando crawling until recently, but otherwise really good. She's also a bit behind the others in my MG with eating - not eating finger food really yet and only just starting to eat things that have lumps.

We had her final hearing test the other week - all was ok in terms of hearing, but each time we have gone her eardrums have been a bit drawn in, meaning her ears are a bit blocked so that she didn't hear the really high and low freq. sounds.
It makes me wonder a bit if she might have a milk allergy - as I do and milk makes my ears blocked...hmmmm.
I love the name Keira btw!

Hey Cats!! (Finally! ;) )

Great to see you posting. You'll love the girls in here - they're a great bunch!

Carrie...that's great news that Kyla is crawling! Good to hear that all is ok with her hearing too.

Tiff...how are things going with you?

Nic...hope you are having a lovely time up our way.

Simone...good to hear that Anneliese is doing better.

Hi to all the other mums & bubs too...

Josh is doing well. He is becoming a lot more independent...crawling off and exploring around the house on his own. He loves to stand and walk along the lounges and tables (and anything that will give him a bit of support!) too. And he has another new trick...dancing! When he hears music, he kneels on the floor and bounces up and down on his bottom. He has a few toys that play music and he loves to push the buttons to make them play and dances when the music starts. It's very cute!

Hi Bec - Wow Josh sounds like he's doing so well. And how cute with the dancing!!
Hope things are going well with the pregnancy.

Hi Everyone :hello:

I am still here and almost 33wks. I had a little accident last night. I slipped over on cordial that my DD had spilt and pulled all the muscles in my tummy. I was in so much pain that the neighbour heard me screaming and raced over and called 000.

I had contractions for a couple of hours (but didn't need drugs this time) and then everything went quiet. Thankfully the baby is fine and is still hanging in there!!! LOL.

Dr gave me all the info and symptoms to look for incase I had torn the placenta from the uterine wall, but there was nothing like that...all is quiet and I am just scuffing around the house taking it extra easy! I've nothing absolutely NOTHING all day...it's wonderful!

How is everyone else doing?

Beccy

Hi Beccy,
Sounds like its time to wrap you up in cotton wool! glad to hear that bubs is sticking in there and doing well.
Take it easy.

beccy, glad to hear that bubs is still in there but u be super carefull!
im having fun in syd, nixon seems to be constipated now (been almost 6days) his farts wreack toi