The Mom-To-Be Thread

[AppleBiter]

I never wore them- they would get damp and then my nipples would get chafed and I worried about bacteria growth- my breast milk seemed to carry a much higher than normal sugar content, and I had this really vicious complex about making sure that my breasts were clean enough to eat off of- can't imagine why, lol.

I just carried a couple extra shirts and bras around in the diaper bag, along with a washcloth and soap in a litle bag.

Ouch! I don't blame ya. I'm concerned about that, too. (That whole "clean enough to eat off of" thing, that is.) I wonder if I should use some sort of special soap or no soap, just water or what. You know, I worked in child care, caring for infants, for 5 years, so there are a lot of things about babies and their care that I already know. It's little things like this that I never considered before that keep cropping up. lol

 

[FallingToFly]

Ouch! I don't blame ya. I'm concerned about that, too. (That whole "clean enough to eat off of" thing, that is.) I wonder if I should use some sort of special soap or no soap, just water or what. You know, I worked in child care, caring for infants, for 5 years, so there are a lot of things about babies and their care that I already know. It's little things like this that I never considered before that keep cropping up. lol

I used plain Dial anti-bacterial soap. Then again, I used plain Dial antibac on the babies too... and I took them in the shower with me, and my husband would come get them when he was clean, and I could get myself clean and go. The baby baths never really worked for us- my kids would scream bloody murder the whole time, but if they went in the bath or shower with me, where they got to be held while they were being subjected to the indignity of wet stuff that wasn't food, they were happy.

Another great trick- while you're in the hospital, after the baby is born, don't send the baby to the nursery unless you have to, and don't let the baby stay in the bassinet to sleep. Let the baby sleep on your chest in the bed with you. If you start from the beginning sleeping with them, you very quickly learn to nurse him while you sleep, cradle him even when unconscious, etc. The nurses had a fit about it when I did it, but I just stood my ground and they would back off. Another side benefit- your baby will always sleep longer and more soundly if they're sleeping with you. Your warmth and the biologic sounds your body makes reassures them because they're familiar.

Oh, and when you get home, suggest that the exhausted daddy take a nap in his favorite recliner or on the bed with the baby while you stay awake to check on them every so often. That way both parents learn to fall back into the instinctual protective mode with a baby in the bed.

(Yes, I was and still am a firm believer in letting baby sleep with you for at least the first few months. There is so much good that comes from it, and the only detraction is the urban myth that mothers roll over and squish the baby... without a documented case that I've ever heard of, to support it.)

 

[Aurora Black]

Another great trick- while you're in the hospital, after the baby is born, don't send the baby to the nursery unless you have to, and don't let the baby stay in the bassinet to sleep. Let the baby sleep on your chest in the bed with you. If you start from the beginning sleeping with them, you very quickly learn to nurse him while you sleep, cradle him even when unconscious, etc. The nurses had a fit about it when I did it, but I just stood my ground and they would back off. Another side benefit- your baby will always sleep longer and more soundly if they're sleeping with you. Your warmth and the biologic sounds your body makes reassures them because they're familiar.

I am so making a note of this. It's sweet and it makes sense.

 

[AppleBiter]

I used plain Dial anti-bacterial soap. Then again, I used plain Dial antibac on the babies too... and I took them in the shower with me, and my husband would come get them when he was clean, and I could get myself clean and go. The baby baths never really worked for us- my kids would scream bloody murder the whole time, but if they went in the bath or shower with me, where they got to be held while they were being subjected to the indignity of wet stuff that wasn't food, they were happy.

Another great trick- while you're in the hospital, after the baby is born, don't send the baby to the nursery unless you have to, and don't let the baby stay in the bassinet to sleep. Let the baby sleep on your chest in the bed with you. If you start from the beginning sleeping with them, you very quickly learn to nurse him while you sleep, cradle him even when unconscious, etc. The nurses had a fit about it when I did it, but I just stood my ground and they would back off. Another side benefit- your baby will always sleep longer and more soundly if they're sleeping with you. Your warmth and the biologic sounds your body makes reassures them because they're familiar.

Oh, and when you get home, suggest that the exhausted daddy take a nap in his favorite recliner or on the bed with the baby while you stay awake to check on them every so often. That way both parents learn to fall back into the instinctual protective mode with a baby in the bed.

(Yes, I was and still am a firm believer in letting baby sleep with you for at least the first few months. There is so much good that comes from it, and the only detraction is the urban myth that mothers roll over and squish the baby... without a documented case that I've ever heard of, to support it.)

I appreciate the advice. I will definitely need to invest in some dial soap! As far as the baby sleeping with us, that's something that we've actually decided against, for our own reasons, but we do plan to have the bassinet in our room at least for the first month. And, I plan on having the baby room-in, at the hospital, if at all possible. We won't find out, for sure, if we can do that until we have our child birth class, but that's coming up soon. I hope they'll let me do it.

 

[ABSTRUSE]

I'm 20 shades of disappointed, this morning. I was supposed to have the 3D sonogram, yesterday. I had waited over a month for that appointment and I was SO excited . . . and then . . . pppttttttttthhhhh.

We got to the doctor's office early, like we usually do. We sat and waited . . and waited . . and waited (this is unusual for my doctor, but since it was a sonogram, I figured they'd probably make me wait). Finally, they call our names. We go to the front and there's the sonogram tech.

"Hello," she says, cheerfully.

I reply, stupidly, thinking everything is fine, "Hi! How are you?"

She lowers her head. "Not so good."

She then proceeds to explain to me that the 3D sonogram machine just happened to have a complete meltdown in the minutes that we spent waiting in the lobby. We'll have to reschedule.

Okay, I know it's such a whiney baby thing to do, but I almost burst into tears. It's just that I'd been waiting soooooo looooong and I had been soooo excited.

Anyway, so (thank God!) they had an opening for Monday morning. We took that. HOPEFULLY, things will go as planned on Monday. But, I'm not getting my hopes up. *pout*

Oh crap.........Monday's not too far away...and then you can tell us the good news!

 

[AppleBiter]

Oh crap.........Monday's not too far away...and then you can tell us the good news!

I know . . . I'm just being a big 'ole baby-pants and pouting my ass off, right now. lol I will definitely return and share the news, once I get the pictures done. I'm still not getting my hopes up, though. *le sigh* Just in case.

 

[ABSTRUSE]

I know . . . I'm just being a big 'ole baby-pants and pouting my ass off, right now. lol I will definitely return and share the news, once I get the pictures done. I'm still not getting my hopes up, though. *le sigh* Just in case.

You're entitled to be a pouting mom.

 

[AppleBiter]

You're entitled to be a pouting mom.

 

[Aurora Black]

Wtf?

These are so corny.

http://health.howstuffworks.com/adam-200109.htm

http://health.howstuffworks.com/adam-200108.htm

 

[Aurora Black]

God, make it stop!

http://health.howstuffworks.com/adam-200107.htm

 

[matriarch]

I thought this was interesting, as someone who suffered dramatically with morning sickness in both pregnancies......7 months out of the 9 with the first, and the whole 9 months with the second.


Morning sickness 'regulates diet'

Morning sickness might have evolved to ensure pregnant women do not digest too much unhealthy food, say scientists.

They found evidence that nausea and vomiting in pregnancy is associated with high intake of sugar, alcohol, oils and meat.

In contrast, cereals were least likely to trigger sickness.

The University of Liverpool analysis of 56 previous studies in 21 countries appears in the Royal Society's Biological Journal.

Morning sickness occurs in the first three months of up to 80% of pregnancies.

Until recently, it was thought to be simply an unfortunate by-product of dramatic hormonal changes during early pregnancy.

However, research has suggested that morning sickness might have positive consequences - such as a reduced risk of miscarriage.

Toxins

The researchers believe it is possible that the pregnant human body may have evolved an aversion to foods containing high levels of toxins, and that this may have carried over into modern living.

They suggest that the body might reject meat because of the relatively high risk that it might harbour disease-causing agents.

Conversely, the low level of plant toxins in cereals may make them particularly unlikely to trigger nausea.

However, they say the body's rejection of sugars and oils is less easy to explain.

Lead researcher Dr Craig Roberts said: "While there may be no particular harm in eating, say, meat, now that we have refrigeration and best before dates, our bodies may be pre-programmed by evolution to avoid these particular foodstuffs in the first trimester.

"It may be that the nausea women feel towards certain foodstuffs could be helpful, and that although it is inconvenient and miserable, their nausea could be nature's way of avoiding problems in pregnancy for both mother and foetus."

Dr Maggie Blott, a consultant obstetrician at London's King's College Hospital, said: "I can understand why mother nature might do this.

"Morning sickness is always worst in the first three months, which is when the most important part of a foetus's development is happening."

Dr Blott said while it was sensible for a woman to eat healthily in pregnancy, it was more important to avoid alcohol, smoking or drugs.

It was also important to take folic acid supplements, and to avoid high levels of vitamin A.

---------------

I was told by my doctor, way back in 1976, that women who had morning sickness rarely miscarried. He was trying to find a way to make me feel better. Impossible when nausea overwhelms you the minute you try and sit up in bed, and for every consecutive movement after that, for most of the day. The only respite I had, was in the early evening. That was usually the only time I could actually eat anything.

Happy days.